Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

The cerebral cortex, the brain's outermost layer, is pivotal in processing complex cognitive tasks, emotions, and various sensory inputs and executing voluntary motor activities. This intricate structure is divided into three primary functional areas: the motor areas, sensory areas, and association areas.
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex.

Vision

Vision

Vision is the result of light being detected and transduced into neural signals by the retina of the eye. This information is then further analyzed and interpreted by the brain. First, light enters the front of the eye and is focused by the cornea and lens onto the retina—a thin sheet of neural tissue lining the back of the eye. Because of refraction through the convex lens of the eye, images are projected onto the retina upside-down and reversed.

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association areas are regions of the cerebral cortex that do not have a specific sensory or motor function. Instead, they integrate and interpret information from various sources to enable higher cognitive processes such as memory, learning, and decision-making. Some key association areas include the following:
Prefrontal Association Area: This area is located in the frontal lobe and is involved in planning, decision-making, and moderating social behavior. It connects with primary motor areas,...

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

The somatosensory cortex in the parietal lobes is crucial for interpreting sensory data such as touch, temperature, and proprioception. The somatosensory cortex, situated in the parietal lobes, plays a vital role in interpreting sensory information like touch, temperature, and proprioception—awareness of body position. This specialized brain region features an organized structure wherein neurons at the top primarily process sensations originating from the lower body. In contrast, those at the...

Visual System

Visual System

Light enters the eye through the cornea, a transparent, dome-shaped surface covering the surface of the eyeball that helps to direct and focus incoming light. This light is then channeled toward the pupil, an adjustable opening whose size is controlled by the iris. The iris, a pigmented muscle, regulates the amount of light entering the eye by contracting or dilating the pupil, thereby ensuring optimal light levels for clear vision.
Once through the pupil, the light passes through the lens, a...

Depth Perception and Spatial Vision

Depth Perception and Spatial Vision

Depth perception is the ability to perceive objects three-dimensionally. It relies on two types of cues: binocular and monocular. Binocular cues depend on the combination of images from both eyes and how the eyes work together. Since the eyes are in slightly different positions, each eye captures a slightly different image. This disparity between images, known as binocular disparity, helps the brain interpret depth. When the brain compares these images, it determines the distance to an object.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

The Role of Layer 6 Corticothalamic Circuits in Vision: Plasticity, Sensory Processing, and Behavior.

Annual review of vision science·2025

Same author

Effects of corticothalamic feedback depend on visual responsiveness and stimulus type.

iScience·2025

Same author

Anatomically resolved oscillatory bursts reveal dynamic motifs of thalamocortical activity during naturalistic stimulus viewing.

Neuron·2025

Same author

A Defined Diet Combined with Sonicated Inoculum Provides a High Incidence, Moderate Severity Form of Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis (EAE).

ACS pharmacology & translational science·2024

Same author

Spiking activity in the visual thalamus is coupled to pupil dynamics across temporal scales.

PLoS biology·2024

Same author

Regional spinal cord volumes and pain profiles in AQP4-IgG + NMOSD and MOGAD.

Frontiers in neurology·2024

Same journal

Targeting intracranial electrical stimulation to network regions defined within individuals causes network-level effects.

Journal of neurophysiology·2026

Same journal

When "Noise" Isn't Simply Noise: Deterministic Postural Drive During Noisy Galvanic Vestibular Stimulation (nGVS).

Journal of neurophysiology·2026

Same journal

Abrupt Scene Onsets and Gradually Emerging Scene Information Produce Distinct EEG Decoding Dynamics.

Journal of neurophysiology·2026

Same journal

From discovery to translation: charting a course for the <i>Journal of Neurophysiology</i>.

Journal of neurophysiology·2026

Same journal

Neuromodulatory Strategies Overcome Multiple Inevitable Impairments of Cerebral Palsy.

Journal of neurophysiology·2026

Same journal

Acute Fentanyl Toxicity:From Opioid-Induced to Hypoxia-Mediated Pathophysiology.

Journal of neurophysiology·2026

See all related articles

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 11, 2026

Monocular Visual Deprivation and Ocular Dominance Plasticity Measurement in the Mouse Primary Visual Cortex

Monocular Visual Deprivation and Ocular Dominance Plasticity Measurement in the Mouse Primary Visual Cortex

Published on: February 8, 2020

Spatial integration in mouse primary visual cortex.

Agne Vaiceliunaite¹, Sinem Erisken, Florian Franzen

¹Werner Reichardt Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.

Journal of Neurophysiology

|May 31, 2013

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Visual cortex neurons show surround suppression, crucial for visual saliency. In mice, parvalbumin-expressing interneurons help regulate this spatial integration, but anesthesia disrupts these responses.

Keywords:

PV+ interneurons V1 anesthesia contrast normalization gain control size tuning surround suppression

More Related Videos

In Vivo Visualization of Spontaneous Activity in Neonatal Mouse Sensory Cortex at a Single-Neuron Resolution

In Vivo Visualization of Spontaneous Activity in Neonatal Mouse Sensory Cortex at a Single-Neuron Resolution

Published on: November 21, 2023

A Large Lateral Craniotomy Procedure for Mesoscale Wide-field Optical Imaging of Brain Activity

A Large Lateral Craniotomy Procedure for Mesoscale Wide-field Optical Imaging of Brain Activity

Published on: May 7, 2017

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 11, 2026

Monocular Visual Deprivation and Ocular Dominance Plasticity Measurement in the Mouse Primary Visual Cortex

Monocular Visual Deprivation and Ocular Dominance Plasticity Measurement in the Mouse Primary Visual Cortex

Published on: February 8, 2020

In Vivo Visualization of Spontaneous Activity in Neonatal Mouse Sensory Cortex at a Single-Neuron Resolution

In Vivo Visualization of Spontaneous Activity in Neonatal Mouse Sensory Cortex at a Single-Neuron Resolution

Published on: November 21, 2023

A Large Lateral Craniotomy Procedure for Mesoscale Wide-field Optical Imaging of Brain Activity

A Large Lateral Craniotomy Procedure for Mesoscale Wide-field Optical Imaging of Brain Activity

Published on: May 7, 2017

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Visual Processing
Computational Neuroscience

Background:

Neuronal responses in the primary visual cortex (V1) are suppressed by stimuli outside the classical receptive field (RF).
This surround suppression is vital for visual saliency computation but its underlying neural circuits are complex.
Understanding these circuits is challenging due to difficulties in disentangling feedforward, horizontal, and feedback connectivity.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate spatial integration mechanisms in mouse V1, comparing them to higher-order mammals.
To explore the role of parvalbumin-expressing (PV+) inhibitory interneurons in V1 spatial integration.
To assess the impact of anesthesia on spatial integration in V1.

Main Methods:

Electrophysiological recordings in awake and anesthetized mice.
Optogenetic manipulation of parvalbumin-expressing (PV+) interneurons.
Analysis of neuronal responses to visual stimuli of varying sizes and contrasts.

Main Results:

Surround suppression is present in awake mice, strongest in superficial V1 layers, mirroring findings in primates.
Anesthesia with isoflurane-urethane significantly alters spatial integration, reducing laminar dependency and suppression strength.
Optogenetic activation of PV+ interneurons increased RF size and decreased suppression, suggesting their role in modulating stimulus drive.

Conclusions:

The mouse V1 exhibits spatial integration properties similar to other mammals.
Anesthesia significantly confounds the study of spatial integration in V1, necessitating awake recordings.
PV+ interneurons play a key role in V1 spatial integration by influencing overall stimulus drive, highlighting the mouse as a model for studying inhibitory interneuron function.