Corticofugal connections of area 8 (frontal eye field) in Macaca mulatta

Spatiotemporal transformations for gaze control

Sensorimotor transformations require spatiotemporal coordination of signals, that is, through both time and space. For example, the gaze control system employs signals that are time-locked to various sensorimotor events, but the spatial content of these signals is difficult to assess during ordinary gaze shifts. In this review, we describe the various models and methods that have been devised to test this question, and their limitations. We then describe a new method that can (a) simultaneously test between all of these models during natural, head-unrestrained conditions, and (b) track the evolving spatial continuum from target (T) to future gaze coding (G, including errors) through time. We then summarize some applications of this technique, comparing spatiotemporal coding in the primate frontal eye field (FEF) and superior colliculus (SC). The results confirm that these areas preferentially encode eye-centered, effector-independent parameters, and show-for the first time in ordinary gaze shifts-a spatial transformation between visual and motor responses from T to G coding. We introduce a new set of spatial models (T-G continuum) that revealed task-dependent timing of this transformation: progressive during a memory delay between vision and action, and almost immediate without such a delay. We synthesize the results from our studies and supplement it with previous knowledge of anatomy and physiology to propose a conceptual model where cumulative transformation noise is realized as inaccuracies in gaze behavior. We conclude that the spatiotemporal transformation for gaze is both local (observed within and across neurons in a given area) and distributed (with common signals shared across remote but interconnected structures).

Brain Stem Neural Circuits of Horizontal and Vertical Saccade Systems and their Frame of Reference

Sensory signals for eye movements (visual and vestibular) are initially coded in different frames of reference but finally translated into common coordinates, and share the same final common pathway, namely the same population of extraocular motoneurons. From clinical studies in humans and lesion studies in animals, it is generally accepted that voluntary saccadic eye movements are organized in horizontal and vertical Cartesian coordinates. However, this issue is not settled yet, because neural circuits for vertical saccades remain unidentified. We recently determined brainstem neural circuits from the superior colliculus to ocular motoneurons for horizontal and vertical saccades with combined electrophysiological and neuroanatomical techniques. Comparing well-known vestibuloocular pathways with our findings of commissural excitation and inhibition between both superior colliculi, we proposed that the saccade system uses the same frame of reference as the vestibuloocular system, common semicircular canal coordinate. This proposal is mainly based on marked similarities (1) between output neural circuitry from one superior colliculus to extraocular motoneurons and that from a respective canal to its innervating extraocular motoneurons, (2) of patterns of commissural reciprocal inhibitions between upward saccade system on one side and downward system on the other, and between anterior canal system on one side and posterior canal system on the other, and (3) between the neural circuits of saccade and quick phase of vestibular nystagmus sharing brainstem burst neurons. In support of the proposal, commissural excitation of the superior colliculi may help to maintain Listing's law in saccades in spite of using semicircular canal coordinate.

Attentional Orienting in Two-dimensional Space

This paper examines how the covert orienting of spatial attention affects motor responses to visual stimuli. Premotor theories, as well as hemi-field inhibition accounts of visual attention predict an increase in response times when a target stimulus appears in the opposite direction to a spatial cue. Some models also suggest that this meridional effect should be increased across oblique meridians. Two types of cue (central and peripheral) were used to orient attention towards locations prior to the onset of visual targets. Simple manual (press button) and saccadic responses were measured. No meridional effects were found with peripheral cues, whereas central cueing produced meridional effects across all meridians. Cueing effects did not vary significantly with two-dimensional axis for either manual or saccadic responses. Increases in response time with cue-target distance were found for both response and cue types. For saccades, distance gradients were shallower moving distally rather than proximally from the cued position. However, simple manual responses did not show this asymmetry. Orienting to central cues also modulated the amplitude of saccades. The results are consistent with an effect of attentional cues in oculomotor centres as well as the existence of action dependent attentional representations. However, it is proposed that, rather than reflecting oculomotor programming, meridional effects arise from a directional organization within spatio-cognitive representations.

The lamprey pallium provides a blueprint of the mammalian motor projections from cortex

BACKGROUND

The frontal lobe control of movement in mammals has been thought to be a specific function primarily related to the layered neocortex with its efferent connections. In contrast, we now show that the same basic organization is present even in one of the phylogenetically oldest vertebrates, the lamprey.

RESULTS

Stimulation of specific sites in the pallium/cortex evokes eye, trunk, locomotor, or oral movements. The pallial projection neurons target brainstem motor centers and basal ganglia subnuclei and have prominent dendrites extending into the outer molecular layer. They exhibit the characteristic features of pyramidal neurons and elicit monosynaptic glutamatergic excitatory postsynaptic potentials in output neurons of the optic tectum, reticulospinal neurons, and, as shown earlier, basal ganglia neurons.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results demonstrate marked similarities in the efferent functional connectivity and control of motor behavior between the lamprey pallium and mammalian neocortex. Thus, the lamprey motor pallium/cortex represents an evolutionary blueprint of the corresponding mammalian system.

Express saccades and visual attention

One of the most intriguing and controversial observations in oculomotor research in recent years is the phenomenon of express saccades in monkeys and man. These are saccades with such short reaction times (100 msec in man, 70 msec in monkeys) that some experts on eye movements still regard them as artifacts or as anticipatory reactions that do not need any further explanation. On the other hand, some research groups consider them not only authentic but also a valuable means of investigating the mechanisms of saccade generation, the coordination of vision and eye movements, and the mechanisms of visual attention.

This target article puts together pieces of experimental evidence in oculomotor and related research – with special emphasis on the express saccade – to enhance our present understanding of the coordination of vision, visual attention, and the eye movements subserving visual perception and cognition.

We hypothesize that an optomotor reflex is responsible for the occurrence of express saccades, one that is controlled by higher brain functions involved in disengaged visual attention and decision making. We propose a neural network as the basis for more elaborate mathematical models or computer simulations of the optomotor system in primates.

Dual diffusion model for single-cell recording data from the superior colliculus in a brightness-discrimination task

Monkeys made saccades to one of two peripheral targets based on the brightness of a central stimulus. Task difficulty was manipulated by varying the ratio of stimulus black-and-white pixels. Correct response probability for two monkeys varied directly with difficulty. Deep layer SC neurons exhibited robust presaccadic activity the magnitude of which was unaffected by task difficulty when the stimulus specified a saccade toward a target within the neuron's response field. Activity after stimuli specifying saccades to targets outside the response field was affected by task difficulty, increasing as the task became more difficult. A quantitative model derived from studies of human decision-making was fit to the behavioral data. The model assumes that information from the stimulus drives two independent diffusion processes. Simulated paths from the model were compared with neuron activity, assuming that firing rate is linearly related to position in the accumulation process. The firing rate data show delayed availability of discriminative information for fast, intermediate, and slow decisions when activity is aligned on the stimulus and very small differences in discriminative information when aligned on the saccade. The model produces exactly these patterns of results. The accumulation process is highly variable, allowing the process both to make errors, as is the case for the behavioral performance, and also to account for the firing rate results. Thus the dual diffusion model provides a quantitative account for both the behavior in a simple decision-making task as well as the patterns of activity in competing populations of neurons.

Cortico-cortical networks and cortico-subcortical loops for the higher control of eye movements

There are multiple distinct regions, or eye fields, in the cerebral cortex that contribute directly to the initiation and control of voluntary eye movements. We concentrate on six of these: the frontal eye field, parietal eye field, supplementary eye field, middle superior temporal area, prefrontal eye field, and area 7 m (precuneus in humans). In each of these regions: (1) there is neural activity closely related to eye movements; (2) electrical microstimulation produces or modifies eye movements; (3) surgical lesions or chemical inactivation impairs eye movements; (4) there are direct neural projections to major structures in the brainstem oculomotor system; and (5) increased activity is observed during eye movement tasks in functional magnetic resonance imaging or positron emission tomography experiments in humans. Each of these eye fields is reciprocally connected with the other eye fields, and each receives visual information directly from visual association cortex. Each eye field has distinct subregions that are concerned with either saccadic or pursuit eye movements. The saccadic subregions are preferentially interconnected with other saccade subregions and the pursuit subregions are preferentially interconnected with other pursuit subregions. Current evidence strongly supports the proposal that there are parallel cortico-cortical networks that control purposeful saccadic and pursuit eye movements, and that the activity in those networks is modulated by feedback information, via the thalamus, from the superior colliculus, basal ganglia, and cerebellum.

Visual responses of the human superior colliculus: a high-resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging study

The superior colliculus (SC) is a multimodal laminar structure located on the roof of the brain stem. The SC is a key structure in a distributed network of areas that mediate saccadic eye movements and shifts of attention across the visual field and has been extensively studied in nonhuman primates. In humans, it has proven difficult to study the SC with functional MRI (fMRI) because of its small size, deep location, and proximity to pulsating vascular structures. Here, we performed a series of high-resolution fMRI studies at 3 T to investigate basic visual response properties of the SC. The retinotopic organization of the SC was determined using the traveling wave method with flickering checkerboard stimuli presented at different polar angles and eccentricities. SC activations were confined to stimulation of the contralateral hemifield. Although a detailed retinotopic map was not observed, across subjects, the upper and lower visual fields were represented medially and laterally, respectively. Responses were dominantly evoked by stimuli presented along the horizontal meridian of the visual field. We also measured the sensitivity of the SC to luminance contrast, which has not been previously reported in primates. SC responses were nearly saturated by low contrast stimuli and showed only small response modulation with higher contrast stimuli, indicating high sensitivity to stimulus contrast. Responsiveness to stimulus motion in the SC was shown by robust activations evoked by moving versus static dot stimuli that could not be attributed to eye movements. The responses to contrast and motion stimuli were compared with those in the human lateral geniculate nucleus. Our results provide first insights into basic visual responses of the human SC and show the feasibility of studying subcortical structures using high-resolution fMRI.

Macaque frontal eye field input to saccade-related neurons in the superior colliculus

Extracellular recordings were made simultaneously in the frontal eye field and superior colliculus in awake, behaving rhesus monkeys. Frontal eye field microstimulation was used to orthodromically activate the superior colliculus both to locate the depth of the strongest frontal eye field input to the superior colliculus and to identify superior colliculus neurons receiving direct frontal eye field input. The activity of orthodromically driven colliculus neurons was characterized during visuomotor tasks. The purpose of this study was to identify the types of superior colliculus neurons that receive excitatory frontal eye field input. We found that microstimulation of the frontal eye field did not activate the superficial layers of the superior colliculus but did activate the deeper layers. This pattern of activation coincided with the prevalence of visual versus saccade-related activity in the superficial and deep layers. A total of 83 orthodromically driven superior colliculus neurons were identified. Of these neurons, 93% (n = 77) exhibited a burst of activity associated with the onset of the saccade, and 25% (n = 21) exhibited prelude/build-up activity prior to the onset of a saccade. In addition, it was common to see some activity synchronized with the onset of a visual target (30%, n = 25). In single neurons, these activity profiles could be observed alone or in combination. Superior colliculus neurons that were exclusively visual, however, were not excited by frontal eye field stimulation. We compared the activity of superior colliculus neurons that received frontal eye field input to descriptions of saccade-related neurons made in earlier reports and found that the distribution of neuron types in the orthodromically driven population was similar to the distribution within the overall population. This suggests that the frontal eye field does not selectively influence a specific class of collicular neurons, but, instead has a direct influence on all preparatory, and saccade-related activity within the deep layers of the superior colliculus.

Neural projections from the frontal cortex to the oculomotor nucleus: an anatomical study using retrograde axonal, anterograde axonal and transneuronal transport of wheat germ agglutinin-conjugated horseradish peroxidase in cats

Neural projections from the frontal cerebral cortex to the oculomotor nucleus (3N) were investigated in 1- to 2-year-old cats by retrograde and anterograde axonal and transneuronal transport of wheat germ agglutinin-conjugated horseradish peroxidase (WGA-HRP). Following injection of WGA-HRP into the 3N area and its surrounding tissues, retrogradely labeled cells were observed in the anterior sigmoid gyrus, ventral bank of the cruciate sulcus, medial and lateral walls and base of the presylvian sulcus, gyrus rectus and gyrus proreus. Following injection of WGA-HRP into these frontal cortical areas, anterogradely labeled nerve terminals were observed in the mesencephalic periaqueductal gray matter (PAG) just overlying the 3N. Only a few terminals were observed within the 3N. Following injection of WGA-HRP into the extraocular muscles of 1-month-old kittens, transneuronally labeled small cells were observed in the PAG just overlying the 3N and in the mesencephalic reticular formation, ventrolateral to it. These small cells may represent intercalated neurons of the cortico-oculomotor projections in the cat.

Human cortical mechanisms of visual attention during orienting and search

Functional anatomical studies indicate that a set of neural signals in parietal and frontal cortex mediates the covert allocation of attention to visual locations across a wide variety of visual tasks. This frontoparietal network includes areas, such as the frontal eye field and supplementary eye field. This anatomical overlap suggests that shifts of attention to visual locations of objects recruit areas involved in oculomotor programming and execution. Finally, the fronto-parietal network may be the source of spatial attentional modulations in the ventral visual system during object recognition or discrimination.

The cerebrocerebellar system

If there is a cerebellar contribution to nonmotor function, particularly to cognitive abilities and affective states, then there must be corresponding anatomic substrates that support this. The cerebellum is strongly interconnected with the cerebral hemispheres in both feedforward (cerebral hemispheres to cerebellum) and feedback directions. This relationship has long been recognized, particularly with respect to the motor and sensory cortices. Investigations performed over the last decade however, have demonstrated for the first time the organization and strength of the connections that link the cerebellum with areas of the cerebral cortex known to be concerned with higher order behavior rather than with motor control. The feedforward projections from these higher order areas, namely the associative and paralimbic cortices, seem to be matched, at least in the limited but definite demonstrations to date, by cerebellar projections back to these same areas. These observations are important because they are congruent with the notion that cognitive functions are distributed among multiple cortical and subcortical nodes, each of which functions in concert but in a unique manner to produce an ultimate behavior pattern. This chapter describes the neural circuitry postulated to subserve the cerebellar contribution to nonmotor processing, particularly cognitive and affective modulation, and discusses the theoretical implications of these anatomic findings.

Anatomic organization of the basilar pontine projections from prefrontal cortices in rhesus monkey

In our ongoing attempt to determine the anatomic substrates that could support a cerebellar contribution to cognitive processing, we investigated the prefrontal cortical projections to the basilar pons. A detailed understanding of these pathways is needed, because the prefrontal cortex is critical for a number of complex cognitive operations, and the corticopontine projection is the obligatory first step in the corticopontocerebellar circuit. Prefrontopontine connections were studied using the autoradiographic technique in rhesus monkey. The pontine projections were most prominent and occupied the greatest rostrocaudal extent of the pons when derived from the dorsolateral prefrontal convexity, including areas 8Ad, 9/46d, and 10. Lesser pontine projections were observed from the medial prefrontal convexity and area 45B in the inferior limb of the arcuate sulcus. In contrast, ventral prefrontal and orbitofrontal cortices did not demonstrate pontine projections. The prefrontopontine terminations were located preferentially in the paramedian nucleus and in the medial parts of the peripeduncular nucleus, but each cortical area appeared to have a unique complement of pontine nuclei with which it is connected. The existence of these corticopontine pathways from prefrontal areas concerned with multiple domains of higher-order processing is consistent with the hypothesis that the cerebellum is an essential node in the distributed corticosubcortical neural circuits subserving cognitive operations.

Salient anatomic features of the cortico-ponto-cerebellar pathway

Recent studies of the primate corticopontine projection show that the neocerebellum--in addition to connections from motor and sensory areas--receives connections from various association areas of the cerebral cortex, some of which are thought to be primarily engaged in cognitive tasks. The quantities of such connections in relation to those from more clearly motor-related parts of the cortex need to be more precisely determined, however. Furthermore, the anatomic data on origin of corticopontine fibers needs to be supplemented with physiological experiments to clarify their functional properties at the single-cell level. For example, nothing is known of the functional role of the large input from the cingulate gyrus, nor is the input from the posterior parietal cortex physiologically characterized. Finally, the scarcity of corticopontine connections from the prefrontal cortex in the monkey (and probably also in man) may not seem readily compatible with a prominent role of the neocerebellum in certain cognitive tasks. We discuss data--in particular from three-dimensional reconstructions--indicating that both corticopontine projects and pontocerebellar neurons are arranged in a lamellar pattern. Corticopontine and pontocerebellar lamellae have similar shapes and orientations but appear to differ in other respects. Corticopontine terminal fields are sharply delimited, apparently without gradual overlap between projections from different sites in the cortex, whereas pontocerebellar lamellae are more fuzzy and exhibit gradual overlap of neuronal populations projecting to different targets. In spite of the sharpness of the corticopontine projection, there may be many opportunities for convergence of inputs from different parts of the cortex. Thus, the wide divergence of corticopontine projections produces many sites of overlap, and extensive interfaces between different terminal fields enabling convergence of inputs onto each neuron. We suggest that the lamellar arrangement of corticopontine terminal fields and of pontocerebellar neurons serve to create diversity of pontocerebellar neuronal properties. Thus, each small part of the cerebellar cortex would receive a specific combination of messages from many different sites in the cerebral cortex. The spatial arrangement of cerebrocerebellar connections have to be understood both in terms of fairly simple large-scale, gradual topographic relationships and an apparently highly complex pattern of divergence and convergence. Developmental studies of corticopontine and of pontocerebellar projections together with three-dimensional reconstructions in adults suggest that the highly complex adult connectional pattern may be created by simple rules operating during development.

Prearcuate cortex in the Cebus monkey has cortical and subcortical connections like the macaque frontal eye field and projects to fastigial-recipient oculomotor-related brainstem nuclei

The cortical and subcortical connections of the prearcuate cortex were studied in capuchin monkeys (Cebus apella, albifrons) using the anterograde and retrograde transport capabilities of the horseradish peroxidase technique. The findings demonstrate remarkable similarities to those of the macaque frontal eye field and strongly support their homology. The report then focuses on specific prearcuate projections to oculomotor-related brainstem nuclei that were shown in a companion experiment to entertain connections with the caudal oculomotor portion of the cerebellar fastigial nucleus. The principal corticocortical connections of the cebus prearcuate cortex were with dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, lateral intraparietal sulcal cortex, posterior medial parietal cortex, and superior temporal sulcal cortex, which were for the most part reciprocal and columnar in organization. The connections of the dorsal prearcuate region were heavier to the dorsomedial prefrontal and posterior medial parietal cortices, and those of the ventral region were heavier to the superior temporal sulcal cortex. The prearcuate cortex projects to several brainstem areas which also receive projections from the caudal fastigial nucleus, including the supraoculomotor periaqueductal gray matter, superior colliculus, medial nucleus reticularis tegmenti pontis, dorsomedial basilar pontine nucleus, dorsolateral basilar pontine nucleus, nucleus reticularis pontis caudalis, pontine raphe, and nucleus prepositus hypoglossi. The findings define a neuroanatomical framework within which convergence of prearcuate (putative frontal eye field) and caudal fastigial nucleus connections might occur, facilitating their potential interaction in saccadic and smooth pursuit eye movement.

Cerebellar influences on accessory oculomotor nuclei of the rat: a neuroanatomical, immunohistochemical, and electrophysiological study

With the aim to evaluate a possible neocerebellar control on eye movements, the projections from the cerebellar lateral nucleus (LN) to the accessory oculomotor nuclei (i.e., the nucleus of posterior commissure, the nucleus of Darkschewitsch, and the interstitial nucleus of Cajal), the putative neurotransmitters subserving this pathway, and the nature of the synaptic influences exerted by these projections were studied in adult rats. We used the orthograde transport of horseradish peroxidase conjugated with wheat germ agglutinin (WGA-HRP) to identify the mesencephalic areas where cerebellofugal fibers terminate, and retrograde labeling with the fluorescent dye fluoro-gold to estimate the incidence of cerebellar neurons projecting to the accessory oculomotor nuclei. Orthograde labeling showed that only a small contingent of cerebellofugal fibers reaches the contralateral accessory oculomotor nuclei. The retrogradely labeled cells were located primarily in the small-celled part of LN. By immunohistochemistry, we observed that all the cells retrogradely labeled from the accessory oculomotor area were also stained by using glutamate or aspartate antisera, but none of them were double-stained with a GABA antiserum. Electrical stimulation of the contralateral LN elicited changes in firing rate of a significant fraction of cells belonging to the accessory oculomotor nuclei (36.4% in the nucleus of posterior commissure, 47.1% in the nucleus of Darkschewitsch, and 44.6% in the interstitial nucleus of Cajal). In 57.8% of the cases, the responses were excitations, most of which had latencies and response characteristics compatible with a monosynaptic linkage. The remaining 42.2% of the cases were inhibitions with latencies ranging between 5 and 22 ms. Extracellular field potential recordings within the contralateral accessory oculomotor nuclei were interpreted as arising from impulses propagating along excitatory axons projecting in a bundle from the cerebellum. Stimulation of LN area in rats following intranuclear injection of kainic acid was not capable of evoking short latency excitations, so these responses can be considered to depend on the activation of LN efferents. The LN projection on accessory oculomotor nuclei could be part of the final precise control exerted by the neocerebellum on those brain structures concerned with movements of the eyes.