In a part of the brain responsible for recognizing color, texture and shape, Johns Hopkins University researchers found neurons that used large-scale environmental cues to infer the direction of gravity.
Researchers in the journal Current Biology studied individual cells in the object area of the rhesus monkey brain, a remarkably close model for the organization and function of human vision. They measured responses of each cell to about 500 abstract three-dimensional shapes presented on a computer monitor. The shapes ranged from small objects to large landscapes and interiors.
'
They found that a given cell would respond to many different stimuli, especially large planes and sharp, extended edges. What tied these stimuli together was their alignment in the same tilted rectilinear reference frame. These cells, sensitive to different tilts, could provide a continuous signal for the direction of gravity, even as a person constantly moves.
In other words, these neurons could help people understand which way is up.
"The world does not appear to rotate when the head tilts left or right or gaze tilts up or down, even though the visual image changes dramatically," author said. "That perceptual stability must depend on signals like these that provide a constant sense of how the visual environment is oriented."
The researchers' initial discovery of cells sensitive to large-scale shape, reported in Neuron in 2014, was surprising because they found them in a brain region long regarded as dedicated exclusively to object vision. The new findings make sense of this anatomical juxtaposition, since knowing the gravitational reference frame is critical for predicting how objects will behave.
"When we dive after a ball in tennis, the whole visual world tilts, but we maintain our sense of how the ball will fall and how to aim our next shot," author said. "The visual cortex generates an incredibly rich understanding of object structure, materials, strength, elasticity, balance, and movement potential. These are the things that make us such expert intuitive physicists."
http://releases.jhu.edu/2016/03/08/scientists-find-brain-cells-that-know-which-end-is-up/
Brain cells that know which end is up
- 1,106 views
- Added
Edited
Latest News
Protein that helps COVID-19…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SM…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Link between bowel movement…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Inhibition of IL-11 signall…
By newseditor
Posted 25 Jul
Brain changes linked to obe…
By newseditor
Posted 25 Jul
Other Top Stories
Dual sensor role for potassium channel in bacteria!
Read more
Faster detection of pathogens in the lungs
Read more
Antibodies that are effective against both dengue and Zika viruses
Read more
$2 portable Zika test
Read more
A new angle for countering severe bacterial infections and sepsis
Read more
Protocols
A systems biology approach…
By newseditor
Posted 24 Jul
quantms: a cloud-based pipe…
By newseditor
Posted 22 Jul
Emerging tools and best pra…
By newseditor
Posted 19 Jul
Directly selecting cell-typ…
By newseditor
Posted 17 Jul
PUFFFIN: an ultra-bright, c…
By newseditor
Posted 16 Jul
Publications
Hepatocyte-intrinsic SMN de…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Aberrant bowel movement fre…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
A pseudoautosomal glycosyla…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Microglia protect against a…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Rigor and reproducibility i…
By newseditor
Posted 26 Jul
Presentations
Myelin plasticity in the ve…
By newseditor
Posted 10 Jun
Hydrogels in Drug Delivery
By newseditor
Posted 12 Apr
Lipids
By newseditor
Posted 31 Dec
Cell biology of carbohydrat…
By newseditor
Posted 29 Nov
RNA interference (RNAi)
By newseditor
Posted 23 Oct
Posters
A chemical biology/modular…
By newseditor
Posted 22 Aug
Single-molecule covalent ma…
By newseditor
Posted 04 Jul
ASCO-2020-HEALTH SERVICES R…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar
ASCO-2020-HEAD AND NECK CANCER
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar
ASCO-2020-GENITOURINARY CAN…
By newseditor
Posted 23 Mar