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Mechanisms Underlying the Neural Computation of Head Direction.

Brad K Hulse1, Vivek Jayaraman1

  • 1Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA; email: hulseb@janelia.hhmi.org, vivek@janelia.hhmi.org.

Annual Review of Neuroscience
|December 25, 2019
PubMed
Summary

Animals use head direction cells for navigation. This review explores how ring attractor networks in brains like rodents and flies may implement these cells, revealing general principles of directional sense.

Keywords:
angular velocitycentral complexhead-direction cellsnavigationpath integrationring attractor

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Animal Behavior
  • Computational Neuroscience

Background:

  • Animals possess an internal sense of direction crucial for navigation.
  • Head direction cells, found across species, are hypothesized to support this directional sense.
  • These cells exhibit properties like persistent activity and angular velocity integration.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review experimental findings in rodents and flies regarding head direction networks.
  • To explore potential neural implementations of ring attractor network dynamics.
  • To identify general principles underlying head-direction circuit function across species.

Main Methods:

  • Review of experimental studies in rodents and flies.
  • Analysis of neural network dynamics, specifically ring attractors.
  • Comparative study across different animal models.

Main Results:

  • Head direction networks in diverse species share key functional properties.
  • Ring attractor network dynamics provide a theoretical framework for these properties.
  • Experimental data from rodents and flies offer insights into biological implementations.

Conclusions:

  • Ring attractor networks offer a plausible model for head direction cell function.
  • Investigating biological mechanisms in model systems can reveal general principles.
  • A theory-guided approach across species is essential for understanding directional circuits.