Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-jn8rn Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-18T20:21:34.086Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Binocular interactions in the cat's dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus, II: Effects on dominant-eye spatial-frequency and contrast processing

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 June 2009

Lillian Tong ,
William Guido ,
Nina Tumosa ,
Peter D. Spear  and
Susan Heidenreich
Lillian Tong
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison
William Guido
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Nina Tumosa
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Peter D. Spear
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Susan Heidenreich
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology and Center for Neuroscience, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The present study tested the hypothesis that nondominant-eye influences on lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) neurons affect the processing of spatial and contrast information from the dominant eye. To do this, we determined the effects of stimulating the nondominant eye at its optimal spatial frequency on the responses of LGN cells to sine-wave gratings of different spatial frequency and contrast presented to the dominant eye. Detailed testing was carried out on 49 cells that had statistically significant responses to stimulation of the nondominant eye alone.

Spatial-frequency response functions to nondominant-eye stimulation indicated that the responses were spatially tuned, as reported previously (Guido et al., 1989). Optimal spatial frequencies through the nondominant eye were significantly correlated with the optimal spatial frequencies through the dominant eye (r = 0.54; P < 0.0001), and the optimal spatial frequencies were fairly similar for the two eyes.

Nondominant-eye stimulation changed the maximal amplitude of the fundamental (Fl) response to dominant-eye stimulation for only about 45% (22 of 49) of the cells that responded to nondominant-eye stimulation alone. The response vs. contrast function through the dominant eye was altered for 73% of the cells (51% independent of spatial frequency). Three types of effects were observed: a change in the initial slope of the response vs. contrast function (contrast gain), a change in the response amplitude at which saturation occurred, or an overall change in response at all contrasts. The incidence of these changes was similar for X and Y cells in LGN layers A, Al, and C (only four W cells were tested).

Nondominant-eye stimulation had little or no effect on the sizes or sensitivities of the receptive-field centers or surrounds for the dominant eye. In addition, nondominant-eye stimulation had little or no effect on optimal spatial frequency, spatial resolution, or the bandwidth of spatial-frequency contrast sensitivity curves for the dominant eye.

Possible functions of binocular interactions in the LGN are considered. The present results suggest a role in interocular contrast-gain control. Interocular contrast differences can occur before the acquisition of binocular fusion, when the two eyes are viewing different aspects of a visual stimulus. Psychophysical and physiological studies suggest that an interocular mechanism exists to maintain relatively constant binocular interactions despite differences in interocular contrast. The present results suggest that at least part of this mechanism occurs in the LGN.

Keywords

Lateral geniculate nucleusBinocular interactionsContrast-gain controlSpatial-frequency processingVision
Type
Research Articles
Information
Visual Neuroscience , Volume 8 , Issue 6 , June 1992 , pp. 557 - 566
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1992

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Derrington, A.M. & Lennie, P. (1984). Spatial and temporal contrast sensitivities of neurones in lateral geniculate nucleus of macaque. Journal of Physiology (London) 357, 219–240.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Enroth-Cugell, C. & Robson, J.G. (1966). The contrast sensitivity of retinal ganglion cells of the cat. Journal of Physiology (London) 187, 517–552.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Enroth-Cugell, C., Robson, J.G., Schweitzer-Tong, D.E. & Watson, A.B. (1983). Spatio-temporal interactions in cat retinal ganglion cells showing linear spatial summation. Journal of Physiology (London) 341, 279–307.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Freeman, R.D. & Ohzawa, I. (1990). On the neurophysiological organization of binocular vision. Vision Research 30, 1661–1676.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Guido, W., Tumosa, N. & Spear, P.D. (1989). Binocular interactions in the cat's dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus. I. Spatial-frequency analysis of responses of X, Y, and W cells to nondominant-eye stimulation. Journal of Neurophysiology 62, 526–543.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Halpern, D.L. & Blake, R.R. (1988). How contrast affects stereoacuity. Perception 17, 483–496.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Kato, H., Bishop, P.O. & Orban, G.A. (1981). Binocular interactions on monocularly discharged lateral geniculate and striate neurons in the cat. Journal of Neurophysiology 46, 932–951.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Legge, G.E. & Gu, Y. (1989). Stereopsis and contrast. Vision Research 29, 989–1004.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Linsenmeier, R.A., Frishman, L.J., Jakiela, H.G. & Enroth-Cugell, C. (1982). Receptive field properties of X and Y cells in the cat retina derived from contrast sensitivity measurements. Vision Research 22, 1173–1183.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Moore, R.J., Spear, P.D., Kim, C.B.Y. & Xue, J.-T. (1992). Binocular processing in the cat's dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus. III. Spatial frequency, orientation, and direction sensitivity of nondominant-eye influences. Experimental Brain Research (in press).Google Scholar
Murphy, P.C. & Silljto, A.M. (1989). The binocular input to cells in the feline dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN). Journal of Physiology (London) 415, 393–408.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Noda, H., Tamaki, Y. & Iwama, K. (1972). Binocular units in the lateral geniculate nucleus of chronic cats. Brain Research 41, 81–100.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Norton, T.T., Casagrande, V.A., Irvin, G.E., Sesma, M.A. & Petry, H.M. (1988). Contrast-sensitivity functions of W-, X-, and Y-like relay cells in the lateral geniculate nucleus of bush baby, Galago crassicaudatus. Journal of Neurophysiology 59, 1639–1656.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Pape, H.-Ch. & Eysel, U.T.H. (1986). Binocular interaction in the lateral geniculate nucleus of the cat: GABAergic inhibition reduced by dominant afferent activity. Experimental Brain Research 61, 265–271.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Pettigrew, J.D., Cooper, M.L. & Blasdel, G.G. (1979). Improved use of tapetal reflection for eye position monitoring. Investigative Ophthalmology and Visual Science 18, 490–495.Google ScholarPubMed
Rodieck, R.W. & Dreher, B. (1979). Visual suppression from nondominant eye in the lateral geniculate nucleus: A comparison of cat and monkey. Experimental Brain Research 35, 465–478.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sanderson, K.J., Bishop, P.O. & Darian-Smith, L. (1971). The properties of the binocular receptive fields of lateral geniculate neurons. Experimental Brain Research 13, 178–207.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schmielau, F. & Singer, W. (1977). The role of visual cortex for binocular interactions in the cat lateral geniculate nucleus. Brain Research 120, 354–361.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Schor, C. & Heckmann, T. (1989). Interocular differences in contrast and spatial frequency: Effects on stereopsis and fusion. Vision Research 29, 839–847.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Singer, W. (1970). Inhibitory binocular interaction in the lateral geniculate body of the cat. Brain Research 18, 165–170.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tootle, J.S. & Friedlander, M.J. (1989). Postnatal development of the spatial contrast sensitivity of X- and Y-cells in the kitten retinogeniculate pathway. Journal of Neuroscience 9, 1325–1340.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Troy, J.B. (1983). Spatial contrast sensitivities of X and Y type neurones in the cat's dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus. Journal of Physiology (London) 344, 399–418.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Tumosa, N., McCall, M.A., Guido, W. & Spear, P.D. (1989). Responses of lateral geniculate neurons that survive long-term visual cortex damage in kittens and adult cats. Journal of Neuroscience 9, 280–298.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Varela, F.J. & Singer, W. (1987). Neuronal dynamics in the visual corticothalamic pathway revealed through binocular rivalry. Experimental Brain Research 66, 10–20.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Xue, J.-T., Ramoa, A.S., Carney, T. & Freeman, R.D. (1987). Binocular interaction in the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus of the cat. Experimental Brain Research 68, 305–310.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed