Acar, Katerina
(2022)
Developmental and Neuromodulatory Influences on Cortical Population Activity and Perceptual Behavior.
Doctoral Dissertation, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
Abstract
All organisms, including human beings, rely on the ability to perceive and respond to sensory stimuli in order to thrive in any environment, whether natural or man-made. The accuracy of our perceptual decisions and actions, or the choices we make based on the available sensory information, depends on the activity of neurons throughout a network of brain regions with diverse functions such as sensory information processing, motor output preparation, and even internal behavioral state regulation. The purpose of this dissertation was to better understand the neural basis for variability in visual perception. We studied 1) how abnormal early visual experiences may influence sensory information processing by populations of primary visual cortex (V1) neurons and 2) how activation of the locus coeruleus (LC), the primary source of noradrenergic neuromodulation in the central nervous system, may influence cortical population activity patterns and perceptual behavior.
We first recorded and analyzed the visually evoked activity of V1 neuronal populations in rhesus macaques with strabismic amblyopia. Amblyopia is a disorder of the visual system that can arise when visual input through the two eyes is imbalanced during a critical window in development. We found evidence that changes in the strength and pattern of coordinated activity across populations of V1 neurons may contribute to degraded visual representations in amblyopia, potentially making it more difficult to read out evoked activity to support perceptual decisions.
In a separate set of experiments, we simultaneously recorded from single LC units and a population of neurons in prefrontal cortex (PFC), a region known to contribute to goal-directed behavior during cognition. We recorded these neural signals while rhesus macaques engaged in a task that required them to detect changes in visual stimuli and report their decisions by making saccadic eye movements. We first sought to understand how transient, burst-like changes in LC activation within trials of the task relate to sensory and motor aspects of perceptual decision making. Subsequently, we investigated whether over-time changes in baseline LC activity may track variability in coordinated PFC population activity and perceptual behavior.
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Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
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| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
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| ETD Committee: |
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| Date: |
12 October 2022 |
| Date Type: |
Publication |
| Defense Date: |
14 July 2022 |
| Approval Date: |
31 July 2024 |
| Submission Date: |
1 August 2022 |
| Access Restriction: |
No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately. |
| Number of Pages: |
189 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Neuroscience |
| Degree: |
PhD - Doctor of Philosophy |
| Thesis Type: |
Doctoral Dissertation |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
visual perception, neuromodulation, locus coeruleus, norepinephrine, amblyopia, sensorimotor processing, decision making, prefrontal cortex |
| Date Deposited: |
31 Jul 2024 19:34 |
| Last Modified: |
05 Aug 2024 22:11 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/43445 |
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