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Street JS, Jeffery KJ. The dorsal thalamic lateral geniculate nucleus is required for visual control of head direction cell firing direction in rats. J Physiol 2024. [PMID: 39235958 DOI: 10.1113/jp286868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2024] [Accepted: 08/13/2024] [Indexed: 09/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Head direction (HD) neurons, signalling facing direction, generate a signal that is primarily anchored to the outside world by visual inputs. We investigated the route for visual landmark information into the HD system in rats. There are two candidates: an evolutionarily older, larger subcortical retino-tectal pathway and a more recently evolved, smaller cortical retino-geniculo-striate pathway. We disrupted the cortical pathway by lesioning the dorsal lateral geniculate thalamic nuclei bilaterally, and recorded HD cells in the postsubicular cortex as rats foraged in a visual-cue-controlled enclosure. In lesioned rats we found the expected number of postsubicular HD cells. Although directional tuning curves were broader across a trial, this was attributable to the increased instability of otherwise normal-width tuning curves. Tuning curves were also poorly responsive to polarizing visual landmarks and did not distinguish cues based on their visual pattern. Thus, the retino-geniculo-striate pathway is not crucial for the generation of an underlying, tightly tuned directional signal but does provide the main route for vision-based anchoring of the signal to the outside world, even when visual cues are high in contrast and low in detail. KEY POINTS: Head direction (HD) cells indicate the facing direction of the head, using visual landmarks to distinguish directions. In rats, we investigated whether this visual information is routed through the thalamus to the visual cortex or arrives via the superior colliculus, which is a phylogenetically older and (in rodents) larger pathway. We lesioned the thalamic dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN) in rats and recorded the responsiveness of cortical HD cells to visual cues. We found that cortical HD cells had normal tuning curves, but these were slightly more unstable during a trial. Most notably, HD cells in dLGN-lesioned animals showed little ability to distinguish highly distinct cues and none to distinguish more similar cues. These results suggest that directional processing of visual landmarks in mammals requires the geniculo-cortical pathway, which raises questions about when and how visual directional landmark processing appeared during evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- James S Street
- Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Kate J Jeffery
- School of Psychology & Neuroscience, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
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2
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Clark BJ, LaChance PA, Winter SS, Mehlman ML, Butler W, LaCour A, Taube JS. Comparison of head direction cell firing characteristics across thalamo-parahippocampal circuitry. Hippocampus 2024; 34:168-196. [PMID: 38178693 PMCID: PMC10950528 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.23596] [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: 08/12/2023] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 12/03/2023] [Indexed: 01/06/2024]
Abstract
Head direction (HD) cells, which fire persistently when an animal's head is pointed in a particular direction, are widely thought to underlie an animal's sense of spatial orientation and have been identified in several limbic brain regions. Robust HD cell firing is observed throughout the thalamo-parahippocampal system, although recent studies report that parahippocampal HD cells exhibit distinct firing properties, including conjunctive aspects with other spatial parameters, which suggest they play a specialized role in spatial processing. Few studies, however, have quantified these apparent differences. Here, we performed a comparative assessment of HD cell firing characteristics across the anterior dorsal thalamus (ADN), postsubiculum (PoS), parasubiculum (PaS), medial entorhinal (MEC), and postrhinal (POR) cortices. We report that HD cells with a high degree of directional specificity were observed in all five brain regions, but ADN HD cells display greater sharpness and stability in their preferred directions, and greater anticipation of future headings compared to parahippocampal regions. Additional analysis indicated that POR HD cells were more coarsely modulated by other spatial parameters compared to PoS, PaS, and MEC. Finally, our analyses indicated that the sharpness of HD tuning decreased as a function of laminar position and conjunctive coding within the PoS, PaS, and MEC, with cells in the superficial layers along with conjunctive firing properties showing less robust directional tuning. The results are discussed in relation to theories of functional organization of HD cell tuning in thalamo-parahippocampal circuitry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin J Clark
- Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
| | - Patrick A LaChance
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Shawn S Winter
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Max L Mehlman
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Will Butler
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Ariyana LaCour
- Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA
| | - Jeffrey S Taube
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Center for Cognitive Neuroscience, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
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van der Goes MSH, Voigts J, Newman JP, Toloza EHS, Brown NJ, Murugan P, Harnett MT. Coordinated head direction representations in mouse anterodorsal thalamic nucleus and retrosplenial cortex. eLife 2024; 13:e82952. [PMID: 38470232 PMCID: PMC10932540 DOI: 10.7554/elife.82952] [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: 08/24/2022] [Accepted: 02/23/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024] Open
Abstract
The sense of direction is critical for survival in changing environments and relies on flexibly integrating self-motion signals with external sensory cues. While the anatomical substrates involved in head direction (HD) coding are well known, the mechanisms by which visual information updates HD representations remain poorly understood. Retrosplenial cortex (RSC) plays a key role in forming coherent representations of space in mammals and it encodes a variety of navigational variables, including HD. Here, we use simultaneous two-area tetrode recording to show that RSC HD representation is nearly synchronous with that of the anterodorsal nucleus of thalamus (ADn), the obligatory thalamic relay of HD to cortex, during rotation of a prominent visual cue. Moreover, coordination of HD representations in the two regions is maintained during darkness. We further show that anatomical and functional connectivity are consistent with a strong feedforward drive of HD information from ADn to RSC, with anatomically restricted corticothalamic feedback. Together, our results indicate a concerted global HD reference update across cortex and thalamus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Sophie H van der Goes
- Department of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUnited States
| | - Jakob Voigts
- Department of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUnited States
- Open-Ephys IncAtlantaUnited States
- HHMI Janelia Research CampusAshburnUnited States
| | - Jonathan P Newman
- Open-Ephys IncAtlantaUnited States
- Department of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUnited States
| | - Enrique HS Toloza
- Department of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUnited States
- Department of Physics, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUnited States
- Harvard Medical SchoolBostonUnited States
| | - Norma J Brown
- Department of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUnited States
| | - Pranav Murugan
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUnited States
| | - Mark T Harnett
- Department of Brain & Cognitive Sciences, McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyCambridgeUnited States
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Graham JA, Dumont JR, Winter SS, Brown JE, LaChance PA, Amon CC, Farnes KB, Morris AJ, Streltzov NA, Taube JS. Angular Head Velocity Cells within Brainstem Nuclei Projecting to the Head Direction Circuit. J Neurosci 2023; 43:8403-8424. [PMID: 37871964 PMCID: PMC10711713 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0581-23.2023] [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: 03/25/2023] [Revised: 09/27/2023] [Accepted: 10/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/25/2023] Open
Abstract
The sense of orientation of an animal is derived from the head direction (HD) system found in several limbic structures and depends on an intact vestibular labyrinth. However, how the vestibular system influences the generation and updating of the HD signal remains poorly understood. Anatomical and lesion studies point toward three key brainstem nuclei as key components for generating the HD signal-nucleus prepositus hypoglossi, supragenual nucleus, and dorsal paragigantocellularis reticular nuclei. Collectively, these nuclei are situated between the vestibular nuclei and the dorsal tegmental and lateral mammillary nuclei, which are thought to serve as the origin of the HD signal. To determine the types of information these brain areas convey to the HD network, we recorded neurons from these regions while female rats actively foraged in a cylindrical enclosure or were restrained and rotated passively. During foraging, a large subset of cells in all three nuclei exhibited activity that correlated with the angular head velocity (AHV) of the rat. Two fundamental types of AHV cells were observed; (1) symmetrical AHV cells increased or decreased their firing with increases in AHV regardless of the direction of rotation, and (2) asymmetrical AHV cells responded differentially to clockwise and counterclockwise head rotations. When rats were passively rotated, some AHV cells remained sensitive to AHV, whereas firing was attenuated in other cells. In addition, a large number of AHV cells were modulated by linear head velocity. These results indicate the types of information conveyed from the vestibular nuclei that are responsible for generating the HD signal.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Extracellular recording of brainstem nuclei (nucleus prepositus hypoglossi, supragenual nucleus, and dorsal paragigantocellularis reticular nucleus) that project to the head direction circuit identified different types of AHV cells while rats freely foraged in a cylindrical environment. The firing of many cells was also modulated by linear velocity. When rats were restrained and passively rotated, some cells remained sensitive to AHV, whereas others had attenuated firing. These brainstem nuclei provide critical information about the rotational movement of the head of the rat in the azimuthal plane.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jalina A Graham
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Julie R Dumont
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Shawn S Winter
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Joel E Brown
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Patrick A LaChance
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Carly C Amon
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Kara B Farnes
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Ashlyn J Morris
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Nicholas A Streltzov
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
| | - Jeffrey S Taube
- Department of Psychological Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, Dartmouth, New Hampshire 03755
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Knowles TC, Summerton AG, Whiting JGH, Pearson MJ. Ring Attractors as the Basis of a Biomimetic Navigation System. Biomimetics (Basel) 2023; 8:399. [PMID: 37754150 PMCID: PMC10526409 DOI: 10.3390/biomimetics8050399] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2023] [Revised: 08/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 09/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The ability to navigate effectively in a rich and complex world is crucial for the survival of all animals. Specialist neural structures have evolved that are implicated in facilitating this ability, one such structure being the ring attractor network. In this study, we model a trio of Spiking Neural Network (SNN) ring attractors as part of a bio-inspired navigation system to maintain an internal estimate of planar translation of an artificial agent. This estimate is dynamically calibrated using a memory recall system of landmark-free allotheic multisensory experiences. We demonstrate that the SNN-based ring attractor system can accurately model motion through 2D space by integrating ideothetic velocity information and use recalled allothetic experiences as a positive corrective mechanism. This SNN based navigation system has potential for use in mobile robotics applications where power supply is limited and external sensory information is intermittent or unreliable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas C. Knowles
- Bristol Robotics Laboratory, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK;
| | - Anna G. Summerton
- School of Engineering, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK; (A.G.S.); (J.G.H.W.)
| | - James G. H. Whiting
- School of Engineering, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK; (A.G.S.); (J.G.H.W.)
| | - Martin J. Pearson
- Bristol Robotics Laboratory, University of the West of England, Bristol BS16 1QY, UK;
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6
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Lomi E, Jeffery KJ, Mitchell AS. Convergence of location, direction, and theta in the rat anteroventral thalamic nucleus. iScience 2023; 26:106993. [PMID: 37448560 PMCID: PMC10336163 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.106993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Revised: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 05/25/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The thalamus and cortex are anatomically interconnected, with the thalamus providing integral information for cortical functions. The anteroventral thalamic nucleus (AV) is reciprocally connected to retrosplenial cortex (RSC). Two distinct AV subfields, dorsomedial (AVDM) and ventrolateral (AVVL), project differentially to granular vs. dysgranular RSC, respectively. To probe if functional responses of AV neurons differ, we recorded single neurons and local field potentials from AVDM and AVVL in rats during foraging. We observed place cells (neurons modulated by spatial location) in both AVDM and AVVL. Additionally, we characterized neurons modulated by theta oscillations, heading direction, and a conjunction of these. Place cells and conjunctive Theta-by-Head direction cells were more prevalent in AVVL; more non-conjunctive theta and directional neurons were prevalent in AVDM. These findings add further evidence that there are two thalamocortical circuits connecting AV and RSC, and reveal that the signaling involves place information in addition to direction and theta.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleonora Lomi
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, The Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, OX1 3SR Oxford, UK
| | - Kate J. Jeffery
- School of Psychology & Neuroscience, College of Medical, Veterinary & Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, G12 8QB Glasgow, UK
| | - Anna S. Mitchell
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, The Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, OX1 3SR Oxford, UK
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Keshavarzi S, Velez-Fort M, Margrie TW. Cortical Integration of Vestibular and Visual Cues for Navigation, Visual Processing, and Perception. Annu Rev Neurosci 2023; 46:301-320. [PMID: 37428601 PMCID: PMC7616138 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-neuro-120722-100503] [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] [Indexed: 07/12/2023]
Abstract
Despite increasing evidence of its involvement in several key functions of the cerebral cortex, the vestibular sense rarely enters our consciousness. Indeed, the extent to which these internal signals are incorporated within cortical sensory representation and how they might be relied upon for sensory-driven decision-making, during, for example, spatial navigation, is yet to be understood. Recent novel experimental approaches in rodents have probed both the physiological and behavioral significance of vestibular signals and indicate that their widespread integration with vision improves both the cortical representation and perceptual accuracy of self-motion and orientation. Here, we summarize these recent findings with a focus on cortical circuits involved in visual perception and spatial navigation and highlight the major remaining knowledge gaps. We suggest that vestibulo-visual integration reflects a process of constant updating regarding the status of self-motion, and access to such information by the cortex is used for sensory perception and predictions that may be implemented for rapid, navigation-related decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sepiedeh Keshavarzi
- The Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behavior, University College London, London, United Kingdom;
| | - Mateo Velez-Fort
- The Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behavior, University College London, London, United Kingdom;
| | - Troy W Margrie
- The Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behavior, University College London, London, United Kingdom;
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8
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Graham JA, Dumont JR, Winter SS, Brown JE, LaChance PA, Amon CC, Farnes KB, Morris AJ, Streltzov NA, Taube JS. Angular head velocity cells within brainstem nuclei projecting to the head direction circuit. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.03.29.534808. [PMID: 37034640 PMCID: PMC10081164 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.29.534808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
An animal's perceived sense of orientation depends upon the head direction (HD) system found in several limbic structures and depends upon an intact peripheral vestibular labyrinth. However, how the vestibular system influences the generation, maintenance, and updating of the HD signal remains poorly understood. Anatomical and lesion studies point towards three key brainstem nuclei as being potential critical components in generating the HD signal: nucleus prepositus hypoglossi (NPH), supragenual nucleus (SGN), and dorsal paragigantocellularis reticular nuclei (PGRNd). Collectively, these nuclei are situated between the vestibular nuclei and the dorsal tegmental and lateral mammillary nuclei, which are thought to serve as the origin of the HD signal. To test this hypothesis, extracellular recordings were made in these areas while rats either freely foraged in a cylindrical environment or were restrained and rotated passively. During foraging, a large subset of cells in all three nuclei exhibited activity that correlated with changes in the rat's angular head velocity (AHV). Two fundamental types of AHV cells were observed: 1) symmetrical AHV cells increased or decreased their neural firing with increases in AHV regardless of the direction of rotation; 2) asymmetrical AHV cells responded differentially to clockwise (CW) and counter-clockwise (CCW) head rotations. When rats were passively rotated, some AHV cells remained sensitive to AHV whereas others had attenuated firing. In addition, a large number of AHV cells were modulated by linear head velocity. These results indicate the types of information conveyed in the ascending vestibular pathways that are responsible for generating the HD signal. Significance Statement Extracellular recording of brainstem nuclei (nucleus prepositus hypoglossi, supragenual nucleus, and dorsal paragigantocellularis reticular nucleus) that project to the head direction circuit identified different types of angular head velocity (AHV) cells while rats freely foraged in a cylindrical environment. The firing of many cells was also modulated by linear velocity. When rats were restrained and passively rotated some cells remained sensitive to AHV, whereas others had attenuated firing. These brainstem nuclei provide critical information about the rotational movement of the rat's head in the azimuthal plane.
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9
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Khona M, Fiete IR. Attractor and integrator networks in the brain. Nat Rev Neurosci 2022; 23:744-766. [DOI: 10.1038/s41583-022-00642-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
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10
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Stentiford R, Knowles TC, Pearson MJ. A Spiking Neural Network Model of Rodent Head Direction Calibrated With Landmark Free Learning. Front Neurorobot 2022; 16:867019. [PMID: 35692491 PMCID: PMC9178238 DOI: 10.3389/fnbot.2022.867019] [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: 01/31/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Maintaining a stable estimate of head direction requires both self-motion (idiothetic) information and environmental (allothetic) anchoring. In unfamiliar or dark environments idiothetic drive can maintain a rough estimate of heading but is subject to inaccuracy, visual information is required to stabilize the head direction estimate. When learning to associate visual scenes with head angle, animals do not have access to the 'ground truth' of their head direction, and must use egocentrically derived imprecise head direction estimates. We use both discriminative and generative methods of visual processing to learn these associations without extracting explicit landmarks from a natural visual scene, finding all are sufficiently capable at providing a corrective signal. Further, we present a spiking continuous attractor model of head direction (SNN), which when driven by idiothetic input is subject to drift. We show that head direction predictions made by the chosen model-free visual learning algorithms can correct for drift, even when trained on a small training set of estimated head angles self-generated by the SNN. We validate this model against experimental work by reproducing cue rotation experiments which demonstrate visual control of the head direction signal.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Martin J. Pearson
- Bristol Robotics Laboratory, University of the West England Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
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11
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LaChance PA, Taube JS. Spatial context and the functional role of the postrhinal cortex. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2022; 189:107596. [PMID: 35131453 PMCID: PMC8897231 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2022.107596] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 01/29/2022] [Accepted: 02/01/2022] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
The postrhinal cortex (POR) serves as a key input area to the hippocampal system. It receives highly processed information from the ventral visual stream and other limbic areas including the retrosplenial cortex, parahippocampal areas, and portions of the limbic thalamus. The POR was studied early on by David Bucci and colleagues who first postulated that the POR plays a major role in contextual learning. Here we review a number of approaches and experimental studies that have explored POR's role in contextual processing. We discuss POR lesion studies that monitored deficits in fear conditioning tasks and the effects that these lesions had on processing visual landmark information. We then review the types of spatial correlates encoded by POR cells. A large number of head direction (HD) cells are present, although recent findings suggest that many of them are more accurately characterized as landmark modulated-HD cells as opposed to classic HD cells. A significant number of POR cells are also tuned to egocentric properties of the environment, such as the spatial relationship of the animal to the center of its environment, or the distance between the animal and either the environment's center or its boundaries. We suggest potential frameworks through which these functional cell types might support contextual processing. We then discuss deficits seen in humans who have damage to the homologous parahippocampal cortex, and we finish by reviewing functional imaging studies that found activation of this area while human subjects performed various tasks. A preponderance of evidence suggests that the POR, along with its interactions with retrosplenial cortex, plays a key role in contextual information processing.
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12
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Keshavarzi S, Bracey EF, Faville RA, Campagner D, Tyson AL, Lenzi SC, Branco T, Margrie TW. Multisensory coding of angular head velocity in the retrosplenial cortex. Neuron 2021; 110:532-543.e9. [PMID: 34788632 PMCID: PMC8823706 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.10.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2021] [Revised: 07/29/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
To successfully navigate the environment, animals depend on their ability to continuously track their heading direction and speed. Neurons that encode angular head velocity (AHV) are fundamental to this process, yet the contribution of various motion signals to AHV coding in the cortex remains elusive. By performing chronic single-unit recordings in the retrosplenial cortex (RSP) of the mouse and tracking the activity of individual AHV cells between freely moving and head-restrained conditions, we find that vestibular inputs dominate AHV signaling. Moreover, the addition of visual inputs onto these neurons increases the gain and signal-to-noise ratio of their tuning during active exploration. Psychophysical experiments and neural decoding further reveal that vestibular-visual integration increases the perceptual accuracy of angular self-motion and the fidelity of its representation by RSP ensembles. We conclude that while cortical AHV coding requires vestibular input, where possible, it also uses vision to optimize heading estimation during navigation. Angular head velocity (AHV) coding is widespread in the retrosplenial cortex (RSP) AHV cells maintain their tuning during passive motion and require vestibular input The perception of angular self-motion is improved when visual cues are present AHV coding is similarly improved when both vestibular and visual stimuli are used
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Affiliation(s)
- Sepiedeh Keshavarzi
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom.
| | - Edward F Bracey
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom
| | - Richard A Faville
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom
| | - Dario Campagner
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom; Gatsby Computational Neuroscience Unit, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom
| | - Adam L Tyson
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom
| | - Stephen C Lenzi
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom
| | - Tiago Branco
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom
| | - Troy W Margrie
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London (UCL), 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, United Kingdom.
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13
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Perry BAL, Lomi E, Mitchell AS. Thalamocortical interactions in cognition and disease: the mediodorsal and anterior thalamic nuclei. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 130:162-177. [PMID: 34216651 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.05.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2020] [Revised: 04/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
The mediodorsal thalamus (MD) and anterior thalamic nuclei (ATN) are two adjacent brain nodes that support our ability to make decisions, learn, update information, form and retrieve memories, and find our way around. The MD and PFC work in partnerships to support cognitive processes linked to successful learning and decision-making, while the ATN and extended hippocampal system together coordinate the encoding and retrieval of memories and successful spatial navigation. Yet, while these distinctions may appear to be segregated, both the MD and ATN together support our higher cognitive functions as they regulate and are influenced by interconnected fronto-temporal neural networks and subcortical inputs. Our review focuses on recent studies in animal models and in humans. This evidence is re-shaping our understanding of the importance of MD and ATN cortico-thalamocortical pathways in influencing complex cognitive functions. Given the evidence from clinical settings and neuroscience research labs, the MD and ATN should be considered targets for effective treatments in neuropsychiatric diseases and disorders and neurodegeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brook A L Perry
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Oxford University, The Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, OX1 3SR, United Kingdom
| | - Eleonora Lomi
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Oxford University, The Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, OX1 3SR, United Kingdom
| | - Anna S Mitchell
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Oxford University, The Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, OX1 3SR, United Kingdom.
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14
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A Thalamic Reticular Circuit for Head Direction Cell Tuning and Spatial Navigation. Cell Rep 2021; 31:107747. [PMID: 32521272 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2019] [Revised: 02/13/2020] [Accepted: 05/18/2020] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
As we navigate in space, external landmarks and internal information guide our movement. Circuit and synaptic mechanisms that integrate these cues with head-direction (HD) signals remain, however, unclear. We identify an excitatory synaptic projection from the presubiculum (PreS) and the multisensory-associative retrosplenial cortex (RSC) to the anterodorsal thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN), so far classically implied in gating sensory information flow. In vitro, projections to TRN involve AMPA/NMDA-type glutamate receptors that initiate TRN cell burst discharge and feedforward inhibition of anterior thalamic nuclei. In vivo, chemogenetic anterodorsal TRN inhibition modulates PreS/RSC-induced anterior thalamic firing dynamics, broadens the tuning of thalamic HD cells, and leads to preferential use of allo- over egocentric search strategies in the Morris water maze. TRN-dependent thalamic inhibition is thus an integral part of limbic navigational circuits wherein it coordinates external sensory and internal HD signals to regulate the choice of search strategies during spatial navigation.
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15
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Piguet O, J Chareyron L, Banta Lavenex P, G Amaral D, Lavenex P. Postnatal development of the entorhinal cortex: A stereological study in macaque monkeys. J Comp Neurol 2020; 528:2308-2332. [PMID: 32134112 DOI: 10.1002/cne.24897] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2019] [Revised: 02/26/2020] [Accepted: 02/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The entorhinal cortex is the main gateway for interactions between the neocortex and the hippocampus. Distinct regions, layers, and cells of the hippocampal formation exhibit different profiles of structural and molecular maturation during postnatal development. Here, we provide estimates of neuron number, neuronal soma size, and volume of the different layers and subdivisions of the monkey entorhinal cortex (Eo, Er, Elr, Ei, Elc, Ec, Ecl) during postnatal development. We found different developmental changes in neuronal soma size and volume of distinct layers in different subdivisions, but no changes in neuron number. Layers I and II developed early in most subdivisions. Layer III exhibited early maturation in Ec and Ecl, a two-step/early maturation in Ei and a late maturation in Er. Layers V and VI exhibited an early maturation in Ec and Ecl, a two-step and early maturation in Ei, and a late maturation in Er. Neuronal soma size increased transiently at 6 months of age and decreased thereafter to reach adult size, except in Layer II of Ei, and Layers II and III of Ec and Ecl. These findings support the theory that different hippocampal circuits exhibit distinct developmental profiles, which may subserve the emergence of different hippocampus-dependent memory processes. We discuss how the early maturation of the caudal entorhinal cortex may contribute to path integration and basic allocentric spatial processing, whereas the late maturation of the rostral entorhinal cortex may contribute to the increased precision of allocentric spatial representations and the temporal integration of individual items into episodic memories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olivia Piguet
- Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Development, Institute of Psychology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Loïc J Chareyron
- Department of Medicine, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Pamela Banta Lavenex
- Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Development, Institute of Psychology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.,Faculty of Psychology, Swiss Distance University, Brig, Switzerland
| | - David G Amaral
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, MIND Institute, University of California, Davis, California.,California National Primate Research Center, University of California, Davis, California
| | - Pierre Lavenex
- Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Development, Institute of Psychology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.,Department of Medicine, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
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16
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Angelaki DE, Laurens J. The head direction cell network: attractor dynamics, integration within the navigation system, and three-dimensional properties. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2020; 60:136-144. [PMID: 31877492 PMCID: PMC7002189 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2019.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2019] [Revised: 12/02/2019] [Accepted: 12/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Knowledge of head direction cell function has progressed remarkably in recent years. The predominant theory that they form an attractor has been confirmed by several experiments. Candidate pathways that may convey visual input have been identified. The pre-subicular circuitry that conveys head direction signals to the medial entorhinal cortex, potentially sustaining path integration by grid cells, has been resolved. Although the neuronal substrate of the attractor remains unknown in mammals, a simple head direction network, whose structure is astoundingly similar to neuronal models theorized decades earlier, has been identified in insects. Finally, recent experiments have revealed that these cells do not encode head direction in the horizontal plane only, but also in vertical planes, thus providing a 3D orientation signal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dora E Angelaki
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA; Center for Neural Science and Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, NY, USA
| | - Jean Laurens
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA; Ernst Strüngmann Institute for Neuroscience, Frankfurt, Germany.
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17
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Abstract
Many animals use an internal sense of direction to guide their movements through the world. Neurons selective to head direction are thought to support this directional sense and have been found in a diverse range of species, from insects to primates, highlighting their evolutionary importance. Across species, most head-direction networks share four key properties: a unique representation of direction at all times, persistent activity in the absence of movement, integration of angular velocity to update the representation, and the use of directional cues to correct drift. The dynamics of theorized network structures called ring attractors elegantly account for these properties, but their relationship to brain circuits is unclear. Here, we review experiments in rodents and flies that offer insights into potential neural implementations of ring attractor networks. We suggest that a theory-guided search across model systems for biological mechanisms that enable such dynamics would uncover general principles underlying head-direction circuit function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brad K Hulse
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA; ,
| | - Vivek Jayaraman
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA; ,
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18
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Sheeran WM, Ahmed OJ. The neural circuitry supporting successful spatial navigation despite variable movement speeds. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2019; 108:821-833. [PMID: 31760048 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.11.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2019] [Revised: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 11/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Ants who have successfully navigated the long distance between their foraging spot and their nest dozens of times will drastically overshoot their destination if the size of their legs is doubled by the addition of stilts. This observation reflects a navigational strategy called path integration, a strategy also utilized by mammals. Path integration necessitates that animals keep track of their movement speed and use it to precisely and instantly modify where they think they are and where they want to go. Here we review the neural circuitry that has evolved to integrate speed and space. We start with the rate and temporal codes for speed in the hippocampus and work backwards towards the motor and sensory systems. We highlight the need for experiments designed to differentiate the respective contributions of motor efference copy versus sensory inputs. In particular, we discuss the importance of high-resolution tracking of the latency of speed-encoding as a precise way to disentangle the sensory versus motor computations that enable successful spatial navigation at very different speeds.
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Affiliation(s)
- William M Sheeran
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Department of Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Omar J Ahmed
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Kresge Hearing Research Institute, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA; Michigan Center for Integrative Research in Critical Care, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA.
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19
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Julian JB, Keinath AT, Marchette SA, Epstein RA. The Neurocognitive Basis of Spatial Reorientation. Curr Biol 2019; 28:R1059-R1073. [PMID: 30205055 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2018.04.057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
The ability to recover one's bearings when lost is a skill that is fundamental for spatial navigation. We review the cognitive and neural mechanisms that underlie this ability, with the aim of linking together previously disparate findings from animal behavior, human psychology, electrophysiology, and cognitive neuroscience. Behavioral work suggests that reorientation involves two key abilities: first, the recovery of a spatial reference frame (a cognitive map) that is appropriate to the current environment; and second, the determination of one's heading and location relative to that reference frame. Electrophysiological recording studies, primarily in rodents, have revealed potential correlates of these operations in place, grid, border/boundary, and head-direction cells in the hippocampal formation. Cognitive neuroscience studies, primarily in humans, suggest that the perceptual inputs necessary for these operations are processed by neocortical regions such as the retrosplenial complex, occipital place area and parahippocampal place area, with the retrosplenial complex mediating spatial transformations between the local environment and the recovered spatial reference frame, the occipital place area supporting perception of local boundaries, and the parahippocampal place area processing visual information that is essential for identification of the local spatial context. By combining results across these various literatures, we converge on a unified account of reorientation that bridges the cognitive and neural domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joshua B Julian
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Psychology, 3710 Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Centre for Neural Computation, NTNU, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Alexandra T Keinath
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Psychology, 3710 Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; McGill University, Douglas Mental Health University Institute, 6875 Boulevard LaSalle, Verdun, QC, Canada
| | - Steven A Marchette
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Psychology, 3710 Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Russell A Epstein
- University of Pennsylvania, Department of Psychology, 3710 Hamilton Walk, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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20
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Dillingham CM, Vann SD. Why Isn't the Head Direction System Necessary for Direction? Lessons From the Lateral Mammillary Nuclei. Front Neural Circuits 2019; 13:60. [PMID: 31619970 PMCID: PMC6759954 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2019.00060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2019] [Accepted: 08/26/2019] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Complex spatial representations in the hippocampal formation and related cortical areas require input from the head direction system. However, a recurrent finding is that behavior apparently supported by these spatial representations does not appear to require input from generative head direction regions, i.e., lateral mammillary nuclei (LMN). Spatial tasks that tax direction discrimination should be particularly sensitive to the loss of head direction information, however, this has been repeatedly shown not to be the case. A further dissociation between electrophysiological properties of the head direction system and behavior comes in the form of geometric-based navigation which is impaired following lesions to the head direction system, yet head direction cells are not normally guided by geometric cues. We explore this apparent mismatch between behavioral and electrophysiological studies and highlight future experiments that are needed to generate models that encompass both neurophysiological and behavioral findings.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Seralynne D Vann
- School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
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21
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Dudchenko PA, Wood ER, Smith A. A new perspective on the head direction cell system and spatial behavior. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2019; 105:24-33. [PMID: 31276715 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.06.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2018] [Revised: 05/10/2019] [Accepted: 06/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
The head direction cell system is an interconnected set of brain structures containing neurons whose firing is directionally tuned. The robust representation of allocentric direction by head direction cells suggests that they provide a neural compass for the animal. However, evidence linking head direction cells and spatial behavior has been mixed. Whereas damage to the hippocampus yields profound deficits in a range of spatial tasks, lesions to the head direction cell system often yield milder impairments in spatial behavior. In addition, correlational approaches have shown a correspondence between head direction cells and spatial behavior in some tasks, but not others. These mixed effects may be explained in part by a new view of the head direction cell system arising from recent demonstrations of at least two types of head direction cells: 'traditional' cells, and a second class of 'sensory' cells driven by polarising features of an environment. The recognition of different kinds of head direction cells now allows a nuanced assessment of this system's role in guiding navigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul A Dudchenko
- University of Stirling, Psychology, School of Natural Sciences, Stirling, FK9 4LA, United Kingdom.
| | - Emma R Wood
- University of Edinburgh, Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, Edinburgh Medical School: Biomedical Sciences, 1 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, United Kingdom
| | - Anna Smith
- University of Stirling, Psychology, School of Natural Sciences, Stirling, FK9 4LA, United Kingdom; University of Edinburgh, Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences, Edinburgh Medical School: Biomedical Sciences, 1 George Square, Edinburgh, EH8 9JZ, United Kingdom
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22
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Yoder RM, Valerio S, Crego ACG, Clark BJ, Taube JS. Bilateral postsubiculum lesions impair visual and nonvisual homing performance in rats. Behav Neurosci 2019; 133:496-507. [PMID: 31169384 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Nearly all species rely on visual and nonvisual cues to guide navigation, and which ones they use depend on the environment and task demands. The postsubiculum (PoS) is a crucial brain region for the use of visual cues, but its role in the use of self-movement cues is less clear. We therefore evaluated rats' navigational performance on a food-carrying task in light and in darkness in rats that had bilateral neurotoxic lesions of the PoS. Animals were trained postoperatively to exit a refuge and search for a food pellet, and carry it back to the refuge for consumption. In both light and darkness, control and PoS-lesioned rats made circuitous outward journeys as they searched for food. However, only control rats were able to accurately use visual or self-movement cues to make relatively direct returns to the home refuge. These results suggest the PoS's role in navigation is not limited to the use of visual cues, but also includes the use of self-movement cues. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).
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23
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Savelli F, Knierim JJ. Origin and role of path integration in the cognitive representations of the hippocampus: computational insights into open questions. J Exp Biol 2019; 222:jeb188912. [PMID: 30728236 PMCID: PMC7375830 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.188912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Path integration is a straightforward concept with varied connotations that are important to different disciplines concerned with navigation, such as ethology, cognitive science, robotics and neuroscience. In studying the hippocampal formation, it is fruitful to think of path integration as a computation that transforms a sense of motion into a sense of location, continuously integrated with landmark perception. Here, we review experimental evidence that path integration is intimately involved in fundamental properties of place cells and other spatial cells that are thought to support a cognitive abstraction of space in this brain system. We discuss hypotheses about the anatomical and computational origin of path integration in the well-characterized circuits of the rodent limbic system. We highlight how computational frameworks for map-building in robotics and cognitive science alike suggest an essential role for path integration in the creation of a new map in unfamiliar territory, and how this very role can help us make sense of differences in neurophysiological data from novel versus familiar and small versus large environments. Similar computational principles could be at work when the hippocampus builds certain non-spatial representations, such as time intervals or trajectories defined in a sensory stimulus space.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Savelli
- The Zanvyl Krieger Mind/Brain Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - James J Knierim
- The Zanvyl Krieger Mind/Brain Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
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24
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Rybakken E, Baas N, Dunn B. Decoding of Neural Data Using Cohomological Feature Extraction. Neural Comput 2019; 31:68-93. [DOI: 10.1162/neco_a_01150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
We introduce a novel data-driven approach to discover and decode features in the neural code coming from large population neural recordings with minimal assumptions, using cohomological feature extraction. We apply our approach to neural recordings of mice moving freely in a box, where we find a circular feature. We then observe that the decoded value corresponds well to the head direction of the mouse. Thus, we capture head direction cells and decode the head direction from the neural population activity without having to process the mouse's behavior. Interestingly, the decoded values convey more information about the neural activity than the tracked head direction does, with differences that have some spatial organization. Finally, we note that the residual population activity, after the head direction has been accounted for, retains some low-dimensional structure that is correlated with the speed of the mouse.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik Rybakken
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Nils Baas
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Benjamin Dunn
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, 7491 Trondheim, Norway
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25
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Mehlman ML, Winter SS, Valerio S, Taube JS. Functional and anatomical relationships between the medial precentral cortex, dorsal striatum, and head direction cell circuitry. I. Recording studies. J Neurophysiol 2018; 121:350-370. [PMID: 30427767 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00143.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Head direction (HD) cells fire as a function of the animal's directional heading and provide the animal with a sense of direction. In rodents, these neurons are located primarily within the limbic system, but small populations of HD cells are found in two extralimbic areas: the medial precentral cortex (PrCM) and dorsal striatum (DS). HD cell activity in these structures could be driven by output from the limbic HD circuit or generated intrinsically. We examined these possibilities by recording the activity of PrCM and DS neurons in control rats and in rats with anterodorsal thalamic nucleus (ADN) lesions, a manipulation that disrupts the limbic HD signal. HD cells in the PrCM and DS of control animals displayed characteristics similar to those of limbic HD cells, and these extralimbic HD signals were eliminated in animals with complete ADN lesions, suggesting that the PrCM and DS HD signals are conveyed from the limbic HD circuit. Angular head velocity cells recorded in the PrCM and DS were unaffected by ADN lesions. Next, we determined if the PrCM and DS convey necessary self-motion signals to the limbic HD circuit. Limbic HD cell activity recorded in the ADN remained intact following combined lesions of the PrCM and DS. Collectively, these experiments reveal a unidirectional functional relationship between the limbic HD circuit and the PrCM and DS; the limbic system generates the HD signal and transmits it to the PrCM and DS, but these extralimbic areas do not provide critical input or feedback to limbic HD cells. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Head direction (HD) cells have been extensively studied within the limbic system. The lesion and recording experiments reported here examined two relatively understudied populations of HD cells located outside of the canonical limbic HD circuit in the medial precentral cortex and dorsal striatum. We found that HD cell activity in these two extralimbic areas is driven by output from the limbic HD circuit, revealing that HD cell circuitry functionally extends beyond the limbic system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max L Mehlman
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Shawn S Winter
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Stephane Valerio
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College , Hanover, New Hampshire
| | - Jeffrey S Taube
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College , Hanover, New Hampshire
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Campbell MG, Giocomo LM. Self-motion processing in visual and entorhinal cortices: inputs, integration, and implications for position coding. J Neurophysiol 2018; 120:2091-2106. [PMID: 30089025 PMCID: PMC6230811 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00686.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2017] [Revised: 08/01/2018] [Accepted: 08/02/2018] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The sensory signals generated by self-motion are complex and multimodal, but the ability to integrate these signals into a unified self-motion percept to guide navigation is essential for animal survival. Here, we summarize classic and recent work on self-motion coding in the visual and entorhinal cortices of the rodent brain. We compare motion processing in rodent and primate visual cortices, highlighting the strengths of classic primate work in establishing causal links between neural activity and perception, and discuss the integration of motor and visual signals in rodent visual cortex. We then turn to the medial entorhinal cortex (MEC), where calculations using self-motion to update position estimates are thought to occur. We focus on several key sources of self-motion information to MEC: the medial septum, which provides locomotor speed information; visual cortex, whose input has been increasingly recognized as essential to both position and speed-tuned MEC cells; and the head direction system, which is a major source of directional information for self-motion estimates. These inputs create a large and diverse group of self-motion codes in MEC, and great interest remains in how these self-motion codes might be integrated by MEC grid cells to estimate position. However, which signals are used in these calculations and the mechanisms by which they are integrated remain controversial. We end by proposing future experiments that could further our understanding of the interactions between MEC cells that code for self-motion and position and clarify the relationship between the activity of these cells and spatial perception.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lisa M Giocomo
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University , Stanford, California
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27
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Soman K, Muralidharan V, Chakravarthy VS. A Model of Multisensory Integration and Its Influence on Hippocampal Spatial Cell Responses. IEEE Trans Cogn Dev Syst 2018. [DOI: 10.1109/tcds.2017.2752369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
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28
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Cellular components and circuitry of the presubiculum and its functional role in the head direction system. Cell Tissue Res 2018; 373:541-556. [PMID: 29789927 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-018-2841-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2017] [Accepted: 04/10/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Orientation in space is a fundamental cognitive process relying on brain-wide neuronal circuits. Many neurons in the presubiculum in the parahippocampal region encode head direction and each head direction cell selectively discharges when the animal faces a specific direction. Here, we attempt to link the current knowledge of afferent and efferent connectivity of the presubiculum to the processing of the head direction signal. We describe the cytoarchitecture of the presubicular six-layered cortex and the morphological and electrophysiological intrinsic properties of principal neurons and interneurons. While the presubicular head direction signal depends on synaptic input from thalamus, the intra- and interlaminar information flow in the microcircuit of the presubiculum may contribute to refine directional tuning. The interaction of a specific interneuron type, the Martinotti cells, with the excitatory pyramidal cells may maintain the head direction signal in the presubiculum with attractor-like properties.
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29
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Yoder RM, Chan JHM, Taube JS. Acetylcholine contributes to the integration of self-movement cues in head direction cells. Behav Neurosci 2018; 131:312-24. [PMID: 28714717 DOI: 10.1037/bne0000205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Acetylcholine contributes to accurate performance on some navigational tasks, but details of its contribution to the underlying brain signals are not fully understood. The medial septal area provides widespread cholinergic input to various brain regions, but selective damage to medial septal cholinergic neurons generally has little effect on landmark-based navigation, or the underlying neural representations of location and directional heading in visual environments. In contrast, the loss of medial septal cholinergic neurons disrupts navigation based on path integration, but no studies have tested whether these path integration deficits are associated with disrupted head direction (HD) cell activity. Therefore, we evaluated HD cell responses to visual cue rotations in a familiar arena, and during navigation between familiar and novel arenas, after muscarinic receptor blockade with systemic atropine. Atropine treatment reduced the peak firing rate of HD cells, but failed to significantly affect other HD cell firing properties. Atropine also failed to significantly disrupt the dominant landmark control of the HD signal, even though we used a procedure that challenged this landmark control. In contrast, atropine disrupted HD cell stability during navigation between familiar and novel arenas, where path integration normally maintains a consistent HD cell signal across arenas. These results suggest that acetylcholine contributes to path integration, in part, by facilitating the use of idiothetic cues to maintain a consistent representation of directional heading. (PsycINFO Database Record
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan M Yoder
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College
| | - Jeremy H M Chan
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College
| | - Jeffrey S Taube
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College
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30
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Lozano YR, Page H, Jacob PY, Lomi E, Street J, Jeffery K. Retrosplenial and postsubicular head direction cells compared during visual landmark discrimination. Brain Neurosci Adv 2017; 1:2398212817721859. [PMID: 30246155 PMCID: PMC6124005 DOI: 10.1177/2398212817721859] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2017] [Accepted: 06/28/2017] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Visual landmarks are used by head direction (HD) cells to establish and help update the animal's representation of head direction, for use in orientation and navigation. Two cortical regions that are connected to primary visual areas, postsubiculum (PoS) and retrosplenial cortex (RSC), possess HD cells: we investigated whether they differ in how they process visual landmarks. METHODS We compared PoS and RSC HD cell activity from tetrode-implanted rats exploring an arena in which correct HD orientation required discrimination of two opposing landmarks having high, moderate or low discriminability. RESULTS RSC HD cells had higher firing rates than PoS HD cells and slightly lower modulation by angular head velocity, and anticipated actual head direction by ~48 ms, indicating that RSC spiking leads PoS spiking. Otherwise, we saw no differences in landmark processing, in that HD cells in both regions showed equal responsiveness to and discrimination of the cues, with cells in both regions having unipolar directional tuning curves and showing better discrimination of the highly discriminable cues. There was a small spatial component to the signal in some cells, consistent with their role in interacting with the place cell navigation system, and there was also slight modulation by running speed. Neither region showed theta modulation of HD cell spiking. CONCLUSIONS That the cells can immediately respond to subtle differences in spatial landmarks is consistent with rapid processing of visual snapshots or scenes; similarities in PoS and RSC responding may be due either to similar computations being performed on the visual inputs, or to rapid sharing of information between these regions. More generally, this two-cue HD cell paradigm may be a useful method for testing rapid spontaneous visual discrimination capabilities in other experimental settings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yave Roberto Lozano
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences,
University College London, London, UK
| | - Hector Page
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences,
University College London, London, UK
| | - Pierre-Yves Jacob
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences,
University College London, London, UK
| | - Eleonora Lomi
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences,
University College London, London, UK
| | - James Street
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences,
University College London, London, UK
| | - Kate Jeffery
- Division of Psychology and Language Sciences,
University College London, London, UK
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31
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Activity dependent feedback inhibition may maintain head direction signals in mouse presubiculum. Nat Commun 2017; 8:16032. [PMID: 28726769 PMCID: PMC5524997 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms16032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2016] [Accepted: 05/17/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Orientation in space is represented in specialized brain circuits. Persistent head direction signals are transmitted from anterior thalamus to the presubiculum, but the identity of the presubicular target neurons, their connectivity and function in local microcircuits are unknown. Here, we examine how thalamic afferents recruit presubicular principal neurons and Martinotti interneurons, and the ensuing synaptic interactions between these cells. Pyramidal neuron activation of Martinotti cells in superficial layers is strongly facilitating such that high-frequency head directional stimulation efficiently unmutes synaptic excitation. Martinotti-cell feedback plays a dual role: precisely timed spikes may not inhibit the firing of in-tune head direction cells, while exerting lateral inhibition. Autonomous attractor dynamics emerge from a modelled network implementing wiring motifs and timing sensitive synaptic interactions in the pyramidal—Martinotti-cell feedback loop. This inhibitory microcircuit is therefore tuned to refine and maintain head direction information in the presubiculum. Head direction is encoded by cells in the presubiculum, but the role of local circuitry in head direction encoding remains unknown. Here the authors demonstrate how a specific inhibitory neuron type, the Martinotti cell, together with excitatory pyramidal cells supports head direction signals.
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Environmental Anchoring of Head Direction in a Computational Model of Retrosplenial Cortex. J Neurosci 2017; 36:11601-11618. [PMID: 27852770 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0516-16.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2016] [Revised: 07/30/2016] [Accepted: 08/04/2016] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Allocentric (world-centered) spatial codes driven by path integration accumulate error unless reset by environmental sensory inputs that are necessarily egocentric (body-centered). Previous models of the head direction system avoided the necessary transformation between egocentric and allocentric reference frames by placing visual cues at infinity. Here we present a model of head direction coding that copes with exclusively proximal cues by making use of a conjunctive representation of head direction and location in retrosplenial cortex. Egocentric landmark bearing of proximal cues, which changes with location, is mapped onto this retrosplenial representation. The model avoids distortions due to parallax, which occur in simple models when a single proximal cue card is used, and can also accommodate multiple cues, suggesting how it can generalize to arbitrary sensory environments. It provides a functional account of the anatomical distribution of head direction cells along Papez' circuit, of place-by-direction coding in retrosplenial cortex, the anatomical connection from the anterior thalamic nuclei to retrosplenial cortex, and the involvement of retrosplenial cortex in navigation. In addition to parallax correction, the same mechanism allows for continuity of head direction coding between connected environments, and shows how a head direction representation can be stabilized by a single within arena cue. We also make predictions for drift during exploration of a new environment, the effects of hippocampal lesions on retrosplenial cells, and on head direction coding in differently shaped environments. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The activity of head direction cells signals the direction of an animal's head relative to landmarks in the world. Although driven by internal estimates of head movements, head direction cells must be kept aligned to the external world by sensory inputs, which arrive in the reference frame of the sensory receptors. We present a computational model, which proposes that sensory inputs are correctly associated to head directions by virtue of a conjunctive representation of place and head directions in the retrosplenial cortex. The model allows for a stable head direction signal, even when the sensory input from nearby cues changes dramatically whenever the animal moves to a different location, and enables stable representations of head direction across connected environments.
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Laminar Localization and Projection-Specific Properties of Presubicular Neurons Targeting the Lateral Mammillary Nucleus, Thalamus, or Medial Entorhinal Cortex. eNeuro 2017; 4:eN-NWR-0370-16. [PMID: 28508034 PMCID: PMC5430300 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0370-16.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2016] [Revised: 04/19/2017] [Accepted: 04/24/2017] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The presubiculum (PrS) is part of an interconnected network of distributed brain regions where individual neurons signal the animals heading direction. PrS sends axons to medial entorhinal cortex (MEC), it is reciprocally connected with anterior thalamic nuclei (ATNs), and it sends feedback projections to the lateral mammillary nucleus (LMN), involved in generating the head direction signal. The intrinsic properties of projecting neurons will influence the pathway-specific transmission of activity. Here, we used projection-specific labeling of presubicular neurons to identify MEC-, LMN-, and ATN-projecting neurons in mice. MEC-projecting neurons located in superficial layers II/III were mostly regular spiking pyramidal neurons, and we also identified a Martinotti-type GABAergic neuron. The cell bodies of LMN-projecting neurons were located in a well-delimited area in the middle portion of the PrS, which corresponds to layer IV. The physiology of LMN projecting, pyramidal neurons stood out with a tendency to fire in bursts of action potentials (APs) with rapid onset. These properties may be uniquely adapted to reliably transmit visual landmark information with short latency to upstream LMN. Neurons projecting to ATN were located in layers V/VI, and they were mostly regular spiking pyramidal neurons. Unsupervised cluster analysis of intrinsic properties suggested distinct physiological features for the different categories of projection neurons, with some similarities between MEC- and ATN-projecting neurons. Projection-specific subpopulations may serve separate functions in the PrS and may be engaged differently in transmitting head direction related information.
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34
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Harvey RE, Thompson SM, Sanchez LM, Yoder RM, Clark BJ. Post-training Inactivation of the Anterior Thalamic Nuclei Impairs Spatial Performance on the Radial Arm Maze. Front Neurosci 2017; 11:94. [PMID: 28321178 PMCID: PMC5337504 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2017.00094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2016] [Accepted: 02/13/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
The limbic thalamus, specifically the anterior thalamic nuclei (ATN), contains brain signals including that of head direction cells, which fire as a function of an animal's directional orientation in an environment. Recent work has suggested that this directional orientation information stemming from the ATN contributes to the generation of hippocampal and parahippocampal spatial representations, and may contribute to the establishment of unique spatial representations in radially oriented tasks such as the radial arm maze. While previous studies have shown that ATN lesions can impair spatial working memory performance in the radial maze, little work has been done to investigate spatial reference memory in a discrimination task variant. Further, while previous studies have shown that ATN lesions can impair performance in the radial maze, these studies produced the ATN lesions prior to training. It is therefore unclear whether the ATN lesions disrupted acquisition or retention of radial maze performance. Here, we tested the role of ATN signaling in a previously learned spatial discrimination task on a radial arm maze. Rats were first trained to asymptotic levels in a task in which two maze arms were consistently baited across training. After 24 h, animals received muscimol inactivation of the ATN before a 4 trial probe test. We report impairments in post-inactivation trials, suggesting that signals from the ATN modulate the use of a previously acquired spatial discrimination in the radial-arm maze. The results are discussed in relation to the thalamo-cortical limbic circuits involved in spatial information processing, with an emphasis on the head direction signal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan E Harvey
- Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico Albuquerque, NM, USA
| | | | | | - Ryan M Yoder
- Department of Psychology, Indiana-Purdue University Fort Wayne, IN, USA
| | - Benjamin J Clark
- Department of Psychology, University of New Mexico Albuquerque, NM, USA
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35
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Peck JR, Taube JS. The postrhinal cortex is not necessary for landmark control in rat head direction cells. Hippocampus 2017; 27:156-168. [PMID: 27860052 PMCID: PMC5235971 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.22680] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2016] [Revised: 11/02/2016] [Accepted: 11/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The rodent postrhinal cortex (POR), homologous to primate areas TH/TF and the human 'parahippocampal place area', has been implicated in processing visual landmark and contextual information about the environment. Head direction (HD) cells are neurons that encode allocentric head direction, independent of the animal's location or behavior, and are influenced by manipulations of visual landmarks. The present study determined whether the POR plays a role in processing environmental information within the HD circuit. Experiment 1 tested the role of the POR in processing visual landmark cues in the HD system during manipulation of a visual cue. HD cells from POR lesioned animals had similar firing properties, shifted their preferred firing direction following rotation of a salient visual cue, and in darkness had preferred firing directions that drifted at the same rate as controls. Experiment 2 tested the PORs involvement in contextual fear conditioning, where the animal learns to associate a shock with both a tone and a context in which the shock was given. In agreement with previous studies, POR lesioned animals were able to learn the tone-shock pairing, but displayed less freezing relative to controls when reintroduced into the environment previously paired with a shock. Therefore, HD cells from POR lesioned animals, with demonstrated impairments in contextual fear conditioning, were able to use a visual landmark to control their preferred direction. Thus, despite its importance in processing visual landmark information in primates, the POR in rats does not appear to play a pivotal role in controlling visual landmark information in the HD system. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- James R Peck
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, 6207 Moore Hall, Hanover, New Hampshire, 03755
| | - Jeffery S Taube
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Dartmouth College, 6207 Moore Hall, Hanover, New Hampshire, 03755
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36
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Evans T, Bicanski A, Bush D, Burgess N. How environment and self-motion combine in neural representations of space. J Physiol 2016; 594:6535-6546. [PMID: 26607203 DOI: 10.1113/jp270666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2015] [Accepted: 11/13/2015] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Estimates of location or orientation can be constructed solely from sensory information representing environmental cues. In unfamiliar or sensory-poor environments, these estimates can also be maintained and updated by integrating self-motion information. However, the accumulation of error dictates that updated representations of heading direction and location become progressively less reliable over time, and must be corrected by environmental sensory inputs when available. Anatomical, electrophysiological and behavioural evidence indicates that angular and translational path integration contributes to the firing of head direction cells and grid cells. We discuss how sensory inputs may be combined with self-motion information in the firing patterns of these cells. For head direction cells, direct projections from egocentric sensory representations of distal cues can help to correct cumulative errors. Grid cells may benefit from sensory inputs via boundary vector cells and place cells. However, the allocentric code of boundary vector cells and place cells requires consistent head-direction information in order to translate the sensory signal of egocentric boundary distance into allocentric boundary vector cell firing, suggesting that the different spatial representations found in and around the hippocampal formation are interdependent. We conclude that, rather than representing pure path integration, the firing of head-direction cells and grid cells reflects the interface between self-motion and environmental sensory information. Together with place cells and boundary vector cells they can support a coherent unitary representation of space based on both environmental sensory inputs and path integration signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Talfan Evans
- UCL Centre for Mathematics and Physics in the Life Sciences and Experimental Biology, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK.,UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, 17 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK.,UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK.,UCL Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Andrej Bicanski
- UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, 17 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK.,UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Daniel Bush
- UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, 17 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK.,UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Neil Burgess
- UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, 17 Queen Square, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK.,UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
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Dillingham CM, Holmes JD, Wright NF, Erichsen JT, Aggleton JP, Vann SD. Calcium-binding protein immunoreactivity in Gudden's tegmental nuclei and the hippocampal formation: differential co-localization in neurons projecting to the mammillary bodies. Front Neuroanat 2015; 9:103. [PMID: 26300741 PMCID: PMC4523888 DOI: 10.3389/fnana.2015.00103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2015] [Accepted: 07/13/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The principal projections to the mammillary bodies arise from just two sites, Gudden’s tegmental nuclei (dorsal and ventral nuclei) and the hippocampal formation (subiculum and pre/postsubiculum). The present study sought to compare the neurochemical properties of these mammillary body inputs in the rat, with a focus on calcium-binding proteins. Neuronal calretinin (CR) immunoreactivity was sparse in Gudden’s tegmental nuclei and showed no co-localization with neurons projecting to the mammillary bodies. In contrast, many of the ventral tegmental nucleus of Gudden cell that project to the mammillary bodies were parvalbumin (PV)-positive whereas a smaller number of mammillary inputs stained for calbindin (CB). Only a few mammillary body projection cells in the dorsal tegmental nucleus of Gudden co-localized with PV and none co-localized with CB. A very different pattern was found in the hippocampal formation. Here, a large proportion of postsubiculum cells that project to the mammillary bodies co-localized with CR, but not CB or PV. While many neurons in the dorsal and ventral subiculum projected to the mammillary bodies, these cells did not co-localize with the immunofluorescence of any of the three tested proteins. These findings highlight marked differences between hippocampal and tegmental inputs to the rat mammillary bodies as well as differences between the medial and lateral mammillary systems. These findings also indicate some conserved neurochemical properties in Gudden’s tegmental nuclei across rodents and primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher M Dillingham
- Behavioural Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University Cardiff, UK ; Visual Neuroscience and Molecular Biology, School of Optometry and Vision Sciences, Cardiff University Cardiff, UK
| | - Joshua D Holmes
- Behavioural Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University Cardiff, UK
| | - Nicholas F Wright
- Behavioural Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University Cardiff, UK
| | - Jonathan T Erichsen
- Visual Neuroscience and Molecular Biology, School of Optometry and Vision Sciences, Cardiff University Cardiff, UK
| | - John P Aggleton
- Behavioural Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University Cardiff, UK
| | - Seralynne D Vann
- Behavioural Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University Cardiff, UK
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Abstract
In this issue of Neuron, Hardcastle et al. (2015) show that the spatial firing patterns of grid cells accumulate error, drifting coherently, until reset by encounters with environmental boundaries. These results reveal important aspects of the neural dynamics of self-localization from self-motion and environmental information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robin Hayman
- UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, London WC1N 3AR, UK; UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Neil Burgess
- UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, London WC1N 3AR, UK; UCL Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London WC1N 3BG, UK.
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39
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Dumont JR, Taube JS. The neural correlates of navigation beyond the hippocampus. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2015; 219:83-102. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2015.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
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