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Wagner H, Egelhaaf M, Carr C. Model organisms and systems in neuroethology: one hundred years of history and a look into the future. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2024; 210:227-242. [PMID: 38227005 PMCID: PMC10995084 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-023-01685-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2023] [Revised: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 11/29/2023] [Indexed: 01/17/2024]
Abstract
The Journal of Comparative Physiology lived up to its name in the last 100 years by including more than 1500 different taxa in almost 10,000 publications. Seventeen phyla of the animal kingdom were represented. The honeybee (Apis mellifera) is the taxon with most publications, followed by locust (Locusta migratoria), crayfishes (Cambarus spp.), and fruitfly (Drosophila melanogaster). The representation of species in this journal in the past, thus, differs much from the 13 model systems as named by the National Institutes of Health (USA). We mention major accomplishments of research on species with specific adaptations, specialist animals, for example, the quantitative description of the processes underlying the axon potential in squid (Loligo forbesii) and the isolation of the first receptor channel in the electric eel (Electrophorus electricus) and electric ray (Torpedo spp.). Future neuroethological work should make the recent genetic and technological developments available for specialist animals. There are many research questions left that may be answered with high yield in specialists and some questions that can only be answered in specialists. Moreover, the adaptations of animals that occupy specific ecological niches often lend themselves to biomimetic applications. We go into some depth in explaining our thoughts in the research of motion vision in insects, sound localization in barn owls, and electroreception in weakly electric fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hermann Wagner
- Institute of Biology II, RWTH Aachen University, 52074, Aachen, Germany.
| | - Martin Egelhaaf
- Department of Neurobiology, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
| | - Catherine Carr
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland at College Park, College Park, USA
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2
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Lazar AA, Zhou Y. Divisive normalization processors in the early visual system of the Drosophila brain. BIOLOGICAL CYBERNETICS 2023; 117:411-431. [PMID: 37702831 PMCID: PMC10752861 DOI: 10.1007/s00422-023-00972-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2022] [Accepted: 08/06/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023]
Abstract
Divisive normalization is a model of canonical computation of brain circuits. We demonstrate that two cascaded divisive normalization processors (DNPs), carrying out intensity/contrast gain control and elementary motion detection, respectively, can model the robust motion detection realized by the early visual system of the fruit fly. We first introduce a model of elementary motion detection and rewrite its underlying phase-based motion detection algorithm as a feedforward divisive normalization processor. We then cascade the DNP modeling the photoreceptor/amacrine cell layer with the motion detection DNP. We extensively evaluate the DNP for motion detection in dynamic environments where light intensity varies by orders of magnitude. The results are compared to other bio-inspired motion detectors as well as state-of-the-art optic flow algorithms under natural conditions. Our results demonstrate the potential of DNPs as canonical building blocks modeling the analog processing of early visual systems. The model highlights analog processing for accurately detecting visual motion, in both vertebrates and invertebrates. The results presented here shed new light on employing DNP-based algorithms in computer vision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aurel A Lazar
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10027, USA.
| | - Yiyin Zhou
- Department of Electrical Engineering, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10027, USA
- Department of Computer and Information Science, Fordham University, New York, NY, 10023, USA
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3
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Mano O, Choi M, Tanaka R, Creamer MS, Matos NCB, Shomar JW, Badwan BA, Clandinin TR, Clark DA. Long-timescale anti-directional rotation in Drosophila optomotor behavior. eLife 2023; 12:e86076. [PMID: 37751469 PMCID: PMC10522332 DOI: 10.7554/elife.86076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Locomotor movements cause visual images to be displaced across the eye, a retinal slip that is counteracted by stabilizing reflexes in many animals. In insects, optomotor turning causes the animal to turn in the direction of rotating visual stimuli, thereby reducing retinal slip and stabilizing trajectories through the world. This behavior has formed the basis for extensive dissections of motion vision. Here, we report that under certain stimulus conditions, two Drosophila species, including the widely studied Drosophila melanogaster, can suppress and even reverse the optomotor turning response over several seconds. Such 'anti-directional turning' is most strongly evoked by long-lasting, high-contrast, slow-moving visual stimuli that are distinct from those that promote syn-directional optomotor turning. Anti-directional turning, like the syn-directional optomotor response, requires the local motion detecting neurons T4 and T5. A subset of lobula plate tangential cells, CH cells, show involvement in these responses. Imaging from a variety of direction-selective cells in the lobula plate shows no evidence of dynamics that match the behavior, suggesting that the observed inversion in turning direction emerges downstream of the lobula plate. Further, anti-directional turning declines with age and exposure to light. These results show that Drosophila optomotor turning behaviors contain rich, stimulus-dependent dynamics that are inconsistent with simple reflexive stabilization responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omer Mano
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Minseung Choi
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford UniversityStanfordUnited States
| | - Ryosuke Tanaka
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Matthew S Creamer
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Natalia CB Matos
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Joseph W Shomar
- Department of Physics, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Bara A Badwan
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | | | - Damon A Clark
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
- Department of Physics, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
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4
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Silakov MI, Kuznetsov AV, Temnykh AV, Anninsky BE. Effect of monochromatic light on the behavior of the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi (A. Agassiz, 1865). Biosystems 2023; 231:104987. [PMID: 37516316 DOI: 10.1016/j.biosystems.2023.104987] [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: 05/03/2023] [Revised: 07/25/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 07/31/2023]
Abstract
Ctenophores are invertebrate, gelatinous predators that perform complex movements due to their numerous ciliary comb plates. We investigated the behavioral responses of the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi A. Agassiz, 1865 to red, green, and blue lights of different powers and fluxes emitted by LEDs or lasers. White LEDs were used to mimic natural sunlight. When laser light was directed to the aboral organ, the animals tended to leave the illumination zone. The blue-light reaction was six times faster than the red-light reaction. The behavioral strategy of the animals changed significantly when their freedom of maneuvering was restricted. Typical locomotions were ranked according to the laser beam avoidance time from the beginning of exposure to going into darkness. The minimum reaction time was required for turning and moving the ctenophore, while moving along the laser beam and turning around required more time. Typical patterns of behavior of M. leidyi in the light flux were established using cluster analysis. Three preferential behavioral strategies were identified for avoiding laser irradiation: 1) body rotation; 2) shifting sideways; and 3) movement with deviation from the beam. The elementary ability of ctenophores to make decisions in situative conditions has been demonstrated.
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Affiliation(s)
- M I Silakov
- A.O. Kovalevsky Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas, RAS, Leninsky Avenue 38, Moscow, 119991, Russia
| | - A V Kuznetsov
- A.O. Kovalevsky Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas, RAS, Leninsky Avenue 38, Moscow, 119991, Russia.
| | - A V Temnykh
- A.O. Kovalevsky Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas, RAS, Leninsky Avenue 38, Moscow, 119991, Russia
| | - B E Anninsky
- A.O. Kovalevsky Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas, RAS, Leninsky Avenue 38, Moscow, 119991, Russia
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5
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Currier TA, Pang MM, Clandinin TR. Visual processing in the fly, from photoreceptors to behavior. Genetics 2023; 224:iyad064. [PMID: 37128740 PMCID: PMC10213501 DOI: 10.1093/genetics/iyad064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Originally a genetic model organism, the experimental use of Drosophila melanogaster has grown to include quantitative behavioral analyses, sophisticated perturbations of neuronal function, and detailed sensory physiology. A highlight of these developments can be seen in the context of vision, where pioneering studies have uncovered fundamental and generalizable principles of sensory processing. Here we begin with an overview of vision-guided behaviors and common methods for probing visual circuits. We then outline the anatomy and physiology of brain regions involved in visual processing, beginning at the sensory periphery and ending with descending motor control. Areas of focus include contrast and motion detection in the optic lobe, circuits for visual feature selectivity, computations in support of spatial navigation, and contextual associative learning. Finally, we look to the future of fly visual neuroscience and discuss promising topics for further study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy A Currier
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Michelle M Pang
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Thomas R Clandinin
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
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6
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Parisi MJ, Aimino MA, Mosca TJ. A conditional strategy for cell-type-specific labeling of endogenous excitatory synapses in Drosophila. CELL REPORTS METHODS 2023; 3:100477. [PMID: 37323572 PMCID: PMC10261928 DOI: 10.1016/j.crmeth.2023.100477] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2022] [Revised: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Chemical neurotransmission occurs at specialized contacts where neurotransmitter release machinery apposes neurotransmitter receptors to underlie circuit function. A series of complex events underlies pre- and postsynaptic protein recruitment to neuronal connections. To better study synaptic development in individual neurons, we need cell-type-specific strategies to visualize endogenous synaptic proteins. Although presynaptic strategies exist, postsynaptic proteins remain less studied because of a paucity of cell-type-specific reagents. To study excitatory postsynapses with cell-type specificity, we engineered dlg1[4K], a conditionally labeled marker of Drosophila excitatory postsynaptic densities. With binary expression systems, dlg1[4K] labels central and peripheral postsynapses in larvae and adults. Using dlg1[4K], we find that distinct rules govern postsynaptic organization in adult neurons, multiple binary expression systems can concurrently label pre- and postsynapse in a cell-type-specific manner, and neuronal DLG1 can sometimes localize presynaptically. These results validate our strategy for conditional postsynaptic labeling and demonstrate principles of synaptic organization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J. Parisi
- Department of Neuroscience, Vickie and Jack Farber Institute of Neuroscience, Thomas Jefferson University, Bluemle Life Sciences Building, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
| | - Michael A. Aimino
- Department of Neuroscience, Vickie and Jack Farber Institute of Neuroscience, Thomas Jefferson University, Bluemle Life Sciences Building, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
| | - Timothy J. Mosca
- Department of Neuroscience, Vickie and Jack Farber Institute of Neuroscience, Thomas Jefferson University, Bluemle Life Sciences Building, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA
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7
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Mano O, Choi M, Tanaka R, Creamer MS, Matos NC, Shomar J, Badwan BA, Clandinin TR, Clark DA. Long timescale anti-directional rotation in Drosophila optomotor behavior. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.01.06.523055. [PMID: 36711627 PMCID: PMC9882005 DOI: 10.1101/2023.01.06.523055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Locomotor movements cause visual images to be displaced across the eye, a retinal slip that is counteracted by stabilizing reflexes in many animals. In insects, optomotor turning causes the animal to turn in the direction of rotating visual stimuli, thereby reducing retinal slip and stabilizing trajectories through the world. This behavior has formed the basis for extensive dissections of motion vision. Here, we report that under certain stimulus conditions, two Drosophila species, including the widely studied D. melanogaster, can suppress and even reverse the optomotor turning response over several seconds. Such "anti-directional turning" is most strongly evoked by long-lasting, high-contrast, slow-moving visual stimuli that are distinct from those that promote syn-directional optomotor turning. Anti-directional turning, like the syn-directional optomotor response, requires the local motion detecting neurons T4 and T5. A subset of lobula plate tangential cells, CH cells, show involvement in these responses. Imaging from a variety of direction-selective cells in the lobula plate shows no evidence of dynamics that match the behavior, suggesting that the observed inversion in turning direction emerges downstream of the lobula plate. Further, anti-directional turning declines with age and exposure to light. These results show that Drosophila optomotor turning behaviors contain rich, stimulus-dependent dynamics that are inconsistent with simple reflexive stabilization responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omer Mano
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Minseung Choi
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Ryosuke Tanaka
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Matthew S. Creamer
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Natalia C.B. Matos
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Joseph Shomar
- Department of Physics, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Bara A. Badwan
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | | | - Damon A. Clark
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
- Department of Physics, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
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8
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Mishra A, Serbe-Kamp E, Borst A, Haag J. Voltage to Calcium Transformation Enhances Direction Selectivity in Drosophila T4 Neurons. J Neurosci 2023; 43:2497-2514. [PMID: 36849417 PMCID: PMC10082464 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2297-22.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 03/01/2023] Open
Abstract
An important step in neural information processing is the transformation of membrane voltage into calcium signals leading to transmitter release. However, the effect of voltage to calcium transformation on neural responses to different sensory stimuli is not well understood. Here, we use in vivo two-photon imaging of genetically encoded voltage and calcium indicators, ArcLight and GCaMP6f, respectively, to measure responses in direction-selective T4 neurons of female Drosophila Comparison between ArcLight and GCaMP6f signals reveals calcium signals to have a significantly higher direction selectivity compared with voltage signals. Using these recordings, we build a model which transforms T4 voltage responses into calcium responses. Using a cascade of thresholding, temporal filtering and a stationary nonlinearity, the model reproduces experimentally measured calcium responses across different visual stimuli. These findings provide a mechanistic underpinning of the voltage to calcium transformation and show how this processing step, in addition to synaptic mechanisms on the dendrites of T4 cells, enhances direction selectivity in the output signal of T4 neurons. Measuring the directional tuning of postsynaptic vertical system (VS)-cells with inputs from other cells blocked, we found that, indeed, it matches the one of the calcium signal in presynaptic T4 cells.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The transformation of voltage to calcium influx is an important step in the signaling cascade within a nerve cell. While this process has been intensely studied in the context of transmitter release mechanism, its consequences for information transmission and neural computation are unclear. Here, we measured both membrane voltage and cytosolic calcium levels in direction-selective cells of Drosophila in response to a large set of visual stimuli. We found direction selectivity in the calcium signal to be significantly enhanced compared with membrane voltage through a nonlinear transformation of voltage to calcium. Our findings highlight the importance of an additional step in the signaling cascade for information processing within single nerve cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abhishek Mishra
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Etienne Serbe-Kamp
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Alexander Borst
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Juergen Haag
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
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9
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Egelhaaf M. Optic flow based spatial vision in insects. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2023:10.1007/s00359-022-01610-w. [PMID: 36609568 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-022-01610-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2022] [Revised: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/24/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
The optic flow, i.e., the displacement of retinal images of objects in the environment induced by self-motion, is an important source of spatial information, especially for fast-flying insects. Spatial information over a wide range of distances, from the animal's immediate surroundings over several hundred metres to kilometres, is necessary for mediating behaviours, such as landing manoeuvres, collision avoidance in spatially complex environments, learning environmental object constellations and path integration in spatial navigation. To facilitate the processing of spatial information, the complexity of the optic flow is often reduced by active vision strategies. These result in translations and rotations being largely separated by a saccadic flight and gaze mode. Only the translational components of the optic flow contain spatial information. In the first step of optic flow processing, an array of local motion detectors provides a retinotopic spatial proximity map of the environment. This local motion information is then processed in parallel neural pathways in a task-specific manner and used to control the different components of spatial behaviour. A particular challenge here is that the distance information extracted from the optic flow does not represent the distances unambiguously, but these are scaled by the animal's speed of locomotion. Possible ways of coping with this ambiguity are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martin Egelhaaf
- Neurobiology and Center for Cognitive Interaction Technology (CITEC), Bielefeld University, Universitätsstraße 25, 33615, Bielefeld, Germany.
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10
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Hayashi M, Kazawa T, Tsunoda H, Kanzaki R. The Understanding of ON-Edge Motion Detection Through the Simulation Based on the Connectome of Drosophila’s Optic Lobe. JOURNAL OF ROBOTICS AND MECHATRONICS 2022. [DOI: 10.20965/jrm.2022.p0795] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
The optic lobe of the fly is one of the prominent model systems for the neural mechanism of the motion detection. How a fly who lives under various visual situations of the nature processes the information from at most a few thousands of ommatidia in their neural circuit for the detection of moving objects is not exactly clear though many computational models of the fly optic lobe as a moving objects detector were suggested. Here we attempted to elucidate the mechanisms of ON-edge motion detection by a simulation approach based on the TEM connectome of Drosophila. Our simulation model of the optic lobe with the NEURON simulator that covers the full scale of ommatidia, reproduced the characteristics of the receptor neurons, lamina monopolar neurons, and T4 cells in the lobula. The contribution of each neuron can be estimated by changing synaptic connection strengths in the simulation and measuring the response to the motion stimulus. Those show the paradelle pathway provide motion detection in the fly optic lobe has more robustness and is more sophisticated than a simple combination of HR and BL systems.
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11
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Lazar AA, Turkcan MK, Zhou Y. A Programmable Ontology Encompassing the Functional Logic of the Drosophila Brain. Front Neuroinform 2022; 16:853098. [PMID: 35795870 PMCID: PMC9252271 DOI: 10.3389/fninf.2022.853098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The Drosophila brain has only a fraction of the number of neurons of higher organisms such as mice and humans. Yet the sheer complexity of its neural circuits recently revealed by large connectomics datasets suggests that computationally modeling the function of fruit fly brain circuits at this scale poses significant challenges. To address these challenges, we present here a programmable ontology that expands the scope of the current Drosophila brain anatomy ontologies to encompass the functional logic of the fly brain. The programmable ontology provides a language not only for modeling circuit motifs but also for programmatically exploring their functional logic. To achieve this goal, we tightly integrated the programmable ontology with the workflow of the interactive FlyBrainLab computing platform. As part of the programmable ontology, we developed NeuroNLP++, a web application that supports free-form English queries for constructing functional brain circuits fully anchored on the available connectome/synaptome datasets, and the published worldwide literature. In addition, we present a methodology for including a model of the space of odorants into the programmable ontology, and for modeling olfactory sensory circuits of the antenna of the fruit fly brain that detect odorant sources. Furthermore, we describe a methodology for modeling the functional logic of the antennal lobe circuit consisting of a massive number of local feedback loops, a characteristic feature observed across Drosophila brain regions. Finally, using a circuit library, we demonstrate the power of our methodology for interactively exploring the functional logic of the massive number of feedback loops in the antennal lobe.
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12
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Neural mechanisms to exploit positional geometry for collision avoidance. Curr Biol 2022; 32:2357-2374.e6. [PMID: 35508172 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.04.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2022] [Revised: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Visual motion provides rich geometrical cues about the three-dimensional configuration of the world. However, how brains decode the spatial information carried by motion signals remains poorly understood. Here, we study a collision-avoidance behavior in Drosophila as a simple model of motion-based spatial vision. With simulations and psychophysics, we demonstrate that walking Drosophila exhibit a pattern of slowing to avoid collisions by exploiting the geometry of positional changes of objects on near-collision courses. This behavior requires the visual neuron LPLC1, whose tuning mirrors the behavior and whose activity drives slowing. LPLC1 pools inputs from object and motion detectors, and spatially biased inhibition tunes it to the geometry of collisions. Connectomic analyses identified circuitry downstream of LPLC1 that faithfully inherits its response properties. Overall, our results reveal how a small neural circuit solves a specific spatial vision task by combining distinct visual features to exploit universal geometrical constraints of the visual world.
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13
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Ketkar MD, Gür B, Molina-Obando S, Ioannidou M, Martelli C, Silies M. First-order visual interneurons distribute distinct contrast and luminance information across ON and OFF pathways to achieve stable behavior. eLife 2022; 11:74937. [PMID: 35263247 PMCID: PMC8967382 DOI: 10.7554/elife.74937] [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: 10/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The accurate processing of contrast is the basis for all visually guided behaviors. Visual scenes with rapidly changing illumination challenge contrast computation because photoreceptor adaptation is not fast enough to compensate for such changes. Yet, human perception of contrast is stable even when the visual environment is quickly changing, suggesting rapid post receptor luminance gain control. Similarly, in the fruit fly Drosophila, such gain control leads to luminance invariant behavior for moving OFF stimuli. Here, we show that behavioral responses to moving ON stimuli also utilize a luminance gain, and that ON-motion guided behavior depends on inputs from three first-order interneurons L1, L2, and L3. Each of these neurons encodes contrast and luminance differently and distributes information asymmetrically across both ON and OFF contrast-selective pathways. Behavioral responses to both ON and OFF stimuli rely on a luminance-based correction provided by L1 and L3, wherein L1 supports contrast computation linearly, and L3 non-linearly amplifies dim stimuli. Therefore, L1, L2, and L3 are not specific inputs to ON and OFF pathways but the lamina serves as a separate processing layer that distributes distinct luminance and contrast information across ON and OFF pathways to support behavior in varying conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madhura D Ketkar
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Burak Gür
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Sebastian Molina-Obando
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Maria Ioannidou
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Carlotta Martelli
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Marion Silies
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
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14
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Identifying Inputs to Visual Projection Neurons in Drosophila Lobula by Analyzing Connectomic Data. eNeuro 2022; 9:ENEURO.0053-22.2022. [PMID: 35410869 PMCID: PMC9034759 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0053-22.2022] [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: 02/03/2022] [Revised: 03/26/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Electron microscopy (EM)-based connectomes provide important insights into how visual circuitry of fruit fly Drosophila computes various visual features, guiding and complementing behavioral and physiological studies. However, connectomic analyses of the lobula, a neuropil putatively dedicated to detecting object-like features, remains underdeveloped, largely because of incomplete data on the inputs to the brain region. Here, we attempted to map the columnar inputs into the Drosophila lobula neuropil by performing connectivity-based and morphology-based clustering on a densely reconstructed connectome dataset. While the dataset mostly lacked visual neuropils other than lobula, which would normally help identify inputs to lobula, our clustering analysis successfully extracted clusters of cells with homogeneous connectivity and morphology, likely representing genuine cell types. We were able to draw a correspondence between the resulting clusters and previously identified cell types, revealing previously undocumented connectivity between lobula input and output neurons. While future, more complete connectomic reconstructions are necessary to verify the results presented here, they can serve as a useful basis for formulating hypotheses on mechanisms of visual feature detection in lobula.
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15
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Ning J, Li Z, Zhang X, Wang J, Chen D, Liu Q, Sun Y. Behavioral signatures of structured feature detection during courtship in Drosophila. Curr Biol 2022; 32:1211-1231.e7. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.01.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2021] [Revised: 11/27/2021] [Accepted: 01/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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16
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Kohn JR, Portes JP, Christenson MP, Abbott LF, Behnia R. Flexible filtering by neural inputs supports motion computation across states and stimuli. Curr Biol 2021; 31:5249-5260.e5. [PMID: 34670114 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.09.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2021] [Revised: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 09/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Sensory systems flexibly adapt their processing properties across a wide range of environmental and behavioral conditions. Such variable processing complicates attempts to extract a mechanistic understanding of sensory computations. This is evident in the highly constrained, canonical Drosophila motion detection circuit, where the core computation underlying direction selectivity is still debated despite extensive studies. Here we measured the filtering properties of neural inputs to the OFF motion-detecting T5 cell in Drosophila. We report state- and stimulus-dependent changes in the shape of these signals, which become more biphasic under specific conditions. Summing these inputs within the framework of a connectomic-constrained model of the circuit demonstrates that these shapes are sufficient to explain T5 responses to various motion stimuli. Thus, our stimulus- and state-dependent measurements reconcile motion computation with the anatomy of the circuit. These findings provide a clear example of how a basic circuit supports flexible sensory computation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica R Kohn
- The Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Jacob P Portes
- The Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Matthias P Christenson
- The Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - L F Abbott
- The Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Rudy Behnia
- The Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA; Kavli Institute for Brain Science, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA.
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17
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van Breugel F. A Nonlinear Observability Analysis of Ambient Wind Estimation with Uncalibrated Sensors, Inspired by Insect Neural Encoding. PROCEEDINGS OF THE ... IEEE CONFERENCE ON DECISION & CONTROL. IEEE CONFERENCE ON DECISION & CONTROL 2021; 2021:1399-1406. [PMID: 37786448 PMCID: PMC10545229 DOI: 10.1109/cdc45484.2021.9683219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/04/2023]
Abstract
Estimating the direction of ambient fluid flow is key for many flying or swimming animals and robots, but can only be accomplished through indirect measurements and active control. Recent work with tethered flying insects indicates that their sensory representation of orientation, apparent wind, direction of movement, and control is represented by a 2-dimensional angular encoding in the central brain. This representation simplifies sensory integration by projecting the direction (but not scale) of measurements with different units onto a universal polar coordinate frame. To align these angular measurements with one another and the motor system does, however, require a calibration of angular gain and offset for each sensor. This calibration could change with time due to changes in the environment or physical structure. The circumstances under which small robots and animals with angular sensors and changing calibrations could self-calibrate and estimate the direction of ambient fluid flow while moving remains an open question. Here, a methodical nonlinear observability analysis is presented to address this. The analysis shows that it is mathematically feasible to continuously estimate flow direction and perform self-calibrations by adopting frequent changes in course (or active prevention thereof) and orientation, and requires fusion and temporal differentiation of three sensory measurements: apparent flow, orientation (or its derivative), and direction of motion (or its derivative). These conclusions are consistent with the zigzagging trajectories exhibited by many plume tracking organisms, suggesting that perhaps flow estimation is a secondary driver of their trajectory structure.
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18
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Turner MH, Clandinin TR. Neuroscience: Convergence of biological and artificial networks. Curr Biol 2021; 31:R1079-R1081. [PMID: 34582814 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.07.051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
A new study shows that an artificial neural network trained to predict visual motion reproduces key properties of motion detecting circuits in the fruit fly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxwell H Turner
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94103, USA
| | - Thomas R Clandinin
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94103, USA.
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19
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Li J, Niemeier M, Kern R, Egelhaaf M. Disentangling of Local and Wide-Field Motion Adaptation. Front Neural Circuits 2021; 15:713285. [PMID: 34531728 PMCID: PMC8438216 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2021.713285] [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: 05/22/2021] [Accepted: 08/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Motion adaptation has been attributed in flying insects a pivotal functional role in spatial vision based on optic flow. Ongoing motion enhances in the visual pathway the representation of spatial discontinuities, which manifest themselves as velocity discontinuities in the retinal optic flow pattern during translational locomotion. There is evidence for different spatial scales of motion adaptation at the different visual processing stages. Motion adaptation is supposed to take place, on the one hand, on a retinotopic basis at the level of local motion detecting neurons and, on the other hand, at the level of wide-field neurons pooling the output of many of these local motion detectors. So far, local and wide-field adaptation could not be analyzed separately, since conventional motion stimuli jointly affect both adaptive processes. Therefore, we designed a novel stimulus paradigm based on two types of motion stimuli that had the same overall strength but differed in that one led to local motion adaptation while the other did not. We recorded intracellularly the activity of a particular wide-field motion-sensitive neuron, the horizontal system equatorial cell (HSE) in blowflies. The experimental data were interpreted based on a computational model of the visual motion pathway, which included the spatially pooling HSE-cell. By comparing the difference between the recorded and modeled HSE-cell responses induced by the two types of motion adaptation, the major characteristics of local and wide-field adaptation could be pinpointed. Wide-field adaptation could be shown to strongly depend on the activation level of the cell and, thus, on the direction of motion. In contrast, the response gain is reduced by local motion adaptation to a similar extent independent of the direction of motion. This direction-independent adaptation differs fundamentally from the well-known adaptive adjustment of response gain according to the prevailing overall stimulus level that is considered essential for an efficient signal representation by neurons with a limited operating range. Direction-independent adaptation is discussed to result from the joint activity of local motion-sensitive neurons of different preferred directions and to lead to a representation of the local motion direction that is independent of the overall direction of global motion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinglin Li
- Neurobiology, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
| | | | - Roland Kern
- Neurobiology, Bielefeld University, Bielefeld, Germany
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20
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Lingenfelter B, Nag A, van Breugel F. Insect inspired vision-based velocity estimation through spatial pooling of optic flow during linear motion. BIOINSPIRATION & BIOMIMETICS 2021; 16:10.1088/1748-3190/ac1f7b. [PMID: 34412040 PMCID: PMC10561965 DOI: 10.1088/1748-3190/ac1f7b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2020] [Accepted: 08/19/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Insects rely on the perception of image motion, or optic flow, to estimate their velocity relative to nearby objects. This information provides important sensory input for avoiding obstacles. However, certain behaviors, such as estimating the absolute distance to a landing target, accurately measuring absolute distance traveled, and estimating the ambient wind speed require decoupling optic flow into its component parts: absolute ground velocity and distance to nearby objects. Behavioral experiments suggest that insects perform these calculations, but their mechanism for doing so remains unknown. Here we present a novel algorithm that combines the geometry of dynamic forward motion with known features of insect visual processing to provide a hypothesis for how insects mightdirectlyestimate absolute ground velocity from a combination of optic flow and acceleration information. Our robotics-inspired-biology approach reveals three critical requirements. First, absolute ground velocity can only be directly estimated from optic flow during times of active acceleration and deceleration. Second, spatial pooling of optic flow across a receptive field helps to alleviate the effects of noise and/or low resolution visual systems. Third, averaging velocity estimates from multiple receptive fields further helps to reject noise. Our algorithm provides a hypothesis for how insects might estimate absolute velocity from vision during active maneuvers, and also provides a theoretical framework for designing fast analog circuitry for efficient state estimation that can be applied to insect-sized robots.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryson Lingenfelter
- Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno, United States of America
| | - Arunava Nag
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno, United States of America
| | - Floris van Breugel
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno, United States of America
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21
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Ramos-Traslosheros G, Silies M. The physiological basis for contrast opponency in motion computation in Drosophila. Nat Commun 2021; 12:4987. [PMID: 34404776 PMCID: PMC8371135 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-24986-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2020] [Accepted: 07/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
In Drosophila, direction-selective neurons implement a mechanism of motion computation similar to cortical neurons, using contrast-opponent receptive fields with ON and OFF subfields. It is not clear how the presynaptic circuitry of direction-selective neurons in the OFF pathway supports this computation if all major inputs are OFF-rectified neurons. Here, we reveal the biological substrate for motion computation in the OFF pathway. Three interneurons, Tm2, Tm9 and CT1, provide information about ON stimuli to the OFF direction-selective neuron T5 across its receptive field, supporting a contrast-opponent receptive field organization. Consistent with its prominent role in motion detection, variability in Tm9 receptive field properties transfers to T5, and calcium decrements in Tm9 in response to ON stimuli persist across behavioral states, while spatial tuning is sharpened by active behavior. Together, our work shows how a key neuronal computation is implemented by its constituent neuronal circuit elements to ensure direction selectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giordano Ramos-Traslosheros
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes-Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany
- International Max Planck Research School Neuroscienes and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Marion Silies
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes-Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
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22
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Rigosi E, O'Carroll DC. Acute Application of Imidacloprid Alters the Sensitivity of Direction Selective Motion Detecting Neurons in an Insect Pollinator. Front Physiol 2021; 12:682489. [PMID: 34305640 PMCID: PMC8300694 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2021.682489] [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: 03/18/2021] [Accepted: 06/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cholinergic pesticides, such as the neonicotinoid imidacloprid, are the most important insecticides used for plant protection worldwide. In recent decades, concerns have been raised about side effects on non-target insect species, including altered foraging behavior and navigation. Although pollinators rely on visual cues to forage and navigate their environment, the effects of neonicotinoids on visual processing have been largely overlooked. To test the effect of acute treatment with imidacloprid at known concentrations in the brain, we developed a modified electrophysiological setup that allows recordings of visually evoked responses while perfusing the brain in vivo. We obtained long-lasting recordings from direction selective wide-field, motion sensitive neurons of the hoverfly pollinator, Eristalis tenax. Neurons were treated with imidacloprid (3.9 μM, 0.39 μM or a sham control treatment using the solvent (dimethylsulfoxide) only. Exposure to a high, yet sub-lethal concentration of imidacloprid significantly alters their physiological response to motion stimuli. We observed a general effect of imidacloprid (3.9 μM) increasing spontaneous activity, reducing contrast sensitivity and giving weaker directional tuning to wide-field moving stimuli, with likely implications for errors in flight control, hovering and routing. Our electrophysiological approach reveals the robustness of the fly visual pathway against cholinergic perturbance (i.e., at 0.39 μM) but also potential threatening effects of cholinergic pesticides (i.e., evident at 3.9 μM) for the visual motion detecting system of an important pollinator.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Rigosi
- Department of Biology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
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23
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Agrochao M, Tanaka R, Salazar-Gatzimas E, Clark DA. Mechanism for analogous illusory motion perception in flies and humans. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:23044-23053. [PMID: 32839324 PMCID: PMC7502748 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2002937117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Visual motion detection is one of the most important computations performed by visual circuits. Yet, we perceive vivid illusory motion in stationary, periodic luminance gradients that contain no true motion. This illusion is shared by diverse vertebrate species, but theories proposed to explain this illusion have remained difficult to test. Here, we demonstrate that in the fruit fly Drosophila, the illusory motion percept is generated by unbalanced contributions of direction-selective neurons' responses to stationary edges. First, we found that flies, like humans, perceive sustained motion in the stationary gradients. The percept was abolished when the elementary motion detector neurons T4 and T5 were silenced. In vivo calcium imaging revealed that T4 and T5 neurons encode the location and polarity of stationary edges. Furthermore, our proposed mechanistic model allowed us to predictably manipulate both the magnitude and direction of the fly's illusory percept by selectively silencing either T4 or T5 neurons. Interestingly, human brains possess the same mechanistic ingredients that drive our model in flies. When we adapted human observers to moving light edges or dark edges, we could manipulate the magnitude and direction of their percepts as well, suggesting that mechanisms similar to the fly's may also underlie this illusion in humans. By taking a comparative approach that exploits Drosophila neurogenetics, our results provide a causal, mechanistic account for a long-known visual illusion. These results argue that this illusion arises from architectures for motion detection that are shared across phyla.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margarida Agrochao
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511
| | - Ryosuke Tanaka
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511
| | | | - Damon A Clark
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511;
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511
- Department of Physics, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511
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24
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Zavatone-Veth JA, Badwan BA, Clark DA. A minimal synaptic model for direction selective neurons in Drosophila. J Vis 2020; 20:2. [PMID: 32040161 PMCID: PMC7343402 DOI: 10.1167/jov.20.2.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Visual motion estimation is a canonical neural computation. In Drosophila, recent advances have identified anatomic and functional circuitry underlying direction-selective computations. Models with varying levels of abstraction have been proposed to explain specific experimental results but have rarely been compared across experiments. Here we use the wealth of available anatomical and physiological data to construct a minimal, biophysically inspired synaptic model for Drosophila’s first-order direction-selective T4 cells. We show how this model relates mathematically to classical models of motion detection, including the Hassenstein-Reichardt correlator model. We used numerical simulation to test how well this synaptic model could reproduce measurements of T4 cells across many datasets and stimulus modalities. These comparisons include responses to sinusoid gratings, to apparent motion stimuli, to stochastic stimuli, and to natural scenes. Without fine-tuning this model, it sufficed to reproduce many, but not all, response properties of T4 cells. Since this model is flexible and based on straightforward biophysical properties, it provides an extensible framework for developing a mechanistic understanding of T4 neural response properties. Moreover, it can be used to assess the sufficiency of simple biophysical mechanisms to describe features of the direction-selective computation and identify where our understanding must be improved.
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25
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Yildizoglu T, Riegler C, Fitzgerald JE, Portugues R. A Neural Representation of Naturalistic Motion-Guided Behavior in the Zebrafish Brain. Curr Biol 2020; 30:2321-2333.e6. [PMID: 32386533 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.04.043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2018] [Revised: 03/13/2020] [Accepted: 04/20/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
All animals must transform ambiguous sensory data into successful behavior. This requires sensory representations that accurately reflect the statistics of natural stimuli and behavior. Multiple studies show that visual motion processing is tuned for accuracy under naturalistic conditions, but the sensorimotor circuits extracting these cues and implementing motion-guided behavior remain unclear. Here we show that the larval zebrafish retina extracts a diversity of naturalistic motion cues, and the retinorecipient pretectum organizes these cues around the elements of behavior. We find that higher-order motion stimuli, gliders, induce optomotor behavior matching expectations from natural scene analyses. We then image activity of retinal ganglion cell terminals and pretectal neurons. The retina exhibits direction-selective responses across glider stimuli, and anatomically clustered pretectal neurons respond with magnitudes matching behavior. Peripheral computations thus reflect natural input statistics, whereas central brain activity precisely codes information needed for behavior. This general principle could organize sensorimotor transformations across animal species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tugce Yildizoglu
- Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Research Group of Sensorimotor Control, Martinsried 82152, Germany
| | - Clemens Riegler
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA; Department of Neurobiology, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - James E Fitzgerald
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA 20147, USA.
| | - Ruben Portugues
- Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Research Group of Sensorimotor Control, Martinsried 82152, Germany; Institute of Neuroscience, Technical University of Munich, Munich 80802, Germany; Munich Cluster for Systems Neurology (SyNergy), Munich 80802, Germany.
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26
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Ketkar MD, Sporar K, Gür B, Ramos-Traslosheros G, Seifert M, Silies M. Luminance Information Is Required for the Accurate Estimation of Contrast in Rapidly Changing Visual Contexts. Curr Biol 2020; 30:657-669.e4. [PMID: 32008904 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2019.12.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2019] [Revised: 11/01/2019] [Accepted: 12/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Visual perception scales with changes in the visual stimulus, or contrast, irrespective of background illumination. However, visual perception is challenged when adaptation is not fast enough to deal with sudden declines in overall illumination, for example, when gaze follows a moving object from bright sunlight into a shaded area. Here, we show that the visual system of the fly employs a solution by propagating a corrective luminance-sensitive signal. We use in vivo 2-photon imaging and behavioral analyses to demonstrate that distinct OFF-pathway inputs encode contrast and luminance. Predictions of contrast-sensitive neuronal responses show that contrast information alone cannot explain behavioral responses in sudden dim light. The luminance-sensitive pathway via the L3 neuron is required for visual processing in such rapidly changing light conditions, ensuring contrast constancy when pure contrast sensitivity underestimates a stimulus. Thus, retaining a peripheral feature, luminance, in visual processing is required for robust behavioral responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madhura D Ketkar
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 15, Mainz 55128, Germany; European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen, a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max Planck Society, Grisebachstr. 5, Göttingen 37077, Germany; International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of Göttingen, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 11, Göttingen 37077, Germany
| | - Katja Sporar
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 15, Mainz 55128, Germany; European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen, a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max Planck Society, Grisebachstr. 5, Göttingen 37077, Germany; International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of Göttingen, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 11, Göttingen 37077, Germany
| | - Burak Gür
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 15, Mainz 55128, Germany; European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen, a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max Planck Society, Grisebachstr. 5, Göttingen 37077, Germany; International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of Göttingen, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 11, Göttingen 37077, Germany
| | - Giordano Ramos-Traslosheros
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 15, Mainz 55128, Germany; European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen, a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max Planck Society, Grisebachstr. 5, Göttingen 37077, Germany; International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of Göttingen, Justus-von-Liebig-Weg 11, Göttingen 37077, Germany
| | - Marvin Seifert
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen, a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max Planck Society, Grisebachstr. 5, Göttingen 37077, Germany
| | - Marion Silies
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, Hanns-Dieter-Hüsch-Weg 15, Mainz 55128, Germany; European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen, a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max Planck Society, Grisebachstr. 5, Göttingen 37077, Germany.
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27
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Dynamic Signal Compression for Robust Motion Vision in Flies. Curr Biol 2020; 30:209-221.e8. [PMID: 31928873 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2019.10.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2019] [Revised: 09/17/2019] [Accepted: 10/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Sensory systems need to reliably extract information from highly variable natural signals. Flies, for instance, use optic flow to guide their course and are remarkably adept at estimating image velocity regardless of image statistics. Current circuit models, however, cannot account for this robustness. Here, we demonstrate that the Drosophila visual system reduces input variability by rapidly adjusting its sensitivity to local contrast conditions. We exhaustively map functional properties of neurons in the motion detection circuit and find that local responses are compressed by surround contrast. The compressive signal is fast, integrates spatially, and derives from neural feedback. Training convolutional neural networks on estimating the velocity of natural stimuli shows that this dynamic signal compression can close the performance gap between model and organism. Overall, our work represents a comprehensive mechanistic account of how neural systems attain the robustness to carry out survival-critical tasks in challenging real-world environments.
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28
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Gür B, Sporar K, Lopez-Behling A, Silies M. Distinct expression of potassium channels regulates visual response properties of lamina neurons in Drosophila melanogaster. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2019; 206:273-287. [PMID: 31823004 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-019-01385-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2019] [Revised: 10/23/2019] [Accepted: 11/21/2019] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
The computational organization of sensory systems depends on the diversification of individual cell types with distinct signal-processing capabilities. The Drosophila visual system, for instance, splits information into channels with different temporal properties directly downstream of photoreceptors in the first-order interneurons of the OFF pathway, L2 and L3. However, the biophysical mechanisms that determine this specialization are largely unknown. Here, we show that the voltage-gated Ka channels Shaker and Shal contribute to the response properties of the major OFF pathway input L2. L3 calcium response kinetics postsynaptic to photoreceptors resemble the sustained calcium signals of photoreceptors, whereas L2 neurons decay transiently. Based on a cell-type-specific RNA-seq data set and endogenous protein tagging, we identified Shaker and Shal as the primary candidates to shape L2 responses. Using in vivo two-photon imaging of L2 calcium signals in combination with pharmacological and genetic perturbations of these Ka channels, we show that the wild-type Shaker and Shal function is to enhance L2 responses and cell-autonomously sharpen L2 kinetics. Our results reveal a role for Ka channels in determining the signal-processing characteristics of a specific cell type in the visual system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Burak Gür
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, 55128, Mainz, Germany
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen, and the Max Planck Society, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Katja Sporar
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, 55128, Mainz, Germany
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen, and the Max Planck Society, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
- International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Anne Lopez-Behling
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen, and the Max Planck Society, 37077, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Marion Silies
- Institute of Developmental Biology and Neurobiology, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, 55128, Mainz, Germany.
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen a Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen, and the Max Planck Society, 37077, Göttingen, Germany.
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29
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Gruntman E, Romani S, Reiser MB. The computation of directional selectivity in the Drosophila OFF motion pathway. eLife 2019; 8:e50706. [PMID: 31825313 PMCID: PMC6917495 DOI: 10.7554/elife.50706] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Accepted: 11/30/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
In flies, the direction of moving ON and OFF features is computed separately. T4 (ON) and T5 (OFF) are the first neurons in their respective pathways to extract a directionally selective response from their non-selective inputs. Our recent study of T4 found that the integration of offset depolarizing and hyperpolarizing inputs is critical for the generation of directional selectivity. However, T5s lack small-field inhibitory inputs, suggesting they may use a different mechanism. Here we used whole-cell recordings of T5 neurons and found a similar receptive field structure: fast depolarization and persistent, spatially offset hyperpolarization. By assaying pairwise interactions of local stimulation across the receptive field, we found no amplifying responses, only suppressive responses to the non-preferred motion direction. We then evaluated passive, biophysical models and found that a model using direct inhibition, but not the removal of excitation, can accurately predict T5 responses to a range of moving stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eyal Gruntman
- Janelia Research CampusHoward Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Sandro Romani
- Janelia Research CampusHoward Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Michael B Reiser
- Janelia Research CampusHoward Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
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30
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Corthals K, Moore S, Geurten BR. Strategies of locomotion composition. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2019; 36:140-148. [PMID: 31622810 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2019.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2019] [Revised: 09/10/2019] [Accepted: 09/24/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
This review aims to highlight the importance of saccades during locomotion as a strategy to reduce sensory information loss while the subject is moving. Acquiring sensory data from the environment during movement results in a temporal flow of information, as the sensory precept changes with the position of the observer. Accordingly, the movement pattern shapes the sensory flow. Therefore, the requirements of locomotion and sensation have to be balanced in the behaviour of the organism. Insect vision provides deep insight into the interplay between action and perception. Insects can shape their optic flow by reducing their rotational movements to fast and short saccades. This generates prolonged phases of translations which provide depth information. Extensive behavioural and physiological studies on insects show how shaping the optic flow facilitates the coding of motion vision. Indeed the saccadic strategy provides an elegant solution to optimise sensory flow. Complementary studies in other taxa reported similar locomotion strategies emphasising the crucial influence of sensory flow on locomotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristina Corthals
- Lund University, Functional Zoology, Sölvegatan 35, 223 62 Lund, Sweden
| | - Sharlen Moore
- Instituto de Fisiologıa Celular - Neurociencias, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Av. Universidad 3000, Coyoacán, 04510 Mexico City, Mexico; Max Planck Institute of Experimental Medicine, Department of Neurogenetics, Hermann-Rein-Str. 3, 37075 Göttingen, Germany
| | - Bart Rh Geurten
- Georg-August-University Göttingen, Department of Cellular Neuroscience, Julia-Lermontowa-Weg 3, 37077 Göttingen, Germany.
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31
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Molina-Obando S, Vargas-Fique JF, Henning M, Gür B, Schladt TM, Akhtar J, Berger TK, Silies M. ON selectivity in the Drosophila visual system is a multisynaptic process involving both glutamatergic and GABAergic inhibition. eLife 2019; 8:e49373. [PMID: 31535971 PMCID: PMC6845231 DOI: 10.7554/elife.49373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2019] [Accepted: 09/18/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Sensory systems sequentially extract increasingly complex features. ON and OFF pathways, for example, encode increases or decreases of a stimulus from a common input. This ON/OFF pathway split is thought to occur at individual synaptic connections through a sign-inverting synapse in one of the pathways. Here, we show that ON selectivity is a multisynaptic process in the Drosophila visual system. A pharmacogenetics approach demonstrates that both glutamatergic inhibition through GluClα and GABAergic inhibition through Rdl mediate ON responses. Although neurons postsynaptic to the glutamatergic ON pathway input L1 lose all responses in GluClα mutants, they are resistant to a cell-type-specific loss of GluClα. This shows that ON selectivity is distributed across multiple synapses, and raises the possibility that cell-type-specific manipulations might reveal similar strategies in other sensory systems. Thus, sensory coding is more distributed than predicted by simple circuit motifs, allowing for robust neural processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Molina-Obando
- Institute of Developmental Biology and NeurobiologyJohannes Gutenberg-Universität MainzMainzGermany
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen – A Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max-Planck-SocietyGöttingenGermany
- International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of GöttingenGöttingenGermany
| | - Juan Felipe Vargas-Fique
- Institute of Developmental Biology and NeurobiologyJohannes Gutenberg-Universität MainzMainzGermany
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen – A Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max-Planck-SocietyGöttingenGermany
- International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of GöttingenGöttingenGermany
| | - Miriam Henning
- Institute of Developmental Biology and NeurobiologyJohannes Gutenberg-Universität MainzMainzGermany
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen – A Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max-Planck-SocietyGöttingenGermany
| | - Burak Gür
- Institute of Developmental Biology and NeurobiologyJohannes Gutenberg-Universität MainzMainzGermany
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen – A Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max-Planck-SocietyGöttingenGermany
- International Max Planck Research School and Göttingen Graduate School for Neurosciences, Biophysics, and Molecular Biosciences (GGNB) at the University of GöttingenGöttingenGermany
| | - T Moritz Schladt
- Department of Molecular Sensory SystemsCenter of Advanced European Studies and Research (caesar)BonnGermany
| | - Junaid Akhtar
- Institute of Developmental Biology and NeurobiologyJohannes Gutenberg-Universität MainzMainzGermany
| | - Thomas K Berger
- Department of Molecular Sensory SystemsCenter of Advanced European Studies and Research (caesar)BonnGermany
- Institute of Physiology and PathophysiologyPhilipps-Universität MarburgMarburgGermany
| | - Marion Silies
- Institute of Developmental Biology and NeurobiologyJohannes Gutenberg-Universität MainzMainzGermany
- European Neuroscience Institute Göttingen – A Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Göttingen and the Max-Planck-SocietyGöttingenGermany
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32
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Barnhart EL, Wang IE, Wei H, Desplan C, Clandinin TR. Sequential Nonlinear Filtering of Local Motion Cues by Global Motion Circuits. Neuron 2018; 100:229-243.e3. [PMID: 30220510 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2018.08.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2018] [Revised: 07/20/2018] [Accepted: 08/17/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Many animals guide their movements using optic flow, the displacement of stationary objects across the retina caused by self-motion. How do animals selectively synthesize a global motion pattern from its local motion components? To what extent does this feature selectivity rely on circuit mechanisms versus dendritic processing? Here we used in vivo calcium imaging to identify pre- and postsynaptic mechanisms for processing local motion signals in global motion detection circuits in Drosophila. Lobula plate tangential cells (LPTCs) detect global motion by pooling input from local motion detectors, T4/T5 neurons. We show that T4/T5 neurons suppress responses to adjacent local motion signals whereas LPTC dendrites selectively amplify spatiotemporal sequences of local motion signals consistent with preferred global patterns. We propose that sequential nonlinear suppression and amplification operations allow optic flow circuitry to simultaneously prevent saturating responses to local signals while creating selectivity for global motion patterns critical to behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin L Barnhart
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA; Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Irving E Wang
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Huayi Wei
- Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
| | - Claude Desplan
- Department of Biology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA.
| | - Thomas R Clandinin
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
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