Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 20, 2026
An Open-Source Virtual Reality System for the Measurement of Spatial Learning in Head-Restrained Mice
Published on: March 3, 2023
Impaired spatial selectivity and intact phase precession in two-dimensional virtual reality.
Zahra M Aghajan1, Lavanya Acharya2, Jason J Moore3
11] W.M. Keck Center for Neurophysics, Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, and Brain Research Institute, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA. [2] Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Distal visual cues alone are insufficient for robust hippocampal spatial coding in rodents. However, these cues support temporal coding and enhanced spatial and distance selectivity in virtual reality tasks with predictable paths.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Science
- Computational Neuroscience
Background:
- The hippocampus is crucial for spatial navigation, with activity often linked to distal visual cues.
- Previous studies suggest visual cues are primary drivers of hippocampal spatial selectivity.
- Primate and human studies using only visual cues show weaker hippocampal spatial selectivity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To isolate the contribution of distal visual cues to hippocampal spatial selectivity.
- To compare hippocampal activity in real-world exploration versus virtual reality (VR).
- To investigate the role of visual cues in hippocampal rate and temporal coding.
Main Methods:
- Recorded hippocampal activity in body-fixed rodents navigating a 2D VR environment.
- Compared spatial selectivity in VR versus real-world (RW) exploration.
- Analyzed hippocampal spike timing, including motifs and phase precession.
- Examined selectivity to space and distance traveled under different VR task conditions.
Main Results:
- Spatial selectivity was significantly reduced in VR compared to RW exploration.
- Hippocampal activity showed reduced spatial selectivity but maintained selectivity to distance traveled in VR.
- Most neuronal spikes occurred within similar ~2-second hippocampal motifs in both RW and VR.
- Phase precession within motif fields was preserved across environments.
- Selectivity for space and distance significantly increased in VR tasks with stereotypical trajectories.
Conclusions:
- Distal visual cues alone are insufficient to establish a robust hippocampal rate code for space.
- Visual cues are sufficient for a temporal code in the hippocampus.
- Hippocampal temporal dynamics, like motifs and phase precession, are preserved across different sensory environments.
- Task structure and trajectory predictability influence hippocampal coding in VR.
