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Microstimulation of visual cortex affects the speed of perceptual decisions
Abstract
Direction-selective neurons in the middle temporal visual area (MT) are crucially involved in motion perception, although it is not known exactly how the activity of these neurons is interpreted by the rest of the brain. Here we report that in a two-alternative task, the activity of MT neurons is interpreted as evidence for one direction and against the other. We measured the speed and accuracy of decisions as rhesus monkeys performed a direction-discrimination task. On half of the trials, we stimulated direction-selective neurons in area MT, thereby causing the monkeys to choose the neurons' preferred direction more often. Microstimulation quickened decisions in favor of the preferred direction and slowed decisions in favor of the opposite direction. Even on trials in which microstimulation did not induce a preferred direction choice, it still affected response times. Our findings suggest that during the formation of a decision, sensory evidence for competing propositions is compared and accumulates to a decision-making threshold.
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In the citing paper
“In the two-choice task, LIP neurons seem to reflect the difference in firing rates between neurons tuned to two opposing directions of motion21.”
From Decision-making with multiple alternatives (2008) · cites this paper as [21]
In the citing paper
“Stimulation in MT seems to affect the decision process by mimicking a change in motion strength.”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“Even for sites restricted to have comparable changes in RT, MT stimulation had much stronger effects on choice than LIP stimulation (11.06 ± 0.72% coh vs. 1.62 ± 0.25% coh, P < 0.001, t test; Fig. 4, shaded region).”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“At face value, microstimulation of neurons in LIP appears to affect decisions about motion in a manner that is qualitatively similar to stimulation of direction-selective neurons in area MT during the same task16.”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“According to the model, MT stimulation was accounted for best as a change in the momentary evidence equivalent to 9.3% coh (CI: 7.8 to 10.8% coh).”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“This suggests that the comparable effects on RT and choice for MT stimulation are due to the changes in the momentary evidence, as if microstimulation added to the spike rate of neurons that represent motion in their preferred direction16.”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“According to this framework, motion-selective neurons in MT provide the momentary evidence that is accumulated into the decision variable represented by neurons in LIP.”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“For this monkey, microstimulation of area MT produced a change in momentary evidence equivalent to ~10% coherent motion in the preferred direction of the stimulated neurons (see Methods)16.”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“This puts LIP neurons on similar footing to MT neurons, which have been shown to play a causal role in the perceptual judgment of visual motion in their receptive fields7,16,23.”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“The MT stimulation study to which we compare our data used the same stimulation protocol, except the amplitude of the current pulses was 5 µA16.”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
In the citing paper
“The MT data (Fig. 4 and Fig 5) are from a previously published study16 and incorporate two additional sites acquired after publication.”
From Microstimulation of macaque area LIP affects decision-making in a motion discrimination task (2006) · cites this paper as [16]
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Metadata
- Authors
- Ditterich, J., Mazurek, M. E., & Shadlen, M. N.
- Affiliations
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute (US)
- Corresponding author
- Shadlen, Michael N
- Venue
- Nature Neuroscience
- Published
- 2003-07-13
- Volume
- 6
- Issue
- 8
- Pages
- 891-898
- ISSN
- 1097-6256 (ISSN-L)
- 1546-1726
- OpenAlex
- W2152408796
- Cited by
- 234
- References
- 50
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 11 · 2019: 8 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 7 · 2015: 11 · 2014: 16 · 2013: 5 · 2012: 12
- FWCI
- 5.22
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Nature Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Achievement Rewards for College Scientists Foundation
- Fondation ARC pour la Recherche sur le Cancer
- National Eye Institute (EY11378, R01EY011378)
- National Center for Research Resources (RR00166, P51RR000166)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Visual perception and processing mechanisms
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Multisensory perception and integration
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural dynamics and brain function
- Keywords
- middle temporal area, direction-selective neurons, motion perception, perceptual decision making, decision-making speed, decision threshold, evidence accumulation, direction discrimination, rhesus monkeys
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Discrimination, Psychological, Electric Stimulation, Female, Macaca mulatta, Motion Perception, Neurons, Time Factors, Visual Cortex
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