Selective attention in the honeybee optic lobes precedes behavioral choices
(2014) In Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 111(13). p.5006-5011- Abstract
- Attention allows animals to respond selectively to competing stimuli, enabling some stimuli to evoke a behavioral response while others are ignored. How the brain does this remains mysterious, although it is increasingly evident that even animals with the smallest brains display this capacity. For example, insects respond selectively to salient visual stimuli, but it is unknown where such selectivity occurs in the insect brain, or whether neural correlates of attention might predict the visual choices made by an insect. Here, we investigate neural correlates of visual attention in behaving honeybees (Apis mellifera). Using a closed-loop paradigm that allows tethered, walking bees to actively control visual objects in a virtual reality... (More)
- Attention allows animals to respond selectively to competing stimuli, enabling some stimuli to evoke a behavioral response while others are ignored. How the brain does this remains mysterious, although it is increasingly evident that even animals with the smallest brains display this capacity. For example, insects respond selectively to salient visual stimuli, but it is unknown where such selectivity occurs in the insect brain, or whether neural correlates of attention might predict the visual choices made by an insect. Here, we investigate neural correlates of visual attention in behaving honeybees (Apis mellifera). Using a closed-loop paradigm that allows tethered, walking bees to actively control visual objects in a virtual reality arena, we show that behavioral fixation increases neuronal responses to flickering, frequency-tagged stimuli. Attention-like effects were reduced in the optic lobes during replay of the same visual sequences, when bees were not able to control the visual displays. When bees were presented with competing frequency-tagged visual stimuli, selectivity in the medulla (an optic ganglion) preceded behavioral selection of a stimulus, suggesting that modulation of early visual processing centers precedes eventual behavioral choices made by these insects. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
https://lup.lub.lu.se/record/8054644
- author
- Paulk, Angelique C ; Stacey, Jacqueline A ; Pearson, Thomas WJ ; Taylor, Gavin LU ; Moore, Richard JD ; Srinivasan, Mandyam V and Van Swinderen, Bruno
- organization
- publishing date
- 2014
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- published
- subject
- in
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- volume
- 111
- issue
- 13
- pages
- 5006 - 5011
- publisher
- National Academy of Sciences
- external identifiers
-
- scopus:84897514593
- pmid:24639490
- ISSN
- 1091-6490
- DOI
- 10.1073/pnas.1323297111
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- additional info
- 13
- id
- 360d50c4-8bf0-45c8-b77b-88273108c736 (old id 8054644)
- date added to LUP
- 2016-04-01 10:21:06
- date last changed
- 2022-04-27 21:12:53
@article{360d50c4-8bf0-45c8-b77b-88273108c736, abstract = {{Attention allows animals to respond selectively to competing stimuli, enabling some stimuli to evoke a behavioral response while others are ignored. How the brain does this remains mysterious, although it is increasingly evident that even animals with the smallest brains display this capacity. For example, insects respond selectively to salient visual stimuli, but it is unknown where such selectivity occurs in the insect brain, or whether neural correlates of attention might predict the visual choices made by an insect. Here, we investigate neural correlates of visual attention in behaving honeybees (Apis mellifera). Using a closed-loop paradigm that allows tethered, walking bees to actively control visual objects in a virtual reality arena, we show that behavioral fixation increases neuronal responses to flickering, frequency-tagged stimuli. Attention-like effects were reduced in the optic lobes during replay of the same visual sequences, when bees were not able to control the visual displays. When bees were presented with competing frequency-tagged visual stimuli, selectivity in the medulla (an optic ganglion) preceded behavioral selection of a stimulus, suggesting that modulation of early visual processing centers precedes eventual behavioral choices made by these insects.}}, author = {{Paulk, Angelique C and Stacey, Jacqueline A and Pearson, Thomas WJ and Taylor, Gavin and Moore, Richard JD and Srinivasan, Mandyam V and Van Swinderen, Bruno}}, issn = {{1091-6490}}, language = {{eng}}, number = {{13}}, pages = {{5006--5011}}, publisher = {{National Academy of Sciences}}, series = {{Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences}}, title = {{Selective attention in the honeybee optic lobes precedes behavioral choices}}, url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1323297111}}, doi = {{10.1073/pnas.1323297111}}, volume = {{111}}, year = {{2014}}, }