A comparison of primate prefrontal and inferior temporal cortices during visual categorization.
Previous studies have suggested that both the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and inferior temporal cortex (ITC) are involved in high-level visual processing and categorization, but their respective roles are not known. To address this, we trained monkeys to categorize a continuous set of visual stimuli into two categories, "cats" and "dogs." The stimuli were parametrically generated using a computer graphics morphing system (Sheltonelton, 2000) that allowed precise control over stimulus shape. After training, we recorded neural activity from the PFC and the ITC of monkeys while they performed a category-matching task. We found that the PFC and the ITC play distinct roles in category-based behaviors: the ITC seems more involved in the analysis of currently viewed shapes, whereas the PFC showed stronger category signals, memory effects, and a greater tendency to encode information in terms of its behavioral meaning.
Freedman
David J
DJ
The Picower Center for Learning and Memory, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA. davidf@mit.edu
Riesenhuber
Maximilian
M
Poggio
Tomaso
T
Miller
Earl K
EK
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002415:Cats; D004285:Dogs; D004567:Electrodes, Implanted; D004594:Electrophysiology; D005133:Eye Movements / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D005403:Fixation, Ocular / Q000502:physiology; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008253:Macaca mulatta; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology; D010775:Photic Stimulation / Q000379:methods; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D012372:ROC Curve; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology; D021641:Recognition, Psychology / Q000502:physiology; D012201:Reward; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000502:physiology*; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*