847 research outputs found
Reorganization of columnar architecture in the growing visual cortex
Many cortical areas increase in size considerably during postnatal
development, progressively displacing neuronal cell bodies from each other. At
present, little is known about how cortical growth affects the development of
neuronal circuits. Here, in acute and chronic experiments, we study the layout
of ocular dominance (OD) columns in cat primary visual cortex (V1) during a
period of substantial postnatal growth. We find that despite a considerable
size increase of V1, the spacing between columns is largely preserved. In
contrast, their spatial arrangement changes systematically over this period.
While in young animals columns are more band-like, layouts become more
isotropic in mature animals. We propose a novel mechanism of growth-induced
reorganization that is based on the `zigzag instability', a dynamical
instability observed in several inanimate pattern forming systems. We argue
that this mechanism is inherent to a wide class of models for the
activity-dependent formation of OD columns. Analyzing one member of this class,
the Elastic Network model, we show that this mechanism can account for the
preservation of column spacing and the specific mode of reorganization of OD
columns that we observe. We conclude that neurons systematically shift their
selectivities during normal development and that this reorganization is induced
by the cortical expansion during growth. Our work suggests that cortical
circuits remain plastic for an extended period in development in order to
facilitate the modification of neuronal circuits to adjust for cortical growth.Comment: 8+13 pages, 4+8 figures, paper + supplementary materia
Bayesian estimation of orientation preference maps
Imaging techniques such as optical imaging of intrinsic signals, 2-photon calcium imaging and voltage sensitive dye imaging can be used to measure the functional organization of visual cortex across different spatial and temporal scales. Here, we present Bayesian methods based on Gaussian processes for extracting topographic maps from functional imaging data. In particular, we focus on the estimation of orientation preference maps (OPMs) from intrinsic signal imaging data. We model the underlying map as a bivariate Gaussian process, with a prior covariance function that reflects known properties of OPMs, and a noise covariance adjusted to the data. The posterior mean can be interpreted as an optimally smoothed estimate of the map, and can be used for model based interpolations of the map from sparse measurements. By sampling from the posterior distribution, we can get error bars on statistical properties such as preferred orientations, pinwheel locations or pinwheel counts. Finally, the use of an explicit probabilistic model facilitates interpretation of parameters and quantitative model comparisons. We demonstrate our model both on simulated data and on intrinsic signaling data from ferret visual cortex
Inter-areal coordination of columnar architectures during visual cortical development
The occurrence of a critical period of plasticity in the visual cortex has
long been established, yet its function in normal development is not fully
understood. Here we show that as the late phase of the critical period unfolds,
different areas of cat visual cortex develop in a coordinated manner.
Orientation columns in areas V1 and V2 become matched in size in regions that
are mutually connected. The same age trend is found for such regions in the
left and right brain hemisphere. Our results indicate that a function of
critical period plasticity is to progressively coordinate the functional
architectures of different cortical areas - even across hemispheres.Comment: 30 pages, 1 table, 6 figure
Coordinated optimization of visual cortical maps (I) Symmetry-based analysis
In the primary visual cortex of primates and carnivores, functional
architecture can be characterized by maps of various stimulus features such as
orientation preference (OP), ocular dominance (OD), and spatial frequency. It
is a long-standing question in theoretical neuroscience whether the observed
maps should be interpreted as optima of a specific energy functional that
summarizes the design principles of cortical functional architecture. A
rigorous evaluation of this optimization hypothesis is particularly demanded by
recent evidence that the functional architecture of OP columns precisely
follows species invariant quantitative laws. Because it would be desirable to
infer the form of such an optimization principle from the biological data, the
optimization approach to explain cortical functional architecture raises the
following questions: i) What are the genuine ground states of candidate energy
functionals and how can they be calculated with precision and rigor? ii) How do
differences in candidate optimization principles impact on the predicted map
structure and conversely what can be learned about an hypothetical underlying
optimization principle from observations on map structure? iii) Is there a way
to analyze the coordinated organization of cortical maps predicted by
optimization principles in general? To answer these questions we developed a
general dynamical systems approach to the combined optimization of visual
cortical maps of OP and another scalar feature such as OD or spatial frequency
preference.Comment: 90 pages, 16 figure
Coverage, Continuity and Visual Cortical Architecture
The primary visual cortex of many mammals contains a continuous
representation of visual space, with a roughly repetitive aperiodic map of
orientation preferences superimposed. It was recently found that orientation
preference maps (OPMs) obey statistical laws which are apparently invariant
among species widely separated in eutherian evolution. Here, we examine whether
one of the most prominent models for the optimization of cortical maps, the
elastic net (EN) model, can reproduce this common design. The EN model
generates representations which optimally trade of stimulus space coverage and
map continuity. While this model has been used in numerous studies, no
analytical results about the precise layout of the predicted OPMs have been
obtained so far. We present a mathematical approach to analytically calculate
the cortical representations predicted by the EN model for the joint mapping of
stimulus position and orientation. We find that in all previously studied
regimes, predicted OPM layouts are perfectly periodic. An unbiased search
through the EN parameter space identifies a novel regime of aperiodic OPMs with
pinwheel densities lower than found in experiments. In an extreme limit,
aperiodic OPMs quantitatively resembling experimental observations emerge.
Stabilization of these layouts results from strong nonlocal interactions rather
than from a coverage-continuity-compromise. Our results demonstrate that
optimization models for stimulus representations dominated by nonlocal
suppressive interactions are in principle capable of correctly predicting the
common OPM design. They question that visual cortical feature representations
can be explained by a coverage-continuity-compromise.Comment: 100 pages, including an Appendix, 21 + 7 figure
Coordinated optimization of visual cortical maps (II) Numerical studies
It is an attractive hypothesis that the spatial structure of visual cortical
architecture can be explained by the coordinated optimization of multiple
visual cortical maps representing orientation preference (OP), ocular dominance
(OD), spatial frequency, or direction preference. In part (I) of this study we
defined a class of analytically tractable coordinated optimization models and
solved representative examples in which a spatially complex organization of the
orientation preference map is induced by inter-map interactions. We found that
attractor solutions near symmetry breaking threshold predict a highly ordered
map layout and require a substantial OD bias for OP pinwheel stabilization.
Here we examine in numerical simulations whether such models exhibit
biologically more realistic spatially irregular solutions at a finite distance
from threshold and when transients towards attractor states are considered. We
also examine whether model behavior qualitatively changes when the spatial
periodicities of the two maps are detuned and when considering more than 2
feature dimensions. Our numerical results support the view that neither minimal
energy states nor intermediate transient states of our coordinated optimization
models successfully explain the spatially irregular architecture of the visual
cortex. We discuss several alternative scenarios and additional factors that
may improve the agreement between model solutions and biological observations.Comment: 55 pages, 11 figures. arXiv admin note: substantial text overlap with
arXiv:1102.335
Self-organization and the selection of pinwheel density in visual cortical development
Self-organization of neural circuitry is an appealing framework for
understanding cortical development, yet its applicability remains unconfirmed.
Models for the self-organization of neural circuits have been proposed, but
experimentally testable predictions of these models have been less clear. The
visual cortex contains a large number of topological point defects, called
pinwheels, which are detectable in experiments and therefore in principle well
suited for testing predictions of self-organization empirically. Here, we
analytically calculate the density of pinwheels predicted by a pattern
formation model of visual cortical development. An important factor controlling
the density of pinwheels in this model appears to be the presence of non-local
long-range interactions, a property which distinguishes cortical circuits from
many nonliving systems in which self-organization has been studied. We show
that in the limit where the range of these interactions is infinite, the
average pinwheel density converges to . Moreover, an average pinwheel
density close to this value is robustly selected even for intermediate
interaction ranges, a regime arguably covering interaction-ranges in a wide
range of different species. In conclusion, our paper provides the first direct
theoretical demonstration and analysis of pinwheel density selection in models
of cortical self-organization and suggests to quantitatively probe this type of
prediction in future high-precision experiments.Comment: 22 pages, 3 figure
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Tasas mínimas de captura-recaptura y años de funcionamiento de la estación de anillamiento para obtener estimaciones confiables de la supervivencia anual de los adultos
We examined variability in adult annual survival rate estimates for 33 breeding bird species, using 2011–2019 data from a 38-station Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) program in Alberta, Canada. Using coefficient of variation (CV) as a metric, we provide recommendations for number of years a station should be operated and numbers of captures and between-year recaptures required to achieve acceptable levels of precision for adult survival estimation. Our primary aim was to provide minimum sample-size guidelines for MAPS banding station operators. The proportion of individual species × spatial scale scenarios for which we could obtain adult survival estimates, as well as the precision of those estimates, increased substantially once six years of data were collected, and we recommend six years as a target minimum level of continuity for banding station operation. Across 33 species analyzed, averages of 23.4 captures (3.9/yr) and 2.1 recaptures (0.4/yr) were needed to yield marginally precise survival estimates (CV of 20% to 30%, inclusive), while averages of 89.2 captures (14.9/yr) and 6.3 recaptures (1.1/yr) were needed to achieve more precise estimates (CV < 20%). We suggest these as guidelines for minimum capture and recapture rates at the scale of individual banding stations and for clusters of stations, e.g., multiple stations operated in a selected habitat type or sampling region, respectively. It should be noted, however, that sample-size requirements will vary markedly among species. For example, reliable estimates of survival for species with low between-year site fidelity, e.g., Tennessee Warbler (Leiothlypis peregrina), will not be obtainable at any sample size; while species with high inter-annual site fidelity and recapture probabilities, e.g., some flycatchers, thrushes, sparrows, and wood warblers, will require smaller sample sizes than those proposed here as guidelines.</p
Resposta sorológica para Leishmania braziliensis utilizando técnica ELISA para cães imunizados com duas vacinas comerciais frente à Leishmaniose Visceral.
O presente projeto pretende avaliar a proteção de duas diferentes vacinas comercialmente disponíveis para proteção contra leishmaniose visceral na proteção contra leishmaniose tegumentar americana (LTA) em cães de município endêmico para enfermidade. Para tanto, serão selecionados pela técnica sorológica de ELISA 70 cães soronegativos para LTA (1,0% da população canina) no município de Íuna, Espírito Santo, sendo posteriormente divididos em dois grupos de igual número e vacinados com três doses segundo orientação dos fabricantes (Leishmune®;FORT DODGE Saúde Animal Ltda / Leish-Tec®;Hertape Calier Saúde Animal S.A.). Semestralmente, estes animais serão monitorados clinicamente e sorologicamente para verificar proteção contra desenvolvimento de LTA. Espera-se que ambas vacinas protejam significativamente os cães vacinados frente a infecção para Leishmania (Viannia) braziliensis
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