Neural circuitry for stimulus selection in the zebrafish visual system

Fernandes, António M.; Mearns, Duncan S.; Donovan, Joseph C.; Larsch, Johannes; Helmbrecht, Thomas O.; Kölsch, Yvonne; Laurell, Eva; Kawakami, Koichi; Maschio, Marco Dal; Baier, Herwig

doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2020.12.002

Cited by 42 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 68 publications

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“…Thus, the tuning of local pools of SC neurons for visual features might be less relevant for determining the accuracy of perceptual decisions; instead, the relative magnitude of event-related activity across the SC retinotopic map might be a much more important factor in setting the limits of detection performance 44 . This interpretation is consistent with previous studies showing that relative activity across the SC (or optic tectum) plays a central role in visual selection in fish 45 , birds 46 , and primates 27 . This type of mechanism is also reminiscent of computational models that use differential weighting of sensory evidence to explain how spatial cueing can account for the perceptual improvements during selective attention 47 .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Neuronal modulation in the mouse superior colliculus during covert visual selective attention

Wang

Herman

2021

Preprint

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Covert visual attention is accomplished by a cascade of mechanisms distributed across multiple brain regions. Recent studies in primates suggest a parcellation in which visual cortex is associated with enhanced representations of relevant stimuli, whereas subcortical circuits are associated with selection of visual targets and suppression of distractors. Here we identified how neuronal activity in the superior colliculus (SC) of head-fixed mice is modulated during covert visual attention. We found that spatial cues modulated both firing rate and spike-count correlations, and that the cue-related modulation in firing rate was due to enhancement of activity at the cued spatial location rather than suppression at the uncued location. This modulation improved the neuronal discriminability of visual-change-evoked activity between contralateral and ipsilateral SC neurons. Together, our findings indicate that neurons in the mouse SC contribute to covert visual selective attention by biasing processing in favor of locations expected to contain relevant information.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Neuronal modulation in the mouse superior colliculus during covert visual selective attention

Wang

Herman

2021

Preprint

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“…This model is consistent with a 'winner take all' circuit function (Fernandes et al, 2021). Indeed, within the primary visual processing center in zebrafish, the optic tectum, neurons operate in a winner take all style during visually guided behavior (Fernandes et al, 2021). However, turn bias is driven by the loss of visual cues that activate rostral PT neurons, which do not project to the tectum (Horstick et al, 2020), implicating that even though turn bias is evoked by visual input, the mechanism is likely independent of a tectal winner take all mechanism.…”

Section: Determination Of Biassupporting

confidence: 81%

“…The counter hypothesis is a 'switching model' where unbiased larvae display vigorous directional turning in randomly selected directions over sequential trials. This model is consistent with a 'winner take all' circuit function (Fernandes et al, 2021). Indeed, within the primary visual processing center in zebrafish, the optic tectum, neurons operate in a winner take all style during visually guided behavior (Fernandes et al, 2021).…”

Section: Determination Of Biassupporting

confidence: 70%

Environmental and molecular modulation of motor individuality in larval zebrafish

Hageter

Waalkes

Starkey

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Innate behavioral biases such as human handedness are a ubiquitous form of inter-individual variation that are not strictly hardwired into the genome and are influenced by diverse internal and external cues. Yet, genetic and environmental factors modulating behavioral variation remain poorly understood, especially in vertebrates. To identify genetic and environmental factors that influence behavioral variation, we take advantage of larval zebrafish light-search behavior. During light-search, individuals preferentially turn in leftward or rightward loops, in which directional bias is sustained and non-heritable, and maintained by a habenula-rostral PT circuit. Here we use a medium-throughput recording strategy and unbiased analysis to show that significant individual to individual variation exists in wildtype larval zebrafish turning preference. We classify stable left, right, and unbiased turning types, with most individuals exhibiting a directional preference. Raising larvae at elevated temperature selectively reduces the leftward turning type and impacts rostral PT neurons, specifically. Exposure to conspecifics, variable salinity, environmental enrichment, and physical disturbance does not significantly impact inter-individual turning bias. Pharmacological manipulation of Notch signaling and carrying a mutant allele of a known Notch pathway affecter gene, gsx2, disrupted turn bias individuality in a dose-dependent manner. These results establish that larval zebrafish is a powerful vertebrate model for inter-individual variation with sensitivity to specific environmental perturbations and gene dosage.

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“…Deeper retinorecipient layers in the central regions of the neuropil receive luminance information from retinal ganglion cells. Deep laminae of the neuropil receive a smaller number of afferents from diverse sources, including the hypothalamus, thalamus, cerebellum, torus semicircularis (homologous to the inferior colliculus in mammals), serotonergic raphe, the nucleus isthmi, and the contralateral tectum 75,76,[90][91][92][93][94][95] . These inputs likely carry information from other modalities (auditory and potentially water flow and vestibular), information on satiety levels and other motivational states, and proprioceptive feedback.…”

Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Once the target prey is located and a hunting sequence is initiated, an interaction between the tectum and the nucleus isthmi facilitates the maintenance of the tracking, probably by selecting the target stimulus based on its saliency relative to other stimuli 94,95 . Finally, another group of GABAergic tegmental neurons that projects to deep layers of the tectal neuropil combine binocular information with commissural connections and are important to identify when the prey is in the striking zone 113 .…”

Section: Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

The tectum/superior colliculus as the vertebrate solution for spatial sensory integration and action

et al. 2021

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The superior colliculus, or tectum in the case of non-mammalian vertebrates, is a part of the brain that registers events in the surrounding space, often through vision and hearing, but also through electrosensation, infrared detection, and other sensory modalities in diverse vertebrate lineages. This information is used to form maps of the surrounding space and the positions of different salient stimuli in relation to the individual. The sensory maps are arranged in layers with visual input in the uppermost layer, other senses in deeper positions, and a spatially aligned motor map in the deepest layer. Here, we will review the organization and intrinsic function of the tectum/superior colliculus and the information that is processed within tectal circuits. We will also discuss tectal/superior colliculus outputs that are conveyed directly to downstream motor circuits or via the thalamus to cortical areas to control various aspects of behavior. The tectum/superior colliculus is evolutionarily conserved among all vertebrates, but tailored to the sensory specialties of each lineage, and its roles have shifted with the emergence of the cerebral cortex in mammals. We will illustrate both the conserved and divergent properties of the tectum/superior colliculus through vertebrate evolution by comparing tectal processing in lampreys belonging to the oldest group of extant vertebrates, larval zebrafish, rodents, and other vertebrates including primates. ''The tectum/SC's intrinsic networks, and the computations that they perform'', to the sensory and sensorimotor integration ll

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Neural circuitry for stimulus selection in the zebrafish visual system

Cited by 42 publications

References 68 publications

Neuronal modulation in the mouse superior colliculus during covert visual selective attention

Neuronal modulation in the mouse superior colliculus during covert visual selective attention

Environmental and molecular modulation of motor individuality in larval zebrafish

The tectum/superior colliculus as the vertebrate solution for spatial sensory integration and action

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