Functional Architecture of Eye Position Gain Fields in Visual Association Cortex of Behaving Monkey

2003 ◽  
Vol 90 (2) ◽  
pp. 1279-1294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralph M. Siegel ◽  
Milena Raffi ◽  
Raymond E. Phinney ◽  
Jessica A. Turner ◽  
Gábor Jandó
Keyword(s):  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Parietal Lobe ◽  
Association Cortex ◽  
Eye Position ◽  
Visual Response ◽  
Topographic Map ◽  
Functional Architecture ◽  
Visual Association Cortex ◽  
Area 7A

In the behaving monkey, inferior parietal lobe cortical neurons combine visual information with eye position signals. However, an organized topographic map of these neurons' properties has never been demonstrated. Intrinsic optical imaging revealed a functional architecture for the effect of eye position on the visual response to radial optic flow. The map was distributed across two subdivisions of the inferior parietal lobule, area 7a and the dorsal prelunate area, DP. Area 7a contains a representation of the lower eye position gain fields while area DP represents the upper eye position gain fields. Horizontal eye position is represented orthogonal to the vertical eye position across the medial lateral extents of the cortices. Similar topographies were found in three hemispheres of two monkeys; the horizontal and vertical gain field representations were not isotropic with a greater modulation found with the vertical. Monte Carlo methods demonstrated the significance of the maps, and they were verified in part using multiunit recordings. The novel topographic organization of this association cortex area provides a substrate for constructing representations of surrounding space for perception and the guidance of motor behaviors.

Early Coding of Visuomanual Coordination During Reaching in Parietal Area PEc

2001 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 462-467 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefano Ferraina ◽  
Alexandra Battaglia-Mayer ◽  
Aldo Genovesio ◽  
Barbara Marconi ◽  
Paolo Onorati ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Eye Movements ◽  
Neural Activity ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Hand Movement ◽  
Saccadic Eye Movements ◽  
Movement Direction ◽  
Association Cortex ◽  
Central Position ◽  
Eye Position ◽  
Visuomotor Coordination

The parietal mechanisms of eye-hand coordination during reaching were studied by recording neural activity in area PEc while monkeys performed different tasks, aimed at assessing the influence of retinal, hand-, and eye-related signals on neural activity. The tasks used consisted of 1) reaching to foveated and 2) to extra-foveal targets, with constant eye position; and 3) saccadic eye movement toward, and holding of eye position on peripheral targets, the same as those of the reaching tasks. In all tasks, hand and/or eye movements were made from a central position to eight peripheral targets. A conventional visual fixation paradigm was used as a control task, to assess location and extent of visual receptive field of neurons. A large proportion of cells in area PEc displayed significant relationships to hand movement direction and position. Many of them were also related to the eye's position. Relationships to saccadic eye movements were found for a smaller proportion of cells. Most neurons were tuned to different combination of hand- and eye-related signals; some of them were also influenced by visual information. This combination of signals can be an expression of the early stages of the composition of motor commands for different forms of visuomotor coordination that depend on the integration of hand- and eye-related information. These results assign to area PEc, classically considered as a somatosensory association cortex, a new visuomotor role.

Spatial properties of visual fixation neurons in posterior parietal association cortex of the monkey

1980 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 1654-1672 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Sakata ◽  
H. Shibutani ◽  
K. Kawano
Keyword(s):  
Discharge Rate ◽  
Visual Stimuli ◽  
Posterior Part ◽  
Frontal Plane ◽  
Association Cortex ◽  
Eye Position ◽  
Parietal Association Cortex ◽  
Area 7A ◽  
Posterior Parietal ◽  
Made In

1. A systematic study of the positional selectivity of visual fixation (VF) neurons of the posterior parietal association cortex (area 7a or PG) was made in seven hemispheres of four alert behaving monkeys. By gaze fixation on a small spot of light in space, 125 units were identified as VF neurons. the position of the fixation target was varied not only in the frontal plane, but also in depth. 2. Microelectrode penetrations were made in the anterior and posterior part of area 7a. The recording sites of 104 VF neurons, determined histologically, were distributed mainly in the posterior part: the caudal part of the posterior bank of the intraparietal sulcus and the caudal third of the anterior bank of the superior temporal sulcus. The following conclusions are based mainly on the observations of the VF neurons in the posterior part of area 7a. 3. Most of the VF neurons examined in the frontal plane (86/93) had a preferred direction of gaze along the horizontal (39/86), vertical (38/86), or diagonal axis (9/86), and their discharge rates were monotonic increasing functions of the angle of deviation from the center. 4. Many VF neurons had selectivity in the depth of fixation. The majority (41/63) were activated more intensely when the fixation point was nearer to the animal (less than 50 cm), whereas a considerable number (18/63) were activated better when the fixation point was further from the animal (100 cm or more). There were a few units (4/63) that discharged maximally at intermediate distances. 5. Thirty-two VF neurons were studied in detail along all three axes: vertical, horizontal, and depth. About half of them (17/32) were found to be selective both in the radial direction and the distance of fixation, while the others displayed selectivity in the direction of gaze alone (11/32) or in depth alone (4/32). 6. The activity of VF neurosis in the dark was compared to that in a lighted room in order to examine their relationship to eye position in detail. Half of the VF neurons tested (25/50) showed almost the same discharge rate in the dark as in the lighted room in spite of the absence of visual stimuli other than the target light in the fovea. Moreover, the discharge rate of the majority of these VF neurons displayed a close correlation with eye position, even in complete darkness. On the other hand nearly half of the VF neurons (22/50) showed a decrease in discharge rate in the dark during fixation at preferred positions suggesting that visual stimuli in the surroundings have some excitatory effects on these neurons. There were also some VF neurons whose activity decreased when the target light was interrputed. Even in such visually sensitive VF neurons, their positional selectivity depended mainly on eye position. 7…

scholarly journals Examination and Comparison of Theta Band Connectivity in Left- and Right-Hand Dominant Individuals throughout a Motor Skill Acquisition

Symmetry ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 728
Author(s):  
Jessica McDonnell ◽  
Nicholas P Murray ◽  
Sungwoo Ahn ◽  
Stefan Clemens ◽  
Erik Everhart ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Information Integration ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Parietal Lobe ◽  
The United States ◽  
Alternative Methods ◽  
Population Difference ◽  
Left Hand ◽  
Right Hand ◽  
Neurological Differences

The majority of the population identifies as right-hand dominant, with a minority 10.6% identifying as left-hand dominant. Social factors may partially skew the distribution, but it remains that left-hand dominant individuals make up approximately 40 million people in the United States alone and yet, remain underrepresented in the motor control literature. Recent research has revealed behavioral and neurological differences between populations, therein overturning assumptions of a simple hemispheric flip in motor-related activations. The present work showed differentially adaptable motor programs between populations and found fundamental differences in methods of skill acquisition highlighting underlying neural strategies unique to each population. Difference maps and descriptive metrics of coherent activation patterns showed differences in how theta oscillations were utilized. The right-hand group relied on occipital parietal lobe connectivity for visual information integration necessary to inform the motor task, while the left-hand group relied on a more frontal lobe localized cognitive based approach. The findings provide insight into potential alternative methods of information integration and emphasize the importance for inclusion of the left-hand dominant population in the growing conceptualization of the brain promoting the generation of a more complete, stable, and accurate understanding of our complex biology.

Effect of passive eye position changes on retinogeniculate transmission in the cat

1990 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 502-522 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Lal ◽  
M. J. Friedlander
Keyword(s):  
Firing Rate ◽  
Action Potentials ◽  
Visual Stimulation ◽  
Visual Stimuli ◽  
Eye Position ◽  
Visual Response ◽  
Nonlinear Gain ◽  
Physiological Tests ◽  
Normalized Gain ◽  
Stimulation Of

1. Extracellular recordings were made from single neurons in layer A of the left dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (LGNd) of anesthetized and paralyzed adult cats. Responses to retinotopically identical visual stimuli (presented through the right eye) were recorded at several positions of the left eye in its orbit. Visual stimuli consisted of drifting sinusoidal gratings of optimal temporal and spatial frequencies at twice threshold contrast. Visual stimulation of the left eye was blocked by a variety of methods, including intravitreal injection of tetrodotoxin (TTX). The change in position of the left eye was achieved by passive movements in a randomized and interleaved fashion. Of 237 neurons studied, responses were obtained from 143 neurons on 20-100 trials of identical visual stimulation at each of six eye positions. Neurons were classified as X- or Y- on the basis of a standard battery of physiological tests (primarily linearity of spatial summation and response latency to electrical stimulation of the optic chiasm). 2. The effect of eye position on the visual response of the 143 neurons was analyzed with respect to the number of action potentials elicited and the peak firing rate. Fifty-seven (40%) neurons had a significant effect [by one-factor repeated-measure analysis of variance (ANOVA), P less than 0.05] of eye position on the visual response by either criterion (number of action potentials or peak firing rate). Of these 57 neurons, 47 had a significant effect (P less than 0.05) with respect to the number of action potentials and 23 had a significant effect (P less than 0.05) by both criteria. Thus the permissive measure by either criterion and the conservative measure by both criteria resulted in 40% and 16%, respectively, of all neurons' visual responses being significantly affected by eye position. 3. For the 47 neurons with a significant effect of eye position (number of action potentials criterion), a trend analysis of eye position versus visual response showed a linear trend (P less than 0.05) for 9 neurons, a quadratic trend (P less than 0.05) for 32 neurons, and no significant trend for the 6 remaining neurons. The trends were approximated with linear and nonlinear gain fields (range of eye position change over which the visual response was modulated). The gain fields of individual neurons were compared by measuring the normalized gain (change in neuronal response per degree change of eye position). The mean normalized gain for the 47 neurons was 4.3. 4. The nonlinear gain fields were generally symmetric with respect to nasal versus temporal changes in eye position.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

scholarly journals Cortical plasticity following stripe rearing in the marsupialMonodelphis domestica: neural response properties of V1

2017 ◽  
Vol 117 (2) ◽  
pp. 566-581 ◽  
Author(s):  
James C. Dooley ◽  
Michaela S. Donaldson ◽  
Leah A. Krubitzer
Keyword(s):  
Visual System ◽  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
Functional Organization ◽  
Sensory Experience ◽  
Monodelphis Domestica ◽  
Visual Environment ◽  
Visual Response ◽  
Response Properties ◽  
Dependent Plasticity ◽  
Marsupial Species

The functional organization of the primary visual area (V1) and the importance of sensory experience in its normal development have been well documented in eutherian mammals. However, very few studies have investigated the response properties of V1 neurons in another large class of mammals, or whether sensory experience plays a role in shaping their response properties. Thus we reared opossums ( Monodelphis domestica) in normal and vertically striped cages until they reached adulthood. They were then anesthetized using urethane, and electrophysiological techniques were used to examine neuronal responses to different orientations, spatial and temporal frequencies, and contrast levels. For normal opossums, we observed responses to the temporal and spatial characteristics of the stimulus to be similar to those described in small, nocturnal, eutherian mammals such as rats and mice; neurons in V1 responded maximally to stimuli at 0.09 cycles per degree and 2.12 cycles per second. Unlike other eutherians, but similar to other marsupials investigated, only 40% of the neurons were orientation selective. In stripe-reared animals, neurons were significantly more likely to respond to vertical stimuli at a wider range of spatial frequencies, and were more sensitive to gratings at lower contrast values compared with normal animals. These results are the first to demonstrate experience-dependent plasticity in the visual system of a marsupial species. Thus the ability of cortical neurons to alter their properties based on the dynamics of the visual environment predates the emergence of eutherian mammals and was likely present in our earliest mammalian ancestors.NEW & NOTEWORTHY These results are the first description of visual response properties of the most commonly studied marsupial model organism, the short-tailed opossum ( Monodelphis domestica). Further, these results are the first to demonstrate experience-dependent plasticity in the visual system of a marsupial species. Thus the ability of cortical neurons to alter their properties based on the dynamics of the visual environment predates the emergence of eutherian mammals and was likely present in our earliest mammalian ancestors.

Mnemonic firing of neurons in the monkey temporal pole during a visual recognition memory task

1995 ◽  
Vol 74 (1) ◽  
pp. 162-178 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Nakamura ◽  
K. Kubota
Keyword(s):  
Recognition Memory ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Visual Recognition ◽  
Discharge Rate ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Delay Period ◽  
Recognition Memory Task ◽  
Visual Response ◽  
Visual Recognition Memory ◽  
Temporal Pole

1. We examined single-neuronal activity in the temporal pole of monkeys, including the anterior ventromedial temporal (VMT) cortex (the temporopolar cortex, area 36, area 35, and the entorhinal cortex) and the anterior inferotemporal (IT) cortex, during a visual recognition memory task. In the task, a trial began when the monkey pressed a lever. After a waiting period, a visual sample stimulus (S) was presented one to four times on a monitor with an interstimulus delay. Thereafter, a new stimulus (R) was presented. The monkeys were trained to remember S during the delay period and to release the lever in response to R. Colored photographs of natural objects were used as visual stimuli. 2. About 70% of the recorded neurons (225 of 311) responded to at least one of the Ss tested. Thirty percent of these neurons (68 of 225) continued to fire during the subsequent delay periods. In 75% of these neurons (51 of 68), the firing during the delay period strongly correlated with the response to S. 3. The discharge rate during the delay period did not correlate with the monkey's eye movements, pressing or releasing of the lever, or the reaction time. 4. If the monkey erroneously released the lever in response to S or during the delay period, the firing disappeared after the erroneous lever release. If the monkey failed to release the lever in response to R, the firing persisted even after R was withdrawn. The discharge rate in incorrect trials was comparable with that in correct trials. The neurons were considered to fire for as long as the memory of S was necessary. 5. Firing persisted even when an achromatic version or half (even a portion) of S was presented, indicating that the color, a particular portion, or the entire shape of S was not always necessary to elicit firing. 6. An S that elicited firing during the delay period invariably elicited a visual response. Neurons that fired during the delay period showed a higher stimulus selectivity than other visually responsive neurons in the anterior VMT cortex. Thus neurons that fire during the delay period represent a subgroup of visually responsive neurons that are selectively tuned to a certain stimulus. 7. More neurons fired during the delay period in the anterior VMT cortex than in the anterior IT cortex. 8. We conclude that firing during the delay period by neurons in the temporal pole reflects the short-term storage of visual information regarding a particular S.

Absence of a Prevalent Laminar Distribution of IPSPs in Association Cortical Neurons of Cat

1997 ◽  
Vol 78 (5) ◽  
pp. 2742-2753 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Contreras ◽  
Niklaus Dürmüller ◽  
Mircea Steriade
Keyword(s):  
Cortical Neurons ◽  
Feedback Inhibition ◽  
Anterior Part ◽  
Cortical Stimulation ◽  
Association Cortex ◽  
Postsynaptic Potentials ◽  
Thalamic Stimulation ◽  
Laminar Distribution ◽  
Deep Layers

Contreras, Diego, Niklaus Dürmüller, and Mircea Steriade. Absence of a prevalent laminar distribution of IPSPs in association cortical neurons of cat. J. Neurophysiol. 78: 2742–2753, 1997. The depth distribution of inhibitory postsynaptic potentials (IPSPs) was studied in cat suprasylvian (association) cortex in vivo. Single and dual simultaneous intracellular recordings from cortical neurons were performed in the anterior part of suprasylvian gyrus (area 5). Synaptic responses were obtained by stimulating the suprasylvian cortex, 2–3 mm anterior to the recording site, as well as the thalamic lateral posterior (LP) nucleus. Neurons were recorded from layers 2 to 6 and were classified as regular spiking (RS, n = 132), intrinsically bursting (IB, n = 24), and fast spiking (FS, n = 4). Most IB cells were located in deep layers (below 0.7 mm, n = 19), but we also found some IB cells more superficially (between 0.2 and 0.5 mm, n = 5). Deeply lying corticothalamic neurons were identified by their antidromic invasion on thalamic stimulation. Neurons responded with a combination of excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) and IPSPs to both cortical and thalamic stimulation. No consistent relation was found between cell type or cell depth and the amplitude or duration of the IPSPs. In response to thalamic stimulation, RS cells had IPSPs of 7.9 ± 0.9 (SE) mV amplitude and 88.9 ± 6.4 ms duration. In IB cells, IPSPs elicited by thalamic stimulation had 7.4 ± 1.3 mV amplitude and 84.7 ± 14.3 ms duration. The differences between the two (RS and IB) groups were not statistically significant. Compared with thalamically elicited inhibitory responses, cortical stimulation evoked IPSPs with higher amplitude (12.3 ± 1.7 mV) and longer duration (117 ± 17.3 ms) at all depths. Both cortically and thalamically evoked IPSPs were predominantly monophasic. Injections of Cl− fully reversed thalamically as well as cortically evoked IPSPs and revealed additional late synaptic components in response to cortical stimulation. These data show that the amount of feed forward and feedback inhibition to cat's cortical association cells is not orderly distributed to distinct layers. Thus local cortical microcircuitry goes beyond the simplified structure determined by cortical layers.

Three-dimensional visuo-motor control of saccades

2013 ◽  
Vol 109 (1) ◽  
pp. 183-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bernhard J. M. Hess
Keyword(s):  
Motor Control ◽  
Reverse Engineering ◽  
Visual Information ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Engineering Problem ◽  
Line Of Sight ◽  
Eye Position ◽  
Listing's Law ◽  
Saccade Onset ◽  
Listing’S Law

Although the motion of the line of sight is a straightforward consequence of a particular rotation of the eye, it is much trickier to predict the rotation underlying a particular motion of the line of sight in accordance with Listing's law. Helmholtz's notion of the direction-circle together with the notion of primary and secondary reference directions in visual space provide an elegant solution to this reverse engineering problem, which the brain is faced with whenever generating a saccade. To test whether these notions indeed apply for saccades, we analyzed three-dimensional eye movements recorded in four rhesus monkeys. We found that on average saccade trajectories closely matched with the associated direction-circles. Torsional, vertical, and horizontal eye position of saccades scattered around the position predicted by the associated direction-circles with standard deviations of 0.5°, 0.3°, and 0.4°, respectively. Comparison of saccade trajectories with the likewise predicted fixed-axis rotations yielded mean coefficients of determinations (±SD) of 0.72 (±0.26) for torsion, 0.97 (±0.10) for vertical, and 0.96 (±0.11) for horizontal eye position. Reverse engineering of three-dimensional saccadic rotations based on visual information suggests that motor control of saccades, compatible with Listing's law, not only uses information on the fixation directions at saccade onset and offset but also relies on the computation of secondary reference positions that vary from saccade to saccade.

Hemimicropsia in a Patient with a Cavernoma of the Visual Association Cortex: Imaging Analysis Utilizing a New 3D Brain Atlas System and fMRI

NeuroImage ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. S358 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Kassubek ◽  
M. Otte ◽  
T. Wolter ◽  
M.W. Greenlee ◽  
T. Mergner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Brain Atlas ◽  
Association Cortex ◽  
Imaging Analysis ◽  
Visual Association Cortex
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