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Fitzpatrick MJ, Krizan J, Hsiang JC, Shen N, Kerschensteiner D. A pupillary contrast response in mice and humans: Neural mechanisms and visual functions. Neuron 2024; 112:2404-2422.e9. [PMID: 38697114 PMCID: PMC11257825 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.04.012] [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: 04/03/2023] [Revised: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/04/2024]
Abstract
In the pupillary light response (PLR), increases in ambient light constrict the pupil to dampen increases in retinal illuminance. Here, we report that the pupillary reflex arc implements a second input-output transformation; it senses temporal contrast to enhance spatial contrast in the retinal image and increase visual acuity. The pupillary contrast response (PCoR) is driven by rod photoreceptors via type 6 bipolar cells and M1 ganglion cells. Temporal contrast is transformed into sustained pupil constriction by the M1's conversion of excitatory input into spike output. Computational modeling explains how the PCoR shapes retinal images. Pupil constriction improves acuity in gaze stabilization and predation in mice. Humans exhibit a PCoR with similar tuning properties to mice, which interacts with eye movements to optimize the statistics of the visual input for retinal encoding. Thus, we uncover a conserved component of active vision, its cell-type-specific pathway, computational mechanisms, and optical and behavioral significance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Fitzpatrick
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Medical Scientist Training Program, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Jenna Krizan
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Jen-Chun Hsiang
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Ning Shen
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Daniel Kerschensteiner
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
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2
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Tariq MF, Sterrett SC, Moore S, Lane L, Perkel DJ, Gire DH. Dynamics of odor-source localization: Insights from real-time odor plume recordings and head-motion tracking in freely moving mice. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.11.10.566539. [PMID: 38014041 PMCID: PMC10680624 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.10.566539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
Animals navigating turbulent odor plumes exhibit a rich variety of behaviors, and employ efficient strategies to locate odor sources. A growing body of literature has started to probe this complex task of localizing airborne odor sources in walking mammals to further our understanding of neural encoding and decoding of naturalistic sensory stimuli. However, correlating the intermittent olfactory information with behavior has remained a long-standing challenge due to the stochastic nature of the odor stimulus. We recently reported a method to record real-time olfactory information available to freely moving mice during odor-guided navigation, hence overcoming that challenge. Here we combine our odor-recording method with head-motion tracking to establish correlations between plume encounters and head movements. We show that mice exhibit robust head-pitch motions in the 5-14Hz range during an odor-guided navigation task, and that these head motions are modulated by plume encounters. Furthermore, mice reduce their angles with respect to the source upon plume contact. Head motions may thus be an important part of the sensorimotor behavioral repertoire during naturalistic odor-source localization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad F. Tariq
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Scott C. Sterrett
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Sidney Moore
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Lane Lane
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Psychology, Seattle University, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - David J. Perkel
- Departments of Biology & Otolaryngology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - David H. Gire
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
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3
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Takahata T. Development of ocular dominance columns across rodents and other species: revisiting the concept of critical period plasticity. Front Neural Circuits 2024; 18:1402700. [PMID: 39036421 PMCID: PMC11258045 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2024.1402700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2024] [Accepted: 06/20/2024] [Indexed: 07/23/2024] Open
Abstract
The existence of cortical columns, regarded as computational units underlying both lower and higher-order information processing, has long been associated with highly evolved brains, and previous studies suggested their absence in rodents. However, recent discoveries have unveiled the presence of ocular dominance columns (ODCs) in the primary visual cortex (V1) of Long-Evans rats. These domains exhibit continuity from layer 2 through layer 6, confirming their identity as genuine ODCs. Notably, ODCs are also observed in Brown Norway rats, a strain closely related to wild rats, suggesting the physiological relevance of ODCs in natural survival contexts, although they are lacking in albino rats. This discovery has enabled researchers to explore the development and plasticity of cortical columns using a multidisciplinary approach, leveraging studies involving hundreds of individuals-an endeavor challenging in carnivore and primate species. Notably, developmental trajectories differ depending on the aspect under examination: while the distribution of geniculo-cortical afferent terminals indicates matured ODCs even before eye-opening, consistent with prevailing theories in carnivore/primate studies, examination of cortical neuron spiking activities reveals immature ODCs until postnatal day 35, suggesting delayed maturation of functional synapses which is dependent on visual experience. This developmental gap might be recognized as 'critical period' for ocular dominance plasticity in previous studies. In this article, I summarize cross-species differences in ODCs and geniculo-cortical network, followed by a discussion on the development, plasticity, and evolutionary significance of rat ODCs. I discuss classical and recent studies on critical period plasticity in the venue where critical period plasticity might be a component of experience-dependent development. Consequently, this series of studies prompts a paradigm shift in our understanding of species conservation of cortical columns and the nature of plasticity during the classical critical period.
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González-Rueda A, Jensen K, Noormandipour M, de Malmazet D, Wilson J, Ciabatti E, Kim J, Williams E, Poort J, Hennequin G, Tripodi M. Kinetic features dictate sensorimotor alignment in the superior colliculus. Nature 2024; 631:378-385. [PMID: 38961292 PMCID: PMC11236723 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-024-07619-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/28/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
The execution of goal-oriented behaviours requires a spatially coherent alignment between sensory and motor maps. The current model for sensorimotor transformation in the superior colliculus relies on the topographic mapping of static spatial receptive fields onto movement endpoints1-6. Here, to experimentally assess the validity of this canonical static model of alignment, we dissected the visuo-motor network in the superior colliculus and performed in vivo intracellular and extracellular recordings across layers, in restrained and unrestrained conditions, to assess both the motor and the visual tuning of individual motor and premotor neurons. We found that collicular motor units have poorly defined visual static spatial receptive fields and respond instead to kinetic visual features, revealing the existence of a direct alignment in vectorial space between sensory and movement vectors, rather than between spatial receptive fields and movement endpoints as canonically hypothesized. We show that a neural network built according to these kinetic alignment principles is ideally placed to sustain ethological behaviours such as the rapid interception of moving and static targets. These findings reveal a novel dimension of the sensorimotor alignment process. By extending the alignment from the static to the kinetic domain this work provides a novel conceptual framework for understanding the nature of sensorimotor convergence and its relevance in guiding goal-directed behaviours.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana González-Rueda
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK.
- St Edmund's College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Jisoo Kim
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Jasper Poort
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Guillaume Hennequin
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
- Department of Engineering, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
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5
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Tzanou A, Theodorou E, Mantas I, Dalezios Y. Excitatory Projections of Wide Field Collicular Neurons to the Nucleus of the Optic Tract in the Rat. J Comp Neurol 2024; 532:e25651. [PMID: 38961597 DOI: 10.1002/cne.25651] [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: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 05/20/2024] [Accepted: 06/07/2024] [Indexed: 07/05/2024]
Abstract
The superficial layers of the mammalian superior colliculus (SC) contain neurons that are generally responsive to visual stimuli but can differ considerably in morphology and response properties. To elucidate the structure and function of these neurons, we combined extracellular recording and juxtacellular labeling, detailed anatomical reconstruction, and ultrastructural analysis of the synaptic contacts of labeled neurons, using transmission electron microscopy. Our labeled neurons project to different brainstem nuclei. Of particular importance are neurons that fit the morphological criteria of the wide field (WF) neurons and whose dendrites are horizontally oriented. They display a rather characteristic axonal projection pattern to the nucleus of optic tract (NOT); thus, we call them superior collicular WF projecting to the NOT (SCWFNOT) neurons. We corroborated the morphological characterization of this neuronal type as a distinct neuronal class with the help of unsupervised hierarchical cluster analysis. Our ultrastructural data demonstrate that SCWFNOT neurons establish excitatory connections with their targets in the NOT. Although, in rodents, the literature about the WF neurons has focused on their extensive projection to the lateral posterior nucleus of the thalamus, as a conduit for information to reach the visual association areas of the cortex, our data suggest that this subclass of WF neurons may participate in the optokinetic nystagmus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Athanasia Tzanou
- School of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece
- Institute of Applied and Computational Mathematics (IACM), Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH), Heraklion, Greece
| | - Eirini Theodorou
- School of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece
- Institute of Applied and Computational Mathematics (IACM), Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH), Heraklion, Greece
| | - Ioannis Mantas
- School of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece
| | - Yannis Dalezios
- School of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece
- Institute of Applied and Computational Mathematics (IACM), Foundation for Research and Technology-Hellas (FORTH), Heraklion, Greece
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Skyberg RJ, Niell CM. Natural visual behavior and active sensing in the mouse. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2024; 86:102882. [PMID: 38704868 PMCID: PMC11254345 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2024.102882] [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: 10/28/2023] [Revised: 04/05/2024] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/07/2024]
Abstract
In the natural world, animals use vision for a wide variety of behaviors not reflected in most laboratory paradigms. Although mice have low-acuity vision, they use their vision for many natural behaviors, including predator avoidance, prey capture, and navigation. They also perform active sensing, moving their head and eyes to achieve behavioral goals and acquire visual information. These aspects of natural vision result in visual inputs and corresponding behavioral outputs that are outside the range of conventional vision studies but are essential aspects of visual function. Here, we review recent studies in mice that have tapped into natural behavior and active sensing to reveal the computational logic of neural circuits for vision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rolf J Skyberg
- Department of Biology and Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene OR 97403, USA. https://twitter.com/SkybergRolf
| | - Cristopher M Niell
- Department of Biology and Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene OR 97403, USA.
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7
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Oesch LT, Ryan MB, Churchland AK. From innate to instructed: A new look at perceptual decision-making. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2024; 86:102871. [PMID: 38569230 PMCID: PMC11162954 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2024.102871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Revised: 03/07/2024] [Accepted: 03/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/05/2024]
Abstract
Understanding how subjects perceive sensory stimuli in their environment and use this information to guide appropriate actions is a major challenge in neuroscience. To study perceptual decision-making in animals, researchers use tasks that either probe spontaneous responses to stimuli (often described as "naturalistic") or train animals to associate stimuli with experimenter-defined responses. Spontaneous decisions rely on animals' pre-existing knowledge, while trained tasks offer greater versatility, albeit often at the cost of extensive training. Here, we review emerging approaches to investigate perceptual decision-making using both spontaneous and trained behaviors, highlighting their strengths and limitations. Additionally, we propose how trained decision-making tasks could be improved to achieve faster learning and a more generalizable understanding of task rules.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas T Oesch
- Department of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, United States
| | - Michael B Ryan
- Department of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, United States. https://twitter.com/NeuroMikeRyan
| | - Anne K Churchland
- Department of Neurobiology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, United States.
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8
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Ambrad Giovannetti E, Rancz E. Behind mouse eyes: The function and control of eye movements in mice. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 161:105671. [PMID: 38604571 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105671] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2023] [Revised: 03/12/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/13/2024]
Abstract
The mouse visual system has become the most popular model to study the cellular and circuit mechanisms of sensory processing. However, the importance of eye movements only started to be appreciated recently. Eye movements provide a basis for predictive sensing and deliver insights into various brain functions and dysfunctions. A plethora of knowledge on the central control of eye movements and their role in perception and behaviour arose from work on primates. However, an overview of various eye movements in mice and a comparison to primates is missing. Here, we review the eye movement types described to date in mice and compare them to those observed in primates. We discuss the central neuronal mechanisms for their generation and control. Furthermore, we review the mounting literature on eye movements in mice during head-fixed and freely moving behaviours. Finally, we highlight gaps in our understanding and suggest future directions for research.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ede Rancz
- INMED, INSERM, Aix-Marseille University, Marseille, France.
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9
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Singh VP, Li J, Mitchell J, Miller C. Active vision in freely moving marmosets using head-mounted eye tracking. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.11.593707. [PMID: 38766147 PMCID: PMC11100783 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.11.593707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
Our understanding of how vision functions as primates actively navigate the real-world is remarkably sparse. As most data have been limited to chaired and typically head-restrained animals, the synergistic interactions of different motor actions/plans inherent to active sensing - e.g. eyes, head, posture, movement, etc. - on visual perception are largely unknown. To address this considerable gap in knowledge, we developed an innovative wireless head-mounted eye tracking system called CEREBRO for small mammals, such as marmoset monkeys. Our system performs Chair-free Eye-Recording using Backpack mounted micROcontrollers. Because eye illumination and environment lighting change continuously in natural contexts, we developed a segmentation artificial neural network to perform robust pupil tracking in these conditions. Leveraging this innovative system to investigate active vision, we demonstrate that although freely-moving marmosets exhibit frequent compensatory eye movements equivalent to other primates, including humans, the predictability of the visual system is enhanced when animals are freely-moving relative to when they are head-fixed. Moreover, despite increases in eye/head-motion during locomotion, gaze stabilization actually improved over periods when the monkeys were stationary. Rather than impair vision, the dynamics of gaze stabilization in freely-moving primates has been optimized over evolution to enable active sensing during natural exploration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vikram Pal Singh
- Cortical Systems & Behavior Lab, University of California San Diego
| | - Jingwen Li
- Cortical Systems & Behavior Lab, University of California San Diego
| | - Jude Mitchell
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Science, University of Rochester
| | - Cory Miller
- Cortical Systems & Behavior Lab, University of California San Diego
- Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California San Diego
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10
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Magrou L, Joyce MKP, Froudist-Walsh S, Datta D, Wang XJ, Martinez-Trujillo J, Arnsten AFT. The meso-connectomes of mouse, marmoset, and macaque: network organization and the emergence of higher cognition. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhae174. [PMID: 38771244 PMCID: PMC11107384 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae174] [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: 01/31/2024] [Revised: 03/29/2024] [Accepted: 04/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024] Open
Abstract
The recent publications of the inter-areal connectomes for mouse, marmoset, and macaque cortex have allowed deeper comparisons across rodent vs. primate cortical organization. In general, these show that the mouse has very widespread, "all-to-all" inter-areal connectivity (i.e. a "highly dense" connectome in a graph theoretical framework), while primates have a more modular organization. In this review, we highlight the relevance of these differences to function, including the example of primary visual cortex (V1) which, in the mouse, is interconnected with all other areas, therefore including other primary sensory and frontal areas. We argue that this dense inter-areal connectivity benefits multimodal associations, at the cost of reduced functional segregation. Conversely, primates have expanded cortices with a modular connectivity structure, where V1 is almost exclusively interconnected with other visual cortices, themselves organized in relatively segregated streams, and hierarchically higher cortical areas such as prefrontal cortex provide top-down regulation for specifying precise information for working memory storage and manipulation. Increased complexity in cytoarchitecture, connectivity, dendritic spine density, and receptor expression additionally reveal a sharper hierarchical organization in primate cortex. Together, we argue that these primate specializations permit separable deconstruction and selective reconstruction of representations, which is essential to higher cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loïc Magrou
- Department of Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, United States
| | - Mary Kate P Joyce
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, United States
| | - Sean Froudist-Walsh
- School of Engineering Mathematics and Technology, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1QU, United Kingdom
| | - Dibyadeep Datta
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, United States
| | - Xiao-Jing Wang
- Department of Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, United States
| | - Julio Martinez-Trujillo
- Departments of Physiology and Pharmacology, and Psychiatry, Schulich School of Medicine and Dentistry, Western University, London, ON, N6A 3K7, Canada
| | - Amy F T Arnsten
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06510, United States
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Weiler S, Rahmati V, Isstas M, Wutke J, Stark AW, Franke C, Graf J, Geis C, Witte OW, Hübener M, Bolz J, Margrie TW, Holthoff K, Teichert M. A primary sensory cortical interareal feedforward inhibitory circuit for tacto-visual integration. Nat Commun 2024; 15:3081. [PMID: 38594279 PMCID: PMC11003985 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47459-2] [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: 11/16/2022] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/11/2024] Open
Abstract
Tactile sensation and vision are often both utilized for the exploration of objects that are within reach though it is not known whether or how these two distinct sensory systems combine such information. Here in mice, we used a combination of stereo photogrammetry for 3D reconstruction of the whisker array, brain-wide anatomical tracing and functional connectivity analysis to explore the possibility of tacto-visual convergence in sensory space and within the circuitry of the primary visual cortex (VISp). Strikingly, we find that stimulation of the contralateral whisker array suppresses visually evoked activity in a tacto-visual sub-region of VISp whose visual space representation closely overlaps with the whisker search space. This suppression is mediated by local fast-spiking interneurons that receive a direct cortico-cortical input predominantly from layer 6 neurons located in the posterior primary somatosensory barrel cortex (SSp-bfd). These data demonstrate functional convergence within and between two primary sensory cortical areas for multisensory object detection and recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Weiler
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neuronal Circuits and Behaviour, University College London, 25 Howland Street, London, W1T 4JG, UK
| | - Vahid Rahmati
- Jena University Hospital, Department of Neurology, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany
| | - Marcel Isstas
- Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute of General Zoology and Animal Physiology, Erbertstraße 1, 07743, Jena, Germany
| | - Johann Wutke
- Jena University Hospital, Department of Neurology, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany
| | - Andreas Walter Stark
- Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute of Applied Optics and Biophysics, Fröbelstieg 1, 07743, Jena, Germany
| | - Christian Franke
- Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute of Applied Optics and Biophysics, Fröbelstieg 1, 07743, Jena, Germany
- Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena Center for Soft Matter, Philosophenweg 7, 07743, Jena, Germany
- Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Abbe Center of Photonics, Albert-Einstein-Straße 6, 07745, Jena, Germany
| | - Jürgen Graf
- Jena University Hospital, Department of Neurology, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany
| | - Christian Geis
- Jena University Hospital, Department of Neurology, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany
| | - Otto W Witte
- Jena University Hospital, Department of Neurology, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany
| | - Mark Hübener
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Am Klopferspitz 18, 82152, Martinsried, Germany
| | - Jürgen Bolz
- Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute of General Zoology and Animal Physiology, Erbertstraße 1, 07743, Jena, Germany
| | - Troy W Margrie
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neuronal Circuits and Behaviour, University College London, 25 Howland Street, London, W1T 4JG, UK
| | - Knut Holthoff
- Jena University Hospital, Department of Neurology, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany
| | - Manuel Teichert
- Jena University Hospital, Department of Neurology, Am Klinikum 1, 07747, Jena, Germany.
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12
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Su J, Byer L, Liang Y, Fox MA. Distribution, development, and identity of retinal ganglion cells labeled in the Sert-Cre reporter mouse. J Comp Neurol 2024; 532:e25606. [PMID: 38544361 DOI: 10.1002/cne.25606] [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: 05/25/2023] [Revised: 02/19/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024]
Abstract
The mouse retina contains over 40 types of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) that differ in morphology, function, or gene expression. RGCs also differ by whether their axons target the brain.s ipsilateral or contralateral hemisphere. Contralaterally projecting RGCs (contraRGCs) are widespread in mouse retina, whereas ipsilateral projecting RGCs (ipsiRGCs) are confined to the ventro-temporal (VT) crescent of retina. In this study, we employed the Sert-Cre transgenic line, which had been reported to selectively label ipsiRGCs, to study ipsiRGCs during development. Although the number of Cre-expressing ipsiRGCs did not significantly increase with postnatal age, the region of retina that they occupied did, and by adulthood represented ~30% of the retinal surface. Unexpectedly, genetic ablation of Sert-Cre cells failed to fully disrupt ipsilateral projecting retinal axons, suggesting that not all ipsiRGCs generated Cre in Sert-Cre mice. To test this hypothesis, we retrogradely labeled ipsiRGCs in Sert-Cre mice which revealed that not all ipsiRGCs are labeled in Sert-Cre mice and a small population of contraRGCs flanking the VT crescent generates Cre in this line. These results do not negate the usefulness of the Sert-Cre mouse but do raise important caveats to the interpretation of such studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianmin Su
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion, Roanoke, Virginia, USA
- School of Neuroscience, College of Science, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA
| | - Lillian Byer
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion, Roanoke, Virginia, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Davidson College, Davidson, North Carolina, USA
- NeuroSURF Program, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion, Roanoke, Virginia, USA
| | - Yanping Liang
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion, Roanoke, Virginia, USA
| | - Michael A Fox
- Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion, Roanoke, Virginia, USA
- School of Neuroscience, College of Science, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA
- Department of Biological Sciences, College of Science, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, Virginia, USA
- Department of Biology, College of Natural Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA
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13
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Xu A, Hou Y, Niell CM, Beyeler M. Multimodal Deep Learning Model Unveils Behavioral Dynamics of V1 Activity in Freely Moving Mice. ADVANCES IN NEURAL INFORMATION PROCESSING SYSTEMS 2023; 36:15341-15357. [PMID: 39005944 PMCID: PMC11242920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/16/2024]
Abstract
Despite their immense success as a model of macaque visual cortex, deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have struggled to predict activity in visual cortex of the mouse, which is thought to be strongly dependent on the animal's behavioral state. Furthermore, most computational models focus on predicting neural responses to static images presented under head fixation, which are dramatically different from the dynamic, continuous visual stimuli that arise during movement in the real world. Consequently, it is still unknown how natural visual input and different behavioral variables may integrate over time to generate responses in primary visual cortex (V1). To address this, we introduce a multimodal recurrent neural network that integrates gaze-contingent visual input with behavioral and temporal dynamics to explain V1 activity in freely moving mice. We show that the model achieves state-of-the-art predictions of V1 activity during free exploration and demonstrate the importance of each component in an extensive ablation study. Analyzing our model using maximally activating stimuli and saliency maps, we reveal new insights into cortical function, including the prevalence of mixed selectivity for behavioral variables in mouse V1. In summary, our model offers a comprehensive deep-learning framework for exploring the computational principles underlying V1 neurons in freely-moving animals engaged in natural behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aiwen Xu
- Department of Computer Science University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 93117
| | - Yuchen Hou
- Department of Computer Science University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 93117
| | - Cristopher M Niell
- Department of Biology, Institute of Neuroscience University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403
| | - Michael Beyeler
- Department of Computer Science Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 93117
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14
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Parker PRL, Martins DM, Leonard ESP, Casey NM, Sharp SL, Abe ETT, Smear MC, Yates JL, Mitchell JF, Niell CM. A dynamic sequence of visual processing initiated by gaze shifts. Nat Neurosci 2023; 26:2192-2202. [PMID: 37996524 PMCID: PMC11270614 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-023-01481-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 11/25/2023]
Abstract
Animals move their head and eyes as they explore the visual scene. Neural correlates of these movements have been found in rodent primary visual cortex (V1), but their sources and computational roles are unclear. We addressed this by combining head and eye movement measurements with neural recordings in freely moving mice. V1 neurons responded primarily to gaze shifts, where head movements are accompanied by saccadic eye movements, rather than to head movements where compensatory eye movements stabilize gaze. A variety of activity patterns followed gaze shifts and together these formed a temporal sequence that was absent in darkness. Gaze-shift responses resembled those evoked by sequentially flashed stimuli, suggesting a large component corresponds to onset of new visual input. Notably, neurons responded in a sequence that matches their spatial frequency bias, consistent with coarse-to-fine processing. Recordings in freely gazing marmosets revealed a similar sequence following saccades, also aligned to spatial frequency preference. Our results demonstrate that active vision in both mice and marmosets consists of a dynamic temporal sequence of neural activity associated with visual sampling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip R L Parker
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
- Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ, USA
| | - Dylan M Martins
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Emmalyn S P Leonard
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Nathan M Casey
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Shelby L Sharp
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Elliott T T Abe
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Matthew C Smear
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Jacob L Yates
- Department of Biology and Program in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA
- Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Jude F Mitchell
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and Center for Visual Sciences, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, USA.
| | - Cristopher M Niell
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA.
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15
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Takahashi M, Veale R. Pathways for Naturalistic Looking Behavior in Primate I: Behavioral Characteristics and Brainstem Circuits. Neuroscience 2023; 532:133-163. [PMID: 37776945 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.09.009] [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: 06/23/2023] [Revised: 09/09/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/02/2023]
Abstract
Organisms control their visual worlds by moving their eyes, heads, and bodies. This control of "gaze" or "looking" is key to survival and intelligence, but our investigation of the underlying neural mechanisms in natural conditions is hindered by technical limitations. Recent advances have enabled measurement of both brain and behavior in freely moving animals in complex environments, expanding on historical head-fixed laboratory investigations. We juxtapose looking behavior as traditionally measured in the laboratory against looking behavior in naturalistic conditions, finding that behavior changes when animals are free to move or when stimuli have depth or sound. We specifically focus on the brainstem circuits driving gaze shifts and gaze stabilization. The overarching goal of this review is to reconcile historical understanding of the differential neural circuits for different "classes" of gaze shift with two inconvenient truths. (1) "classes" of gaze behavior are artificial. (2) The neural circuits historically identified to control each "class" of behavior do not operate in isolation during natural behavior. Instead, multiple pathways combine adaptively and non-linearly depending on individual experience. While the neural circuits for reflexive and voluntary gaze behaviors traverse somewhat independent brainstem and spinal cord circuits, both can be modulated by feedback, meaning that most gaze behaviors are learned rather than hardcoded. Despite this flexibility, there are broadly enumerable neural pathways commonly adopted among primate gaze systems. Parallel pathways which carry simultaneous evolutionary and homeostatic drives converge in superior colliculus, a layered midbrain structure which integrates and relays these volitional signals to brainstem gaze-control circuits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mayu Takahashi
- Department of Systems Neurophysiology, Graduate School of Medical and Dental, Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University, Japan.
| | - Richard Veale
- Department of Neurobiology, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Japan
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16
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Newman JP, Zhang J, Cuevas-López A, Miller NJ, Honda T, van der Goes MSH, Leighton AH, Carvalho F, Lopes G, Lakunina A, Siegle JH, Harnett MT, Wilson MA, Voigts J. A unified open-source platform for multimodal neural recording and perturbation during naturalistic behavior. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.08.30.554672. [PMID: 37693443 PMCID: PMC10491150 DOI: 10.1101/2023.08.30.554672] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/12/2023]
Abstract
Behavioral neuroscience faces two conflicting demands: long-duration recordings from large neural populations and unimpeded animal behavior. To meet this challenge, we developed ONIX, an open-source data acquisition system with high data throughput (2GB/sec) and low closed-loop latencies (<1ms) that uses a novel 0.3 mm thin tether to minimize behavioral impact. Head position and rotation are tracked in 3D and used to drive active commutation without torque measurements. ONIX can acquire from combinations of passive electrodes, Neuropixels probes, head-mounted microscopes, cameras, 3D-trackers, and other data sources. We used ONIX to perform uninterrupted, long (~7 hours) neural recordings in mice as they traversed complex 3-dimensional terrain. ONIX allowed exploration with similar mobility as non-implanted animals, in contrast to conventional tethered systems which restricted movement. By combining long recordings with full mobility, our technology will enable new progress on questions that require high-quality neural recordings during ethologically grounded behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan P Newman
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Open Ephys Inc. Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Jie Zhang
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Aarón Cuevas-López
- Open Ephys Inc. Atlanta, GA, USA
- Dept. of Electrical Engineering, Polytechnic University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
- Open Ephys Production Site, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Nicholas J Miller
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Takato Honda
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Marie-Sophie H van der Goes
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | | | | | - Anna Lakunina
- Allen Institute for Neural Dynamics, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Joshua H Siegle
- Allen Institute for Neural Dynamics, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Mark T Harnett
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Matthew A Wilson
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jakob Voigts
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Open Ephys Inc. Atlanta, GA, USA
- McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, USA
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17
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Kreyenmeier P, Schroeger A, Cañal-Bruland R, Raab M, Spering M. Rapid Audiovisual Integration Guides Predictive Actions. eNeuro 2023; 10:ENEURO.0134-23.2023. [PMID: 37591732 PMCID: PMC10464656 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0134-23.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2023] [Revised: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 07/22/2023] [Indexed: 08/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Natural movements, such as catching a ball or capturing prey, typically involve multiple senses. Yet, laboratory studies on human movements commonly focus solely on vision and ignore sound. Here, we ask how visual and auditory signals are integrated to guide interceptive movements. Human observers tracked the brief launch of a simulated baseball, randomly paired with batting sounds of varying intensities, and made a quick pointing movement at the ball. Movement end points revealed systematic overestimation of target speed when the ball launch was paired with a loud versus a quiet sound, although sound was never informative. This effect was modulated by the availability of visual information; sounds biased interception when the visual presentation duration of the ball was short. Amplitude of the first catch-up saccade, occurring ∼125 ms after target launch, revealed early integration of audiovisual information for trajectory estimation. This sound-induced bias was reversed during later predictive saccades when more visual information was available. Our findings suggest that auditory and visual signals are integrated to guide interception and that this integration process must occur early at a neural site that receives auditory and visual signals within an ultrashort time span.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philipp Kreyenmeier
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Colombia V5Z 3N9, Canada
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Colombia V6T 1Z2, Canada
| | - Anna Schroeger
- Department of Psychology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, 35390 Giessen, Germany
- Department for the Psychology of Human Movement and Sport, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, 07743 Jena, Germany
| | - Rouwen Cañal-Bruland
- Department for the Psychology of Human Movement and Sport, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, 07743 Jena, Germany
| | - Markus Raab
- Department of Performance Psychology, German Sport University Cologne, 50933 Cologne, Germany
- School of Applied Sciences, London South Bank University, London SE1 0AA, United Kingdom
| | - Miriam Spering
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Colombia V5Z 3N9, Canada
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Colombia V6T 1Z2, Canada
- Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Colombia V6T 1Z3, Canada
- Institute for Computing, Information, and Cognitive Systems, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, British Colombia V6T 1Z4, Canada
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18
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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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19
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Zahler SH, Taylor DE, Wright BS, Wong JY, Shvareva VA, Park YA, Feinberg EH. Hindbrain modules differentially transform activity of single collicular neurons to coordinate movements. Cell 2023; 186:3062-3078.e20. [PMID: 37343561 PMCID: PMC10424787 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2023.05.031] [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: 11/03/2022] [Revised: 04/10/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/23/2023]
Abstract
Seemingly simple behaviors such as swatting a mosquito or glancing at a signpost involve the precise coordination of multiple body parts. Neural control of coordinated movements is widely thought to entail transforming a desired overall displacement into displacements for each body part. Here we reveal a different logic implemented in the mouse gaze system. Stimulating superior colliculus (SC) elicits head movements with stereotyped displacements but eye movements with stereotyped endpoints. This is achieved by individual SC neurons whose branched axons innervate modules in medulla and pons that drive head movements with stereotyped displacements and eye movements with stereotyped endpoints, respectively. Thus, single neurons specify a mixture of endpoints and displacements for different body parts, not overall displacement, with displacements for different body parts computed at distinct anatomical stages. Our study establishes an approach for unraveling motor hierarchies and identifies a logic for coordinating movements and the resulting pose.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian H Zahler
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - David E Taylor
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Brennan S Wright
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Joey Y Wong
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Varvara A Shvareva
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Yusol A Park
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA
| | - Evan H Feinberg
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; Center for Integrative Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA.
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20
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Samonds JM, Szinte M, Barr C, Montagnini A, Masson GS, Priebe NJ. Mammals achieve common neural coverage of visual scenes using distinct sampling behaviors. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.03.20.533210. [PMID: 36993477 PMCID: PMC10055212 DOI: 10.1101/2023.03.20.533210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/31/2023]
Abstract
Most vertebrates use head and eye movements to quickly change gaze orientation and sample different portions of the environment with periods of stable fixation. Visual information must be integrated across several fixations to construct a more complete perspective of the visual environment. In concert with this sampling strategy, neurons adapt to unchanging input to conserve energy and ensure that only novel information from each fixation is processed. We demonstrate how adaptation recovery times and saccade properties interact, and thus shape spatiotemporal tradeoffs observed in the motor and visual systems of different species. These tradeoffs predict that in order to achieve similar visual coverage over time, animals with smaller receptive field sizes require faster saccade rates. Indeed, we find comparable sampling of the visual environment by neuronal populations across mammals when integrating measurements of saccadic behavior with receptive field sizes and V1 neuronal density. We propose that these mammals share a common statistically driven strategy of maintaining coverage of their visual environment over time calibrated to their respective visual system characteristics.
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21
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Saleem AB, Busse L. Interactions between rodent visual and spatial systems during navigation. Nat Rev Neurosci 2023:10.1038/s41583-023-00716-7. [PMID: 37380885 DOI: 10.1038/s41583-023-00716-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/31/2023] [Indexed: 06/30/2023]
Abstract
Many behaviours that are critical for animals to survive and thrive rely on spatial navigation. Spatial navigation, in turn, relies on internal representations about one's spatial location, one's orientation or heading direction and the distance to objects in the environment. Although the importance of vision in guiding such internal representations has long been recognized, emerging evidence suggests that spatial signals can also modulate neural responses in the central visual pathway. Here, we review the bidirectional influences between visual and navigational signals in the rodent brain. Specifically, we discuss reciprocal interactions between vision and the internal representations of spatial position, explore the effects of vision on representations of an animal's heading direction and vice versa, and examine how the visual and navigational systems work together to assess the relative distances of objects and other features. Throughout, we consider how technological advances and novel ethological paradigms that probe rodent visuo-spatial behaviours allow us to advance our understanding of how brain areas of the central visual pathway and the spatial systems interact and enable complex behaviours.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aman B Saleem
- UCL Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London, UK.
| | - Laura Busse
- Division of Neuroscience, Faculty of Biology, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany.
- Bernstein Centre for Computational Neuroscience Munich, Munich, Germany.
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22
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Jauch I, Kamm J, Benn L, Rettig L, Friederich HC, Tesarz J, Kuner T, Wieland S. 2MDR, a Microcomputer-Controlled Visual Stimulation Device for Psychotherapy-Like Treatments of Mice. eNeuro 2023; 10:10/6/ENEURO.0394-22.2023. [PMID: 37268421 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0394-22.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Revised: 02/16/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 06/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental disorders can be treated by an established psychotherapy called Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR). In EMDR, patients are confronted with traumatic memories while they are stimulated with alternating bilateral stimuli (ABS). How ABS affects the brain and whether ABS could be adapted to different patients or mental disorders is unknown. Interestingly, ABS reduced conditioned fear in mice. Yet, an approach to systematically test complex visual stimuli and compare respective differences in emotional processing based on semiautomated/automated behavioral analysis is lacking. We developed 2MDR (MultiModal Visual Stimulation to Desensitize Rodents), a novel, open-source, low-cost, customizable device that can be integrated in and transistor-transistor logic (TTL) controlled by commercial rodent behavioral setups. 2MDR allows the design and precise steering of multimodal visual stimuli in the head direction of freely moving mice. Optimized videography allows semiautomatic analysis of rodent behavior during visual stimulation. Detailed building, integration, and treatment instructions along with open-source software provide easy access for inexperienced users. Using 2MDR, we confirmed that EMDR-like ABS persistently improves fear extinction in mice and showed for the first time that ABS-mediated anxiolytic effects strongly depend on physical stimulus properties such as ABS brightness. 2MDR not only enables researchers to interfere with mouse behavior in an EMDR-like setting, but also demonstrates that visual stimuli can be used as a noninvasive brain stimulation to differentially alter emotional processing in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isa Jauch
- Department of Functional Neuroanatomy, Institute for Anatomy and Cell Biology, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jan Kamm
- Department of Functional Neuroanatomy, Institute for Anatomy and Cell Biology, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Luca Benn
- Department of Functional Neuroanatomy, Institute for Anatomy and Cell Biology, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Lukas Rettig
- Department of Functional Neuroanatomy, Institute for Anatomy and Cell Biology, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Hans-Christoph Friederich
- Department of General Internal and Psychosomatic Medicine, Heidelberg University and Heidelberg University Hospital, 69115 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jonas Tesarz
- Department of General Internal and Psychosomatic Medicine, Heidelberg University and Heidelberg University Hospital, 69115 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Thomas Kuner
- Department of Functional Neuroanatomy, Institute for Anatomy and Cell Biology, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Sebastian Wieland
- Department of Functional Neuroanatomy, Institute for Anatomy and Cell Biology, Heidelberg University, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
- Department of General Internal and Psychosomatic Medicine, Heidelberg University and Heidelberg University Hospital, 69115 Heidelberg, Germany
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23
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Xu A, Hou Y, Niell CM, Beyeler M. Multimodal Deep Learning Model Unveils Behavioral Dynamics of V1 Activity in Freely Moving Mice. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.05.30.542912. [PMID: 37398256 PMCID: PMC10312557 DOI: 10.1101/2023.05.30.542912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/04/2023]
Abstract
Despite their immense success as a model of macaque visual cortex, deep convolutional neural networks (CNNs) have struggled to predict activity in visual cortex of the mouse, which is thought to be strongly dependent on the animal's behavioral state. Furthermore, most computational models focus on predicting neural responses to static images presented under head fixation, which are dramatically different from the dynamic, continuous visual stimuli that arise during movement in the real world. Consequently, it is still unknown how natural visual input and different behavioral variables may integrate over time to generate responses in primary visual cortex (V1). To address this, we introduce a multimodal recurrent neural network that integrates gaze-contingent visual input with behavioral and temporal dynamics to explain V1 activity in freely moving mice. We show that the model achieves state-of-the-art predictions of V1 activity during free exploration and demonstrate the importance of each component in an extensive ablation study. Analyzing our model using maximally activating stimuli and saliency maps, we reveal new insights into cortical function, including the prevalence of mixed selectivity for behavioral variables in mouse V1. In summary, our model offers a comprehensive deep-learning framework for exploring the computational principles underlying V1 neurons in freely-moving animals engaged in natural behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aiwen Xu
- Department of Computer Science University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 93117
| | - Yuchen Hou
- Department of Computer Science University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 93117
| | - Cristopher M Niell
- Department of Biology, Institute of Neuroscience University of Oregon Eugene, OR 97403
| | - Michael Beyeler
- Department of Computer Science, Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences University of California, Santa Barbara Santa Barbara, CA 93117
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24
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Zhu SL, Lakshminarasimhan KJ, Angelaki DE. Computational cross-species views of the hippocampal formation. Hippocampus 2023; 33:586-599. [PMID: 37038890 PMCID: PMC10947336 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.23535] [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: 02/10/2023] [Revised: 03/17/2023] [Accepted: 03/21/2023] [Indexed: 04/12/2023]
Abstract
The discovery of place cells and head direction cells in the hippocampal formation of freely foraging rodents has led to an emphasis of its role in encoding allocentric spatial relationships. In contrast, studies in head-fixed primates have additionally found representations of spatial views. We review recent experiments in freely moving monkeys that expand upon these findings and show that postural variables such as eye/head movements strongly influence neural activity in the hippocampal formation, suggesting that the function of the hippocampus depends on where the animal looks. We interpret these results in the light of recent studies in humans performing challenging navigation tasks which suggest that depending on the context, eye/head movements serve one of two roles-gathering information about the structure of the environment (active sensing) or externalizing the contents of internal beliefs/deliberation (embodied cognition). These findings prompt future experimental investigations into the information carried by signals flowing between the hippocampal formation and the brain regions controlling postural variables, and constitute a basis for updating computational theories of the hippocampal system to accommodate the influence of eye/head movements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seren L Zhu
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, New York, USA
| | - Kaushik J Lakshminarasimhan
- Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, New York, USA
| | - Dora E Angelaki
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, New York, USA
- Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, New York, New York, USA
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25
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Zhao ZD, Zhang L, Xiang X, Kim D, Li H, Cao P, Shen WL. Neurocircuitry of Predatory Hunting. Neurosci Bull 2023; 39:817-831. [PMID: 36705845 PMCID: PMC10170020 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-022-01018-1] [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: 08/26/2022] [Accepted: 11/26/2022] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Predatory hunting is an important type of innate behavior evolutionarily conserved across the animal kingdom. It is typically composed of a set of sequential actions, including prey search, pursuit, attack, and consumption. This behavior is subject to control by the nervous system. Early studies used toads as a model to probe the neuroethology of hunting, which led to the proposal of a sensory-triggered release mechanism for hunting actions. More recent studies have used genetically-trackable zebrafish and rodents and have made breakthrough discoveries in the neuroethology and neurocircuits underlying this behavior. Here, we review the sophisticated neurocircuitry involved in hunting and summarize the detailed mechanism for the circuitry to encode various aspects of hunting neuroethology, including sensory processing, sensorimotor transformation, motivation, and sequential encoding of hunting actions. We also discuss the overlapping brain circuits for hunting and feeding and point out the limitations of current studies. We propose that hunting is an ideal behavioral paradigm in which to study the neuroethology of motivated behaviors, which may shed new light on epidemic disorders, including binge-eating, obesity, and obsessive-compulsive disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zheng-Dong Zhao
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, 201210, China
- Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Li Zhang
- National Institute of Biological Sciences (NIBS), Beijing, 102206, China
| | - Xinkuan Xiang
- Britton Chance Center for Biomedical Photonics, Wuhan National Laboratory for Optoelectronics, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
- MoE Key Laboratory for Biomedical Photonics, Collaborative Innovation Center for Biomedical Engineering, School of Engineering Sciences, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430074, China
| | - Daesoo Kim
- Department of Cognitive Brain Science, Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology, Daejeon, 34141, South Korea.
| | - Haohong Li
- MOE Frontier Research Center of Brain & Brain-machine Integration, School of Brain Science and Brain Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
- Affiliated Mental Health Centre and Hangzhou Seventh People`s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, 310013, China.
| | - Peng Cao
- National Institute of Biological Sciences (NIBS), Beijing, 102206, China.
| | - Wei L Shen
- School of Life Science and Technology, ShanghaiTech University, Shanghai, 201210, China.
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26
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Zhaoping L. Peripheral and central sensation: multisensory orienting and recognition across species. Trends Cogn Sci 2023; 27:539-552. [PMID: 37095006 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2022] [Revised: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/10/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023]
Abstract
Attentional bottlenecks force animals to deeply process only a selected fraction of sensory inputs. This motivates a unifying central-peripheral dichotomy (CPD), which separates multisensory processing into functionally defined central and peripheral senses. Peripheral senses (e.g., human audition and peripheral vision) select a fraction of the sensory inputs by orienting animals' attention; central senses (e.g., human foveal vision) allow animals to recognize the selected inputs. Originally used to understand human vision, CPD can be applied to multisensory processes across species. I first describe key characteristics of central and peripheral senses, such as the degree of top-down feedback and density of sensory receptors, and then show CPD as a framework to link ecological, behavioral, neurophysiological, and anatomical data and produce falsifiable predictions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Zhaoping
- University of Tübingen, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany.
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27
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Solomon SG, Janbon H, Bimson A, Wheatcroft T. Visual spatial location influences selection of instinctive behaviours in mouse. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2023; 10:230034. [PMID: 37122945 PMCID: PMC10130721 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.230034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Visual stimuli can elicit instinctive approach and avoidance behaviours. In mouse, vision is known to be important for both avoidance of an overhead threat and approach toward a potential terrestrial prey. The stimuli used to characterize these behaviours, however, vary in both spatial location (overhead or near the ground plane) and visual feature (rapidly expanding disc or slowly moving disc). We therefore asked how mice responded to the same visual features presented in each location. We found that a looming black disc induced escape behaviour when presented overhead or to the side of the animal, but the escapes produced by side-looms were less vigorous and often preceded by freezing behaviour. Similarly, small moving discs induced freezing behaviour when presented overhead or to the side of the animal, but side sweeps also elicited approach behaviours, such that mice explored the area of the arena near where the stimulus had been presented. Our observations therefore show that mice combine cues to the location and features of visual stimuli when selecting among potential behaviours.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel G. Solomon
- Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience and Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
| | - Hadrien Janbon
- Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience and Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
| | - Adam Bimson
- Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience and Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
| | - Thomas Wheatcroft
- Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience and Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
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28
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Horrocks EAB, Mareschal I, Saleem AB. Walking humans and running mice: perception and neural encoding of optic flow during self-motion. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20210450. [PMID: 36511417 PMCID: PMC9745880 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0450] [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] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Locomotion produces full-field optic flow that often dominates the visual motion inputs to an observer. The perception of optic flow is in turn important for animals to guide their heading and interact with moving objects. Understanding how locomotion influences optic flow processing and perception is therefore essential to understand how animals successfully interact with their environment. Here, we review research investigating how perception and neural encoding of optic flow are altered during self-motion, focusing on locomotion. Self-motion has been found to influence estimation and sensitivity for optic flow speed and direction. Nonvisual self-motion signals also increase compensation for self-driven optic flow when parsing the visual motion of moving objects. The integration of visual and nonvisual self-motion signals largely follows principles of Bayesian inference and can improve the precision and accuracy of self-motion perception. The calibration of visual and nonvisual self-motion signals is dynamic, reflecting the changing visuomotor contingencies across different environmental contexts. Throughout this review, we consider experimental research using humans, non-human primates and mice. We highlight experimental challenges and opportunities afforded by each of these species and draw parallels between experimental findings. These findings reveal a profound influence of locomotion on optic flow processing and perception across species. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'New approaches to 3D vision'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward A. B. Horrocks
- Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
| | - Isabelle Mareschal
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary, University of London, London E1 4NS, UK
| | - Aman B. Saleem
- Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
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29
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Parker PRL, Abe ETT, Leonard ESP, Martins DM, Niell CM. Joint coding of visual input and eye/head position in V1 of freely moving mice. Neuron 2022; 110:3897-3906.e5. [PMID: 36137549 PMCID: PMC9742335 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2022.08.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Revised: 07/16/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Visual input during natural behavior is highly dependent on movements of the eyes and head, but how information about eye and head position is integrated with visual processing during free movement is unknown, as visual physiology is generally performed under head fixation. To address this, we performed single-unit electrophysiology in V1 of freely moving mice while simultaneously measuring the mouse's eye position, head orientation, and the visual scene from the mouse's perspective. From these measures, we mapped spatiotemporal receptive fields during free movement based on the gaze-corrected visual input. Furthermore, we found a significant fraction of neurons tuned for eye and head position, and these signals were integrated with visual responses through a multiplicative mechanism in the majority of modulated neurons. These results provide new insight into coding in the mouse V1 and, more generally, provide a paradigm for investigating visual physiology under natural conditions, including active sensing and ethological behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip R L Parker
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Elliott T T Abe
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Emmalyn S P Leonard
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Dylan M Martins
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA
| | - Cristopher M Niell
- Institute of Neuroscience and Department of Biology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR, USA.
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30
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Groves Kuhnle C, Grimes M, Suárez Casanova VM, Turrigiano GG, Van Hooser SD. Juvenile Shank3 KO Mice Adopt Distinct Hunting Strategies during Prey Capture Learning. eNeuro 2022; 9:ENEURO.0230-22.2022. [PMID: 36446569 PMCID: PMC9768843 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0230-22.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Revised: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Mice are opportunistic omnivores that readily learn to hunt and eat insects such as crickets. The details of how mice learn these behaviors and how these behaviors may differ in strains with altered neuroplasticity are unclear. We quantified the behavior of juvenile wild-type (WT) and Shank3 knock-out (KO) mice as they learned to hunt crickets during the critical period for ocular dominance plasticity. This stage involves heightened cortical plasticity including homeostatic synaptic scaling, which requires Shank3, a glutamatergic synaptic protein that, when mutated, produces Phelan-McDermid syndrome and is often comorbid with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Both strains showed interest in examining live and dead crickets and learned to hunt. Shank3 knock-out mice took longer to become proficient, and, after 5 d, did not achieve the efficiency of wild-type mice in either time-to-capture or distance-to-capture. Shank3 knock-out mice also exhibited different characteristics when pursuing crickets that could not be explained by a simple motor deficit. Although both genotypes moved at the same average speed when approaching a cricket, Shank3 KO mice paused more often, did not begin final accelerations toward crickets as early, and did not close the distance gap to the cricket as quickly as wild-type mice. These differences in Shank3 KO mice are reminiscent of some behavioral characteristics of individuals with ASD as they perform complex tasks, such as slower action initiation and completion. This paradigm will be useful for exploring the neural circuit mechanisms that underlie these learning and performance differences in monogenic ASD rodent models.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Micaela Grimes
- Department of Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA 02453
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31
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Noel JP, Balzani E, Avila E, Lakshminarasimhan KJ, Bruni S, Alefantis P, Savin C, Angelaki DE. Coding of latent variables in sensory, parietal, and frontal cortices during closed-loop virtual navigation. eLife 2022; 11:80280. [PMID: 36282071 PMCID: PMC9668339 DOI: 10.7554/elife.80280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
We do not understand how neural nodes operate and coordinate within the recurrent action-perception loops that characterize naturalistic self-environment interactions. Here, we record single-unit spiking activity and local field potentials (LFPs) simultaneously from the dorsomedial superior temporal area (MSTd), parietal area 7a, and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) as monkeys navigate in virtual reality to 'catch fireflies'. This task requires animals to actively sample from a closed-loop virtual environment while concurrently computing continuous latent variables: (i) the distance and angle travelled (i.e., path integration) and (ii) the distance and angle to a memorized firefly location (i.e., a hidden spatial goal). We observed a patterned mixed selectivity, with the prefrontal cortex most prominently coding for latent variables, parietal cortex coding for sensorimotor variables, and MSTd most often coding for eye movements. However, even the traditionally considered sensory area (i.e., MSTd) tracked latent variables, demonstrating path integration and vector coding of hidden spatial goals. Further, global encoding profiles and unit-to-unit coupling (i.e., noise correlations) suggested a functional subnetwork composed by MSTd and dlPFC, and not between these and 7a, as anatomy would suggest. We show that the greater the unit-to-unit coupling between MSTd and dlPFC, the more the animals' gaze position was indicative of the ongoing location of the hidden spatial goal. We suggest this MSTd-dlPFC subnetwork reflects the monkeys' natural and adaptive task strategy wherein they continuously gaze toward the location of the (invisible) target. Together, these results highlight the distributed nature of neural coding during closed action-perception loops and suggest that fine-grain functional subnetworks may be dynamically established to subserve (embodied) task strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Paul Noel
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York City, United States
| | - Edoardo Balzani
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York City, United States
| | - Eric Avila
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York City, United States
| | - Kaushik J Lakshminarasimhan
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York City, United States.,Center for Theoretical Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, United States
| | - Stefania Bruni
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York City, United States
| | - Panos Alefantis
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York City, United States
| | - Cristina Savin
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York City, United States
| | - Dora E Angelaki
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York City, United States
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32
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A binocular perception deficit characterizes prey pursuit in developing mice. iScience 2022; 25:105368. [PMID: 36339264 PMCID: PMC9626674 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.105368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 08/04/2022] [Accepted: 10/12/2022] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Integration of binocular information at the cellular level has long been studied in the mouse model to uncover the fundamental developmental mechanisms underlying mammalian vision. However, we lack an understanding of the corresponding ontogeny of visual behavior in mice that relies on binocular integration. To address this major outstanding question, we quantified the natural visually guided behavior of postnatal day 21 (P21) and adult mice using a live prey capture assay and a computerized-spontaneous perception of objects task (C-SPOT). We found a robust and specific binocular visual field processing deficit in P21 mice as compared to adults that corresponded to a selective increase in c-Fos expression in the anterior superior colliculus (SC) of the juveniles after C-SPOT. These data link a specific binocular perception deficit in developing mice to activity changes in the SC.
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33
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Parker PRL, Abe ETT, Beatie NT, Leonard ESP, Martins DM, Sharp SL, Wyrick DG, Mazzucato L, Niell CM. Distance estimation from monocular cues in an ethological visuomotor task. eLife 2022; 11:e74708. [PMID: 36125119 PMCID: PMC9489205 DOI: 10.7554/elife.74708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 08/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
In natural contexts, sensory processing and motor output are closely coupled, which is reflected in the fact that many brain areas contain both sensory and movement signals. However, standard reductionist paradigms decouple sensory decisions from their natural motor consequences, and head-fixation prevents the natural sensory consequences of self-motion. In particular, movement through the environment provides a number of depth cues beyond stereo vision that are poorly understood. To study the integration of visual processing and motor output in a naturalistic task, we investigated distance estimation in freely moving mice. We found that mice use vision to accurately jump across a variable gap, thus directly coupling a visual computation to its corresponding ethological motor output. Monocular eyelid suture did not affect gap jumping success, thus mice can use cues that do not depend on binocular disparity and stereo vision. Under monocular conditions, mice altered their head positioning and performed more vertical head movements, consistent with a shift from using stereopsis to other monocular cues, such as motion or position parallax. Finally, optogenetic suppression of primary visual cortex impaired task performance under both binocular and monocular conditions when optical fiber placement was localized to binocular or monocular zone V1, respectively. Together, these results show that mice can use monocular cues, relying on visual cortex, to accurately judge distance. Furthermore, this behavioral paradigm provides a foundation for studying how neural circuits convert sensory information into ethological motor output.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philip RL Parker
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - Elliott TT Abe
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - Natalie T Beatie
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | | | - Dylan M Martins
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - Shelby L Sharp
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - David G Wyrick
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - Luca Mazzucato
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
- Department of Mathematics, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - Cristopher M Niell
- Institute of Neuroscience, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
- Department of Biology, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
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34
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Distinguishing externally from saccade-induced motion in visual cortex. Nature 2022; 610:135-142. [PMID: 36104560 PMCID: PMC9534749 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-022-05196-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Distinguishing sensory stimuli caused by changes in the environment from those caused by an animal’s own actions is a hallmark of sensory processing1. Saccades are rapid eye movements that shift the image on the retina. How visual systems differentiate motion of the image induced by saccades from actual motion in the environment is not fully understood2. Here we discovered that in mouse primary visual cortex (V1) the two types of motion evoke distinct activity patterns. This is because, during saccades, V1 combines the visual input with a strong non-visual input arriving from the thalamic pulvinar nucleus. The non-visual input triggers responses that are specific to the direction of the saccade and the visual input triggers responses that are specific to the direction of the shift of the stimulus on the retina, yet the preferred directions of these two responses are uncorrelated. Thus, the pulvinar input ensures differential V1 responses to external and self-generated motion. Integration of external sensory information with information about body movement may be a general mechanism for sensory cortices to distinguish between self-generated and external stimuli. Distinct activity patterns in the primary visual cortex distinguish movement in the environment from motion caused by eye movements.
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35
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De Zeeuw CI, Canto CB. Interpreting thoughts during sleep. Science 2022; 377:919-920. [PMID: 36007053 DOI: 10.1126/science.add8592] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Rapid eye movements during sleep are a readout of thoughts during mouse dreams.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chris I De Zeeuw
- Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, Netherlands.,Department of Neuroscience Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, Netherlands
| | - Cathrin B Canto
- Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, Netherlands.,Department of Neuroscience Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, Netherlands
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36
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Senzai Y, Scanziani M. A cognitive process occurring during sleep is revealed by rapid eye movements. Science 2022; 377:999-1004. [PMID: 36007021 PMCID: PMC9933572 DOI: 10.1126/science.abp8852] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Since the discovery of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the nature of the eye movements that characterize this sleep phase has remained elusive. Do they reveal gaze shifts in the virtual environment of dreams or simply reflect random brainstem activity? We harnessed the head direction (HD) system of the mouse thalamus, a neuronal population whose activity reports, in awake mice, their actual HD as they explore their environment and, in sleeping mice, their virtual HD. We discovered that the direction and amplitude of rapid eye movements during REM sleep reveal the direction and amplitude of the ongoing changes in virtual HD. Thus, rapid eye movements disclose gaze shifts in the virtual world of REM sleep, thereby providing a window into the cognitive processes of the sleeping brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuta Senzai
- Department of Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,Corresponding author. (Y.S.); (M.S.)
| | - Massimo Scanziani
- Department of Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.,Corresponding author. (Y.S.); (M.S.)
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37
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Ngo V, Gorman JC, De la Fuente MF, Souto A, Schiel N, Miller CT. Active vision during prey capture in wild marmoset monkeys. Curr Biol 2022; 32:3423-3428.e3. [PMID: 35750054 PMCID: PMC10203885 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.06.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2022] [Revised: 06/08/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
A foundational pressure in the evolution of all animals is the ability to travel through the world, inherently coupling the sensory and motor systems. While this relationship has been explored in several species,1-4 it has been largely overlooked in primates, which have typically relied on paradigms in which head-restrained subjects view stimuli on screens.5 Natural visual behaviors, by contrast, are typified by locomotion through the environment guided by active sensing as animals explore and interact with the world,4,6 a relationship well illustrated by prey capture.7-12 Here, we characterized prey capture in wild marmoset monkeys as they negotiated their dynamic, arboreal habitat to illustrate the inherent role of vision as an active process in natural nonhuman primate behavior. Not only do marmosets share the core properties of vision that typify the primate Order,13-18 but they are prolific hunters that prey on a diverse set of prey animals.19-22 Marmosets pursued prey using vision in several different contexts, but executed precise visually guided motor control that predominantly involved grasping with hands for successful capture of prey. Applying markerless tracking for the first time in wild primates yielded novel findings that precisely quantified how marmosets track insects prior to initiating an attack and the rapid visually guided corrections of the hands during capture. These findings offer the first detailed insight into the active nature of vision to guide multiple facets of a natural goal-directed behavior in wild primates and can inform future laboratory studies of natural primate visual behaviors and the supporting neural processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria Ngo
- Cortical Systems and Behavior Laboratory, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92039, USA
| | - Julia C Gorman
- Cortical Systems and Behavior Laboratory, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92039, USA; Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92039, USA
| | - María Fernanda De la Fuente
- Programa de Pós-graduação em Etnobiologia e Conservação da Natureza, Universidade Estadual da Paraíba, Campina Grande, Paraíba 58429-500, Brazil; Laboratório de Etologia Teórica e Aplicada, Departamento de Biologia, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Recife, Pernambuco 52171-900, Brazil
| | - Antonio Souto
- Laboratório de Etologia, Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife, Pernambuco 50670-901, Brazil
| | - Nicola Schiel
- Laboratório de Etologia Teórica e Aplicada, Departamento de Biologia, Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco, Recife, Pernambuco 52171-900, Brazil
| | - Cory T Miller
- Cortical Systems and Behavior Laboratory, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92039, USA; Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92039, USA.
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38
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Bartsch F, Cumming BG, Butts DA. Model-based characterization of the selectivity of neurons in primary visual cortex. J Neurophysiol 2022; 128:350-363. [PMID: 35766377 PMCID: PMC9359659 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00416.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Statistical models are increasingly being used to understand the complexity of stimulus selectivity in primary visual cortex (V1) in the context of complex time-varying stimuli, replacing averaging responses to simple parametric stimuli. Although such models often can more accurately reflect the computations performed by V1 neurons in more natural visual environments, they do not by themselves provide insight into V1 neural selectivity to basic stimulus features such as receptive field size, spatial frequency tuning, and phase invariance. Here, we present a battery of analyses that can be directly applied to encoding models to link complex encoding models to more interpretable aspects of stimulus selectivity. We apply this battery to nonlinear models of V1 neurons recorded in awake macaque during random bar stimuli. In linking model properties to more classical measurements, we demonstrate several novel aspects of V1 selectivity not available to simpler experimental measurements. For example, this approach reveals that individual spatiotemporal elements of the V1 models often have a smaller spatial scale than the neuron as a whole, resulting in nontrivial tuning to spatial frequencies. In addition, we propose measures of nonlinear integration that suggest that classical classifications of V1 neurons into simple versus complex cells will be spatial-frequency dependent. In total, rather than obfuscate classical characterizations of V1 neurons, model-based characterizations offer a means to more fully understand their selectivity, and link their classical tuning properties to their roles in more complex, natural, visual processing.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Visual neurons are increasingly being studied with more complex, natural visual stimuli, and increasingly complex models are necessary to characterize their response properties. Here, we describe a battery of analyses that relate these more complex models to classical characterizations. Using such model-based characterizations of V1 neurons furthermore yields several new insights into V1 processing not possible to capture in more classical means to measure their visual selectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felix Bartsch
- Program in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland
| | - Bruce G Cumming
- Laboratory of Sensorimotor Research, National Eye Institute, NIH, Bethesda, Maryland
| | - Daniel A Butts
- Program in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland
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39
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Mazzucato L. Neural mechanisms underlying the temporal organization of naturalistic animal behavior. eLife 2022; 11:76577. [PMID: 35792884 PMCID: PMC9259028 DOI: 10.7554/elife.76577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Naturalistic animal behavior exhibits a strikingly complex organization in the temporal domain, with variability arising from at least three sources: hierarchical, contextual, and stochastic. What neural mechanisms and computational principles underlie such intricate temporal features? In this review, we provide a critical assessment of the existing behavioral and neurophysiological evidence for these sources of temporal variability in naturalistic behavior. Recent research converges on an emergent mechanistic theory of temporal variability based on attractor neural networks and metastable dynamics, arising via coordinated interactions between mesoscopic neural circuits. We highlight the crucial role played by structural heterogeneities as well as noise from mesoscopic feedback loops in regulating flexible behavior. We assess the shortcomings and missing links in the current theoretical and experimental literature and propose new directions of investigation to fill these gaps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Mazzucato
- Institute of Neuroscience, Departments of Biology, Mathematics and Physics, University of Oregon
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40
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Pedrosa R, Song C, Knöpfel T, Battaglia F. Combining Cortical Voltage Imaging and Hippocampal Electrophysiology for Investigating Global, Multi-Timescale Activity Interactions in the Brain. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23126814. [PMID: 35743257 PMCID: PMC9224488 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23126814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2022] [Revised: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 06/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
A new generation of optogenetic tools for analyzing neural activity has been contributing to the elucidation of classical open questions in neuroscience. Specifically, voltage imaging technologies using enhanced genetically encoded voltage indicators have been increasingly used to observe the dynamics of large circuits at the mesoscale. Here, we describe how to combine cortical wide-field voltage imaging with hippocampal electrophysiology in awake, behaving mice. Furthermore, we highlight how this method can be useful for different possible investigations, using the characterization of hippocampal–neocortical interactions as a case study.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafael Pedrosa
- Donders Institute for Brain Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, 6525AJ Nijmegen, The Netherlands;
- Correspondence: (R.P.); (T.K.)
| | - Chenchen Song
- Laboratory for Neuronal Circuit Dynamics, Imperial College London, London W12 0NN, UK;
| | - Thomas Knöpfel
- Laboratory for Neuronal Circuit Dynamics, Imperial College London, London W12 0NN, UK;
- Correspondence: (R.P.); (T.K.)
| | - Francesco Battaglia
- Donders Institute for Brain Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, 6525AJ Nijmegen, The Netherlands;
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Wheatcroft T, Saleem AB, Solomon SG. Functional Organisation of the Mouse Superior Colliculus. Front Neural Circuits 2022; 16:792959. [PMID: 35601532 PMCID: PMC9118347 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2022.792959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The superior colliculus (SC) is a highly conserved area of the mammalian midbrain that is widely implicated in the organisation and control of behaviour. SC receives input from a large number of brain areas, and provides outputs to a large number of areas. The convergence and divergence of anatomical connections with different areas and systems provides challenges for understanding how SC contributes to behaviour. Recent work in mouse has provided large anatomical datasets, and a wealth of new data from experiments that identify and manipulate different cells within SC, and their inputs and outputs, during simple behaviours. These data offer an opportunity to better understand the roles that SC plays in these behaviours. However, some of the observations appear, at first sight, to be contradictory. Here we review this recent work and hypothesise a simple framework which can capture the observations, that requires only a small change to previous models. Specifically, the functional organisation of SC can be explained by supposing that three largely distinct circuits support three largely distinct classes of simple behaviours-arrest, turning towards, and the triggering of escape or capture. These behaviours are hypothesised to be supported by the optic, intermediate and deep layers, respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Samuel G. Solomon
- Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience, University College London, London, United Kingdom
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42
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Sedigh-Sarvestani M, Fitzpatrick D. What and Where: Location-Dependent Feature Sensitivity as a Canonical Organizing Principle of the Visual System. Front Neural Circuits 2022; 16:834876. [PMID: 35498372 PMCID: PMC9039279 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2022.834876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2021] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Traditionally, functional representations in early visual areas are conceived as retinotopic maps preserving ego-centric spatial location information while ensuring that other stimulus features are uniformly represented for all locations in space. Recent results challenge this framework of relatively independent encoding of location and features in the early visual system, emphasizing location-dependent feature sensitivities that reflect specialization of cortical circuits for different locations in visual space. Here we review the evidence for such location-specific encoding including: (1) systematic variation of functional properties within conventional retinotopic maps in the cortex; (2) novel periodic retinotopic transforms that dramatically illustrate the tight linkage of feature sensitivity, spatial location, and cortical circuitry; and (3) retinotopic biases in cortical areas, and groups of areas, that have been defined by their functional specializations. We propose that location-dependent feature sensitivity is a fundamental organizing principle of the visual system that achieves efficient representation of positional regularities in visual experience, and reflects the evolutionary selection of sensory and motor circuits to optimally represent behaviorally relevant information. Future studies are necessary to discover mechanisms underlying joint encoding of location and functional information, how this relates to behavior, emerges during development, and varies across species.
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Abstract
Retinal circuits transform the pixel representation of photoreceptors into the feature representations of ganglion cells, whose axons transmit these representations to the brain. Functional, morphological, and transcriptomic surveys have identified more than 40 retinal ganglion cell (RGC) types in mice. RGCs extract features of varying complexity; some simply signal local differences in brightness (i.e., luminance contrast), whereas others detect specific motion trajectories. To understand the retina, we need to know how retinal circuits give rise to the diverse RGC feature representations. A catalog of the RGC feature set, in turn, is fundamental to understanding visual processing in the brain. Anterograde tracing indicates that RGCs innervate more than 50 areas in the mouse brain. Current maps connecting RGC types to brain areas are rudimentary, as is our understanding of how retinal signals are transformed downstream to guide behavior. In this article, I review the feature selectivities of mouse RGCs, how they arise, and how they are utilized downstream. Not only is knowledge of the behavioral purpose of RGC signals critical for understanding the retinal contributions to vision; it can also guide us to the most relevant areas of visual feature space. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Vision Science, Volume 8 is September 2022. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Kerschensteiner
- John F. Hardesty, MD, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences; Department of Neuroscience; Department of Biomedical Engineering; and Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA;
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Huang K, Yang Q, Han Y, Zhang Y, Wang Z, Wang L, Wei P. An Easily Compatible Eye-tracking System for Freely-moving Small Animals. Neurosci Bull 2022; 38:661-676. [PMID: 35325370 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-022-00834-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Accepted: 12/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Measuring eye movement is a fundamental approach in cognitive science as it provides a variety of insightful parameters that reflect brain states such as visual attention and emotions. Combining eye-tracking with multimodal neural recordings or manipulation techniques is beneficial for understanding the neural substrates of cognitive function. Many commercially-available and custom-built systems have been widely applied to awake, head-fixed small animals. However, the existing eye-tracking systems used in freely-moving animals are still limited in terms of their compatibility with other devices and of the algorithm used to detect eye movements. Here, we report a novel system that integrates a general-purpose, easily compatible eye-tracking hardware with a robust eye feature-detection algorithm. With ultra-light hardware and a detachable design, the system allows for more implants to be added to the animal's exposed head and has a precise synchronization module to coordinate with other neural implants. Moreover, we systematically compared the performance of existing commonly-used pupil-detection approaches, and demonstrated that the proposed adaptive pupil feature-detection algorithm allows the analysis of more complex and dynamic eye-tracking data in free-moving animals. Synchronized eye-tracking and electroencephalogram recordings, as well as algorithm validation under five noise conditions, suggested that our system is flexibly adaptable and can be combined with a wide range of neural manipulation and recording technologies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kang Huang
- Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Qin Yang
- Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Yaning Han
- Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Yulin Zhang
- Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Zhiyi Wang
- Harbin Institute of Technology Shenzhen, Shenzhen, 518055, China
| | - Liping Wang
- Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
| | - Pengfei Wei
- Shenzhen Key Lab of Neuropsychiatric Modulation and Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Behavior, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
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Zahler SH, Taylor DE, Wong JY, Adams JM, Feinberg EH. Superior colliculus drives stimulus-evoked directionally biased saccades and attempted head movements in head-fixed mice. eLife 2021; 10:73081. [PMID: 34970968 PMCID: PMC8747496 DOI: 10.7554/elife.73081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2021] [Accepted: 12/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals investigate their environments by directing their gaze towards salient stimuli. In the prevailing view, mouse gaze shifts entail head rotations followed by brainstem-mediated eye movements, including saccades to reset the eyes. These 'recentering' saccades are attributed to head movement-related vestibular cues. However, microstimulating mouse superior colliculus (SC) elicits directed head and eye movements resembling SC-dependent sensory-guided gaze shifts in other species, suggesting that mouse gaze shifts may be more flexible than has been recognized. We investigated this possibility by tracking eye and attempted head movements in a head-fixed preparation that eliminates head movement-related sensory cues. We found tactile stimuli evoke directionally biased saccades coincident with attempted head rotations. Differences in saccade endpoints across stimuli are associated with distinct stimulus-dependent relationships between initial eye position and saccade direction and amplitude. Optogenetic perturbations revealed SC drives these gaze shifts. Thus, head-fixed mice make sensory-guided, SC-dependent gaze shifts involving coincident, directionally biased saccades and attempted head movements. Our findings uncover flexibility in mouse gaze shifts and provide a foundation for studying head-eye coupling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian H Zahler
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
| | - David E Taylor
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
| | - Joey Y Wong
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
| | - Julia M Adams
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
| | - Evan H Feinberg
- Department of Anatomy, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, United States
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França de Barros F, Bacqué-Cazenave J, Taillebuis C, Courtand G, Manuel M, Bras H, Tagliabue M, Combes D, Lambert FM, Beraneck M. Conservation of locomotion-induced oculomotor activity through evolution in mammals. Curr Biol 2021; 32:453-461.e4. [PMID: 34856124 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.11.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2021] [Revised: 10/04/2021] [Accepted: 11/09/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Efference copies are neural replicas of motor outputs used to anticipate the sensory consequences of a self-generated motor action or to coordinate neural networks involved in distinct motor behaviors.1 An established example of this motor-to-motor coupling is the efference copy of the propulsive motor command, which supplements classical visuo-vestibular reflexes to ensure gaze stabilization during amphibian larval locomotion.2 Such feedforward replica of spinal pattern-generating circuits produces a spino-extraocular motor coupled activity that evokes eye movements, spatiotemporally coordinated to tail undulation independently of any sensory signal.3,4 Exploiting the developmental stages of the frog,1 studies in metamorphing Xenopus demonstrated the persistence of this spino-extraocular motor command in adults and its developmental adaptation to tetrapodal locomotion.5,6 Here, we demonstrate for the first time the existence of a comparable locomotor-to-ocular motor coupling in the mouse. In neonates, ex vivo nerve recordings of brainstem-spinal cord preparations reveal a spino-extraocular motor coupled activity similar to the one described in Xenopus. In adult mice, trans-synaptic rabies virus injections in lateral rectus eye muscle label cervical spinal cord neurons closely connected to abducens motor neurons. Finally, treadmill-elicited locomotion in decerebrated preparations7 evokes rhythmic eye movements in synchrony with the limb gait pattern. Overall, our data are evidence for the conservation of locomotor-induced eye movements in vertebrate lineages. Thus, in mammals as in amphibians, CPG-efference copy feedforward signals might interact with sensory feedback to ensure efficient gaze control during locomotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Filipa França de Barros
- Université de Paris, CNRS, Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center, F-75006 Paris, France
| | - Julien Bacqué-Cazenave
- Institut des Neurosciences Cognitives et Intégratives d'Aquitaine, INCIA CNRS UMR 5287, 33076 Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
| | - Coralie Taillebuis
- Université de Paris, CNRS, Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center, F-75006 Paris, France; Institut des Neurosciences Cognitives et Intégratives d'Aquitaine, INCIA CNRS UMR 5287, 33076 Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
| | - Gilles Courtand
- Institut des Neurosciences Cognitives et Intégratives d'Aquitaine, INCIA CNRS UMR 5287, 33076 Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
| | - Marin Manuel
- Université de Paris, CNRS, Saints-Pères Institute for the Neurosciences, F-75006 Paris, France; Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and George and Anne Ryan Institute for Neuroscience, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, USA
| | - Hélène Bras
- Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, UMR 7289 CNRS-AMU, 13385 Marseille, France
| | - Michele Tagliabue
- Université de Paris, CNRS, Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center, F-75006 Paris, France
| | - Denis Combes
- Institut des Neurosciences Cognitives et Intégratives d'Aquitaine, INCIA CNRS UMR 5287, 33076 Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France
| | - François M Lambert
- Institut des Neurosciences Cognitives et Intégratives d'Aquitaine, INCIA CNRS UMR 5287, 33076 Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.
| | - Mathieu Beraneck
- Université de Paris, CNRS, Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center, F-75006 Paris, France.
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Holmgren CD, Stahr P, Wallace DJ, Voit KM, Matheson EJ, Sawinski J, Bassetto G, Kerr JND. Visual pursuit behavior in mice maintains the pursued prey on the retinal region with least optic flow. eLife 2021; 10:e70838. [PMID: 34698633 PMCID: PMC8547958 DOI: 10.7554/elife.70838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Mice have a large visual field that is constantly stabilized by vestibular ocular reflex (VOR) driven eye rotations that counter head-rotations. While maintaining their extensive visual coverage is advantageous for predator detection, mice also track and capture prey using vision. However, in the freely moving animal quantifying object location in the field of view is challenging. Here, we developed a method to digitally reconstruct and quantify the visual scene of freely moving mice performing a visually based prey capture task. By isolating the visual sense and combining a mouse eye optic model with the head and eye rotations, the detailed reconstruction of the digital environment and retinal features were projected onto the corneal surface for comparison, and updated throughout the behavior. By quantifying the spatial location of objects in the visual scene and their motion throughout the behavior, we show that the prey image consistently falls within a small area of the VOR-stabilized visual field. This functional focus coincides with the region of minimal optic flow within the visual field and consequently area of minimal motion-induced image-blur, as during pursuit mice ran directly toward the prey. The functional focus lies in the upper-temporal part of the retina and coincides with the reported high density-region of Alpha-ON sustained retinal ganglion cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carl D Holmgren
- Department of Behavior and Brain Organization, Research center caesarBonnGermany
| | - Paul Stahr
- Department of Behavior and Brain Organization, Research center caesarBonnGermany
| | - Damian J Wallace
- Department of Behavior and Brain Organization, Research center caesarBonnGermany
| | - Kay-Michael Voit
- Department of Behavior and Brain Organization, Research center caesarBonnGermany
| | - Emily J Matheson
- Department of Behavior and Brain Organization, Research center caesarBonnGermany
| | - Juergen Sawinski
- Department of Behavior and Brain Organization, Research center caesarBonnGermany
| | - Giacomo Bassetto
- Department of Behavior and Brain Organization, Research center caesarBonnGermany
- Machine Learning in Science, Eberhard Karls University of TübingenTübingenGermany
| | - Jason ND Kerr
- Department of Behavior and Brain Organization, Research center caesarBonnGermany
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48
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A cell-ECM mechanism for connecting the ipsilateral eye to the brain. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2104343118. [PMID: 34654745 PMCID: PMC8545493 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2104343118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Distinct features of the visual world are transmitted from the retina to the brain through anatomically segregated circuits. Despite this being an organizing principle of visual pathways in mammals, we lack an understanding of the signaling mechanisms guiding axons of different types of retinal neurons into segregated layers of brain regions. We explore this question by identifying how axons from the ipsilateral retina innervate a specific lamina of the superior colliculus. Our studies reveal a unique cell–extracellular matrix recognition mechanism that specifies precise targeting of these axons to the superior colliculus. Loss of this mechanism not only resulted in the absence of this eye-specific visual circuit, but it led to an impairment of innate predatory visual behavior as well. Information about features in the visual world is parsed by circuits in the retina and is then transmitted to the brain by distinct subtypes of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Axons from RGC subtypes are stratified in retinorecipient brain nuclei, such as the superior colliculus (SC), to provide a segregated relay of parallel and feature-specific visual streams. Here, we sought to identify the molecular mechanisms that direct the stereotyped laminar targeting of these axons. We focused on ipsilateral-projecting subtypes of RGCs (ipsiRGCs) whose axons target a deep SC sublamina. We identified an extracellular glycoprotein, Nephronectin (NPNT), whose expression is restricted to this ipsiRGC-targeted sublamina. SC-derived NPNT and integrin receptors expressed by ipsiRGCs are both required for the targeting of ipsiRGC axons to the deep sublamina of SC. Thus, a cell–extracellular matrix (ECM) recognition mechanism specifies precise laminar targeting of ipsiRGC axons and the assembly of eye-specific parallel visual pathways.
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49
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Williams B, Del Rosario J, Muzzu T, Peelman K, Coletta S, Bichler EK, Speed A, Meyer-Baese L, Saleem AB, Haider B. Spatial modulation of dark versus bright stimulus responses in the mouse visual system. Curr Biol 2021; 31:4172-4179.e6. [PMID: 34314675 PMCID: PMC8478832 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.06.094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2020] [Revised: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 06/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
A fundamental task of the visual system is to respond to both increases and decreases of luminance with action potentials (ON and OFF responses1-4). OFF responses are stronger, faster, and more salient than ON responses in primary visual cortex (V1) of both cats5,6 and primates,7,8 but in ferrets9 and mice,10 ON responses can be stronger, weaker,11 or balanced12 in comparison to OFF responses. These discrepancies could arise from differences in species, experimental techniques, or stimulus properties, particularly retinotopic location in the visual field, as has been speculated;9 however, the role of retinotopy for ON/OFF dominance has not been systematically tested across multiple scales of neural activity within species. Here, we measured OFF versus ON responses across large portions of visual space with silicon probe and whole-cell patch-clamp recordings in mouse V1 and lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN). We found that OFF responses dominated in the central visual field, whereas ON and OFF responses were more balanced in the periphery. These findings were consistent across local field potential (LFP), spikes, and subthreshold membrane potential in V1, and were aligned with spatial biases in ON and OFF responses in LGN. Our findings reveal that retinotopy may provide a common organizing principle for spatial modulation of OFF versus ON processing in mammalian visual systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brice Williams
- Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Joseph Del Rosario
- Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Tomaso Muzzu
- UCL Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
| | - Kayla Peelman
- Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Stefano Coletta
- Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Edyta K Bichler
- Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Anderson Speed
- Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Lisa Meyer-Baese
- Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Aman B Saleem
- UCL Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
| | - Bilal Haider
- Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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50
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Fayat R, Delgado Betancourt V, Goyallon T, Petremann M, Liaudet P, Descossy V, Reveret L, Dugué GP. Inertial Measurement of Head Tilt in Rodents: Principles and Applications to Vestibular Research. SENSORS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2021; 21:6318. [PMID: 34577524 PMCID: PMC8472891 DOI: 10.3390/s21186318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2021] [Revised: 09/03/2021] [Accepted: 09/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Inertial sensors are increasingly used in rodent research, in particular for estimating head orientation relative to gravity, or head tilt. Despite this growing interest, the accuracy of tilt estimates computed from rodent head inertial data has never been assessed. Using readily available inertial measurement units mounted onto the head of freely moving rats, we benchmarked a set of tilt estimation methods against concurrent 3D optical motion capture. We show that, while low-pass filtered head acceleration signals only provided reliable tilt estimates in static conditions, sensor calibration combined with an appropriate choice of orientation filter and parameters could yield average tilt estimation errors below 1.5∘ during movement. We then illustrate an application of inertial head tilt measurements in a preclinical rat model of unilateral vestibular lesion and propose a set of metrics describing the severity of associated postural and motor symptoms and the time course of recovery. We conclude that headborne inertial sensors are an attractive tool for quantitative rodent behavioral analysis in general and for the study of vestibulo-postural functions in particular.
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Affiliation(s)
- Romain Fayat
- Neurophysiologie des Circuits Cérébraux, Institut de Biologie de l’ENS (IBENS), Ecole Normale Supérieure, UMR CNRS 8197, INSERM U1024, Université PSL, 75005 Paris, France;
- Laboratoire MAP5, UMR CNRS 8145, Université Paris Descartes, 75006 Paris, France
| | | | - Thibault Goyallon
- Laboratoire Jean Kuntzmann, Université Grenoble Alpes, UMR CNRS 5224, INRIA, 38330 Montbonnot-Saint-Martin, France; (T.G.); (L.R.)
| | - Mathieu Petremann
- Preclinical Development, Sensorion SA, 34080 Montpellier, France; (V.D.B.); (M.P.); (P.L.); (V.D.)
| | - Pauline Liaudet
- Preclinical Development, Sensorion SA, 34080 Montpellier, France; (V.D.B.); (M.P.); (P.L.); (V.D.)
| | - Vincent Descossy
- Preclinical Development, Sensorion SA, 34080 Montpellier, France; (V.D.B.); (M.P.); (P.L.); (V.D.)
| | - Lionel Reveret
- Laboratoire Jean Kuntzmann, Université Grenoble Alpes, UMR CNRS 5224, INRIA, 38330 Montbonnot-Saint-Martin, France; (T.G.); (L.R.)
| | - Guillaume P. Dugué
- Neurophysiologie des Circuits Cérébraux, Institut de Biologie de l’ENS (IBENS), Ecole Normale Supérieure, UMR CNRS 8197, INSERM U1024, Université PSL, 75005 Paris, France;
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