The Dynamics of Stimulus Selection in the Nucleus Isthmi Pars Magnocellularis of Avian Midbrain Network

The Dynamics of Stimulus Selection in the Nucleus Isthmi Pars Magnocellularis of Avian Midbrain Network | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article The Dynamics of Stimulus Selection in the Nucleus Isthmi Pars Magnocellularis of Avian Midbrain Network Longlong Qian, Chongchong Jia, Jiangtao Wang, Zhizhong Wang, Li Shi, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-5665397/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 25 May, 2025 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted 7 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The nucleus isthmi pars magnocellularis (Imc) serves as a critical node in the avian midbrain network for encoding stimulus salience and selection. While reciprocal inhibitory projections among Imc neurons (inhibitory loop) are known to govern stimulus selection, existing studies have predominantly focused on stimulus selection under stimuli of constant relative intensity. However, animals typically encounter complex and changeable visual scenes. Thus, how Imc neurons represent stimulus selection under varying relative stimulus intensities remains unclear. Here, we examined the dynamics of stimulus selection by in vivo recording of Imc neurons' responses to spatiotemporally successive visual stimuli divided into two segments: the previous stimulus and the post stimulus. Our data demonstrate that Imc neurons can encode sensory memory of the previous stimulus, which modulates competition and salience representation in the post stimulus. This ​history-dependent modulation is also manifested in persistent neural activity after stimulus cessation. We identified, through neural tracing, focal inactivation, and computational modeling experiments, projections from the nucleus isthmi pars parvocellularis (Ipc) to "shepherd’s crook" (Shc) neurons, which could be either direct or indirect. These projections enhance Imc neurons' responses and persistent neural activity after stimulus cessation. This connectivity supports ​a Shc-Ipc-Shc excitatory loop in the midbrain network. The coexistence of ​excitatory and inhibitory loops provides ​a neural substrate for ​continuous attractor network models, ​a proposed framework for neural information representation. This study also offers a potential explanation for how animals maintain short-term attention to targets in complex and changeable environments. Biological sciences/Neuroscience/Neural circuit Biological sciences/Neuroscience/Neuronal physiology Biological sciences/Neuroscience/Visual system stimulus competition dynamics excitatory loop sensory memory attractor network Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files SupplementaryMaterials.docx Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 25 May, 2025 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Accepted 12 May, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 24 Mar, 2025 Reviews received at journal 22 Mar, 2025 Reviewers agreed at journal 22 Mar, 2025 Reviewers invited by journal 21 Mar, 2025 Submission checks completed at journal 20 Mar, 2025 First submitted to journal 19 Mar, 2025 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-5665397","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":433071375,"identity":"5c3b6a7e-cbb6-404d-a2c8-7635573dabd2","order_by":0,"name":"Longlong Qian","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Zhengzhou University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Longlong","middleName":"","lastName":"Qian","suffix":""},{"id":433071377,"identity":"3e87f6f2-5a40-4541-b726-8f615a5a70ec","order_by":1,"name":"Chongchong Jia","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Zhengzhou 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While reciprocal inhibitory projections among Imc neurons (inhibitory loop) are known to govern stimulus selection, existing studies have predominantly focused on stimulus selection under stimuli of constant relative intensity. However, animals typically encounter complex and changeable visual scenes. Thus, how Imc neurons represent stimulus selection under varying relative stimulus intensities remains unclear. Here, we examined the dynamics of stimulus selection by in vivo recording of Imc neurons' responses to spatiotemporally successive visual stimuli divided into two segments: the previous stimulus and the post stimulus. Our data demonstrate that Imc neurons can encode sensory memory of the previous stimulus, which modulates competition and salience representation in the post stimulus. This ​history-dependent modulation is also manifested in persistent neural activity after stimulus cessation. 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