Cortical Localization of the Sensory-Motor Transformation in a Whisker Detection Task in Mice

Zareian, Behzad; Zhang, Zhaoran; Zagha, Edward

doi:10.1101/2020.07.08.194555

Cited by 6 publications

(16 citation statements)

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“…First, differences in selectivity (between target-aligned S1 and distractor-aligned S1, between control trials and wMC suppression trials) are observable by 30 ms post-stimulus onset. This is well before the response time (>200 ms), before the onset of uninstructed whisker movements that are part of the ‘Go’ motor sequence (>80 ms, Aruljothi et al, 2020, and data not shown), and well before the emergence of significant choice probability in S1, which includes the contributions of ‘Go’ movements (>165 ms, Zareian et al, 2021). Second, increases in distractor responses in target-aligned S1 are present irrespective of trial outcome (false alarm or correct rejection), and are not present on catch trials (i.e., in the absence of distractor stimuli) (Supplementary Fig.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

“…Between recordings, the skull was protected with Kwik-Cast (World Precision Instruments). For further surgergical details, see Aruljothi et al, 2020 and Zareian et al, 2021.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For all behavioral-physiological data presented in this study, mice were performing at expert level during data collection. For more training details and learning trajectories, see Aruljothi et al, 2020; for more training setup information, see Zareian et al, 2021.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Spike times were binned within 5 ms non-overlapping bins. For more details about spike sorting, see Zareian et al, 2021.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Frontal Cortex Gates Distractor Stimulus Encoding in Sensory Cortex

Zhang

Zagha

2022

Preprint

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Suppressing behavioral responses to distractor stimuli is a fundamental cognitive process, essential for performing goal-directed tasks. A common framework for the neuronal implementation of distractor suppression is the attenuation of distractor stimuli from early sensory to higher-order processing. However, details of the localization and mechanisms of attenuation are poorly understood. In this study, we trained mice to selectively respond (lick) to whisker deflections from one whisker field and ignore identical deflections from the opposite whisker field. We found that suppression of frontal cortex, aligned to the target stimulus or the distractor stimulus, increases responses to distractors (false alarms). By simultaneously recording spiking activity in the mouse whisker region of primary somatosensory cortex (S1), we found that frontal cortex selectively suppresses the neuronal encoding of distractor stimuli in target-aligned S1. Frontal cortex decorrelates the encoding of target and distractor stimuli in single units, thereby increasing stimulus selectivity across the population of target-aligned S1 neurons. Even before stimulus onset, effects of frontal cortex on S1 were robust and context-dependent, indicating proactive modulation. Overall, our study provides important mechanistic details about the roles of frontal cortex in gating sensory responses in sensory cortex.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

“…Between recordings, the skull was protected with Kwik-Cast (World Precision Instruments). For further surgergical details, see Aruljothi et al, 2020 and Zareian et al, 2021.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Spike times were binned within 5 ms non-overlapping bins. For more details about spike sorting, see Zareian et al, 2021.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Frontal Cortex Gates Distractor Stimulus Encoding in Sensory Cortex

Zhang

Zagha

2022

Preprint

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“…Different types of behaviors and contexts (e.g. goal-directed behaviors with sensory feedback) may involve driving inputs from other populations or regions, such as supragranular layers or somatosensory cortex ( Hooks et al, 2013; Dacre et al, 2021; Zareian et al, 2021; Yamawaki et al, 2021 ). We note that in our model and in vivo experiments ( Schiemann et al, 2015 ) the quiet state does not correspond to a preparatory state, as it lacks short-term memory, delays and other preparatory components.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiscale model of primary motor cortex circuits predicts in vivo cell type-specific, behavioral state-dependent dynamics

Durá-Bernal

Neymotin

Suter

et al. 2022

Preprint

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Understanding cortical function requires studying its multiple scales: molecular, cellular, circuit and behavior. We developed a biophysically detailed multiscale model of mouse primary motor cortex (M1) with over 10,000 neurons, 30 million synapses. Neuron types, densities, spatial distributions, morphologies, biophysics, connectivity and dendritic synapse locations were derived from experimental data. The model includes long-range inputs from 7 thalamic and cortical regions, and noradrenergic inputs from locus coeruleus. Connectivity depended on cell class and cortical depth at sublaminar resolution. The model reproduced and predicted in vivo layer- and cell type-specific responses (firing rates and LFP) associated with behavioral states (quiet and movement) and experimental manipulations (noradrenaline receptor blocking and thalamus inactivation), and enabled us to evaluate different hypotheses of the circuitry and mechanisms involved. This quantitative theoretical framework can be used to integrate and interpret M1 experimental data and sheds light on the M1 cell type-specific multiscale dynamics associated with a range of experimental conditions and behaviors.

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Motor cortex gates distractor stimulus encoding in sensory cortex

Zhang

Zagha

2023

Nat Commun

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Suppressing responses to distractor stimuli is a fundamental cognitive function, essential for performing goal-directed tasks. A common framework for the neuronal implementation of distractor suppression is the attenuation of distractor stimuli from early sensory to higher-order processing. However, details of the localization and mechanisms of attenuation are poorly understood. We trained mice to selectively respond to target stimuli in one whisker field and ignore distractor stimuli in the opposite whisker field. During expert task performance, optogenetic inhibition of whisker motor cortex increased the overall tendency to respond and the detection of distractor whisker stimuli. Within sensory cortex, optogenetic inhibition of whisker motor cortex enhanced the propagation of distractor stimuli into target-preferring neurons. Single unit analyses revealed that whisker motor cortex (wMC) decorrelates target and distractor stimulus encoding in target-preferring primary somatosensory cortex (S1) neurons, which likely improves selective target stimulus detection by downstream readers. Moreover, we observed proactive top-down modulation from wMC to S1, through the differential activation of putative excitatory and inhibitory neurons before stimulus onset. Overall, our studies support a contribution of motor cortex to sensory selection, in suppressing behavioral responses to distractor stimuli by gating distractor stimulus propagation within sensory cortex.

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Cortical Localization of the Sensory-Motor Transformation in a Whisker Detection Task in Mice

Cited by 6 publications

References 50 publications

Frontal Cortex Gates Distractor Stimulus Encoding in Sensory Cortex

Frontal Cortex Gates Distractor Stimulus Encoding in Sensory Cortex

Multiscale model of primary motor cortex circuits predicts in vivo cell type-specific, behavioral state-dependent dynamics

Motor cortex gates distractor stimulus encoding in sensory cortex

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