Biology subjects

Huebener, M.

Publications and source records attributed to Huebener, M..

5 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Topography of distance-modulated multisensory object location encoding in mouse area RL

The spatial arrangement of an animals sensory environment is encoded by spatial codes of the external world, often simultaneously in different modalities. How these modalities are brought together in a universal spatial map and how potential differences are reconciled during multisensory integration remains unclear. To tackle this question, we systematically mapped object location receptive fields (OLRFs) across different sensory modalities in area RL, a pivot of visuo-tactile integration within mouse posterior parietal cortex, using a custom high-resolution three-dimensional multisensory stimulation system. Most RL neurons have three-dimensional receptive fields, with many exhibiting OLRFs across visual, tactile (i.e. vibrissal), and bimodal stimulus conditions. Comparing OLRFs across modalities revealed that distance strongly shapes visuo-tactile integration, reflected in the shift of bimodal OLRFs from tactile-dominant to visual-dominant with increasing distance. Distance also affects the linearity and spatial mode of integration. At near distances, neurons integrate object location information sublinearly from overlapping regions of visual and tactile OLRFs. At far distances, information is integrated supralinearly from regions covered by OLRFs of either modality. This distance dependency extends to cortical organization, leading to a distance tuning gradient along which the spatial, modality, and integration properties of RL neurons are aligned. Together, our findings suggest distance as a key factor in visuo-tactile integration, reflecting that the limited reach of whiskers makes visual information more important for farther objects. In parallel, the system shifts from a localization dominated mode for nearby objects to a detection dominated mode for farther objects.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2022

A primary sensory cortical interareal feedforward inhibitory circuit for tacto-visual integration

Tactile sensation and vision are often both utilized for the exploration of objects that are within reach though it is not known whether or how these two distinct sensory systems might combine such information. Here in mice we find that stimulation of the contralateral whisker array suppresses visually evoked activity in a subarea of primary visual cortex (VISp) whose visual space covers the whisker search space. This is mediated by local fast spiking interneurons that receive a direct cortico-cortical input predominantly from layer 6 of the primary somatosensory barrel cortex (SSp-bfd). These data demonstrate functional convergence within and between two primary sensory cortical areas for multisensory object detection and recognition.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

Relationship between input connectivity, morphology and orientation tuning of layer 2/3 pyramidal cells in mouse visual cortex

Neocortical pyramidal cells (PCs) display functional specializations defined by their excitatory and inhibitory circuit connectivity. For layer 2/3 (L2/3) PCs, little is known about the detailed relationship between their neuronal response properties, dendritic structure and their underlying circuit connectivity at the level of single cells. Here, we ask whether L2/3 PCs in mouse primary visual cortex (V1) differ in their functional intra- and interlaminar connectivity patterns, and how this relates to differences in visual response properties. Using a combined approach, we first characterized the orientation and direction tuning of individual L2/3 PCs with in vivo 2-photon calcium imaging. Subsequently, we performed excitatory and inhibitory synaptic input mapping of the same L2/3 PCs in brain slices using laser scanning photostimulation (LSPS). Our data from this structure-connectivity-function analysis show that the sources of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic input are different in their laminar origin and horizontal location with respect to cell position: On average, L2/3 PCs receive more inhibition than excitation from within L2/3, whereas excitation dominates input from L4 and L5. Horizontally, inhibitory input originates from locations closer to the horizontal position of the soma, while excitatory input arises from more distant locations in L4 and L5. In L2/3, the excitatory and inhibitory inputs spatially overlap on average. Importantly, at the level of individual neurons, PCs receive inputs from presynaptic cells located spatially offset, vertically and horizontally, relative to the soma. These input offsets show a systematic correlation with the preferred orientation of the postsynaptic L2/3 PC in vivo. Unexpectedly, this correlation is higher for inhibitory input offsets within L2/3 than for excitatory input offsets. When relating the dendritic complexity of L2/3 PCs to their orientation tuning, we find that sharply tuned cells have a less complex apical tree compared to broadly tuned cells. These results indicate that the spatial input offsets of the functional input connectivity are linked to orientation preference, while the orientation selectivity of L2/3 PCs is more related to the dendritic complexity.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2018

Benchmarking miniaturized microscopy against two-photon calcium imaging using single-cell orientation tuning in mouse visual cortex

Miniaturized microscopes are lightweight imaging devices that allow optical recordings from neurons in freely moving animals over the course of weeks. Despite their ubiquitous use, individual neuronal responses measured with these microscopes have not been directly compared to those obtained with established in vivo imaging techniques such as bench-top two-photon microscopes. To achieve this, we performed calcium imaging in mouse primary visual cortex while presenting animals with drifting gratings. We identified the same neurons in image stacks acquired with both microscopy methods and quantified orientation tuning of individual neurons. The response amplitude and signal-to-noise ratio of calcium transients recorded upon visual stimulation were highly correlated between both microscopy methods, although influenced by neuropil contamination in miniaturized microscopy. Tuning properties, calculated for individual orientation tuned neurons, were strongly correlated between imaging techniques. Thus, neuronal tuning features measured with a miniaturized microscope are quantitatively similar to those obtained with a two-photon microscope.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2017

Lateral geniculate neurons show robust ocular dominance plasticity

Experience-dependent plasticity in the mature visual system is considered exclusively cortical. Using chronic two-photon Ca2+ imaging, we found evidence against this tenet: dLGN cells showed robust ocular dominance shifts after monocular deprivation. Most, but not all responses of dLGN cell boutons in binocular visual cortex were monocular during baseline. Following deprivation, however, deprived-eye dominated boutons became responsive to the non-deprived eye. Thus, plasticity of dLGN neurons contributes to cortical ocular dominance shifts.

neuroscience↗