Cortical mechanisms mediating visual function and behavior

介导视觉功能和行为的皮质机制

• 批准号: 8761959
• 负责人: Nicholas J Priebe
• 金额: $ 38.63万
• 依托单位: UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-08-01 至 2018-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/8761959
• 关键词: Accounting; Address; Animals; Area; Attention; Behavior; Behavioral; Cells; Data; Decision Making; Detection; Environment; Goals; Individual; Laboratories; Link; Location; Measurement; Measures; Mediating; Membrane Potentials; Metals; Methods; Microelectrodes; Monkeys; Motor; Neurons; Output; Perception; Performance; Photic Stimulation; Population; Primates; Process; Records; Relative (related person); Reporting; Resistance; Saccades; Sensory; Sensory Process; Shapes; Source; Stimulus; Synapses; Techniques; Testing; Time; Training; V1 neuron; Variant; Vision; Visual; Visual Perception; Visual attention; alertness; area striata; attentional modulation; awake; base; insight; microstimulation; neural circuit; neuromechanism; novel; presynaptic; public health relevance; relating to nervous system; research study; response; sensory cortex; visual stimulus; visual threshold

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Over the past four decades, intracellular recordings from sensory cortex of anesthetized animals have made major contributions to our understanding of cortical processing, providing a window into the synaptic inputs that shape spiking responses of individual cortical neurons. To date, however, intracellular recording has not been applied in awake, behaving primates. By combining the unique expertise from our two laboratories, we have recently developed novel techniques that allow us to conduct, on a routine basis, reliable, whole-cell intracellular recordings in primary visual cortex (V1) of awake, behaving monkeys. For the first time, we have access to both subthreshold (membrane potentials representing input) and suprathreshold (spikes representing output) responses of individual cortical neurons, while also utilizing the precise control of visual stimulation and the subject's behavioral state afforded by behaving primates. Our ability to perform intracellular recordings in awake, behaving primates opens the door to addressing two fundamental questions with respect to the circuit-level mechanisms that mediate visual perception: (1) what is the relationship between sub- and supra-threshold activity of single cortical neurons and perceptual decisions, and (2) what are the underlying mechanisms of top-down attentional modulations in sensory cortex. To address these questions, we will first study the quantitative relationship between variability in sub- and suprathreshold responses of single V1 neurons and variability in perceptual decisions of monkeys performing a demanding visual detection task (Aim 1). In Aim 2, we will examine how sub- and suprathreshold responses are altered by changing the attentional state under which the stimulus is presented. We present preliminary data demonstrating that these recordings are not only technically feasible, but are also able to provide important and unique insights into the cellular and circuit-level mechanisms that mediate cortical sensory processing.

描述（由申请人提供）：在过去的四十年中，来自麻醉动物感觉皮层的细胞内记录对我们对皮层处理的理解做出了重大贡献，为了解形成单个皮层神经元尖峰反应的突触输入提供了一个窗口。然而，迄今为止，细胞内记录尚未应用于清醒、有行为能力的灵长类动物。通过结合我们两个实验室的独特专业知识，我们最近开发了新技术，使我们能够在清醒、行为猴子的初级视觉皮层 (V1) 中常规地进行可靠的全细胞细胞内记录。我们第一次能够获得单个皮层神经元的阈下（代表输入的膜电位）和阈上（代表输出的尖峰）响应，同时还利用视觉刺激和视觉刺激的精确控制。 对象的行为状态由行为灵长类动物提供。我们能够在清醒、行为正常的灵长类动物中进行细胞内记录，这为解决与介导视觉感知的回路级机制有关的两个基本问题打开了大门：（1）单个皮质的阈下和阈上活动之间的关系是什么？神经元和知觉决策，以及（2）感觉皮层自上而下注意力调节的潜在机制是什么。为了解决这些问题，我们将首先研究单个 V1 神经元的阈下和阈上反应的变异性与执行要求高的视觉检测任务的猴子的感知决策的变异性之间的定量关系（目标 1）。在目标 2 中，我们将研究如何通过改变呈现刺激的注意力状态来改变阈下和阈上反应。我们提供的初步数据表明，这些记录不仅在技术上可行，而且还能够为介导皮层感觉处理的细胞和电路级机制提供重要而独特的见解。