AUTHOR=Shi Xuefeng , Jin Yanjiao , Cang Jianhua 

TITLE=Transformation of Feature Selectivity From Membrane Potential to Spikes in the Mouse Superior Colliculus

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience

VOLUME=12

YEAR=2018

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cellular-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fncel.2018.00163

DOI=10.3389/fncel.2018.00163

ISSN=1662-5102

ABSTRACT=<p>Neurons in the visual system display varying degrees of selectivity for stimulus features such as orientation and direction. Such feature selectivity is generated and processed by intricate circuit and synaptic mechanisms. A key factor in this process is the input-output transformation from membrane potential (V<sub>m</sub>) to spikes in individual neurons. Here, we use <italic>in vivo</italic> whole-cell recording to study V<sub>m</sub>-to-spike transformation of visual feature selectivity in the superficial neurons of the mouse superior colliculus (SC). As expected from the spike threshold effect, direction and orientation selectivity increase from V<sub>m</sub> to spike responses. The degree of this increase is highly variable, and interestingly, it is correlated with the receptive field size of the recorded neurons. We find that the relationships between V<sub>m</sub> and spike rate and between V<sub>m</sub> dynamics and spike initiation are also correlated with receptive field size, which likely contribute to the observed input-output transformation of feature selectivity. Together, our findings provide useful information for understanding information processing and visual transformation in the mouse SC.</p>