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Development of lateral interactions in the infant visual system

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 June 2009

Samuel Sokol
Affiliation:
New England Eye Center, New England Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston
Vance Zemon
Affiliation:
New England Eye Center, New England Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston Laboratory of Biophysics, Rockefeller University, New York
Anne Moskowitz
Affiliation:
New England Eye Center, New England Medical Center and Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston

Abstract

The development of lateral inhibitory interactions in the infant visual system, as reflected by the visual-evoked potential (VEP), was studied using a radial, asymmetrical windmill-dartboard stimulus. This contrast-reversing stimulus generates VEP responses with a strong fundamental frequency component and an attenuated second harmonic component (relative to that obtained using a symmetrical stimulus). These two harmonic components reflect distinct phenomena, and appear to be the result of short-range (the fundamental) and long-range (attenuated second harmonic) lateral inhibitory interactions elicited by differential luminance-modulation of contiguous spatial regions. We studied the development of the short-and long-range interactions at 100% and 30% contrast in human infants using both VEP amplitude and phase measures. Attenuation of the second harmonic (long-range interactions) was adult-like by 8 weeks of age while the strength of the fundamental (short-range interactions) was adult-like by 20 weeks suggesting a differential development of long-range and short-range interactions. In contrast, corresponding phase data indicated significant immaturities at 20 weeks of age for both the short-and long-range components.

Type
Research Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1992

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