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Evolutionarily old brainstem neurons are required for the control of selective spatial attention
Ninad B Kothari1, Arunima Banerjee2, Qingcheng Zhang3
1Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA. ninadbkothari@jhu.edu.
Nature Communications
|April 28, 2026
Summary
Brainstem inhibitory neurons (PLTi) are crucial for selective spatial attention, helping animals focus on important targets and ignore distractions. Their silencing impairs target selection without affecting basic perception or motor skills.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Science
- Animal Behavior
Background:
- Adaptive behavior in complex environments requires selective processing of salient information.
- Attentional mechanisms are vital for filtering distractors and prioritizing relevant stimuli.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of evolutionarily ancient brainstem inhibitory neurons (PLTi) in selective spatial attention.
- To determine if PLTi neurons are critical for prioritizing goal-relevant information over distractors.
Main Methods:
- Studied freely behaving mice performing a spatial attention task.
- Utilized bilateral silencing of PLTi neurons to assess their function.
- Analyzed effects on target selection, perception, and motor control.
Main Results:
- Bilateral silencing of PLTi neurons severely disrupted target selection.
- Impairments were specific to attention, with no perceptual or motor deficits observed.
- PLTi neuron function depended on goal-relevance, not just physical salience.
Conclusions:
- PLTi neurons are essential for priority-driven attentional target selection.
- These neurons control the accuracy and precision of decisions distinguishing targets from distractors.
- PLTi neurons may represent a conserved brainstem mechanism for winner-take-all spatial decisions across vertebrates.
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