Capabilities of monkey cortical cells in spatial-resolution tasks
Abstract
The performance of individual neurons in monkey striate cortex has been examined in three spatial-resolution tasks by making microelectrode recordings from single cells in anaesthetized, paralyzed animals. The statistical reliability of responses from cells was used to estimate threshold levels of performance. For each task (resolution acuity for high-contrast gratings, discrimination of gratings varying in spatial frequency, and localization ability, i.e., discrimination of spatial phase), performance approaching psychophysical thresholds was obtained from single cortical cells. The receptive-field organization underlying localization performance was examined in detail by the use of a linear model that relates localization ability to the sensitivity of the receptive field to luminance contrast. Calculations from this model agree well with direct measurements of localization performance and are comparable with psychophysical measurements of hyperacuity. Though it has been suggested that cells with nonoriented receptive fields in cortical layer IVc beta may be responsible for recovering fine-grain spatial information, our calculations indicate that these cells are poorer at localization than many other cells in the cortex.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
Several studies have found good agreement between population-level responses of gain-modulated neurons and psychophysical performance in visual contrast discrimination in humans and non-human primates.
“Indeed, several studies have found good agreement between the population-level responses of gain-modulated neurons (such as the population-average contrast response function) and psychophysical performance (for example, in visual contrast discrimination) in humans and non-human primates12,20–24.”
From Mechanisms underlying gain modulation in the cortex (2020) · cites this paper as [23]
Cites
The contrast sensitivity of retinal ganglion cells of the cat
Enroth-Cugell, C., & Robson, J. G. (1966) · The Journal of Physiology · doi:10.1113/jphysiol.1966.sp008107 · Cited by 2,625 · see citing works
Optical and retinal factors affecting visual resolution.
Campbell, F. W., & Green, D. G. (1965) · The Journal of Physiology · doi:10.1113/jphysiol.1965.sp007784 · Cited by 1,617 · see citing works
Spatial frequency selectivity of cells in macaque visual cortex
De Valois, R. L., Albrecht, D. G., & Thorell, L. G. (1982) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(82)90113-4 · Cited by 1,489 · see citing works
Spatial and temporal contrast sensitivities of neurones in lateral geniculate nucleus of macaque.
Derrington, A. M., & Lennie, P. (1984) · The Journal of Physiology · doi:10.1113/jphysiol.1984.sp015498 · Cited by 1,059 · see citing works
The statistical reliability of signals in single neurons in cat and monkey visual cortex
Tolhurst, D. J., Movshon, J. A., & Dean, A. F. (1983) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(83)90200-6 · Cited by 982 · see citing works
Spatial summation in the receptive fields of simple cells in the cat's striate cortex.
Movshon, J. A., Thompson, I. D., & Tolhurst, D. J. (1978) · The Journal of Physiology · doi:10.1113/jphysiol.1978.sp012488 · Cited by 890 · see citing works
Optical quality of the human eye
Campbell, F. W., & Gubisch, R. W. (1966) · The Journal of Physiology · doi:10.1113/jphysiol.1966.sp008056 · Cited by 820 · see citing works
Probability summation over time.
Watson, A. (1979) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(79)90136-6 · Cited by 626 · see citing works
Valois, R. L. D., Morgan, H. C., & Snodderly, D. M. (1974) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(74)90118-7 · Cited by 445 · see citing works
Barlow, H. B. (1981) · Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rspb.1981.0022 · Cited by 364 · see citing works
Modified line-element theory for spatial-frequency and width discrimination
Wilson, H. R., & Gelb, D. J. (1984) · Journal of the Optical Society of America A · doi:10.1364/josaa.1.000124 · Cited by 287 · see citing works
Responses to single quanta of light in retinal ganglion cells of the cat
Barlow, H. B., Levick, W. R., & Yoon, M. (1971) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(71)90033-2 · Cited by 274 · see citing works
The recognition and representation of edge blur: Evidence for spatial primitives in human vision
Watt, R. J., & Morgan, M. J. (1983) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(83)90158-x · Cited by 270 · see citing works
Neural Basis of Orientation Perception in Primate Vision
Mansfield, R. J. W. (1974) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.186.4169.1133 · Cited by 259 · see citing works
Spatio‐temporal interactions in cat retinal ganglion cells showing linear spatial summation.
Enroth‐Cugell, C., Robson, J. G., Schweitzer‐Tong, D. E., & Watson, A. B. (1983) · The Journal of Physiology · doi:10.1113/jphysiol.1983.sp014806 · Cited by 254 · see citing works
Three factors limiting the reliable detection of light by retinal ganglion cells of the cat
Barlow, H. B., & Levick, W. R. (1969) · The Journal of Physiology · doi:10.1113/jphysiol.1969.sp008679 · Cited by 251 · see citing works
A vector-magnitude model of contrast detection
Quick, R. (2004) · Kybernetik · doi:10.1007/bf00271628 · Cited by 248 · see citing works
Temporal and spatial interference with vernier acuity
Westheimer, G., & Hauske, G. (1975) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(75)90012-7 · Cited by 228 · see citing works
The spatial sense of the eye. Proctor lecture.
Westheimer, G. (1979) · PubMed · Cited by 208 · see citing works
Human orientation discrimination tested with long stimuli
Orban, G. A., Vandenbussche, E., & Vogels, R. (1984) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(84)90097-x · Cited by 202 · see citing works
Linsenmeier, R. A., Frishman, L. J., Jakiela, H. G., & Enroth‐Cugell, C. (1982) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(82)90082-7 · Cited by 197 · see citing works
Visual hyperacuity: spatiotemporal interpolation in human vision
Fahle, M. W., & Poggio, T. (1981) · Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences · doi:10.1098/rspb.1981.0075 · Cited by 196 · see citing works
Spatial-Frequency Discrimination in Human Vision
Campbell, F. W., Nachmias, J., & Jukes, J. (1970) · Journal of the Optical Society of America · doi:10.1364/josa.60.000555 · Cited by 178 · see citing works
Reconstructing the visual image in space and time
Barlow, H. B. (1979) · Nature · doi:10.1038/279189a0 · Cited by 154 · see citing works
The physiological basis of variations in visual latency
Lennie, P. (1981) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(81)90180-2 · Cited by 152 · see citing works
Westheimer, G. (1981) · Progress in sensory physiology · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-66744-2_1 · Cited by 149 · see citing works
Hawken, M. J., & Parker, A. J. (1984) · Experimental Brain Research · doi:10.1007/bf00236238 · Cited by 145 · see citing works
Self-citationOrientation specificity and response variability of cells in the striate cortex
Henry, G. H., Bishop, P. O., Tupper, R. M., & Dreher, B. (1973) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(73)90094-1 · Cited by 141 · see citing works
Response variability and orientation discrimination of single cells in striate cortex of cat
Heggelund, P., & Albus, K. (1978) · Experimental Brain Research · doi:10.1007/bf00239727 · Cited by 135 · see citing works
Acuities for spatial arrangement in line figures: Human and ideal observers compared
Andrews, D. P., Butcher, A. K., & Buckley, B. R. (1973) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(73)90026-6 · Cited by 127 · see citing works
Contour curvature analysis: Hyperacuities in the discrimination of detailed shape
Watt, R. J., & Andrews, D. P. (1982) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(82)90193-6 · Cited by 117 · see citing works
Harwerth, R. S., Smith, E. L., Boltz, R. L., Crawford, M. L. J., & von Noorden, G. K. (1983) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(83)90162-1 · Cited by 114 · see citing works
Limits of spatial-frequency discrimination as evidence of neural interpolation
Hirsch, J., & Hylton, R. (1982) · Journal of the Optical Society of America · doi:10.1364/josa.72.001367 · Cited by 112 · see citing works
Mechanisms responsible for the assessment of visual location: Theory and evidence
Watt, R. J., & Morgan, M. J. (1983) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(83)90046-9 · Cited by 106 · see citing works
Vernier acuity as affected by target length and separation
Sullivan, G. D., Oatley, K., & Sutherland, N. (1972) · Perception & Psychophysics · doi:10.3758/bf03205858 · Cited by 94 · see citing works
Enroth‐Cugell, C., & Robson, J. G. (1984) · PubMed · Cited by 91 · see citing works
Spatial-frequency adaptation and grating discrimination: predictions of a line-element model
Wilson, H. R., & Regan, D. (1984) · Journal of the Optical Society of America A · doi:10.1364/josaa.1.001091 · Cited by 91 · see citing works
Independence of orientation and size in spatial discriminations
Burbeck, C. A., & Regan, D. (1983) · Journal of the Optical Society of America · doi:10.1364/josa.73.001691 · Cited by 86 · see citing works
Averaging over the foveal receptor aperture curtails aliasing
Miller, W. H., & Bernard, G. D. (1983) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(83)90147-5 · Cited by 79 · see citing works
Averill, H. L., & Weymouth, F. W. (1925) · Journal of comparative psychology · doi:10.1037/h0072373 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Mechanisms of interpolation in human spatial vision
Morgan, M. J., & Watt, R. J. (1982) · Nature · doi:10.1038/299553a0 · Cited by 53 · see citing works
Williams, R., Boothe, R. G., Kiorpes, L., et al. (1981) · Vision Research · doi:10.1016/0042-6989(81)90230-3 · Cited by 51 · see citing works
Lee, B. B., Elepfandt, A., & Virsu, V. (1981) · Journal of Neurophysiology · doi:10.1152/jn.1981.45.5.807 · Cited by 34 · see citing works
Phase of responses to sinusoidal gratings of simple cells in cat striate cortex.
Lee, B. B., Elepfandt, A., & Virsu, V. (1981) · Journal of Neurophysiology · doi:10.1152/jn.1981.45.5.818 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Numbers of specific types of neuron in layer IVab of cat striate cortex.
Solnick, B., Davis, T. L., & Sterling, P. (1984) · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences · doi:10.1073/pnas.81.12.3898 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Flagged first, then by citations
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Softky, W., & Koch, C. (1993) · The Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.13-01-00334.1993 · Cited by 1,689 · see citing works
Neuronal correlates of a perceptual decision
Newsome, W. T., Britten, K. H., & Movshon, J. A. (1989) · Nature · doi:10.1038/341052a0 · Cited by 1,177 · see citing works
SENSE AND THE SINGLE NEURON: Probing the Physiology of Perception
Parker, A. J., & Newsome, W. T. (1998) · Annual Review of Neuroscience · doi:10.1146/annurev.neuro.21.1.227 · Cited by 801 · see citing works
Self-citationMechanisms underlying gain modulation in the cortex
Ferguson, K. A., & Cardin, J. A. (2020) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/s41583-019-0253-y · Cited by 327 · see citing works
Dynamics of neuronal responses in macaque MT and VIP during motion detection
Cook, E. P., & Maunsell, J. H. R. (2002) · Nature Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nn924 · Cited by 289 · see citing works
Effects of Attention on the Reliability of Individual Neurons in Monkey Visual Cortex
McAdams, C. J., & Maunsell, J. H. R. (1999) · Neuron · doi:10.1016/s0896-6273(01)80034-9 · Cited by 286 · see citing works
Human contrast discrimination and the threshold of cortical neurons
Barlow, H. B., Hawken, M., Parker, A. J., & Kaushal, T. P. (1987) · Journal of the Optical Society of America A · doi:10.1364/josaa.4.002366 · Cited by 79 · see citing works
Self-citation
- Authors
- Parker, A., & Hawken, M.
- Affiliations
- University of Oxford (GB)
- ORCID
- Parker, Andrew
- Venue
- Journal of the Optical Society of America A
- Publisher
- Optica Publishing Group
- Published
- 1985-07-01
- Volume
- 2
- Issue
- 7
- Pages
- 1101
- ISSN
- 1084-7529 (ISSN-L)
- 1520-8532
- OpenAlex
- W2036183488
- Cited by
- 128
- References
- 45
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2021: 1 · 2020: 4 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 1 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 4 · 2013: 2
- FWCI
- 1.68
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Journal of the Optical Society of America A (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Visual perception and processing mechanisms
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Face Recognition and Perception
- Keywords
- primary visual cortex, single neuron responses, spatial resolution, spatial localization, spatial frequency discrimination, receptive fields, hyperacuity, psychophysical thresholds, luminance contrast sensitivity, visual acuity
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Haplorhini, Discrimination, Psychological, Macaca fascicularis, Models, Biological, Neurons, Photic Stimulation, Psychophysiology, Space Perception, Vision, Ocular, Visual Acuity, Visual Cortex
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review
