title: Receptive fields and response properties of neurons in layer 4 of ferret visual cortex.
abstract: The ferret has become a model animal for studies exploring the development of the visual system. However, little is known about the receptive-field structure and response properties of neurons in the adult visual cortex of the ferret. We performed single-unit recordings from neurons in layer 4 of adult ferret primary visual cortex to determine the receptive-field structure and visual-response properties of individual neurons. In particular, we asked what is the spatiotemporal structure of receptive fields of layer 4 neurons and what is the orientation selectivity of layer 4 neurons? Receptive fields of layer 4 neurons were mapped using a white-noise stimulus; orientation selectivity was determined using drifting, sine-wave gratings. Our results show that most neurons (84%) within layer 4 are simple cells with elongated, spatially segregated, ON and OFF subregions. These neurons are also selective for stimulus orientation; peaks in orientation-tuning curves have, on average, a half-width at half-maximum response of 21.5 +/- 1.2 degrees (mean +/- SD). The remaining neurons in layer 4 (16%) lack orientation selectivity and have center/surround receptive fields. Although the organization of geniculate inputs to layer 4 differs substantially between ferret and cat, our results demonstrate that, like in the cat, most neurons in ferret layer 4 are orientation-selective simple cells.
authors.affiliation: Center for Neuroscience, University of California, Davis, California 95616, USA. wmusrey@ucdavis.edu
authors.forename: W Martin
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Usrey
authors.forename: Michael P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Sceniak
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chapman
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001931:Brain Mapping; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005289:Ferrets; D008959:Models, Neurological; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D009949:Orientation / Q000502:physiology; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D014794:Visual Fields / Q000502:physiology*