Skip to main content
Log in

Intracortical facilitation among co-oriented, co-axially aligned simple cells in cat striate cortex

Experimental Brain Research Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Summary

Most neurons in cat striate visual cortex show inhibitory effects when moving contours are presented beyond the limits of classic receptive field regions. Facilitatory effects are also present in about 40% of simple cells. Here, we report a highly specific form of this facilitation, mediated only by neurons possessing both an orientation tuning matched to the test unit, and a receptive field position aligned with its long axis. This finding illustrates one of the intracortical interconnection schemes hypothesized by Mitchison and Crick (1982). Periodic clustering in long, intrinsic axons may signify a neuron seeking specific functional interactions like these across columnar systems in both the spatial and orientation domains.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Albus K (1975) A quantitative study of the projection area of the central and the paracentral visual field in Area 17 of the cat. I. The precision of the topography. Exp Brain Res 24: 159–179

    Google Scholar 

  • Bishop PO, Coombs JS, Henry GH (1971) Responses to visual contours. Spatio-temporal aspects of excitation in receptive fields of simple striate neurons. J Physiol (Lond) 219: 625–657

    Google Scholar 

  • Bishop PO, Coombs JS, Henry GH (1973) Receptive fields of simple cells in the cat striate cortex. J Physiol (Lond) 231: 31–60

    Google Scholar 

  • De Valois KK, Tootell RBH (1983) Spatial-frequency-specific inhibition in cat striate cortex cells. J Physiol (Lond) 336: 359–376

    Google Scholar 

  • Frost BJ (1978) Moving background patterns alter directionally specific responses of pigeon tectal neurons. Brain Res 151: 599–603

    Google Scholar 

  • Gilbert CD, Wiesel TN (1982) Clustered intracortical connections in cat visual cortex. Soc Neurosci Abst 8: 706

    Google Scholar 

  • Gilbert CD, Wiesel TN (1983) Clustered intrinsic connections in cat visual cortex. J Neurosci 3: 1116–1133

    Google Scholar 

  • Grünau M von, Frost BJ (1983) Double-opponent-process mechanism underlying RF-structure of directionally specific cells of cat lateral suprasylvian visual area. Exp Brain Res 49: 84–92

    Google Scholar 

  • Hammond P, Andrews DP (1978) Interaction between receptive field halves of cells in Area 18 of the cat's visual cortex. Neurosci Lett 10: 35–41

    Google Scholar 

  • Henry GH, Bishop PO, Coombs JS (1969) Inhibitory and subliminal excitatory receptive fields of simple units in cat striate cortex. Vision Res 9: 1289–1296

    Google Scholar 

  • Henry GH, Dreher B, Bishop PO (1974) Orientation specificity of cells in cat striate cortex. J Neurophysiol 37: 1394–1409

    Google Scholar 

  • Henry GH, Goodwin AW, Bishop PO (1978) Spatial summation of responses in receptive fields of single cells in cat striate cortex. Exp Brain Res 32: 245–266

    Google Scholar 

  • Henry GH, Lund JS, Harvey AR (1978) Cells of the striate cortex projecting to the Clare-Bishop area of the cat. Brain Res 151: 154–158

    Google Scholar 

  • Hubel DH, Wiesel TN (1962) Receptive fields, binocular interaction and functional architecture in the cat's visual cortex. J Physiol (Lond) 160: 106–154

    Google Scholar 

  • Kanizsa G (1976) Subjective contours. Scient Am 234: 48–52, 30, 138

    Google Scholar 

  • Kato H, Bishop PO, Orban GA (1978) Hypercomplex and simple/complex cell classifications in cat striate cortex. J Neurophysiol 41: 1071–1095

    Google Scholar 

  • Kato H, Bishop PO, Orban GA (1981) Binocular interaction on monocularly discharged lateral geniculate and striate neurons in the cat. J Neurophysiol 46: 932–951

    Google Scholar 

  • Kulikowski JJ, Bishop PO (1982) Silent periodic cells in the cat striate cortex. Vision Res 22: 191–200

    Google Scholar 

  • Levick WR (1972) Another tungsten microelectrode. Med Biol Eng 10: 510–515

    Google Scholar 

  • Maske R, Yamane S, Bishop PO (1985) Simple and B-cells in cat striate cortex. Complementarity of responses to moving light and dark bars. J Neurophysiol 53: 670–685

    Google Scholar 

  • Michalski A, Gerstein GL, Czarkowska J, Tarnecki R (1983) Interactions between cat striate cortex neurons. Exp Brain Res 51: 97–107

    Google Scholar 

  • Mitchison G, Crick F (1982) Long axons within the striate cortex: their distribution, orientation, and patterns of connection. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 79: 3661–3665

    Google Scholar 

  • Mustari MJ, Bullier J, Henry GH (1982) Comparison of response properties of three types of monosynaptic S-cell in cat striate cortex. J Neurophysiol 47: 439–454

    Google Scholar 

  • Nelson JI (1975) Globality and stereoscopic fusion in binocular vision. J Theor Biol 49: 1–88

    Google Scholar 

  • Nelson JI (1985) The cellular basis of perception. In: Rose D, Dobson V (eds) Models of visual cortex. Wiley, New York, pp 108–122

    Google Scholar 

  • Nelson JI, Frost BJ (1978) Orientation-selective inhibition from beyond the classic visual receptive field. Brain Res 139: 359–365

    Google Scholar 

  • Nelson JI, Kato H, Bishop PO (1977) The discrimination of orientation and position disparities by binocularly-activated neurons in cat striate cortex. J Neurophysiol 40: 260–283

    Google Scholar 

  • Orban GA, Kato H, Bishop PO (1979a) End-zone region in receptive fields of hypercomplex and other striate neurons in the cat. J Neurophysiol 42: 818–832

    Google Scholar 

  • Orban GA, Kato H, Bishop PO (1979b) Dimensions and properties of end-zone inhibitory areas in receptive fields of hypercomplex cells in cat striate cortex. J Neurophysiol 42: 833–849

    Google Scholar 

  • Palmer LA, Davis TL (1981) Receptive-field structure in cat striate cortex. J Neurophysiol 46: 260–276

    Google Scholar 

  • Pollen DA, Ronner SF (1975) Periodic excitability changes across the receptive fields of complex cells in the striate and parastriate cortex of the cat. J Physiol (Lond) 245: 667–697

    Google Scholar 

  • Rockland KS, Lund JS (1982) Widespread periodic intrinsic connections in the tree shrew visual cortex. Science NY 214: 1532–1534

    Google Scholar 

  • Rockland KS, Lund JS (1983) Intrinsic laminar lattice connections in primate visual cortex. J Comp Neurol 216: 303–318

    Google Scholar 

  • Rose D (1977) Responses of single units in cat visual cortex to moving bars of light as a function of bar length. J Physiol (Lond) 271: 1–23

    Google Scholar 

  • Swindale NV (1982) A model for the formation of orientation columns. Proc R Soc Lond B 215: 211–230

    Google Scholar 

  • Tusa RJ, Palmer LA, Rosenquist AC (1978) The retinotopic organization of Area 17 (striate cortex) in the cat. J Comp Neurol 177: 213–236

    Google Scholar 

  • von der Heydt R, Peterhans E, Baumgartner G (1984) Illusory contours and cortical neuron responses. Science 224: 1260–1262

    Google Scholar 

  • Wiesel TN, Gilbert CD (1983) The Sharpey-Schafer lecture. Morphological basis of visual cortical function. QJ Exp Physiol 68: 525–543

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Nelson, J.I., Frost, B.J. Intracortical facilitation among co-oriented, co-axially aligned simple cells in cat striate cortex. Exp Brain Res 61, 54–61 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00235620

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00235620

Key words

Navigation