Article,
Spatial and temporal properties of visual responses in the thalamus of the developing ferret.
Journal of Neuroscience, 24 (1): 170--182 (January 2004)
DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1002-03.2004
Abstract
Spatiotemporal patterning of neural activity is thought to influence
the development of connections in the visual pathway. This patterning
can arise spontaneously or through sensory experience. Here, we
use a combination of natural and simple stimuli to investigate which
elements of the visual environment modulate the earliest responses
in the primary visual pathway of developing ferrets. Recordings
were made during the first 2 weeks of visual responsiveness, which,
in the ferret, overlaps with the period that the eyelids have not
yet opened. Even when the eyelids are closed, both thalamic and
cortical activity was found to be temporally modulated under conditions
of natural visual stimulation. The modulations correlated with
temporal changes in stimulus contrast but also reflected spatial
structure in the visual scene. Simple stimuli were used to show
that early responses to naturalistic stimuli are influenced by the
localization and structure of through-the-eyelid receptive fields.
The early visual responses were also characterized by substantial
variability in the ability of the cells to detect stimuli of different
duration and different intensity, in a temporally precise manner.
These temporal and spatial properties should constrain how plasticity
mechanisms interpret naturally patterned activity.
Tags
- 14715950
- action
- animals,
- contrast
- evoked
- ferrets,
- fields,
- gov't,
- kinetics,
- neuronal
- neurons,
- newborn,
- p.h.s.,
- pathways,
- perception,
- photic
- plasticity,
- potentials,
- research
- sensitivity,
- stimulation,
- support,
- thalamus,
- u.s.
- visual
- visual,
