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Visual telencephalon modulates directional selectivity of accessory optic neurons in pigeons

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 June 2009

Luiz R.G. Britto ,
Odival C. Gasparotto  and
Dânia E. Hamassaki
Luiz R.G. Britto
Affiliation:
Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Institute for Biomedical Sciences Sāo Paulo State University (USP), Sāo Paulo, SP, Brazil
Odival C. Gasparotto
Affiliation:
Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Institute for Biomedical Sciences Sāo Paulo State University (USP), Sāo Paulo, SP, Brazil
Dânia E. Hamassaki
Affiliation:
Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Institute for Biomedical Sciences Sāo Paulo State University (USP), Sāo Paulo, SP, Brazil
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Abstract

The directional selectivity of units within the nucleus of the basal optic root (nBOR) of the accessory optic system (AOS) was studied before and after lesions of the visual telencephalon (visual Wulst) in urethane-anesthetized pigeons. In intact pigeons, most nBOR units preferred upward motion with a temporal component or downward motion with a nasal component. The ipsilateral and bilateral telencephalic lesions generated a dramatic reduction in the number of cells with optimal responses to upward motion. The overall distribution of preferred directions was still bimodal following ipsilateral or bilateral Wulst lesions, with most units showing best responses to a straight temporal or to downward-nasal directions. The contralateral Wulst lesions produced, instead, a marked reduction in downward preferences. The nBOR units which were studied in these cases showed mainly upward-temporal and upward-nasal responses. These data suggest an involvement of the visual Wulst in the determination of the dictional selectivity of nBOR neurons in the pigeon. Specifically, the responses of nBOR units to upward motion appeared to depend on the integrity of the telencephalic descending systems which impinge, in both direct and indirect ways, upon that AOS nucleus. Taken together with data for the mammalian AOS, the present results indicate that nonretinal afferents to AOS nuclei have an important role in the functional organization of that subcortical visual pathway.

Keywords

Accessory optic systemDirection selectivitySubcortical visual pathwaysVisual cortexVisual system
Type
Research Articles
Information
Visual Neuroscience , Volume 4 , Issue 1 , January 1990 , pp. 3 - 10
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1990

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