A motor cortex circuit for motor planning and movement.
Activity in motor cortex predicts specific movements seconds before they occur, but how this preparatory activity relates to upcoming movements is obscure. We dissected the conversion of preparatory activity to movement within a structured motor cortex circuit. An anterior lateral region of the mouse cortex (a possible homologue of premotor cortex in primates) contains equal proportions of intermingled neurons predicting ipsi- or contralateral movements, yet unilateral inactivation of this cortical region during movement planning disrupts contralateral movements. Using cell-type-specific electrophysiology, cellular imaging and optogenetic perturbation, we show that layer 5 neurons projecting within the cortex have unbiased laterality. Activity with a contralateral population bias arises specifically in layer 5 neurons projecting to the brainstem, and only late during movement planning. These results reveal the transformation of distributed preparatory activity into movement commands within hierarchically organized cortical circuits.
Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA.
Nuo
N
Li
Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA.
Tsai-Wen
TW
Chen
Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA.
Zengcai V
ZV
Guo
Laboratory of Systems Neuroscience, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892, USA.
Charles R
CR
Gerfen
Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia 20147, USA.
Karel
K
Svoboda
D000818:Animals; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D001933:Brain Stem / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology; D004594:Electrophysiology; D051379:Mice; D009044:Motor Cortex / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D017966:Pyramidal Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology