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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.

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...

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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.

Color Vision

Color Vision

Color perception begins in the retina, the light-sensitive layer at the back of the eye. Two main theories explain how colors are seen: the trichromatic theory and the opponent-process theory. The trichromatic theory, proposed by Thomas Young in 1802 and extended by Hermann von Helmholtz in 1852, suggests that color vision is based on three types of cone receptors in the retina. These cones are sensitive to different but overlapping ranges of wavelengths corresponding to red, blue, and green.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 15, 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

Distinct Response Selectivity Changes in the Primary Visual and Parietal Cortex during Visual Discrimination

John P McClure¹, Mátyás Váradi¹, Jasper Poort²

¹Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EG, United Kingdom.

The Journal of Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience

|May 13, 2026

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Learning enhances visual processing by increasing neuronal selectivity in both the primary visual cortex (V1) and posterior parietal cortex (PPC). However, V1 shows preserved feature preferences, while PPC reorganizes them based on task demands.

Keywords:

learning mouse posterior parietal cortex primary visual cortex visual discrimination

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Cognitive Science
Visual System Research

Background:

Learning behavioral relevance of sensory features increases response selectivity in primary sensory areas.
The impact of learning on neuronal activity in higher-level decision-making areas like the parietal cortex remains less understood compared to primary sensory cortex.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate how learning modifies neural representations in the primary visual cortex (V1) and posterior parietal cortex (PPC).
To compare the effects of learning on neuronal activity and feature selectivity in V1 versus PPC during a visual discrimination task.

Main Methods:

Utilized two-photon calcium imaging in mice to track neuronal activity.
Employed a visual go/no-go orientation discrimination task to assess learning-induced changes.
Analyzed neuronal selectivity, feature preference, and context-dependent reorganization of neural representations.

Main Results:

Behavioral improvements correlated with increased neuronal selectivity in both V1 and PPC.
PPC selectivity was driven by neurons preferring the rewarded stimulus, while V1 neurons increased selectivity for both rewarded and unrewarded stimuli.
V1 feature preference remained robust across learning and contexts, whereas PPC showed reorganized and context-dependent feature preferences.

Conclusions:

Learning a visual discrimination task enhances sensory information processing through distinct mechanisms in V1 and PPC.
V1 neurons exhibit increased reliability and preserved feature preferences, while PPC neurons demonstrate task-dependent reorganization of feature preferences.
These findings elucidate how learning shapes neural activity across different levels of the visual cortical hierarchy during decision-making.