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Presumed 'prefrontal cortex' lesions in pigeons: effects on visual discrimination performance.
L Aldavert-Vera1, D Costa-Miserachs, I Divac
1Departament de Psicobiología i de Metodología B, Universitat Autónoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain.
Behavioural Brain Research
|July 14, 1999
Summary
Lesions to the posterodorsolateral neostriatum (PDLNS) in pigeons impair visual learning, suggesting this region is analogous to the mammalian prefrontal cortex (PFC). This highlights the role of the PDLNS in cognitive functions.
Area of Science:
- Comparative neuroanatomy
- Avian cognition
- Neuroscience
Background:
- The posterodorsolateral neostriatum (PDLNS) in pigeons is hypothesized to be homologous to the mammalian prefrontal cortex (PFC).
- Understanding avian brain function offers insights into conserved neural mechanisms across species.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of the PDLNS in learned visual discriminations in pigeons.
- To compare the effects of PDLNS lesions with lesions in the overlying area corticoidea dorsolateralis (CDL).
Main Methods:
- Surgical lesions were made in the PDLNS of pigeons.
- Control pigeons received lesions in the CDL.
- Performance was assessed on simultaneous visual discrimination, successive go/no-go discrimination, and reversal learning tasks.
Main Results:
- PDLNS lesions significantly impaired re-learning of a simultaneous visual discrimination and learning of a successive go/no-go discrimination.
- No significant difference was observed between PDLNS and CDL groups in reversal learning.
- These findings indicate the PDLNS is crucial for specific types of visual learning and discrimination.
Conclusions:
- The PDLNS plays a critical role in visual learning and discrimination in pigeons.
- The results support the proposed functional equivalence between the avian PDLNS and the mammalian PFC.
- This research contributes to understanding the evolution of cognitive functions in vertebrates.
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