Intrinsic laminar lattice connections in primate visual cortex

Abstract

Intracortical injections of horseradish peroxidase (HRP) reveal a system of periodically organized intrinsic connections in primate striate cortex. In layers 2 and 3 these connections form a reticular or latticelike pattern, extending for about 1.5–2.0 mm around an injection. This connectional lattice is composed of HRP‐labeled walls (350–450 μm apart in Saimiri and about 500–600 μm in macaque) surrounding unlabeled central lacunae. Within the lattice walls there are regularly arranged punctate loci of particularly dense HRP label, appearing as isolated patches as the lattice wall labeling thins further from the injection site. A periodic organization has also been demonstrated for the intrinsic connections in layer 4B, which are apparently in register with the supragranular periodicities, although separated from these by a thin unlabeled region. The 4B lattice is particularly prominent in squirrel monkey, extending for 2–3 mm from an injection. In both layers, these intrinsic connections are demonstrated by orthogradely and retrogradely transported HRP and seem to reflect a system of neurons with long horizontal axon collaterals, presumably with arborizations at regularly spaced intervals. The intrinsic connectional lattice in layers 2 and 3 resembles the repetitive array of cytochrome oxidase activity in these layers; but despite similarities of dimension and pattern, the two systems do not appear identical. In primate, as previously described in tree shrews (Rockland et al., 1982), the HRP‐labeled anatomical connections resemble the pattern of 2‐deoxy‐glucose accumulation resulting from stimulation with oriented lines, although the functional importance of these connections remains obscure.