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Updated: Jun 26, 2026

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity
Published on: March 18, 2019
Intrathalamic mechanisms of visual attention
1Department of Neuroscience, Center for Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh, Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA. jpm49@pitt.edu
Abstract:
The classical model of visual processing emphasizes the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) as the major intermediary between the retina and visual cortex. Yet, anatomical findings inspired Francis Crick to suggest an alternative model in which the thalamic reticular nucleus, which envelops the LGN, acts as the "guardian" of visual cortex by modulating LGN activity. Recent work by McAlonan and colleagues supports Crick's hypothesis, thereby enhancing our understanding of the early stages of visual processing.
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