Scientists from the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience have discovered that a small and often overlooked part of the brain known as the superior colliculus plays an important role in vision and perception. The study was published in the scientific journal magazine eLife.
It is known that a special area of the brain, the visual cortex, is responsible for processing visual information. There are also animals whose visual cortex is less developed, but whose vision is functional. These observations led experts to the idea that vision depends on other parts of the brain. Neuroscientists have drawn attention to the superior colliculus because it is an evolutionarily ancient structure found in all classes of vertebrates.
Researchers conducted experiments on mice because of their anatomical similarity to humans and the presence of both the visual cortex and superior colliculus. The tests included 16 trials in which rodents were taught to recognize and respond to shapes in different backgrounds.
Scientists then use light to temporarily disable the superior colliculus. It turned out that in this case, the animals were still able to respond to the numbers, but it became much more difficult for them to recognize the images presented.
Analysis of brain activity showed characteristic activation of neurons in certain areas of the brain. According to neuroscientists, this indicates a special neural code for detecting objects. Additionally, the experiment showed that there are parallel pathways in the brain for processing visual information.
Experts noted that their invention could be used to treat various visual disorders in humans.
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