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Dong Y, Lengyel G, Shivkumar S, Anzai A, DiRisio GF, Haefner RM, DeAngelis GC. How to reward animals based on their subjective percepts: A Bayesian approach to online estimation of perceptual biases. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.07.25.605047. [PMID: 39091868 PMCID: PMC11291170 DOI: 10.1101/2024.07.25.605047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/04/2024]
Abstract
1Elucidating the neural basis of perceptual biases, such as those produced by visual illusions, can provide powerful insights into the neural mechanisms of perceptual inference. However, studying the subjective percepts of animals poses a fundamental challenge: unlike human participants, animals cannot be verbally instructed to report what they see, hear, or feel. Instead, they must be trained to perform a task for reward, and researchers must infer from their responses what the animal perceived. However, animals' responses are shaped by reward feedback, thus raising the major concern that the reward regimen may alter the animal's decision strategy or even intrinsic perceptual biases. We developed a method that estimates perceptual bias during task performance and then computes the reward for each trial based on the evolving estimate of the animal's perceptual bias. Our approach makes use of multiple stimulus contexts to dissociate perceptual biases from decision-related biases. Starting with an informative prior, our Bayesian method updates a posterior over the perceptual bias after each trial. The prior can be specified based on data from past sessions, thus reducing the variability of the online estimates and allowing it to converge to a stable estimate over a small number of trials. After validating our method on synthetic data, we apply it to estimate perceptual biases of monkeys in a motion direction discrimination task in which varying background optic flow induces robust perceptual biases. This method overcomes an important challenge to understanding the neural basis of subjective percepts.
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Chen S, Lu H, Cheng C, Ye Z, Hua T. Rapidly repeated visual stimulation induces long-term potentiation of VEPs and increased content of membrane AMPA and NMDA receptors in the V1 cortex of cats. Front Neurosci 2024; 18:1386801. [PMID: 38831757 PMCID: PMC11144871 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1386801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/25/2024] [Indexed: 06/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Studies report that rapidly repeated sensory stimulation can evoke LTP-like improvement of neural response in the sensory cortex. Whether this neural response potentiation is similar to the classic LTP induced by presynaptic electrical stimulation remains unclear. This study examined the effects of repeated high-frequency (9 Hz) versus low-frequency (1 Hz) visual stimulation on visually-evoked field potentials (VEPs) and the membrane protein content of AMPA / NMDA receptors in the primary visual cortex (V1) of cats. The results showed that repeated high-frequency visual stimulation (HFS) caused a long-term improvement in peak-to-peak amplitude of V1-cortical VEPs in response to visual stimuli at HFS-stimulated orientation (SO: 90°) and non-stimulated orientation (NSO: 180°), but the effect exhibited variations depending on stimulus orientation: the amplitude increase of VEPs in response to visual stimuli at SO was larger, reached a maximum earlier and lasted longer than at NSO. By contrast, repeated low-frequency visual stimulation (LFS) had not significantly affected the amplitude of V1-cortical VEPs in response to visual stimuli at both SO and NSO. Furthermore, the membrane protein content of the key subunit GluA1 of AMPA receptors and main subunit NR1 of AMPA receptors in V1 cortex was significantly increased after HFS but not LFS when compared with that of control cats. Taken together, these results indicate that HFS can induce LTP-like improvement of VEPs and an increase in membrane protein of AMPA and NMDA receptors in the V1 cortex of cats, which is similar to but less specific to stimulus orientation than the classic LTP.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Tianmiao Hua
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
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Shen S, Sun Y, Lu J, Li C, Chen Q, Mo C, Fang F, Zhang X. Profiles of visual perceptual learning in feature space. iScience 2024; 27:109128. [PMID: 38384835 PMCID: PMC10879700 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2023] [Revised: 01/22/2024] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Visual perceptual learning (VPL), experience-induced gains in discriminating visual features, has been studied extensively and intensively for many years, its profile in feature space, however, remains unclear. Here, human subjects were trained to perform either a simple low-level feature (grating orientation) or a complex high-level object (face view) discrimination task over a long-time course. During, immediately after, and one month after training, all results showed that in feature space VPL in grating orientation discrimination was a center-surround profile; VPL in face view discrimination, however, was a monotonic gradient profile. Importantly, these two profiles can be emerged by a deep convolutional neural network with a modified AlexNet consisted of 7 and 12 layers, respectively. Altogether, our study reveals for the first time a feature hierarchy-dependent profile of VPL in feature space, placing a necessary constraint on our understanding of the neural computation of VPL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiqi Shen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Yueling Sun
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Jiachen Lu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Chu Li
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Qinglin Chen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Ce Mo
- Department of Psychology, Sun-YatSen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510275, China
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Xilin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
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Liu Z, Yan Y, Wang DH. Category representation in primary visual cortex after visual perceptual learning. Cogn Neurodyn 2024; 18:23-35. [PMID: 38406201 PMCID: PMC10881456 DOI: 10.1007/s11571-022-09926-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
The visual perceptual learning (VPL) leads to long-term enhancement of visual task performance. The subjects are often trained to link different visual stimuli to several options, such as the widely used two-alternative forced choice (2AFC) task, which involves an implicit categorical decision. The enhancement of performance has been related to the specific changes of neural activities, but few studies investigate the effects of categorical responding on the changes of neural activities. Here we investigated whether the neural activities would exhibit the categorical characteristics if the subjects are requested to respond visual stimuli in a categorical manner during VPL. We analyzed the neural activities of two monkeys in a contour detection VPL. We found that the neural activities in primary visual cortex (V1) converge to one pattern if the contour can be detected by monkey and another pattern if the contour cannot be detected, exhibiting a kind of category learning that the neural representations of detectable contour become less selective for number of bars forming contour and diverge from the representations of undetectable contour. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11571-022-09926-8.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhaofan Liu
- School of Systems Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
| | - Yin Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Xinjiekouwaidajie 19, Haidian, Beijing, 100875 China
- Chinese Institute for Brain Research, Beijing, China
| | - Da-Hui Wang
- School of Systems Science, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Xinjiekouwaidajie 19, Haidian, Beijing, 100875 China
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Brain Imaging and Connectomics, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875 China
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Bi T, Luo W, Wu J, Shao B, Tan Q, Kou H. Effect of facial emotion recognition learning transfers across emotions. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1310101. [PMID: 38312392 PMCID: PMC10834736 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1310101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2023] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 02/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Perceptual learning of facial expression is shown specific to the train expression, indicating separate encoding of the emotional contents in different expressions. However, little is known about the specificity of emotional recognition training with the visual search paradigm and the sensitivity of learning to near-threshold stimuli. Methods In the present study, we adopted a visual search paradigm to measure the recognition of facial expressions. In Experiment 1 (Exp1), Experiment 2 (Exp2), and Experiment 3 (Exp3), subjects were trained for 8 days to search for a target expression in an array of faces presented for 950 ms, 350 ms, and 50 ms, respectively. In Experiment 4 (Exp4), we trained subjects to search for a target of a triangle, and tested them with the task of facial expression search. Before and after the training, subjects were tested on the trained and untrained facial expressions which were presented for 950 ms, 650 ms, 350 ms, or 50 ms. Results The results showed that training led to large improvements in the recognition of facial emotions only if the faces were presented long enough (Exp1: 85.89%; Exp2: 46.05%). Furthermore, the training effect could transfer to the untrained expression. However, when the faces were presented briefly (Exp3), the training effect was small (6.38%). In Exp4, the results indicated that the training effect could not transfer across categories. Discussion Our findings revealed cross-emotion transfer for facial expression recognition training in a visual search task. In addition, learning hardly affects the recognition of near-threshold expressions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taiyong Bi
- Research Center of Humanities and Medicine, Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, China
| | - Wei Luo
- The Institute of Ethnology and Anthropology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jia Wu
- Research Center of Humanities and Medicine, Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, China
| | - Boyao Shao
- Research Center of Humanities and Medicine, Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, China
| | - Qingli Tan
- Research Center of Humanities and Medicine, Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, China
| | - Hui Kou
- Research Center of Humanities and Medicine, Zunyi Medical University, Zunyi, China
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Gong L, Zhao J, Dai Y, Wang Z, Hou F, Zhang Y, Lu ZL, Zhou J. Improving iconic memory through contrast detection training with HOA-corrected vision. FUNDAMENTAL RESEARCH 2024; 4:95-102. [PMID: 38933850 PMCID: PMC11197569 DOI: 10.1016/j.fmre.2022.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2022] [Revised: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Iconic memory and short-term memory are not only crucial for perception and cognition, but also of great importance to mental health. Here, we first showed that both types of memory could be improved by improving limiting processes in visual processing through perceptual learning. Normal adults were trained in a contrast detection task for ten days, with their higher-order aberrations (HOA) corrected in real-time. We found that the training improved not only their contrast sensitivity function (CSF), but also their iconic memory and baseline information maintenance for short-term memory, and the relationship between memory and CSF improvements could be well-predicted by an observer model. These results suggest that training the limiting component of a cognitive task with visual perceptual learning could improve visual cognition. They may also provide an empirical foundation for new therapies to treat people with poor sensory memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling Gong
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Optometry and Vision Science, Eye Hospital, School of Ophthalmology and Optometry, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325027, China
| | - Junlei Zhao
- Institute of Optics and Electronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610209, China
- The Key Laboratory of Adaptive Optics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610209, China
| | - Yun Dai
- Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Chengdu 610075, China
| | - Zili Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Optometry and Vision Science, Eye Hospital, School of Ophthalmology and Optometry, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325027, China
| | - Fang Hou
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Optometry and Vision Science, Eye Hospital, School of Ophthalmology and Optometry, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325027, China
| | - Yudong Zhang
- The Key Laboratory of Adaptive Optics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu 610209, China
| | - Zhong-Lin Lu
- Division of Arts and Sciences, New York University Shanghai, Shanghai 200126, China
- Center for Neural Science, Department of Psychology, New York University, New York 10003, United States
- NYU-ECNU Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science at NYU Shanghai, Shanghai 200062, China
| | - Jiawei Zhou
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Optometry and Vision Science, Eye Hospital, School of Ophthalmology and Optometry, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou 325027, China
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Su K, Wang L, Wang Z, Ma J, Zhang C, Bi H, Wu J. The effect of acupuncture at the Taiyang acupoint on visual function and EEG microstates in myopia. Front Integr Neurosci 2023; 17:1234471. [PMID: 38035147 PMCID: PMC10684943 DOI: 10.3389/fnint.2023.1234471] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Objective Acupuncture has certain effects to improve myopia visual function, but its neural mechanism is unclear. In this study, we acupunctured at the right Taiyang acupoint of myopic patients to analyze the effects of acupuncture on visual function and electroencephalographic activity and to investigate the correlation between improvements in visual function and changes in the brain. Methods In this study, a total of 21 myopic patients were recruited. The contrast sensitivity (CS) of the subjects was examined before and after acupuncture, and electroencephalography (EEG) data of the entire acupuncture process were recorded. Results The study found that compared with before acupuncture, the CS of both eyes in myopic patients at each spatial frequency was increased after acupuncture; compared with the resting state, the contribution of microstate C was decreased during the post-acupuncture state, and the transition probability between microstate A and microstate C was reduced; in addition, the contribution of microstate C was negatively correlated with CS at both 12 and 18 cpd. Conclusion The contrast sensitivity of myopic patients was improved after acupuncture at the Taiyang acupoint (20 min), which may be related to microstate C.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kangna Su
- Medical College of Optometry and Ophthalmology, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
- Shandong Academy of Eye Disease Prevention and Therapy, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine for Prevention and Therapy of Ocular Diseases, Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center of Ophthalmology and Children Visual Impairment Prevention and Control, Shandong Engineering Technology Research Center of Visual Intelligence, Shandong Academy of Health and Myopia Prevention and Control of Children and Adolescents, Jinan, China
- Ophthalmology Department of Northwest University First Hospital, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Lihan Wang
- Shandong Academy of Eye Disease Prevention and Therapy, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine for Prevention and Therapy of Ocular Diseases, Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center of Ophthalmology and Children Visual Impairment Prevention and Control, Shandong Engineering Technology Research Center of Visual Intelligence, Shandong Academy of Health and Myopia Prevention and Control of Children and Adolescents, Jinan, China
- Affiliated Eye Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Zhongqing Wang
- Medical College of Optometry and Ophthalmology, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
- Shandong Academy of Eye Disease Prevention and Therapy, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine for Prevention and Therapy of Ocular Diseases, Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center of Ophthalmology and Children Visual Impairment Prevention and Control, Shandong Engineering Technology Research Center of Visual Intelligence, Shandong Academy of Health and Myopia Prevention and Control of Children and Adolescents, Jinan, China
| | - Jiayao Ma
- Medical College of Optometry and Ophthalmology, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
- Shandong Academy of Eye Disease Prevention and Therapy, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine for Prevention and Therapy of Ocular Diseases, Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center of Ophthalmology and Children Visual Impairment Prevention and Control, Shandong Engineering Technology Research Center of Visual Intelligence, Shandong Academy of Health and Myopia Prevention and Control of Children and Adolescents, Jinan, China
| | - Chao Zhang
- Affiliated Eye Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Hongsheng Bi
- Medical College of Optometry and Ophthalmology, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
- Shandong Academy of Eye Disease Prevention and Therapy, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine for Prevention and Therapy of Ocular Diseases, Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center of Ophthalmology and Children Visual Impairment Prevention and Control, Shandong Engineering Technology Research Center of Visual Intelligence, Shandong Academy of Health and Myopia Prevention and Control of Children and Adolescents, Jinan, China
- Affiliated Eye Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
| | - Jianfeng Wu
- Medical College of Optometry and Ophthalmology, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
- Shandong Academy of Eye Disease Prevention and Therapy, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine for Prevention and Therapy of Ocular Diseases, Shandong Provincial Clinical Research Center of Ophthalmology and Children Visual Impairment Prevention and Control, Shandong Engineering Technology Research Center of Visual Intelligence, Shandong Academy of Health and Myopia Prevention and Control of Children and Adolescents, Jinan, China
- Affiliated Eye Hospital of Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan, China
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Yu H, Chen S, Ye Z, Zhang Q, Tu Y, Hua T. Top-down influence of areas 21a and 7 differently affects the surround suppression of V1 neurons in cats. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:11047-11059. [PMID: 37724432 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2023] [Revised: 08/28/2023] [Accepted: 08/29/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Surround suppression (SS) is a phenomenon whereby a neuron's response to stimuli in its central receptive field (cRF) is suppressed by stimuli extending to its surround receptive field (sRF). Recent evidence show that top-down influence contributed to SS in the primary visual cortex (V1). However, how the top-down influence from different high-level cortical areas affects SS in V1 has not been comparatively observed. The present study applied transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to modulate the neural activity in area 21a (A21a) and area 7 (A7) of cats and examined the changes in the cRF and sRF of V1 neurons. We found that anode-tDCS at A21a reduced V1 neurons' cRF size and increased their response to visual stimuli in cRF, causing an improved SS strength. By contrast, anode-tDCS at A7 increased V1 neurons' sRF size and response to stimuli in cRF, also enhancing the SS. Modeling analysis based on DoG function indicated that the increased SS of V1 neurons after anode-tDCS at A21a could be explained by a center-only mechanism, whereas the improved SS after anode-tDCS at A7 might be mediated through a combined center and surround mechanism. In conclusion, A21a and A7 may affect the SS of V1 neurons through different mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hao Yu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Beijing East Road, Jinghu District, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
- School of Basic Medical Sciences, Wannan Medical College, West Wenchang Road, Yijiang District, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Shunshun Chen
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Beijing East Road, Jinghu District, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Zheng Ye
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Beijing East Road, Jinghu District, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Qiuyu Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Beijing East Road, Jinghu District, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Yanni Tu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Beijing East Road, Jinghu District, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Tianmiao Hua
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Beijing East Road, Jinghu District, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
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Zhang Y, Bi K, Li J, Wang Y, Fang F. Dyadic visual perceptual learning on orientation discrimination. Curr Biol 2023:S0960-9822(23)00552-3. [PMID: 37224810 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.04.070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
The belief that learning can be modulated by social context is mainly supported by high-level value-based learning studies. However, whether social context can even modulate low-level learning such as visual perceptual learning (VPL) is still unknown. Unlike traditional VPL studies in which participants were trained singly, here, we developed a novel dyadic VPL paradigm in which paired participants were trained with the same orientation discrimination task and could monitor each other's performance. We found that the social context (i.e., dyadic training) led to a greater behavioral performance improvement and a faster learning rate compared with the single training. Interestingly, the facilitating effects could be modulated by the performance difference between paired participants. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) results showed that, compared with the single training, social cognition areas including bilateral parietal cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex displayed a different activity pattern and enhanced functional connectivities to early visual cortex (EVC) during the dyadic training. Furthermore, the dyadic training resulted in more refined orientation representation in primary visual cortex (V1), which was closely associated with the greater behavioral performance improvement. Taken together, we demonstrate that the social context, learning with a partner, can remarkably augment the plasticity of low-level visual information process by means of reshaping the neural activities in EVC and social cognition areas, as well as their functional interplays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Zhang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Keyan Bi
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Jian Li
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Yizhou Wang
- Center on Frontiers of Computing Studies, School of Computer Science, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
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Wang Z, Lou S, Ma X, Guo H, Liu Y, Chen W, Lin D, Yang Y. Neural ensembles in the murine medial prefrontal cortex process distinct information during visual perceptual learning. BMC Biol 2023; 21:44. [PMID: 36829186 PMCID: PMC9960446 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-023-01529-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2022] [Accepted: 01/27/2023] [Indexed: 02/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Perceptual learning refers to an augmentation of an organism's ability to respond to external stimuli, which has been described in most sensory modalities. Visual perceptual learning (VPL) is a manifestation of plasticity in visual information processing that occurs in the adult brain, and can be used to ameliorate the ability of patients with visual defects mainly based on an improvement of detection or discrimination of features in visual tasks. While some brain regions such as the primary visual cortex have been described to participate in VPL, the way more general high-level cognitive brain areas are involved in this process remains unclear. Here, we showed that the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) was essential for both the training and maintenance processes of VPL in mouse models. RESULTS We built a new VPL model in a custom-designed training chamber to enable the utilization of miniScopes when mice freely executed the VPL task. We found that pyramidal neurons in the mPFC participate in both the training process and maintenance of VPL. By recording the calcium activity of mPFC pyramidal neurons while mice freely executed the task, distinct ON and OFF neural ensembles tuned to different behaviors were identified, which might encode different cognitive information. Decoding analysis showed that mouse behaviors could be well predicted using the activity of each ON ensemble. Furthermore, VPL recruited more reward-related components in the mPFC. CONCLUSION We revealed the neural mechanism underlying vision improvement following VPL and identify distinct ON and OFF neural ensembles in the mPFC that tuned to different information during visual perceptual training. These results uncover an important role of the mPFC in VPL, with more reward-related components being also involved, and pave the way for future clarification of the reward signal coding rules in VPL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhenni Wang
- grid.59053.3a0000000121679639Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026 China
| | - Shihao Lou
- grid.59053.3a0000000121679639Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026 China
| | - Xiao Ma
- grid.59053.3a0000000121679639Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026 China
| | - Hui Guo
- grid.59053.3a0000000121679639Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026 China
| | - Yan Liu
- grid.59053.3a0000000121679639Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026 China
| | - Wenjing Chen
- grid.59053.3a0000000121679639Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026 China
| | - Dating Lin
- grid.420090.f0000 0004 0533 7147Intramural Research Program, National Institute On Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, MD 21224 USA
| | - Yupeng Yang
- Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China.
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11
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Ye Z, Ding J, Tu Y, Zhang Q, Chen S, Yu H, Sun Q, Hua T. Suppression of top-down influence decreases both behavioral and V1 neuronal response sensitivity to stimulus orientations in cats. Front Behav Neurosci 2023; 17:1061980. [PMID: 36844652 PMCID: PMC9944033 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2023.1061980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023] Open
Abstract
How top-down influence affects behavioral detection of visual signals and neuronal response sensitivity in the primary visual cortex (V1) remains poorly understood. This study examined both behavioral performance in stimulus orientation identification and neuronal response sensitivity to stimulus orientations in the V1 of cat before and after top-down influence of area 7 (A7) was modulated by non-invasive transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Our results showed that cathode (c) but not sham (s) tDCS in A7 significantly increased the behavioral threshold in identifying stimulus orientation difference, which effect recovered after the tDCS effect vanished. Consistently, c-tDCS but not s-tDCS in A7 significantly decreased the response selectivity bias of V1 neurons for stimulus orientations, which effect could recover after withdrawal of the tDCS effect. Further analysis showed that c-tDCS induced reduction of V1 neurons in response selectivity was not resulted from alterations of neuronal preferred orientation, nor of spontaneous activity. Instead, c-tDCS in A7 significantly lowered the visually-evoked response, especially the maximum response of V1 neurons, which caused a decrease in response selectivity and signal-to-noise ratio. By contrast, s-tDCS exerted no significant effect on the responses of V1 neurons. These results indicate that top-down influence of A7 may enhance behavioral identification of stimulus orientations by increasing neuronal visually-evoked response and response selectivity in the V1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng Ye
- College of Life sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Jian Ding
- College of Life sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China,School of Basic Medical, Wannan Medical College, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Yanni Tu
- College of Life sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Qiuyu Zhang
- College of Life sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Shunshun Chen
- College of Life sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Hao Yu
- College of Life sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Qingyan Sun
- College of Life sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Tianmiao Hua
- College of Life sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China,*Correspondence: Tianmiao Hua,
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12
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Bang JW, Hamilton-Fletcher G, Chan KC. Visual Plasticity in Adulthood: Perspectives from Hebbian and Homeostatic Plasticity. Neuroscientist 2023; 29:117-138. [PMID: 34382456 PMCID: PMC9356772 DOI: 10.1177/10738584211037619] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
The visual system retains profound plastic potential in adulthood. In the current review, we summarize the evidence of preserved plasticity in the adult visual system during visual perceptual learning as well as both monocular and binocular visual deprivation. In each condition, we discuss how such evidence reflects two major cellular mechanisms of plasticity: Hebbian and homeostatic processes. We focus on how these two mechanisms work together to shape plasticity in the visual system. In addition, we discuss how these two mechanisms could be further revealed in future studies investigating cross-modal plasticity in the visual system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ji Won Bang
- Department of Ophthalmology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Giles Hamilton-Fletcher
- Department of Ophthalmology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Kevin C. Chan
- Department of Ophthalmology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA
- Neuroscience Institute, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY, USA
- Center for Neural Science, College of Arts and Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA
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13
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Modulation of top-down influence affects trafficking of glutamatergic receptors in the primary visual cortex. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2022; 632:17-23. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2022.09.082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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14
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Schumacher JW, McCann MK, Maximov KJ, Fitzpatrick D. Selective enhancement of neural coding in V1 underlies fine-discrimination learning in tree shrew. Curr Biol 2022; 32:3245-3260.e5. [PMID: 35767997 PMCID: PMC9378627 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.06.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2022] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Visual discrimination improves with training, a phenomenon that is thought to reflect plastic changes in the responses of neurons in primary visual cortex (V1). However, the identity of the neurons that undergo change, the nature of the changes, and the consequences of these changes for other visual behaviors remain unclear. We used chronic in vivo 2-photon calcium imaging to monitor the responses of neurons in the V1 of tree shrews learning a Go/No-Go fine orientation discrimination task. We observed increases in neural population measures of discriminability for task-relevant stimuli that correlate with performance and depend on a select subset of neurons with preferred orientations that include the rewarded stimulus and nearby orientations biased away from the non-rewarded stimulus. Learning is accompanied by selective enhancement in the response of these neurons to the rewarded stimulus that further increases their ability to discriminate the task stimuli. These changes persist outside of the trained task and predict observed enhancement and impairment in performance of other discriminations, providing evidence for selective and persistent learning-induced plasticity in the V1, with significant consequences for perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph W Schumacher
- Functional Architecture and Development of Cerebral Cortex, Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience, 1 Max Planck Way, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Matthew K McCann
- Functional Architecture and Development of Cerebral Cortex, Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience, 1 Max Planck Way, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - Katherine J Maximov
- Functional Architecture and Development of Cerebral Cortex, Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience, 1 Max Planck Way, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA
| | - David Fitzpatrick
- Functional Architecture and Development of Cerebral Cortex, Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience, 1 Max Planck Way, Jupiter, FL 33458, USA.
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15
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Chen H, Wang M, Xia L, Dong J, Xu G, Wang Z, Feng L, Zhou Y. New Evidence of Central Nervous System Damage in Diabetes: Impairment of Fine Visual Discrimination. Diabetes 2022; 71:1772-1784. [PMID: 35612428 DOI: 10.2337/db21-0715] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 05/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Diabetes can damage both the peripheral sensory organs, causing retinopathy, and the central visual system, leading to contrast sensitivity and impaired color vision in patients without retinopathy. Orientation discrimination is important for shape recognition by the visual system. Our psychophysical findings in this study show diminished orientation discrimination in patients with diabetes without retinopathy. To reveal the underlying mechanism, we established a diabetic mouse model and recorded in vivo electrophysiological data in the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN) and primary visual cortex (V1). Reduced orientation selectivity was observed in both individual and populations of neurons in V1 and dLGN, which increased in severity with disease duration. This diabetes-associated neuronal dysfunction appeared earlier in the V1 than dLGN. Additionally, neuronal activity and signal-to-noise ratio are reduced in V1 neurons of diabetic mice, leading to a decreased capacity for information processing by V1 neurons. Notably, the V1 in diabetic mice exhibits reduced excitatory neuronal activity and lower levels of phosphorylated mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR). Our findings show that altered responses of both populations of and single V1 neurons may impair fine vision, thus expanding our understanding of the underlying causes of diabetes-related impairment of the central nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- He Chen
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Menghan Wang
- School of Information Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Lin Xia
- Department of Ophthalmology, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Branch of National Clinical Research Center for Ocular Diseases, Hefei, China
| | - Jiong Dong
- Department of Ophthalmology, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, China
| | - Guangwei Xu
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Ziyi Wang
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Lixia Feng
- Department of Ophthalmology, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
- Anhui Branch of National Clinical Research Center for Ocular Diseases, Hefei, China
| | - Yifeng Zhou
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Hefei, China
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16
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Abstract
Vision and learning have long been considered to be two areas of research linked only distantly. However, recent developments in vision research have changed the conceptual definition of vision from a signal-evaluating process to a goal-oriented interpreting process, and this shift binds learning, together with the resulting internal representations, intimately to vision. In this review, we consider various types of learning (perceptual, statistical, and rule/abstract) associated with vision in the past decades and argue that they represent differently specialized versions of the fundamental learning process, which must be captured in its entirety when applied to complex visual processes. We show why the generalized version of statistical learning can provide the appropriate setup for such a unified treatment of learning in vision, what computational framework best accommodates this kind of statistical learning, and what plausible neural scheme could feasibly implement this framework. Finally, we list the challenges that the field of statistical learning faces in fulfilling the promise of being the right vehicle for advancing our understanding of vision in its entirety. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Vision Science, Volume 8 is September 2022. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
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Affiliation(s)
- József Fiser
- Department of Cognitive Science, Center for Cognitive Computation, Central European University, Vienna 1100, Austria;
| | - Gábor Lengyel
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, New York 14627, USA
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17
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He Q, Yang XY, Zhao D, Fang F. Enhancement of visual perception by combining transcranial electrical stimulation and visual perceptual training. MEDICAL REVIEW (BERLIN, GERMANY) 2022; 2:271-284. [PMID: 37724187 PMCID: PMC10388778 DOI: 10.1515/mr-2022-0010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2022] [Accepted: 06/16/2022] [Indexed: 09/20/2023]
Abstract
The visual system remains highly malleable even after its maturity or impairment. Our visual function can be enhanced through many ways, such as transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) and visual perceptual learning (VPL). TES can change visual function rapidly, but its modulation effect is short-lived and unstable. By contrast, VPL can lead to a substantial and long-lasting improvement in visual function, but extensive training is typically required. Theoretically, visual function could be further improved in a shorter time frame by combining tES and VPL than by solely using tES or VPL. Vision enhancement by combining these two methods concurrently is both theoretically and practically significant. In this review, we firstly introduced the basic concept and possible mechanisms of VPL and tES; then we reviewed the current research progress of visual enhancement using the combination of two methods in both general and clinical population; finally, we discussed the limitations and future directions in this field. Our review provides a guide for future research and application of vision enhancement and restoration by combining VPL and tES.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qing He
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Machine Perception, Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing, China
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Xin-Yue Yang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Machine Perception, Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing, China
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Daiqing Zhao
- Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, State College, PA, USA
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Machine Perception, Ministry of Education, Peking University, Beijing, China
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
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18
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Mechanisms of Surround Suppression Effect on the Contrast Sensitivity of V1 Neurons in Cats. Neural Plast 2022; 2022:5677655. [PMID: 35299618 PMCID: PMC8923783 DOI: 10.1155/2022/5677655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2021] [Revised: 01/30/2022] [Accepted: 02/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Surround suppression (SS) is a phenomenon that a neuron’s response to visual stimuli within the classical receptive field (cRF) is suppressed by a concurrent stimulation in the surrounding receptive field (sRF) beyond the cRF. Studies show that SS affects neuronal response contrast sensitivity in the primary visual cortex (V1). However, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we examined SS effect on the contrast sensitivity of cats’ V1 neurons with different preferred SFs using external noise-masked visual stimuli and perceptual template model (PTM) analysis at the system level. The contrast sensitivity was evaluated by the inverted threshold contrast of neurons in response to circular gratings of different contrasts in the cRF with or without an annular grating in the sRF. Our results showed that SS significantly reduced the contrast sensitivity of cats’ V1 neurons. The SS-induced reduction of contrast sensitivity was not correlated with SS strength but was dependent on neuron’s preferred SF, with a larger reduction for neurons with low preferred SFs than those with high preferred SFs. PTM analysis of threshold versus external noise contrast (TvC) functions indicated that SS decreased contrast sensitivity by increasing both the internal additive noise and impact of external noise for neurons with low preferred SFs, but improving only internal additive noise for neurons with high preferred SFs. Furthermore, the SS effect on the contrast-response function of low- and high-SF neurons also exhibited different mechanisms in contrast gain and response gain. Collectively, these results suggest that the mechanisms of SS effect on neuronal contrast sensitivity may depend on neuronal populations with different SFs.
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19
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Ding J, Ye Z, Xu F, Hu X, Yu H, Zhang S, Tu Y, Zhang Q, Sun Q, Hua T, Lu ZL. Effects of top-down influence suppression on behavioral and V1 neuronal contrast sensitivity functions in cats. iScience 2022; 25:103683. [PMID: 35059603 PMCID: PMC8760559 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2021.103683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2021] [Revised: 11/16/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 02/09/2023] Open
Abstract
To explore the relative contributions of higher-order and primary visual cortex (V1) to visual perception, we compared cats' behavioral and V1 neuronal contrast sensitivity functions (CSF) and threshold versus external noise contrast (TvC) functions before and after top-down influence of area 7 (A7) was modulated with transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). We found that suppressing top-down influence of A7 with cathode-tDCS, but not sham-tDCS, reduced behavioral and neuronal contrast sensitivity in the same range of spatial frequencies and increased behavioral and neuronal contrast thresholds in the same range of external noise levels. The neuronal CSF and TvC functions were highly correlated with their behavioral counterparts both before and after the top-down suppression. Analysis of TvC functions using the Perceptual Template Model (PTM) indicated that top-down influence of A7 increased both behavioral and V1 neuronal contrast sensitivity by reducing internal additive noise and the impact of external noise. Top-down suppression lowers both behavioral and V1 neuronal CSF functions Top-down suppression raises both behavioral and V1 neuronal TvC functions The neuronal CSFs and TvCs are highly correlated with their behavioral counterparts Top-down influence lowers internal additive noise and impact of external noise in V1
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Ding
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Zheng Ye
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Fei Xu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Xiangmei Hu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Hao Yu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Shen Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Yanni Tu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Qiuyu Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Qingyan Sun
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Tianmiao Hua
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui 241000, China
| | - Zhong-Lin Lu
- Divison of Arts and Sciences, NYU Shanghai, Shanghai 200122, China.,Center for Neural Science and Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA.,NYU-ECNU Institute of Brain and Cognitive Science, NYU Shanghai, Shanghai 200062, China
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20
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Ibarra-Lecue I, Haegens S, Harris AZ. Breaking Down a Rhythm: Dissecting the Mechanisms Underlying Task-Related Neural Oscillations. Front Neural Circuits 2022; 16:846905. [PMID: 35310550 PMCID: PMC8931663 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2022.846905] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
A century worth of research has linked multiple cognitive, perceptual and behavioral states to various brain oscillations. However, the mechanistic roles and circuit underpinnings of these oscillations remain an area of active study. In this review, we argue that the advent of optogenetic and related systems neuroscience techniques has shifted the field from correlational to causal observations regarding the role of oscillations in brain function. As a result, studying brain rhythms associated with behavior can provide insight at different levels, such as decoding task-relevant information, mapping relevant circuits or determining key proteins involved in rhythmicity. We summarize recent advances in this field, highlighting the methods that are being used for this purpose, and discussing their relative strengths and limitations. We conclude with promising future approaches that will help unravel the functional role of brain rhythms in orchestrating the repertoire of complex behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inés Ibarra-Lecue
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States.,New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, United States
| | - Saskia Haegens
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States.,New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, United States.,Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Alexander Z Harris
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States.,New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, United States
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21
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Kimura R, Yoshimura Y. The contribution of low contrast-preferring neurons to information representation in the primary visual cortex after learning. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2021; 7:eabj9976. [PMID: 34826242 PMCID: PMC8626071 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abj9976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Animals exhibit improved perception of lower-contrast visual objects after training. We explored this neuronal mechanism using multiple single-unit recordings from deep layers of the primary visual cortex (V1) of trained rats during orientation discrimination. We found that the firing rates of a subset of neurons increased by reducing luminance contrast, being at least above basal activities at low contrast. These low contrast–preferring neurons were rare during passive viewing without training or anesthesia after training. They fired more frequently in correct-choice than incorrect-choice trials. At single-neuron and population levels, they efficiently represented low-contrast orientations. Following training, in addition to generally enhanced excitation, the phase synchronization of spikes to beta oscillations at high contrast was stronger in putative inhibitory than excitatory neurons. The change in excitation-inhibition balance might contribute to low-contrast preference. Thus, low-contrast preference in V1 activity is strengthened in an experience-dependent manner, which may contribute to low-contrast visual discrimination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rie Kimura
- Division of Visual Information Processing, National Institute for Physiological Sciences, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Japan
- Department of Physiological Sciences, SOKENDAI (The Graduate University for Advanced Studies), Okazaki, Japan
| | - Yumiko Yoshimura
- Division of Visual Information Processing, National Institute for Physiological Sciences, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Japan
- Department of Physiological Sciences, SOKENDAI (The Graduate University for Advanced Studies), Okazaki, Japan
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22
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Hu F, Xu G, Zhang L, Wang H, Liu J, Chen Z, Zhou Y. Chronic bisphenol A exposure triggers visual perception dysfunction through impoverished neuronal coding ability in the primary visual cortex. Arch Toxicol 2021; 96:625-637. [PMID: 34783864 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-021-03192-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Contrast perception is a fundamental visual ability that allows us to distinguish objects from the background. However, whether it is perturbed by chronic exposure to environmental xenoestrogen, bisphenol A (BPA), is still elusive. Here, we used adult cats to explore BPA-induced changes in contrast sensitivity (CS) and its underlying neuronal coding mechanism. Behavioral results showed that 14 days of BPA exposure (0.4 mg/kg/day) was sufficient to induce CS declines at the tested spatial frequencies (0.05-2 cycles/deg) in all four cats. Furthermore, based on multi-channel electrophysiological recording and interneuronal correlation analysis, we found that the BPA-exposed cats exhibited an obvious up-regulation in noise correlation in the primary visual cortex (area 17, A17), thus providing a population neuronal coding basis for their perceptual dysfunction. Moreover, single neuron responses in A17 of BPA-exposed cats revealed a slight but marked decrease in CS compared to that of control cats. Additionally, these neuronal responses presented an overt decrease in signal-to-noise ratio, accompanied by increased trial-to-trial response variability (i.e., noise). To some extent, these neuron population and unit dysfunctions in A17 of BPA-exposed cats were attributable to decreased response activity of fast-spiking neurons. Together, our findings demonstrate that chronic BPA exposure restricts contrast perception, in response to impoverished neuronal coding ability in A17.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fan Hu
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, 230009, Anhui, People's Republic of China.
| | - Guangwei Xu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, People's Republic of China.
| | - Linke Zhang
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, 230009, Anhui, People's Republic of China
| | - Huan Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiachen Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhi Chen
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, 230009, Anhui, People's Republic of China
| | - Yifeng Zhou
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, Anhui, People's Republic of China. .,State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Science, 15 Datun Road, Beijing, 100101, People's Republic of China.
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23
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Ding J, Hu X, Xu F, Yu H, Ye Z, Zhang S, Pan H, Pan D, Tu Y, Zhang Q, Sun Q, Hua T. Suppression of top-down influence decreases neuronal excitability and contrast sensitivity in the V1 cortex of cat. Sci Rep 2021; 11:16034. [PMID: 34362965 PMCID: PMC8346540 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-95407-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
How top-down influence affects neuronal activity and information encoding in the primary visual cortex (V1) remains elusive. This study examined changes of neuronal excitability and contrast sensitivity in cat V1 cortex after top-down influence of area 7 (A7) was modulated by transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). The neuronal excitability in V1 cortex was evaluated by visually evoked field potentials (VEPs), and contrast sensitivity (CS) was assessed by the inverse of threshold contrast of neurons in response to visual stimuli at different performance accuracy. We found that the amplitude of VEPs in V1 cortex lowered after top-down influence suppression with cathode-tDCS in A7, whereas VEPs in V1 did not change after sham-tDCS in A7 and nonvisual cortical area 5 (A5) or cathode-tDCS in A5 and lesioned A7. Moreover, the mean CS of V1 neurons decreased after cathode-tDCS but not sham-tDCS in A7, which could recover after tDCS effect vanished. Comparisons of neuronal contrast-response functions showed that cathode-tDCS increased the stimulus contrast required to generate the half-maximum response, with a weakly-correlated reduction in maximum response but not baseline response. Therefore, top-down influence of A7 enhanced neuronal excitability in V1 cortex and improved neuronal contrast sensitivity by both contrast gain and response gain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jian Ding
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Xiangmei Hu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Fei Xu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Hao Yu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Zheng Ye
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Shen Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Huijun Pan
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Deng Pan
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Yanni Tu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Qiuyu Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Qingyan Sun
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China
| | - Tianmiao Hua
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, Anhui, China.
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24
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Smith GE, Chouinard PA, Byosiere SE. If I fits I sits: A citizen science investigation into illusory contour susceptibility in domestic cats (Felis silvestris catus). Appl Anim Behav Sci 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2021.105338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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25
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Xi J, Wang GT, Zhao J, Huang CB. General and Specific Effects of Stereo Learning. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:535512. [PMID: 34234656 PMCID: PMC8256795 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.535512] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2020] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Technological advancements in virtual reality challenge the human vision, especially stereopsis, a function, which characterizes how two eyes coordinate to form a unified three-dimensional (3D) representation of the external world and is found to be deficient in 30% of the normal population. Although a few previous studies have consistently found that the perceptual learning of stereopsis significantly improved stereoacuity, an underlying mechanism of stereo learning remains heavily debated. Here, we trained subjects with normal stereo vision (assessed with the FLY Stereo Acuity Test) to judge stereopsis containing three types of binocular disparity orders (i.e., zero-, first-, and second-order), aiming to systematically examine the characteristics and plasticity of stereo learning. Thirty subjects were randomly assigned to the three training groups (each for the zero-, first-, or second-order disparity separately). The disparity thresholds were measured before and after training. The disparity threshold was measured in 10 additional control subjects only at the pre- and post-training phase. Stereoscopic images were displayed through a shutter goggle, which is synchronized to a monitor. We found that the training significantly improved the zero-, first-, and second-order disparity threshold by 52.42, 36.28, and 14.9% in the zero-order training condition; 30.44, 63.74, and 21.07% in the first-order training condition; and 30.77, 25.19, and 75.12% in the second-order training condition, respectively. There was no significant improvement in the control group. Interestingly, the greatest improvements in the first- and second-order disparity threshold were found in the corresponding disparity training group; on the contrary, the improvements in the zero-order disparity threshold were comparable across all the three disparity training groups. Our findings demonstrated both general (related to the zero-order disparity) and specific improvements (related to the first- and second-order disparity) in stereo learning, suggesting that stereo training occurs at different visual processing stages and its effects might depend on the specific training sites.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Xi
- Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ge-Tong Wang
- Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jin Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Chang-Bing Huang
- Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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26
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Pan H, Zhang S, Pan D, Ye Z, Yu H, Ding J, Wang Q, Sun Q, Hua T. Characterization of Feedback Neurons in the High-Level Visual Cortical Areas That Project Directly to the Primary Visual Cortex in the Cat. Front Neuroanat 2021; 14:616465. [PMID: 33488364 PMCID: PMC7820340 DOI: 10.3389/fnana.2020.616465] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2020] [Accepted: 12/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous studies indicate that top-down influence plays a critical role in visual information processing and perceptual detection. However, the substrate that carries top-down influence remains poorly understood. Using a combined technique of retrograde neuronal tracing and immunofluorescent double labeling, we characterized the distribution and cell type of feedback neurons in cat's high-level visual cortical areas that send direct connections to the primary visual cortex (V1: area 17). Our results showed: (1) the high-level visual cortex of area 21a at the ventral stream and PMLS area at the dorsal stream have a similar proportion of feedback neurons back projecting to the V1 area, (2) the distribution of feedback neurons in the higher-order visual area 21a and PMLS was significantly denser than in the intermediate visual cortex of area 19 and 18, (3) feedback neurons in all observed high-level visual cortex were found in layer II-III, IV, V, and VI, with a higher proportion in layer II-III, V, and VI than in layer IV, and (4) most feedback neurons were CaMKII-positive excitatory neurons, and few of them were identified as inhibitory GABAergic neurons. These results may argue against the segregation of ventral and dorsal streams during visual information processing, and support "reverse hierarchy theory" or interactive model proposing that recurrent connections between V1 and higher-order visual areas constitute the functional circuits that mediate visual perception. Also, the corticocortical feedback neurons from high-level visual cortical areas to the V1 area are mostly excitatory in nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huijun Pan
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
| | - Shen Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
| | - Deng Pan
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
| | - Zheng Ye
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
| | - Hao Yu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
| | - Jian Ding
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
| | - Qin Wang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
| | - Qingyan Sun
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
| | - Tianmiao Hua
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, China
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Xi J, Zhang P, Jia WL, Chen N, Yang J, Wang GT, Dai Y, Zhang Y, Huang CB. Multi-Stage Cortical Plasticity Induced by Visual Contrast Learning. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:555701. [PMID: 33408602 PMCID: PMC7779615 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.555701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2020] [Accepted: 11/25/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Perceptual learning, the improved sensitivity via repetitive practice, is a universal phenomenon in vision and its neural mechanisms remain controversial. A central question is which stage of processing is changed after training. To answer this question, we measured the contrast response functions and electroencephalography (EEG) before and after ten daily sessions of contrast detection training. Behavioral results showed that training substantially improved visual acuity and contrast sensitivity. The learning effect was significant at the trained condition and partially transferred to control conditions. Event-related potential (ERP) results showed that training reduced the latency in both early and late ERPs at the trained condition. Specifically, contrast-gain-related changes were observed in the latency of P1, N1-P2 complex, and N2, which reflects neural changes across the early, middle, and high-level sensory stages. Meanwhile, response-gain-related changes were found in the latency of N2, which indicates stimulus-independent effect in higher-level stages. In sum, our findings indicate that learning leads to changes across different processing stages and the extent of learning and transfer may depend on the specific stage of information processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jie Xi
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Pan Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Wu-Li Jia
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- School of Education Science, Huaiyin Normal University, Huaian, China
| | - Nihong Chen
- Department of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
- THU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing, China
| | - Jia Yang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ge-Tong Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Yun Dai
- Institute of Optics and Electronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
- The Key Laboratory on Adaptive Optics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Yudong Zhang
- Institute of Optics and Electronics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
- The Key Laboratory on Adaptive Optics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chengdu, China
| | - Chang-Bing Huang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
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28
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Pan D, Pan H, Zhang S, Yu H, Ding J, Ye Z, Hua T. Top-down influence affects the response adaptation of V1 neurons in cats. Brain Res Bull 2020; 167:89-98. [PMID: 33333174 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2020.12.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2020] [Revised: 11/05/2020] [Accepted: 12/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The visual system lowers its perceptual sensitivity to a prolonged presentation of the same visual signal. This brain plasticity, called visual adaptation, is generally attributed to the response adaptation of neurons in the visual cortex. Although well-studied in the neurons of the primary visual cortex (V1), the contribution of high-level visual cortical regions to the response adaptation of V1 neurons is unclear. In the present study, we measured the response adaptation strength of V1 neurons before and after the top-down influence of the area 21a (A21a), a higher-order visual cortex homologous to the primate V4 area, was modulated with a noninvasive tool of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Our results showed that the response adaptation of V1 neurons enhanced significantly after applying anode (a-) tDCS in A21a when compared with that before a-tDCS, whereas the response adaptation of V1 neurons weakened after cathode (c-) tDCS relative to before c-tDCS in A21a. By contrast, sham (s-) tDCS in A21a had no significant impact on the response adaptation of V1 neurons. Further analysis indicated that a-tDCS in A21a significantly increased both the initial response (IR) of V1 neurons to the first several (five) trails of visual stimulation and the plateau response (PR) to the prolonged visual stimulation; the increase in PR was lower than in IR, which caused an enhancement in response adaptation. Conversely, c-tDCS significantly decreased both IR and PR of V1 neurons; the reduction in PR was smaller than in IR, which resulted in a weakness in response adaptation. Furthermore, the tDCS-induced changes of V1 neurons in response and response adaptation could recover after tDCS effect vanished, but did not occur after the neuronal activity in A21a was silenced by electrolytic lesions. These results suggest that the top-down influence of A21a may alter the response adaptation of V1 neurons through activation of local inhibitory circuitry, which enhances network inhibition in the V1 area upon an increased top-down input, weakens inhibition upon a decreased top-down input, and thus maintains homeostasis of V1 neurons in response to the long-presenting visual signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Deng Pan
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, 241000, China
| | - Huijun Pan
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, 241000, China
| | - Shen Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, 241000, China
| | - Hao Yu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, 241000, China
| | - Jian Ding
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, 241000, China
| | - Zheng Ye
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, 241000, China
| | - Tianmiao Hua
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, 241000, China.
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29
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Ruediger S, Scanziani M. Learning speed and detection sensitivity controlled by distinct cortico-fugal neurons in visual cortex. eLife 2020; 9:e59247. [PMID: 33284107 PMCID: PMC7748414 DOI: 10.7554/elife.59247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2020] [Accepted: 12/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Vertebrates can change their behavior upon detection of visual stimuli according to the outcome their actions produce. Such goal-directed behavior involves evolutionary conserved brain structures like the striatum and optic tectum, which receive ascending visual input from the periphery. In mammals, however, these structures also receive descending visual input from visual cortex (VC), via neurons that give rise to cortico-fugal projections. The function of cortico-fugal neurons in visually guided, goal-directed behavior remains unclear. Here, we address the impact of two populations of cortico-fugal neurons in mouse VC in the learning and performance of a visual detection task. We show that the ablation of striatal projecting neurons reduces learning speed, whereas the ablation of superior colliculus projecting neurons does not impact learning but reduces detection sensitivity. This functional dissociation between distinct cortico-fugal neurons in controlling learning speed and detection sensitivity suggests an adaptive contribution of cortico-fugal pathways even in simple goal-directed behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Ruediger
- Center for Neural Circuits and Behavior, Neurobiology Section and Department of Neuroscience, University of California, San DiegoLa JollaUnited States
- Department of Physiology, University of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
| | - Massimo Scanziani
- Center for Neural Circuits and Behavior, Neurobiology Section and Department of Neuroscience, University of California, San DiegoLa JollaUnited States
- Department of Physiology, University of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San FranciscoSan FranciscoUnited States
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30
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Pak A, Chubykin AA. Cortical Tuning is Impaired After Perceptual Experience in Primary Visual Cortex of Serotonin Transporter-Deficient Mice. Cereb Cortex Commun 2020; 1:tgaa066. [PMID: 33134928 PMCID: PMC7575641 DOI: 10.1093/texcom/tgaa066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2020] [Revised: 08/27/2020] [Accepted: 09/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine) is crucial for the proper development of neuronal circuits early in life and their refinement throughout adulthood. Its signaling is tightly regulated by the serotonin transporter (SERT), alterations of which were implicated in various neurological and psychiatric disorders. Animal models lacking a functional SERT variant display diverse phenotypes, including increased anxiety, social communication deficits, and altered cortical development. However, it remains unclear how SERT disruption affects sensory processing and experience-dependent learning in adulthood. It has been previously shown that perceptual experience leads to the development of visual familiarity-evoked theta oscillations in mouse V1. Here, we discovered that familiarity-evoked theta oscillations were longer and less stimulus specific in SERT knockout (KO) compared with wild-type (WT) mice. Interestingly, while the overall visual response properties were similar in naive mice, orientation and spatial frequency processing were significantly impaired in SERT KO compared with WT or SERT heterozygous mice following perceptual experience. Our findings shed more light on the mechanism of familiarity-evoked oscillations and highlight the importance of serotonin signaling in perceptual learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandr Pak
- Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue Institute for Integrative Neuroscience, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
| | - Alexander A Chubykin
- Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue Institute for Integrative Neuroscience, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA
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31
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Nguyen KN, Watanabe T, Andersen GJ. Role of endogenous and exogenous attention in task-relevant visual perceptual learning. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0237912. [PMID: 32857813 PMCID: PMC7454975 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0237912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2020] [Accepted: 08/05/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The present study examined the role of exogenous and endogenous attention in task relevant visual perceptual learning (TR-VPL). VPL performance was assessed by examining the learning to a trained stimulus feature and transfer of learning to an untrained stimulus feature. To assess the differential role of attention in VPL, two types of attentional cues were manipulated; exogenous and endogenous. In order to assess the effectiveness of the attentional cue, the two types of attentional cues were further divided into three cue-validity conditions. Participants were trained, on a novel task, to detect the presence of a complex gabor patch embedded in fixed Gaussian contrast noise while contrast thresholds were varied. The results showed initial differences were found prior to training, and so the magnitude of learning was assessed. Exogenous and endogenous attention were both found to facilitate learning and feature transfer when investigating pre-test and post-test thresholds. However, examination of training data indicate attentional differences; with endogenous attention showing consistently lower contrast thresholds as compared to exogenous attention suggesting greater impact of training with endogenous attention. We conclude that several factors, including the use of stimuli that resulted in rapid learning, may have contributed to the generalization of learning found in the present study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kieu Ngoc Nguyen
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, California, United States of America
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, United States of America
| | - George John Andersen
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, California, United States of America
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32
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Zhao X, Ding J, Pan H, Zhang S, Pan D, Yu H, Ye Z, Hua T. Anodal and cathodal tDCS modulate neural activity and selectively affect GABA and glutamate syntheses in the visual cortex of cats. J Physiol 2020; 598:3727-3745. [PMID: 32506434 DOI: 10.1113/jp279340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2019] [Accepted: 06/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
KEY POINTS The present study showed that anodal and cathodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) can respectively increase and decrease the amplitude of visually evoked field potentials in the stimulated visual cortex of cats, with the effect lasting for ∼60-70 min. We directly measured tDCS-induced changes in the concentration of inhibitory and excitatory neurotransmitters in the visual cortex using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay method and showed that anodal and cathodal tDCS can selectively decrease the concentration of GABA and glutamate in the stimulated cortical area. Anodal and cathodal tDCS can selectively inhibit the synthesis of GABA and glutamate by suppressing the expression of GABA- and glutamate-synthesizing enzymes, respectively. ABSTRACT Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) evokes long-lasting neuronal excitability in the target brain region. The underlying neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. The present study examined tDCS-induced alterations in neuronal activities, as well as the concentration and synthesis of GABA and glutamate (GLU), in area 21a (A21a) of cat visual cortex. Our analysis showed that anodal and cathodal tDCS respectively enhanced and suppressed neuronal activities in A21a, as indicated by a significantly increased and decreased amplitude of visually evoked field potentials (VEPs). The tDCS-induced effect lasted for ∼60-70 min. By contrast, sham tDCS had no significant impact on the VEPs in A21a. On the other hand, the concentration of GABA, but not that of GLU, in A21a significantly decreased after anodal tDCS relative to sham tDCS, whereas the concentration of GLU, but not that of GABA, in A21a significantly decreased after cathodal tDCS relative to sham tDCS. Furthermore, the expression of GABA-synthesizing enzymes GAD65 and GAD67 in A21a significantly decreased in terms of both mRNA and protein concentrations after anodal tDCS relative to sham tDCS, whereas that of GLU-synthesizing enzyme glutaminase (GLS) did not change significantly after anodal tDCS. By contrast, both mRNA and protein concentrations of GLS in A21a significantly decreased after cathodal tDCS relative to sham tDCS, whereas those of GAD65/GAD67 showed no significant change after cathodal tDCS. Taken together, these results indicate that anodal and cathodal tDCS may selectively reduce GABA and GLU syntheses and thus respectively enhance and suppress neuronal excitability in the stimulated brain area.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaojing Zhao
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Jian Ding
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Huijun Pan
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Shen Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Deng Pan
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Hao Yu
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Zheng Ye
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
| | - Tianmiao Hua
- College of Life Sciences, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, Anhui, China
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33
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Action Video Gaming Does Not Influence Short-Term Ocular Dominance Plasticity in Visually Normal Adults. eNeuro 2020; 7:ENEURO.0006-20.2020. [PMID: 32345735 PMCID: PMC7242818 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0006-20.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2020] [Revised: 04/14/2020] [Accepted: 04/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Action video gaming can promote neural plasticity. Short-term monocular patching drives neural plasticity in the visual system of human adults. For instance, short-term monocular patching of 0.5–5 h briefly enhances the patched eye’s contribution in binocular vision (i.e., short-term ocular dominance plasticity). In this study, we investigate whether action video gaming can influence this plasticity in adults with normal vision. We measured participants’ eye dominance using a binocular phase combination task before and after 2.5 h of monocular patching. Participants were asked to play action video games, watch action video game movies, or play non-action video games during the period of monocular patching. We found that participants’ change of ocular dominance after monocular patching was not significantly different either for playing action video games versus watching action video game movies (Comparison 1) or for playing action video games versus playing non-action video games (Comparison 2). These results suggest that action video gaming does not either boost or eliminate short-term ocular dominance plasticity, and that the neural site for this type of plasticity might be in the early visual pathway.
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Hu F, Liu J, Xu G, Wang H, Shen J, Zhou Y. Bisphenol A exposure inhibits contrast sensitivity in cats involving increased response noise and inhibitory synaptic transmission. Brain Res Bull 2020; 157:1-9. [PMID: 31982453 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2020.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/06/2019] [Revised: 12/25/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Contrast sensitivity (CS) is one of the primary fundamental factors determining how well we can see, and it directly influences object recognition. Whether bisphenol-A (BPA, an environmental xenoestrogen) can perturb contrast detection in the visual system has yet to be elucidated. In the present study, we analyzed CS of single neurons in the primary visual cortex (area 17, A17) of cats before and after BPA exposure using a multiple-channel recording technique. The results showed that CS of A17 neurons was markedly depressed with an increased contrast threshold after two hour of intravenous BPA administration, which had a positive correlation with decreased firing rates of A17 neurons. Additionally, responses of these neurons presented an overt increase in the trial-to-trail response variability (a kind of neuronal noise), which could disturb the information-filtering function of single neurons. We also found that neuronal CS in the visual relay station was not disturbed after BPA administration, which rules out the contribution of CS alteration in the optical pathway. Importantly, acute BPA treatment obviously increased the inhibitory innervation to the visual pyramidal neurons. This implies that alteration of intracortical inhibitory regulation contributes to the compromised contrast detection in the visual system after BPA treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fan Hu
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Hefei University of Technology, Hefei, Anhui 230009, People's Republic of China.
| | - Jiachen Liu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, People's Republic of China
| | - Guangwei Xu
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, People's Republic of China
| | - Huan Wang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiawei Shen
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, People's Republic of China
| | - Yifeng Zhou
- CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Diseases, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, People's Republic of China.
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35
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A common probabilistic framework for perceptual and statistical learning. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2019; 58:218-228. [PMID: 31669722 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2019.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2019] [Revised: 08/24/2019] [Accepted: 09/09/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
System-level learning of sensory information is traditionally divided into two domains: perceptual learning that focuses on acquiring knowledge suitable for fine discrimination between similar sensory inputs, and statistical learning that explores the mechanisms that develop complex representations of unfamiliar sensory experiences. The two domains have been typically treated in complete separation both in terms of the underlying computational mechanisms and the brain areas and processes implementing those computations. However, a number of recent findings in both domains call in question this strict separation. We interpret classical and more recent results in the general framework of probabilistic computation, provide a unifying view of how various aspects of the two domains are interlinked, and suggest how the probabilistic approach can also alleviate the problem of dealing with widely different types of neural correlates of learning. Finally, we outline several directions along which our proposed approach fosters new types of experiments that can promote investigations of natural learning in humans and other species.
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36
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Bang JW, Milton D, Sasaki Y, Watanabe T, Rahnev D. Post-training TMS abolishes performance improvement and releases future learning from interference. Commun Biol 2019; 2:320. [PMID: 31482139 PMCID: PMC6711956 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-019-0566-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2019] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The period immediately after the offset of visual training is thought to be critical for memory consolidation. Nevertheless, we still lack direct evidence for the causal role of this period to perceptual learning of either previously or subsequently trained material. To address these issues, we had human subjects complete two consecutive trainings with different tasks (detecting different Gabor orientations). We applied continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) to either the visual cortex or a control site (vertex) immediately after the offset of the first training. In the vertex cTBS condition, subjects showed improvement on the first task but not on the second task, suggesting the presence of anterograde interference. Critically, cTBS to the visual cortex abolished the performance improvement on the first task and released the second training from the anterograde interference. These results provide causal evidence for a role of the immediate post-training period in the consolidation of perceptual learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ji Won Bang
- School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332 USA
- Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, New York University, New York, NY 10016 USA
| | - Diana Milton
- School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332 USA
| | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912 USA
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912 USA
| | - Dobromir Rahnev
- School of Psychology, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, GA 30332 USA
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37
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Demmin DL, Fradkin SI, Silverstein SM. Remediation of Visual Processing Impairments in Schizophrenia: Where We Are and Where We Need to Be. Curr Behav Neurosci Rep 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s40473-019-00171-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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38
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Jia K, Xue X, Lee JH, Fang F, Zhang J, Li S. Visual perceptual learning modulates decision network in the human brain: The evidence from psychophysics, modeling, and functional magnetic resonance imaging. J Vis 2019; 18:9. [PMID: 30452587 DOI: 10.1167/18.12.9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Perceptual learning refers to improved perceptual performance after intensive training and was initially suggested to reflect long-term plasticity in early visual cortex. Recent behavioral and neurophysiological evidence further suggested that the plasticity in brain regions related to decision making could also contribute to the observed training effects. However, how perceptual learning modulates the responses of decision-related regions in the human brain remains largely unknown. In the present study, we combined psychophysics and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and adopted a model-based approach to investigate this issue. We trained participants on a motion direction discrimination task and fitted their behavioral data using the linear ballistic accumulator model. The results from model fitting showed that behavioral improvement could be well explained by a specific improvement in sensory information accumulation. A critical model parameter, the drift rate of the information accumulation, was correlated with the fMRI responses derived from three spatial independent components: ventral premotor cortex (PMv), supplementary eye field (SEF), and the fronto-parietal network, including intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and frontal eye field (FEF). In this decision network, we found that the behavioral training effects were accompanied by signal enhancement specific to trained direction in PMv and FEF. Further, we also found direction-specific signal reduction in sensory areas (V3A and MT+), as well as the strengthened effective connectivity from V3A to PMv and from IPS to FEF. These findings provide evidence for the learning-induced decision refinement after perceptual learning and the brain regions that are involved in this process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ke Jia
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China.,PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China.,Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Xin Xue
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China.,PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China.,Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing, China.,Department of Health Industry Management, Beijing International Studies University, Beijing, China
| | - Jong-Hwan Lee
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Engineering, Korea University, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China.,PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China.,Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing, China.,Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | | | - Sheng Li
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, China.,PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China.,Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing, China
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39
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Sanayei M, Chen X, Chicharro D, Distler C, Panzeri S, Thiele A. Perceptual learning of fine contrast discrimination changes neuronal tuning and population coding in macaque V4. Nat Commun 2018; 9:4238. [PMID: 30315163 PMCID: PMC6185947 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-06698-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2017] [Accepted: 09/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Perceptual learning, the improvement in perceptual abilities with training, is thought to be mediated by an alteration of neuronal tuning. It remains poorly understood how tuning properties change as training progresses, whether improved stimulus tuning directly links to increased behavioural readout of sensory information, or how population coding mechanisms change with training. Here, we recorded continuously from multiple neuronal clusters in area V4 while macaque monkeys learned a fine contrast categorization task. Training increased neuronal coding abilities by shifting the steepest point of contrast response functions towards the categorization boundary. Population coding accuracy of difficult discriminations resulted largely from an increased information coding of individual channels, particularly for those channels that in early learning had larger ability for easy discriminations, but comparatively small encoding abilities for difficult discriminations. Population coding was also enhanced by specific changes in correlations. Neuronal activity became more indicative of upcoming choices with training. Perceptual learning, the improvement in perceptual abilities with training, is thought to involve changes in neuronal 'tuning'. Here, the authors show that perceptual learning works by making neurons increasingly sensitive to task-relevant differences in stimuli, and by improving population coding mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mehdi Sanayei
- Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4HH, UK
| | - Xing Chen
- Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4HH, UK
| | - Daniel Chicharro
- Laboratory of Neural Computation, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, 38068, Rovereto, Italy.,Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Claudia Distler
- Allgemeine Zoologie und Neurobiologie, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Stefano Panzeri
- Laboratory of Neural Computation, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, 38068, Rovereto, Italy
| | - Alexander Thiele
- Institute of Neuroscience, Newcastle University, Framlington Place, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 4HH, UK.
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40
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Impact of transcranial direct current stimulation on somatosensory transfer learning: When the secondary somatosensory cortex comes into play. Brain Res 2018; 1689:98-108. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2018.03.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2017] [Revised: 03/11/2018] [Accepted: 03/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
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41
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Abstract
A hallmark of modern Perceptual Learning (PL) is the extent to which learning is specific to the trained stimuli. Such specificity to orientation, spatial location and even eye of training has been used as psychophysical evidence of the neural basis of learning. This argument that specificity of PL implies regionalization of brain plasticity implicitly assumes that examination of a singular locus of PL is an appropriate approach to understand learning. However, recent research shows that learning effects once thought to be specific depend on subtleties of the training paradigm and that within even a simple training procedure there are multiple aspects of the task and stimuli that are learned simultaneously. Here, we suggest that learning on any task involves a broad network of brain regions undergoing changes in representations, read-out weights, decision rules, attention and feedback processes as well as oculomotor changes. However, importantly, the distribution of learning across the neural system depends upon the details of the training procedure and the characterstics of the individual being trained. We propose that to advance our understanding of PL, the field must move towards understanding how distributed brain processes jointly contribute to behavioral learning effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcello Maniglia
- Department of Psychology, University of California - Riverside, Riverside, CA
| | - Aaron R Seitz
- Department of Psychology, University of California - Riverside, Riverside, CA
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42
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Kang DW, Kim D, Chang LH, Kim YH, Takahashi E, Cain MS, Watanabe T, Sasaki Y. Structural and Functional Connectivity Changes Beyond Visual Cortex in a Later Phase of Visual Perceptual Learning. Sci Rep 2018; 8:5186. [PMID: 29581455 PMCID: PMC5979999 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-23487-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2017] [Accepted: 03/13/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The neural mechanisms of visual perceptual learning (VPL) remain unclear. Previously we found that activation in the primary visual cortex (V1) increased in the early encoding phase of training, but returned to baseline levels in the later retention phase. To examine neural changes during the retention phase, we measured structural and functional connectivity changes using MRI. After weeks of training on a texture discrimination task, the fractional anisotropy of the inferior longitudinal fasciculus, a major tract connecting visual and anterior areas, was increased, as well as the functional connectivity between V1 and anterior regions mediated by the ILF. These changes were strongly correlated with behavioral performance improvements. These results suggest a two-phase model of VPL in which localized functional changes in V1 in the encoding phase of training are followed by changes in both structural and functional connectivity in ventral visual processing, perhaps leading to the long-term stabilization of VPL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dong-Wha Kang
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 05505, South Korea
| | - Dongho Kim
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 05505, South Korea
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street - BOX 1821, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
| | - Li-Hung Chang
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street - BOX 1821, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
- Education Center for Humanities and Social Sciences and Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang-Ming University, No. 155, Sec. 2, Linong St, Taipei City, 112, Taiwan
| | - Yong-Hwan Kim
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, 88 Olympic-ro 43-gil, Songpa-gu, Seoul, 05505, South Korea
| | - Emi Takahashi
- Division of Newborn Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, 1 Autumn st. AU 453, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Matthew S Cain
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street - BOX 1821, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
- U.S. Army Natick Soldier Research, Development, and Engineering Center, Natick, MA, 01760, USA
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street - BOX 1821, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
| | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street - BOX 1821, Providence, RI, 02912, USA.
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43
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Chen N, Lu J, Shao H, Weng X, Fang F. Neural mechanisms of motion perceptual learning in noise. Hum Brain Mapp 2017; 38:6029-6042. [PMID: 28901676 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2017] [Revised: 08/31/2017] [Accepted: 09/01/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Practice improves our perceptual ability. However, the neural mechanisms underlying this experience-dependent plasticity in adult brain remain unclear. Here, we studied the long-term neural correlates of motion perceptual learning. Subjects' behavioral performance and BOLD signals were tracked before, immediately after, and 2 weeks after practicing a motion direction discrimination task in noise over six daily sessions. Parallel to the specificity and persistency of the behavioral learning effect, we found that training sharpened the cortical tuning in MT, and enhanced the connectivity strength from MT to the intraparietal sulcus (IPS, a motion decision-making area). In addition, the decoding accuracy for the trained motion direction was improved in IPS 2 weeks after training. The dual changes in the sensory and the high-level cortical areas suggest that learning refines the neural representation of the trained stimulus and facilitates the information transmission in the decision process. Our findings are consistent with the functional specialization in the visual cortex, and provide empirical evidence to the reweighting theory of perceptual learning at a large spatial scale. Hum Brain Mapp 38:6029-6042, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nihong Chen
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,Department of Psychology, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California 90089-1061
| | - Junshi Lu
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China
| | - Hanyu Shao
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
| | - Xuchu Weng
- Center for Cognition and Brain Disorders, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China.,IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, People's Republic of China
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44
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Visual training improves perceptual grouping based on basic stimulus features. Atten Percept Psychophys 2017; 79:2098-2107. [DOI: 10.3758/s13414-017-1368-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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45
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Learning Enhances Sensory Processing in Mouse V1 before Improving Behavior. J Neurosci 2017; 37:6460-6474. [PMID: 28559381 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.3485-16.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2016] [Revised: 04/28/2017] [Accepted: 05/20/2017] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
A fundamental property of visual cortex is to enhance the representation of those stimuli that are relevant for behavior, but it remains poorly understood how such enhanced representations arise during learning. Using classical conditioning in adult mice of either sex, we show that orientation discrimination is learned in a sequence of distinct behavioral stages, in which animals first rely on stimulus appearance before exploiting its orientation to guide behavior. After confirming that orientation discrimination under classical conditioning requires primary visual cortex (V1), we measured, during learning, response properties of V1 neurons. Learning improved neural discriminability, sharpened orientation tuning, and led to higher contrast sensitivity. Remarkably, these learning-related improvements in the V1 representation were fully expressed before successful orientation discrimination was evident in the animals' behavior. We propose that V1 plays a key role early in discrimination learning to enhance behaviorally relevant sensory information.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Decades of research have documented that responses of neurons in visual cortex can reflect the behavioral relevance of visual information. The behavioral relevance of any stimulus needs to be learned, though, and little is known how visual sensory processing changes, as the significance of a stimulus becomes clear. Here, we trained mice to discriminate two visual stimuli, precisely quantified when learning happened, and measured, during learning, the neural representation of these stimuli in V1. We observed learning-related improvements in V1 processing, which were fully expressed before discrimination was evident in the animals' behavior. These findings indicate that sensory and behavioral improvements can follow different time courses and point toward a key role of V1 at early stages in discrimination learning.
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46
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Abstract
Participants often exaggerate the perceived angular separation between two simultaneously presented motion stimuli, which is referred to as motion repulsion. The overestimation helps participants differentiate between the two superimposed motion directions, yet it causes the impairment of direction perception. Since direction perception can be refined through perceptual training, we here attempted to investigate whether the training of a direction discrimination task changes the amount of motion repulsion. Our results showed a direction-specific learning effect, which was accompanied by a reduced amount of motion repulsion both for the trained and the untrained directions. The reduction of the motion repulsion disappeared when the participants were trained on a luminance discrimination task (control experiment 1) or a speed discrimination task (control experiment 2), ruling out any possible interpretation in terms of adaptation or training-induced attentional bias. Furthermore, training with a direction discrimination task along a direction 150° away from both directions in the transparent stimulus (control experiment 3) also had little effect on the amount of motion repulsion, ruling out the contribution of task learning. The changed motion repulsion observed in the main experiment was consistent with the prediction of the recurrent model of perceptual learning. Therefore, our findings demonstrate that training in direction discrimination can benefit the precise direction perception of the transparent stimulus and provide new evidence for the recurrent model of perceptual learning.
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47
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Yu Q, Zhang P, Qiu J, Fang F. Perceptual Learning of Contrast Detection in the Human Lateral Geniculate Nucleus. Curr Biol 2016; 26:3176-3182. [PMID: 27839973 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2016.09.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2016] [Revised: 09/09/2016] [Accepted: 09/19/2016] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
The brain is continuously modified by perceptual experience throughout life. Perceptual learning, which refers to the long-term performance improvement resulting from practice, has been widely used as a paradigm to study experience-dependent brain plasticity in adults [1, 2]. In the visual system, adult plasticity is largely believed to be restricted to the cortex, with subcortical structures losing their capacity for change after a critical period of development [3, 4]. Although various cortical mechanisms have been shown to mediate visual perceptual learning [5-12], there has been no reported investigation of perceptual learning in subcortical nuclei. Here, human subjects were trained on a contrast detection task for 30 days, leading to a significant contrast sensitivity improvement that was specific to the trained eye and the trained visual hemifield. Training also resulted in an eye- and hemifield-specific fMRI signal increase to low-contrast patterns in the magnocellular layers of the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN), even when subjects did not pay attention to the patterns. Such an increase was absent in the parvocellular layers of the LGN and visual cortical areas. Furthermore, the behavioral benefit significantly correlated with the neural enhancement. These findings suggest that LGN signals can be amplified by training to detect faint patterns. Neural plasticity induced by perceptual learning in human adults might not be confined to the cortical level but might occur as early as at the thalamic level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qinlin Yu
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Peng Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China
| | - Jiang Qiu
- Key Laboratory of Cognition and Personality (Ministry of Education) and Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing 400715, China
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
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48
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Lagas AK, Black JM, Byblow WD, Fleming MK, Goodman LK, Kydd RR, Russell BR, Stinear CM, Thompson B. Fluoxetine Does Not Enhance Visual Perceptual Learning and Triazolam Specifically Impairs Learning Transfer. Front Hum Neurosci 2016; 10:532. [PMID: 27807412 PMCID: PMC5069436 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2016] [Accepted: 10/06/2016] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
The selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine significantly enhances adult visual cortex plasticity within the rat. This effect is related to decreased gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) mediated inhibition and identifies fluoxetine as a potential agent for enhancing plasticity in the adult human brain. We tested the hypothesis that fluoxetine would enhance visual perceptual learning of a motion direction discrimination (MDD) task in humans. We also investigated (1) the effect of fluoxetine on visual and motor cortex excitability and (2) the impact of increased GABA mediated inhibition following a single dose of triazolam on post-training MDD task performance. Within a double blind, placebo controlled design, 20 healthy adult participants completed a 19-day course of fluoxetine (n = 10, 20 mg per day) or placebo (n = 10). Participants were trained on the MDD task over the final 5 days of fluoxetine administration. Accuracy for the trained MDD stimulus and an untrained MDD stimulus configuration was assessed before and after training, after triazolam and 1 week after triazolam. Motor and visual cortex excitability were measured using transcranial magnetic stimulation. Fluoxetine did not enhance the magnitude or rate of perceptual learning and full transfer of learning to the untrained stimulus was observed for both groups. After training was complete, trazolam had no effect on trained task performance but significantly impaired untrained task performance. No consistent effects of fluoxetine on cortical excitability were observed. The results do not support the hypothesis that fluoxetine can enhance learning in humans. However, the specific effect of triazolam on MDD task performance for the untrained stimulus suggests that learning and learning transfer rely on dissociable neural mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice K Lagas
- School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; Centre for Brain Research, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand
| | - Joanna M Black
- School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; Centre for Brain Research, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand
| | - Winston D Byblow
- Centre for Brain Research, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; Department of Exercise Sciences, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand
| | - Melanie K Fleming
- Department of Exercise Sciences, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; Centre of Human and Aerospace Physiological Sciences, King's College LondonLondon, UK
| | - Lucy K Goodman
- School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; Centre for Brain Research, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand
| | - Robert R Kydd
- Centre for Brain Research, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; Department of Psychological Medicine, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand
| | - Bruce R Russell
- School of Pharmacy, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; National School of Pharmacy, University of OtagoDunedin, New Zealand
| | - Cathy M Stinear
- Centre for Brain Research, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; Department of Medicine, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand
| | - Benjamin Thompson
- School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; Centre for Brain Research, University of AucklandAuckland, New Zealand; School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of Waterloo, WaterlooON, Canada
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49
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Affiliation(s)
- Wu Li
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China;
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
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50
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Vieira PG, de Sousa JPM, Baron J. Contrast response functions in the visual wulst of the alert burrowing owl: a single-unit study. J Neurophysiol 2016; 116:1765-1784. [PMID: 27466135 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00505.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2015] [Accepted: 07/15/2016] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The neuronal representation of luminance contrast has not been thoroughly studied in birds. Here we present a detailed quantitative analysis of the contrast response of 120 individual neurons recorded from the visual wulst of awake burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia). Stimuli were sine-wave gratings presented within the cell classical receptive field and optimized in terms of eye preference, direction of drift, and spatiotemporal frequency. As contrast intensity was increased from zero to near 100%, most cells exhibited a monotonic response profile with a compressive, at times saturating, nonlinearity at higher contrasts. However, contrast response functions were found to have a highly variable shape across cells. With the view to capture a systematic trend in the data, we assessed the performance of four plausible models (linear, power, logarithmic, and hyperbolic ratio) using classical goodness-of-fit measures and more rigorous statistical tools for multimodel inferences based on the Akaike information criterion. From this analysis, we conclude that a high degree of model uncertainty is present in our data, meaning that no single descriptor is able on its own to capture the heterogeneous nature of single-unit contrast responses in the wulst. We further show that the generalizability of the hyperbolic ratio model established, for example, in the primary visual cortex of cats and monkeys is not tenable in the owl wulst mainly because most neurons in this area have a much wider dynamic range that starts at low contrast. The challenge for future research will be to understand the functional implications of these findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pedro Gabrielle Vieira
- Graduate Program in Physiology and Pharmacology, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | - João Paulo Machado de Sousa
- Graduate Program in Electrical Engineering, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; and
| | - Jerome Baron
- Graduate Program in Physiology and Pharmacology, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Graduate Program in Electrical Engineering, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil; and Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Institute of Biological Sciences, Federal University of Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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