美国乔治亚理工学院Bilal Haider团队的最新研究提出了V1的侧抑制控制神经和知觉对比敏感性。该项研究成果发表在2025年3月3日出版的《自然—神经科学》上。

本研究表明，来自同主题初级视觉皮层小白蛋白神经元的侧抑制以均匀减法的方式降低了神经和知觉对视觉对比的敏感性，而来自生长抑素神经元的侧抑制更有效地改变了神经和知觉对比敏感性的斜率（或增益）。神经回路模型、解剖追踪和直接阈下测量表明，生长抑素比小白蛋白突触抑制更大的空间足迹解释了这种差异。总之，这些结果定义了初级视觉皮层侧抑制的细胞类型特异性计算作用，并建立了它们对对比度敏感性的独特影响，对比度敏感性是视觉世界的一个基本方面。

据介绍，侧抑制是感觉系统功能的核心原则。它被认为是通过抑制神经元的激活来运作的，抑制神经元限制了感觉兴奋的空间传播。然而，皮层外侧抑制的神经元、计算和机制仍然存在争议，其对感知的重要性仍然未知。

附：英文原文

Title: Lateral inhibition in V1 controls neural and perceptual contrast sensitivity

Author: Del Rosario, Joseph, Coletta, Stefano, Kim, Soon Ho, Mobille, Zach, Peelman, Kayla, Williams, Brice, Otsuki, Alan J., Del Castillo Valerio, Alejandra, Worden, Kendell, Blanpain, Lou T., Lovell, Lyndah, Choi, Hannah, Haider, Bilal

Issue&Volume: 2025-03-03

Abstract: Lateral inhibition is a central principle in sensory system function. It is thought to operate by the activation of inhibitory neurons that restrict the spatial spread of sensory excitation. However, the neurons, computations and mechanisms underlying cortical lateral inhibition remain debated, and its importance for perception remains unknown. Here we show that lateral inhibition from parvalbumin neurons in mouse primary visual cortex reduced neural and perceptual sensitivity to visual contrast in a uniform subtractive manner, whereas lateral inhibition from somatostatin neurons more effectively changed the slope (or gain) of neural and perceptual contrast sensitivity. A neural circuit model, anatomical tracing and direct subthreshold measurements indicated that the larger spatial footprint for somatostatin versus parvalbumin synaptic inhibition explains this difference. Together, these results define cell-type-specific computational roles for lateral inhibition in primary visual cortex, and establish their unique consequences on sensitivity to contrast, a fundamental aspect of the visual world.

DOI: 10.1038/s41593-025-01888-4

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-025-01888-4