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Intracortical Inhibition Within the Primary Motor Cortex Can Be Modulated by Changing the Focus of Attention
Published on: September 11, 2017
Attentional modulation of thalamic reticular neurons
Kerry McAlonan1, James Cavanaugh, Robert H Wurtz
1Laboratory of Sensorimotor Research, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20982-4435, USA. km@nei.nih.gov
Summary
The thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) modulates visual attention. Its neurons show increased activity when attention focuses on visual stimuli, supporting its role in directing attention during visual processing.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Visual Processing
- Attention Mechanisms
Background:
- The lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) relays visual information to the cortex.
- The thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN) modulates LGN activity through inhibitory projections.
- Crick's 1984 hypothesis proposed TRN directs attention, but TRN neuron activity during attention tasks remained unstudied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the response properties of visual TRN neurons in awake monkeys.
- To investigate how TRN neuron activity changes with shifts in attention between visual and auditory stimuli.
Main Methods:
- Recorded neuronal activity in the visual TRN of awake monkeys.
- Presented visual stimuli (spots of light) and manipulated attentional focus between visual and auditory targets.
Main Results:
- Visual TRN neurons exhibited a rapid, strong transient increase in activity upon visual stimulus presentation.
- A high background firing rate was observed in visual TRN neurons.
- Shifting attention to visual stimuli typically increased the amplitude of the transient visual response.
- Other neuronal response characteristics remained largely unchanged by attentional shifts.
Conclusions:
- TRN neuronal activity is modulated by shifts in visual attention.
- These attentional modulations in TRN could influence visual processing in the LGN via inhibitory feedback.
- Findings support the role of TRN in directing attentional focus within the visual system.
