Probing mechanisms of visual spatial attention in mice

Anderson Speed; Bilal Haider

doi:10.1016/j.tins.2021.07.009

Probing mechanisms of visual spatial attention in mice

Trends Neurosci. 2021 Oct;44(10):822-836. doi: 10.1016/j.tins.2021.07.009. Epub 2021 Aug 23.

Authors

Anderson Speed¹, Bilal Haider²

Affiliations

¹ Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
² Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology & Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA. Electronic address: bilal.haider@bme.gatech.edu.

Abstract

The role of spatial attention for visual perception has been thoroughly studied in primates, but less so in mice. Several behavioral tasks in mice reveal spatial attentional effects, with similarities to observations in primates. Pairing these tasks with large-scale, cell-type-specific techniques could enable deeper access to underlying mechanisms, and help define the utility and limitations of resolving attentional effects on visual perception and neural activity in mice. In this Review, we evaluate behavioral and neural evidence for visual spatial attention in mice; assess how specializations of the mouse visual system and behavioral repertoire impact interpretation of spatial attentional effects; and outline how several measurement and manipulation techniques in mice could precisely test and refine models of attentional modulation across scales.

Keywords: mouse; spatial attention; vision; visual cortex.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Animals
Attention
Mice
Vision, Ocular
Visual Cortex*
Visual Perception

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding