Optimal Control of Saccades by Spatial-Temporal Activity Patterns in the Monkey Superior Colliculus
Figure 12
Burst shapes depend on planned movement.
Shown are the saccade-related discharges of 16 neurons located in a small, central region of the SC for five different saccade amplitudes. Preferred amplitudes of the cells ranged from 13 to 15°. A) Instantaneous firing rates of the individual cells (color code) averaged across trials with the population average superimposed. Insets: schematic drawing of population activity relative to the recording sites. B) Eye position traces and eye velocity profiles of the corresponding eye movements show the main sequence behavior. C) Averaged spike density functions for the different saccade amplitudes normalized to their peak. Note the systematic increases in burst duration and skewness as saccade amplitude increases from 8 to 32 degrees, indicating that the shape parameters of the burst depend on the actual saccade in which the neurons participate, rather than on their topographic location in the motor map.