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Leopold DA. The big mixup: Neural representation during natural modes of primate visual behavior. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2024; 88:102913. [PMID: 39214044 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2024.102913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2024] [Revised: 08/06/2024] [Accepted: 08/07/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
The primate brain has evolved specialized visual capacities to navigate complex physical and social environments. Researchers studying cortical circuits underlying these capacities have traditionally favored the use of simplified tasks and brief stimulus presentations in order to isolate cognitive variables with tight experimental control. As a result, operational theories about visual brain function have come to emphasize feature detection, hierarchical stimulus encoding, top-down task modulation, and functional segregation in distinct cortical areas. Recently, however, experimental paradigms combining natural behavior with electrophysiological recordings have begun to offer a distinctly different portrait of how the brain takes in and analyzes its visual surroundings. The present article reviews recent work in this area, highlighting some of the more surprising findings in domains of social vision and spatial navigation along with shifts in thinking that have begun to emanate from this approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- David A Leopold
- Section on Cognitive Neurophysiology and Imaging, Systems Neurodevelopment Laboratory, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.
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Dinh HT, Meng Y, Matsumoto J, Setogawa T, Nishimaru H, Nishijo H. Fast Detection of Snakes and Emotional Faces in the Macaque Amygdala. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:839123. [PMID: 35386724 PMCID: PMC8979552 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.839123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 02/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Primate vision is reported to detect snakes and emotional faces faster than many other tested stimuli. Because the amygdala has been implicated in avoidance and emotional behaviors to biologically relevant stimuli and has neural connections with subcortical nuclei involved with vision, amygdalar neurons would be sensitive to snakes and emotional faces. In this study, neuronal activity in the amygdala was recorded from Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) during discrimination of eight categories of visual stimuli including snakes, monkey faces, human faces, carnivores, raptors, non-predators, monkey hands, and simple figures. Of 527 amygdalar neurons, 95 responded to one or more stimuli. Response characteristics of the amygdalar neurons indicated that they were more sensitive to the snakes and emotional faces than other stimuli. Response magnitudes and latencies of amygdalar neurons to snakes and monkey faces were stronger and faster than those to the other categories of stimuli, respectively. Furthermore, response magnitudes to the low pass-filtered snake images were larger than those to scrambled snake images. Finally, analyses of population activity of amygdalar neurons suggest that snakes and emotional faces were represented separately from the other stimuli during the 50–100 ms period from stimulus onset, and neutral faces during the 100–150 ms period. These response characteristics indicate that the amygdala processes fast and coarse visual information from emotional faces and snakes (but not other predators of primates) among the eight categories of the visual stimuli, and suggest that, like anthropoid primate visual systems, the amygdala has been shaped over evolutionary time to detect appearance of potentially threatening stimuli including both emotional faces and snakes, the first of the modern predators of primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ha Trong Dinh
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Department of Physiology, Vietnam Military Medical University, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Yang Meng
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Tsuyoshi Setogawa
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Nishimaru
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- *Correspondence: Hiroshi Nishimaru,
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- Hisao Nishijo,
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Stephenson LJ, Edwards SG, Bayliss AP. From Gaze Perception to Social Cognition: The Shared-Attention System. PERSPECTIVES ON PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2021; 16:553-576. [PMID: 33567223 PMCID: PMC8114330 DOI: 10.1177/1745691620953773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
When two people look at the same object in the environment and are aware of each other's attentional state, they find themselves in a shared-attention episode. This can occur through intentional or incidental signaling and, in either case, causes an exchange of information between the two parties about the environment and each other's mental states. In this article, we give an overview of what is known about the building blocks of shared attention (gaze perception and joint attention) and focus on bringing to bear new findings on the initiation of shared attention that complement knowledge about gaze following and incorporate new insights from research into the sense of agency. We also present a neurocognitive model, incorporating first-, second-, and third-order social cognitive processes (the shared-attention system, or SAS), building on previous models and approaches. The SAS model aims to encompass perceptual, cognitive, and affective processes that contribute to and follow on from the establishment of shared attention. These processes include fundamental components of social cognition such as reward, affective evaluation, agency, empathy, and theory of mind.
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Dinh HT, Nishimaru H, Le QV, Matsumoto J, Setogawa T, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Ono T, Nishijo H. Preferential Neuronal Responses to Snakes in the Monkey Medial Prefrontal Cortex Support an Evolutionary Origin for Ophidiophobia. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:653250. [PMID: 33841110 PMCID: PMC8024491 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.653250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2021] [Accepted: 03/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Ophidiophobia (snake phobia) is one of the most common specific phobias. It has been proposed that specific phobia may have an evolutionary origin, and that attentional bias to specific items may promote the onset of phobia. Noninvasive imaging studies of patients with specific phobia reported that the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), especially the rostral part of the anterior cingulate cortex (rACC), and amygdala are activated during the presentation of phobogenic stimuli. We propose that the mPFC-amygdala circuit may be involved in the pathogenesis of phobia. The mPFC receives inputs from the phylogenically old subcortical visual pathway including the superior colliculus, pulvinar, and amygdala, while mPFC neurons are highly sensitive to snakes that are the first modern predator of primates, and discriminate snakes with striking postures from those with non-striking postures. Furthermore, the mPFC has been implicated in the attentional allocation and promotes amygdala-dependent aversive conditioning. These findings suggest that the rACC focuses attention on snakes, and promotes aversive conditioning to snakes, which may lead to anxiety and ophidiophobia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ha Trong Dinh
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Department of Physiology, Vietnam Military Medical University, Hanoi, Vietnam
| | - Hiroshi Nishimaru
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Quan Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Tsuyoshi Setogawa
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Rafael S Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasilia, Brasilia, Brazil
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Laboratory of Neuroscience and Behavior, CEUMA University, São Luis, Brazil
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan.,Research Center for Idling Brain Science (RCIBS), University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
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Le QV, Le QV, Nishimaru H, Matsumoto J, Takamura Y, Hori E, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Ono T, Nishijo H. A Prototypical Template for Rapid Face Detection Is Embedded in the Monkey Superior Colliculus. Front Syst Neurosci 2020; 14:5. [PMID: 32158382 PMCID: PMC7025518 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2020.00005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2019] [Accepted: 01/20/2020] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Human babies respond preferentially to faces or face-like images. It has been proposed that an innate and rapid face detection system is present at birth before the cortical visual pathway is developed in many species, including primates. However, in primates, the visual area responsible for this process is yet to be unraveled. We hypothesized that the superior colliculus (SC) that receives direct and indirect retinal visual inputs may serve as an innate rapid face-detection system in primates. To test this hypothesis, we examined the responsiveness of monkey SC neurons to first-order information of faces required for face detection (basic spatial layout of facial features including eyes, nose, and mouth), by analyzing neuronal responses to line drawing images of: (1) face-like patterns with contours and properly placed facial features; (2) non-face patterns including face contours only; and (3) nonface random patterns with contours and randomly placed face features. Here, we show that SC neurons respond stronger and faster to upright and inverted face-like patterns compared to the responses to nonface patterns, regardless of contrast polarity and contour shapes. Furthermore, SC neurons with central receptive fields (RFs) were more selective to face-like patterns. In addition, the population activity of SC neurons with central RFs can discriminate face-like patterns from nonface patterns as early as 50 ms after the stimulus onset. Our results provide strong neurophysiological evidence for the involvement of the primate SC in face detection and suggest the existence of a broadly tuned template for face detection in the subcortical visual pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quang Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Quan Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Nishimaru
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Yusaku Takamura
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Rafael S Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, Brasilia, Brazil
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Laboratory of Neuroscience and Behavior, CEUMA University, São Luis, Brazil
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
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Dinh HT, Nishimaru H, Matsumoto J, Takamura Y, Le QV, Hori E, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Tran AH, Ono T, Nishijo H. Superior Neuronal Detection of Snakes and Conspecific Faces in the Macaque Medial Prefrontal Cortex. Cereb Cortex 2019; 28:2131-2145. [PMID: 28498964 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhx118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2017] [Accepted: 04/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Snakes and conspecific faces are quickly and efficiently detected in primates. Because the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) has been implicated in attentional allocation to biologically relevant stimuli, we hypothesized that it might also be highly responsive to snakes and conspecific faces. In this study, neuronal responses in the monkey mPFC were recorded, while monkeys discriminated 8 categories of visual stimuli. Here, we show that the monkey mPFC neuronal responses to snakes and conspecific faces were unique. First, the ratios of the neurons that responded strongly to snakes and monkey faces were greater than those of the neurons that responded strongly to the other stimuli. Second, mPFC neurons responded stronger and faster to snakes and monkey faces than the other categories of stimuli. Third, neuronal responses to snakes were unaffected by low-pass filtering of the images. Finally, activity patterns of responsive mPFC neurons discriminated snakes from the other stimuli in the second 50 ms period and monkey faces in the third period after stimulus onset. These response features indicate that the mPFC processes fast and coarse visual information of snakes and monkey faces, and support the hypothesis that snakes and social environments have shaped the primate visual system over evolutionary time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ha Trong Dinh
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Nishimaru
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Yusaku Takamura
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Quan Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan.,Department of Physiology, Vietnam Military Medical University, Ha noi 100000, Vietnam
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Rafael S Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, CEP 70910-900 Brasilia, DF, Brazil.,Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Psychiatry Section, Karolinska Hospital, S-17176 Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, CEP 70910-900 Brasilia, DF, Brazil.,Neuroscience Research Coordenation, University CEUMA, Campus Renascença, CEP 65.075-120 São Luis, MA, Brazil
| | - Anh Hai Tran
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan.,Department of Physiology, Vietnam Military Medical University, Ha noi 100000, Vietnam
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
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Murphy AP, Leopold DA. A parameterized digital 3D model of the Rhesus macaque face for investigating the visual processing of social cues. J Neurosci Methods 2019; 324:108309. [PMID: 31229584 PMCID: PMC7446874 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2019.06.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2019] [Revised: 05/31/2019] [Accepted: 06/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Rhesus macaques are the most popular model species for studying the neural basis of visual face processing and social interaction using intracranial methods. However, the challenge of creating realistic, dynamic, and parametric macaque face stimuli has limited the experimental control and ethological validity of existing approaches. NEW METHOD We performed statistical analyses of in vivo computed tomography data to generate an anatomically accurate, three-dimensional representation of Rhesus macaque cranio-facial morphology. The surface structures were further edited, rigged and textured by a professional digital artist with careful reference to photographs of macaque facial expression, colouration and pelage. RESULTS The model offers precise, continuous, parametric control of craniofacial shape, emotional expression, head orientation, eye gaze direction, and many other parameters that can be adjusted to render either static or dynamic high-resolution faces. Example single-unit responses to such stimuli in macaque inferotemporal cortex demonstrate the value of parametric control over facial appearance and behaviours. COMPARISON WITH EXISTING METHOD(S) The generation of such a high-dimensionality and systematically controlled stimulus set of conspecific faces, with accurate craniofacial modelling and professional finalization of facial details, is currently not achievable using existing methods. CONCLUSIONS The results herald a new set of possibilities in adaptive sampling of a high-dimensional and socially meaningful feature space, thus opening the door to systematic testing of hypotheses about the abundant neural specialization for faces found in the primate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aidan P Murphy
- Section on Cognitive Neurophysiology and Imaging, NIMH, Bethesda, MD, USA.
| | - David A Leopold
- Section on Cognitive Neurophysiology and Imaging, NIMH, Bethesda, MD, USA
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ISODA M, NORITAKE A, NINOMIYA T. Development of social systems neuroscience using macaques. PROCEEDINGS OF THE JAPAN ACADEMY. SERIES B, PHYSICAL AND BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES 2018; 94:305-323. [PMID: 30078829 PMCID: PMC6117490 DOI: 10.2183/pjab.94.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2018] [Accepted: 05/25/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
This paper reviews the literature on social neuroscience studies using macaques in the hope of encouraging as many researchers as possible to participate in this field of research and thereby accelerate the system-level understanding of social cognition and behavior. We describe how different parts of the primate brain are engaged in different aspects of social information processing, with particular emphasis on the use of experimental paradigms involving more than one monkey in laboratory settings. The description begins with how individual neurons are used for evaluating socially relevant information, such as the identity, face, and focus of attention of others in various social contexts. A description of the neural bases of social reward processing and social action monitoring follows. Finally, we provide several perspectives on novel experimental strategies to help clarify the nature of interacting brains under more socially and ecologically plausible conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masaki ISODA
- Division of Behavioral Development, Department of System Neuroscience, National Institute for Physiological Sciences, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Japan
- Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI), Hayama, Japan
| | - Atsushi NORITAKE
- Division of Behavioral Development, Department of System Neuroscience, National Institute for Physiological Sciences, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Japan
- Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI), Hayama, Japan
| | - Taihei NINOMIYA
- Division of Behavioral Development, Department of System Neuroscience, National Institute for Physiological Sciences, National Institutes of Natural Sciences, Okazaki, Japan
- Department of Physiological Sciences, School of Life Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies (SOKENDAI), Hayama, Japan
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Ferrari PF, Gerbella M, Coudé G, Rozzi S. Two different mirror neuron networks: The sensorimotor (hand) and limbic (face) pathways. Neuroscience 2017; 358:300-315. [PMID: 28687313 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2017.06.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2017] [Revised: 06/27/2017] [Accepted: 06/28/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The vast majority of functional studies investigating mirror neurons (MNs) explored their properties in relation to hand actions, and very few investigated how MNs respond to mouth actions or communicative gestures. Since hand and mouth MNs were recorded in two partially overlapping sectors of the ventral precentral cortex of the macaque monkey, there is a general assumption that they share a same neuroanatomical network, with the parietal cortex as a main source of visual information. In the current review, we challenge this perspective and describe the connectivity pattern of mouth MN sector. The mouth MNs F5/opercular region is connected with premotor, parietal areas mostly related to the somatosensory and motor representation of the face/mouth, and with area PrCO, involved in processing gustatory and somatosensory intraoral input. Unlike hand MNs, mouth MNs do not receive their visual input from parietal regions. Such information related to face/communicative behaviors could come from the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Further strong connections derive from limbic structures involved in encoding emotional facial expressions and motivational/reward processing. These brain structures include the anterior cingulate cortex, the anterior and mid-dorsal insula, orbitofrontal cortex and the basolateral amygdala. The mirror mechanism is therefore composed and supported by at least two different anatomical pathways: one is concerned with sensorimotor transformation in relation to reaching and hand grasping within the traditional parietal-premotor circuits; the second one is linked to the mouth/face motor control and is connected with limbic structures, involved in communication/emotions and reward processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- P F Ferrari
- Institut des Sciences Cognitives - Marc Jeannerod, CNRS/Université Claude Bernard Lyon, 67 Pinel, 69675 Bron Cedex, France; Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Unità di Neuroscienze, 39 Volturno, 43125 Parma, Italy.
| | - M Gerbella
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Unità di Neuroscienze, 39 Volturno, 43125 Parma, Italy; Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT), Center for Biomolecular Nanotechnologies, Lecce, Italy
| | - G Coudé
- Institut des Sciences Cognitives - Marc Jeannerod, CNRS/Université Claude Bernard Lyon, 67 Pinel, 69675 Bron Cedex, France
| | - S Rozzi
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Unità di Neuroscienze, 39 Volturno, 43125 Parma, Italy
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Soares SC, Maior RS, Isbell LA, Tomaz C, Nishijo H. Fast Detector/First Responder: Interactions between the Superior Colliculus-Pulvinar Pathway and Stimuli Relevant to Primates. Front Neurosci 2017; 11:67. [PMID: 28261046 PMCID: PMC5314318 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2017.00067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2016] [Accepted: 01/30/2017] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Primates are distinguished from other mammals by their heavy reliance on the visual sense, which occurred as a result of natural selection continually favoring those individuals whose visual systems were more responsive to challenges in the natural world. Here we describe two independent but also interrelated visual systems, one cortical and the other subcortical, both of which have been modified and expanded in primates for different functions. Available evidence suggests that while the cortical visual system mainly functions to give primates the ability to assess and adjust to fluid social and ecological environments, the subcortical visual system appears to function as a rapid detector and first responder when time is of the essence, i.e., when survival requires very quick action. We focus here on the subcortical visual system with a review of behavioral and neurophysiological evidence that demonstrates its sensitivity to particular, often emotionally charged, ecological and social stimuli, i.e., snakes and fearful and aggressive facial expressions in conspecifics. We also review the literature on subcortical involvement during another, less emotional, situation that requires rapid detection and response-visually guided reaching and grasping during locomotion-to further emphasize our argument that the subcortical visual system evolved as a rapid detector/first responder, a function that remains in place today. Finally, we argue that investigating deficits in this subcortical system may provide greater understanding of Parkinson's disease and Autism Spectrum disorders (ASD).
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra C. Soares
- Department of Education and Psychology, CINTESIS.UA, University of AveiroAveiro, Portugal
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska InstituteStockholm, Sweden
- William James Research Center, Instituto Superior de Psicologia AplicadaLisbon, Portugal
| | - Rafael S. Maior
- Division of Psychology, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska InstituteStockholm, Sweden
- Department of Physiological Sciences, Primate Center, Institute of Biology, University of BrasíliaBrasília, Brazil
| | - Lynne A. Isbell
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, DavisDavis, CA, USA
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Department of Physiological Sciences, Primate Center, Institute of Biology, University of BrasíliaBrasília, Brazil
- Ceuma University, Neuroscience Research CoordinationSão Luis, Brazil
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of ToyamaToyama, Japan
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11
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Mao CV, Araujo MFP, Nishimaru H, Matsumoto J, Tran AH, Hori E, Ono T, Nishijo H. Pregenual Anterior Cingulate Gyrus Involvement in Spontaneous Social Interactions in Primates-Evidence from Behavioral, Pharmacological, Neuropsychiatric, and Neurophysiological Findings. Front Neurosci 2017; 11:34. [PMID: 28203143 PMCID: PMC5285368 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2017.00034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2016] [Accepted: 01/17/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) has been implicated in different aspects of cognition and decision making, including social cognition. Several studies suggest that this region is actually formed by sub-regions concerned with distinct cognitive functions. The ACC is usually divided in its rostro-caudal axis, with the caudal ACC playing a major role in processing own actions, and the rostral ACC being related to social cognition. Recently, it has been suggested that the ACC can also be functionally divided in its dorso-ventral axis into ACC gyrus (ACCg) and ACC sulcus (ACCs), with the ACCg having a central role in processing social information. In this context, we propose that the pregenual ACCg might be especially important for engaging in social interactions. We discuss previous findings that support this hypothesis and present evidence suggesting that the activity of pregenual ACCg neurons is modulated during spontaneous social interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Can Van Mao
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Mariana F P Araujo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine, University of ToyamaToyama, Japan; Edmond and Lily Safra International Institute of Neuroscience, Santos Dumont InstituteMacaiba, Brazil
| | - Hiroshi Nishimaru
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Ahn Hai Tran
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
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12
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Nguyen MN, Nishimaru H, Matsumoto J, Van Le Q, Hori E, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Ono T, Nishijo H. Population Coding of Facial Information in the Monkey Superior Colliculus and Pulvinar. Front Neurosci 2016; 10:583. [PMID: 28066168 PMCID: PMC5175414 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2016.00583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2016] [Accepted: 12/06/2016] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The superior colliculus (SC) and pulvinar are thought to function as a subcortical visual pathway that bypasses the striate cortex and detects fundamental facial information. We previously investigated neuronal responses in the SC and pulvinar of monkeys during a delayed nonmatching-to-sample task, in which the monkeys were required to discriminate among 35 facial photos of five models and other categories of visual stimuli, and reported that population coding by multiple SC and pulvinar neurons well discriminated facial photos from other categories of stimuli (Nguyen et al., 2013, 2014). However, it remains unknown whether population coding could represent multiple types of facial information including facial identity, gender, facial orientation, and gaze direction. In the present study, to investigate population coding of multiple types of facial information by the SC and pulvinar neurons, we reanalyzed the same neuronal responses in the SC and pulvinar; the responses of 112 neurons in the SC and 68 neurons in the pulvinar in serial 50-ms epochs after stimulus onset were reanalyzed with multidimensional scaling (MDS). The results indicated that population coding by neurons in both the SC and pulvinar classified some aspects of facial information, such as face orientation, gender, and identity, of the facial photos in the second epoch (50–100 ms after stimulus onset). The Euclidean distances between all the pairs of stimuli in the MDS spaces in the SC were significantly correlated with those in the pulvinar, which suggested that the SC and pulvinar function as a unit. However, in contrast with the known population coding of face neurons in the temporal cortex, the facial information coding in the SC and pulvinar was coarse and insufficient. In these subcortical areas, identity discrimination was face orientation-dependent and the left and right profiles were not discriminated. Furthermore, gaze direction information was not extracted in the SC and pulvinar. These results suggest that the SC and pulvinar, which comprise the subcortical visual pathway, send coarse and rapid information on faces to the cortical system in a bottom-up process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Minh N Nguyen
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Nishimaru
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Quan Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Rafael S Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of BrasíliaBrasilia, Brazil; Psychiatry Section, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Karolinska HospitalStockholm, Sweden
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília Brasilia, Brazil
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
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13
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Mormann F, Niediek J, Tudusciuc O, Quesada CM, Coenen VA, Elger CE, Adolphs R. Neurons in the human amygdala encode face identity, but not gaze direction. Nat Neurosci 2015; 18:1568-70. [PMID: 26479589 PMCID: PMC4624486 DOI: 10.1038/nn.4139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2015] [Accepted: 09/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
The amygdala is a key structure in face processing, and direction of eye gaze is one of the most socially salient facial signals. Recording from over 200 neurons in the amygdala of neurosurgical patients, we here find robust encoding of the identity of neutral-expression faces, but not to their direction of gaze. Processing of gaze direction may rely on a predominantly cortical network rather than the amygdala.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Mormann
- Department of Epileptology, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | | | - Oana Tudusciuc
- Division of Humanities and Social Sciences, Division of Biology, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA
| | | | - Volker A Coenen
- Stereotaxy and MR-based Operative Techniques, Department of Neurosurgery, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | | | - Ralph Adolphs
- Division of Humanities and Social Sciences, Division of Biology, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California, USA
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14
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Functional differences in face processing between the amygdala and ventrolateral prefrontal cortex in monkeys. Neuroscience 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2015.07.047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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15
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Rutishauser U, Mamelak AN, Adolphs R. The primate amygdala in social perception - insights from electrophysiological recordings and stimulation. Trends Neurosci 2015; 38:295-306. [PMID: 25847686 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2015.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2014] [Revised: 03/05/2015] [Accepted: 03/05/2015] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The role of the amygdala in emotion and social perception has been intensively investigated primarily through studies using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Recently, this topic has been examined using single-unit recordings in both humans and monkeys, with a focus on face processing. The findings provide novel insights, including several surprises: amygdala neurons have very long response latencies, show highly nonlinear responses to whole faces, and can be exquisitely selective for very specific parts of faces such as the eyes. In humans, the responses of amygdala neurons correlate with internal states evoked by faces, rather than with their objective features. Current and future studies extend the investigations to psychiatric illnesses such as autism, in which atypical face processing is a hallmark of social dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ueli Rutishauser
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Department of Neurology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA; Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Adam N Mamelak
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Ralph Adolphs
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA, USA
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16
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Le QV, Isbell LA, Matsumoto J, Le VQ, Hori E, Tran AH, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Ono T, Nishijo H. Monkey pulvinar neurons fire differentially to snake postures. PLoS One 2014; 9:e114258. [PMID: 25479158 PMCID: PMC4257671 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0114258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2014] [Accepted: 11/05/2014] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
There is growing evidence from both behavioral and neurophysiological approaches that primates are able to rapidly discriminate visually between snakes and innocuous stimuli. Recent behavioral evidence suggests that primates are also able to discriminate the level of threat posed by snakes, by responding more intensely to a snake model poised to strike than to snake models in coiled or sinusoidal postures (Etting and Isbell 2014). In the present study, we examine the potential for an underlying neurological basis for this ability. Previous research indicated that the pulvinar is highly sensitive to snake images. We thus recorded pulvinar neurons in Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) while they viewed photos of snakes in striking and non-striking postures in a delayed non-matching to sample (DNMS) task. Of 821 neurons recorded, 78 visually responsive neurons were tested with the all snake images. We found that pulvinar neurons in the medial and dorsolateral pulvinar responded more strongly to snakes in threat displays poised to strike than snakes in non-threat-displaying postures with no significant difference in response latencies. A multidimensional scaling analysis of the 78 visually responsive neurons indicated that threat-displaying and non-threat-displaying snakes were separated into two different clusters in the first epoch of 50 ms after stimulus onset, suggesting bottom-up visual information processing. These results indicate that pulvinar neurons in primates discriminate between poised to strike from those in non-threat-displaying postures. This neuronal ability likely facilitates behavioral discrimination and has clear adaptive value. Our results are thus consistent with the Snake Detection Theory, which posits that snakes were instrumental in the evolution of primate visual systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quan Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Lynne A. Isbell
- Department of Anthropology, University of California Davis, Davis, California, 95616, United States of America
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Van Quang Le
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Anh Hai Tran
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Rafael S. Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, Brasilia, DF, Brazil
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, Brasilia, DF, Brazil
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Toyama, Japan
- * E-mail:
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17
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Freeman SM, Walum H, Inoue K, Smith AL, Goodman MM, Bales KL, Young LJ. Neuroanatomical distribution of oxytocin and vasopressin 1a receptors in the socially monogamous coppery titi monkey (Callicebus cupreus). Neuroscience 2014; 273:12-23. [PMID: 24814726 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2014.04.055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 105] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2014] [Revised: 04/04/2014] [Accepted: 04/24/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The coppery titi monkey (Callicebus cupreus) is a socially monogamous New World primate that has been studied in the field and the laboratory to investigate the behavioral neuroendocrinology of primate pair bonding and parental care. Arginine vasopressin has been shown to influence male titi monkey pair-bonding behavior, and studies are currently underway to examine the effects of oxytocin on titi monkey behavior and physiology. Here, we use receptor autoradiography to identify the distribution of arginine vasopressin 1a receptor (AVPR1a) and oxytocin receptors (OXTR) in hemispheres of titi monkey brain (n=5). AVPR1a are diffuse and widespread throughout the brain, but the OXTR distribution is much more limited, with the densest binding being in the hippocampal formation (dentate gyrus, CA1 field) and the presubiculum (layers I and III). Moderate OXTR binding was detected in the nucleus basalis of Meynert, pulvinar, superior colliculus, layer 4C of primary visual cortex, periaqueductal gray (PAG), pontine gray, nucleus prepositus, and spinal trigeminal nucleus. OXTR mRNA overlapped with OXTR radioligand binding, confirming that the radioligand was detecting OXTR protein. AVPR1a binding is present throughout the cortex, especially in cingulate, insular, and occipital cortices, as well as in the caudate, putamen, nucleus accumbens, central amygdala, endopiriform nucleus, hippocampus (CA4 field), globus pallidus, lateral geniculate nucleus, infundibulum, habenula, PAG, substantia nigra, olivary nucleus, hypoglossal nucleus, and cerebellum. Furthermore, we show that, in the titi monkey brain, the OXTR antagonist ALS-II-69 is highly selective for OXTR and that the AVPR1a antagonist SR49059 is highly selective for AVPR1a. Based on these results and the fact that both ALS-II-69 and SR49059 are non-peptide, small-molecule antagonists that should be capable of crossing the blood-brain barrier, these two compounds emerge as excellent candidates for the pharmacological manipulation of OXTR and AVPR1a in future behavioral experiments in titi monkeys and other primate species.
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Affiliation(s)
- S M Freeman
- Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA.
| | - H Walum
- Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - K Inoue
- Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - A L Smith
- Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA; Department of Radiology, Emory University, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - M M Goodman
- Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA; Department of Radiology, Emory University, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
| | - K L Bales
- California National Primate Research Center, One Shields Avenue, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA; Department of Psychology, 135 Young Hall, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - L J Young
- Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, 954 Gatewood Road, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
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18
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Gariépy JF, Watson KK, Du E, Xie DL, Erb J, Amasino D, Platt ML. Social learning in humans and other animals. Front Neurosci 2014; 8:58. [PMID: 24765063 PMCID: PMC3982061 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2014.00058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2013] [Accepted: 03/13/2014] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Decisions made by individuals can be influenced by what others think and do. Social learning includes a wide array of behaviors such as imitation, observational learning of novel foraging techniques, peer or parental influences on individual preferences, as well as outright teaching. These processes are believed to underlie an important part of cultural variation among human populations and may also explain intraspecific variation in behavior between geographically distinct populations of animals. Recent neurobiological studies have begun to uncover the neural basis of social learning. Here we review experimental evidence from the past few decades showing that social learning is a widespread set of skills present in multiple animal species. In mammals, the temporoparietal junction, the dorsomedial, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, as well as the anterior cingulate gyrus, appear to play critical roles in social learning. Birds, fish, and insects also learn from others, but the underlying neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. We discuss the evolutionary implications of these findings and highlight the importance of emerging animal models that permit precise modification of neural circuit function for elucidating the neural basis of social learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-François Gariépy
- Department of Neurobiology, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University Durham, NC, USA
| | - Karli K Watson
- Department of Neurobiology, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University Durham, NC, USA
| | - Emily Du
- Department of Neurobiology, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University Durham, NC, USA
| | - Diana L Xie
- Department of Neurobiology, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University Durham, NC, USA
| | - Joshua Erb
- Department of Neurobiology, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University Durham, NC, USA
| | - Dianna Amasino
- Department of Neurobiology, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University Durham, NC, USA
| | - Michael L Platt
- Department of Neurobiology, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University Durham, NC, USA ; Department of Biological Anthropology, Duke University Durham, NC, USA
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19
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Nguyen MN, Matsumoto J, Hori E, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Tran AH, Ono T, Nishijo H. Neuronal responses to face-like and facial stimuli in the monkey superior colliculus. Front Behav Neurosci 2014; 8:85. [PMID: 24672448 PMCID: PMC3955777 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00085] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2013] [Accepted: 02/27/2014] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The superficial layers of the superior colliculus (sSC) appear to function as a subcortical visual pathway that bypasses the striate cortex for the rapid processing of coarse facial information. We investigated the responses of neurons in the monkey sSC during a delayed non-matching-to-sample (DNMS) task in which monkeys were required to discriminate among five categories of visual stimuli [photos of faces with different gaze directions, line drawings of faces, face-like patterns (three dark blobs on a bright oval), eye-like patterns, and simple geometric patterns]. Of the 605 sSC neurons recorded, 216 neurons responded to the visual stimuli. Among the stimuli, face-like patterns elicited responses with the shortest latencies. Low-pass filtering of the images did not influence the responses. However, scrambling of the images increased the responses in the late phase, and this was consistent with a feedback influence from upstream areas. A multidimensional scaling (MDS) analysis of the population data indicated that the sSC neurons could separately encode face-like patterns during the first 25-ms period after stimulus onset, and stimulus categorization developed in the next three 25-ms periods. The amount of stimulus information conveyed by the sSC neurons and the number of stimulus-differentiating neurons were consistently higher during the 2nd to 4th 25-ms periods than during the first 25-ms period. These results suggested that population activity of the sSC neurons preferentially filtered face-like patterns with short latencies to allow for the rapid processing of coarse facial information and developed categorization of the stimuli in later phases through feedback from upstream areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Minh Nui Nguyen
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Rafael Souto Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília Brasilia, Brazil
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília Brasilia, Brazil
| | - Anh H Tran
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama Toyama, Japan
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20
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Barnea-Goraly N, Frazier TW, Piacenza L, Minshew NJ, Keshavan MS, Reiss AL, Hardan AY. A preliminary longitudinal volumetric MRI study of amygdala and hippocampal volumes in autism. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2014; 48:124-8. [PMID: 24075822 PMCID: PMC8655120 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2013.09.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2013] [Revised: 09/03/2013] [Accepted: 09/16/2013] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Previous studies suggest that amygdala volume, when compared with healthy controls, is increased in young children with autism, is unchanged in cohorts of older youth, and is smaller in adults. Hippocampal volume, however, does not appear to have age-related changes, and it is unclear whether individuals with autism have volumetric differences in this structure. The goal of this pilot investigation is to characterize the developmental trajectories of the amygdala and hippocampus in children with autism between the ages of 8 and 14years and to examine clinical correlates of volume change. METHODS Twenty-three children with autism and 23 controls between the ages of 8 and 12 underwent a magnetic resonance imaging procedure of the brain (T1-weighted) at two time points. Nine children with autism and 14 controls had good quality scans from both time points; however, all usable scans from all subjects (15 children with autism and 22 controls) were included in a mixed effect analysis. Regression models were used to estimate group differences in amygdala and hippocampal volumes. Changes in amygdala and hippocampal volumes (Time 2-Time 1) were correlated with clinical severity measures. RESULTS Amygdala volume changes with time were similar between the two groups. Within the autism group, right amygdala volume change was correlated with the ability to establish appropriate eye contact. Right hippocampal volume was significantly increased in the autism group when compared with controls. Differences in right hippocampal volume change with time between the two groups approached significance. CONCLUSION This study provides preliminary evidence of normalization of amygdala volumes in late childhood and adolescence. It also suggests that hippocampal volumetric differences may exist in autism in late childhood and adolescence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naama Barnea-Goraly
- Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford,Corresponding author
| | | | - Lucia Piacenza
- Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford
| | - Nancy J. Minshew
- Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, University of Pittsburgh
| | | | - Allan L. Reiss
- Center for Interdisciplinary Brain Sciences Research, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford,Department of Pediatrics Stanford University, Stanford, CA,Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - Antonio Y. Hardan
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, United States
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21
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Nguyen MN, Nishijo M, Nguyen AT, Bor A, Nakamura T, Hori E, Nakagawa H, Ono T, Nishijo H. Effects of maternal exposure to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin on parvalbumin- and calbindin-immunoreactive neurons in the limbic system and superior colliculus in rat offspring. Toxicology 2013; 314:125-34. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tox.2013.09.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2013] [Revised: 09/10/2013] [Accepted: 09/12/2013] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
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22
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Van Le Q, Isbell LA, Matsumoto J, Nguyen M, Hori E, Maior RS, Tomaz C, Tran AH, Ono T, Nishijo H. Pulvinar neurons reveal neurobiological evidence of past selection for rapid detection of snakes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2013; 110:19000-5. [PMID: 24167268 PMCID: PMC3839741 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1312648110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 129] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Snakes and their relationships with humans and other primates have attracted broad attention from multiple fields of study, but not, surprisingly, from neuroscience, despite the involvement of the visual system and strong behavioral and physiological evidence that humans and other primates can detect snakes faster than innocuous objects. Here, we report the existence of neurons in the primate medial and dorsolateral pulvinar that respond selectively to visual images of snakes. Compared with three other categories of stimuli (monkey faces, monkey hands, and geometrical shapes), snakes elicited the strongest, fastest responses, and the responses were not reduced by low spatial filtering. These findings integrate neuroscience with evolutionary biology, anthropology, psychology, herpetology, and primatology by identifying a neurobiological basis for primates' heightened visual sensitivity to snakes, and adding a crucial component to the growing evolutionary perspective that snakes have long shaped our primate lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quan Van Le
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Lynne A. Isbell
- Department of Anthropology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616; and
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Minh Nguyen
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Rafael S. Maior
- Department of Physiological Sciences, Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, CEP 70910-900, Brasilia DF, Brazil
| | - Carlos Tomaz
- Department of Physiological Sciences, Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, CEP 70910-900, Brasilia DF, Brazil
| | - Anh Hai Tran
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science, Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Toyama, Sugitani 2630, Toyama 930-0194, Japan
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23
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Sauer A, Mothes-Lasch M, Miltner WHR, Straube T. Effects of gaze direction, head orientation and valence of facial expression on amygdala activity. Soc Cogn Affect Neurosci 2013; 9:1246-52. [PMID: 23946006 DOI: 10.1093/scan/nst100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
There is increasing evidence for a role of the amygdala in processing gaze direction and emotional relevance of faces. In this event-related functional magnetic resonance study we investigated amygdala responses while we orthogonally manipulated head direction, gaze direction and facial expression (angry, happy and neutral). This allowed us to investigate effects of stimulus ambiguity, low-level factors and non-emotional factors on amygdala activation. Averted vs direct gaze induced increased activation in the right dorsal amygdala regardless of facial expression and head orientation. Furthermore, valence effects were found in the ventral amygdala and strongly dependent on head orientation. We observed enhanced activation to angry and neutral vs happy faces for observer-directed faces in the left ventral amygdala while the averted head condition reversed this pattern resulting in increased activation to happy as compared to angry and neutral faces. These results suggest that gaze direction drives specifically dorsal amygdala activation regardless of facial expression, low-level perceptual factors or stimulus ambiguity. The role of the amygdala is thus not restricted to the detection of potential threat, but has a more general role in attention processes. Furthermore, valence effects are associated with activation of the ventral amygdala and strongly influenced by non-emotional factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Sauer
- Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, GermanyDepartment of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Martin Mothes-Lasch
- Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Wolfgang H R Miltner
- Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
| | - Thomas Straube
- Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany, Department of Biological and Clinical Psychology, Friedrich Schiller University, 07743 Jena, Germany, and Institute of Medical Psychology and Systems Neuroscience, University of Münster, 48149 Münster, Germany
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Gerbella M, Baccarini M, Borra E, Rozzi S, Luppino G. Amygdalar connections of the macaque areas 45A and 45B. Brain Struct Funct 2013; 219:831-42. [DOI: 10.1007/s00429-013-0538-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2012] [Accepted: 03/05/2013] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Nguyen MN, Hori E, Matsumoto J, Tran AH, Ono T, Nishijo H. Neuronal responses to face-like stimuli in the monkey pulvinar. Eur J Neurosci 2012; 37:35-51. [DOI: 10.1111/ejn.12020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2012] [Revised: 08/27/2012] [Accepted: 09/14/2012] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Minh Nui Nguyen
- System Emotional Science; Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences; University of Toyama; Sugitani 2630; Toyama; 930-0194; Japan
| | - Etsuro Hori
- System Emotional Science; Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences; University of Toyama; Sugitani 2630; Toyama; 930-0194; Japan
| | - Jumpei Matsumoto
- System Emotional Science; Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences; University of Toyama; Sugitani 2630; Toyama; 930-0194; Japan
| | - Anh Hai Tran
- System Emotional Science; Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences; University of Toyama; Sugitani 2630; Toyama; 930-0194; Japan
| | - Taketoshi Ono
- System Emotional Science; Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences; University of Toyama; Sugitani 2630; Toyama; 930-0194; Japan
| | - Hisao Nishijo
- System Emotional Science; Graduate School of Medicine and Pharmaceutical Sciences; University of Toyama; Sugitani 2630; Toyama; 930-0194; Japan
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Rutishauser U, Tudusciuc O, Neumann D, Mamelak AN, Heller AC, Ross IB, Philpott L, Sutherling WW, Adolphs R. Single-unit responses selective for whole faces in the human amygdala. Curr Biol 2011; 21:1654-60. [PMID: 21962712 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2011.08.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2011] [Revised: 08/16/2011] [Accepted: 08/16/2011] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The human amygdala is critical for social cognition from faces, as borne out by impairments in recognizing facial emotion following amygdala lesions [1] and differential activation of the amygdala by faces [2-5]. Single-unit recordings in the primate amygdala have documented responses selective for faces, their identity, or emotional expression [6, 7], yet how the amygdala represents face information remains unknown. Does it encode specific features of faces that are particularly critical for recognizing emotions (such as the eyes), or does it encode the whole face, a level of representation that might be the proximal substrate for subsequent social cognition? We investigated this question by recording from over 200 single neurons in the amygdalae of seven neurosurgical patients with implanted depth electrodes [8]. We found that approximately half of all neurons responded to faces or parts of faces. Approximately 20% of all neurons responded selectively only to the whole face. Although responding most to whole faces, these neurons paradoxically responded more when only a small part of the face was shown compared to when almost the entire face was shown. We suggest that the human amygdala plays a predominant role in representing global information about faces, possibly achieved through inhibition between individual facial features.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ueli Rutishauser
- Department of Neural Systems, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
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Maior RS, Hori E, Barros M, Teixeira DS, Tavares MCH, Ono T, Nishijo H, Tomaz C. Superior colliculus lesions impair threat responsiveness in infant capuchin monkeys. Neurosci Lett 2011; 504:257-60. [PMID: 21970966 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2011.09.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2011] [Revised: 08/30/2011] [Accepted: 09/21/2011] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
The ability to react fast and efficiently in threatening situations is paramount for the survival of organisms and has been decisive in our evolutionary history. Defense mechanisms in primates rely on the fast recognition of potential predators and facial expressions of conspecifics. The neural circuitry responsible for the detection of threat is generally thought to be centered on the amygdala. Although it is a pivotal structure in the processing of emotional stimuli, the amygdala does not seem necessary for the early stages of this process. Here we show that bilateral neurotoxic lesions of the superior colliculus in infant capuchins monkeys impaired the recognition of a rubber-snake in a threat-reward conflict task. Lesioned monkeys were uninhibited by a snake in a food-reward retrieval task. Lack of inhibition in the task was observed over the course of 15 weeks. The long lasting recognition impairment of a natural predator observed here is similar to the tameness aspects of Kluver-Bucy syndrome, indicating an important role of this structure in threat recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafael S Maior
- Primate Center and Laboratory of Neurosciences and Behavior, Department of Physiological Sciences, Institute of Biology, University of Brasília, CEP 70910-900, Brasilia, DF, Brazil
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28
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Romanski LM, Diehl MM. Neurons responsive to face-view in the primate ventrolateral prefrontal cortex. Neuroscience 2011; 189:223-35. [PMID: 21605632 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2011.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2011] [Revised: 05/03/2011] [Accepted: 05/03/2011] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Studies have indicated that temporal and prefrontal brain regions process face and vocal information. Face-selective and vocalization-responsive neurons have been demonstrated in the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) and some prefrontal cells preferentially respond to combinations of face and corresponding vocalizations. These studies suggest VLPFC in nonhuman primates may play a role in communication that is similar to the role of inferior frontal regions in human language processing. If VLPFC is involved in communication, information about a speaker's face including identity, face-view, gaze, and emotional expression might be encoded by prefrontal neurons. In the following study, we examined the effect of face-view in ventrolateral prefrontal neurons by testing cells with auditory, visual, and a set of human and monkey faces rotated through 0°, 30°, 60°, 90°, and -30°. Prefrontal neurons responded selectively to either the identity of the face presented (human or monkey) or to the specific view of the face/head, or to both identity and face-view. Neurons which were affected by the identity of the face most often showed an increase in firing in the second part of the stimulus period. Neurons that were selective for face-view typically preferred forward face-view stimuli (0° and 30° rotation). The neurons which were selective for forward face-view were also auditory responsive compared to other neurons which responded to other views or were unselective which were not auditory responsive. Our analysis showed that the human forward face (0°) was decoded better and also contained the most information relative to other face-views. Our findings confirm a role for VLPFC in the processing and integration of face and vocalization information and add to the growing body of evidence that the primate ventrolateral prefrontal cortex plays a prominent role in social communication and is an important model in understanding the cellular mechanisms of communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- L M Romanski
- Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy and Center for Navigation and Communication Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY 14626, USA.
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