A cellular mechanism for inverse effectiveness in multisensory integration
Year: 2017
Type: article
Abstract: To build a coherent view of the external world, an organism needs to integrate multiple types of sensory information from different sources, a process known as multisensory integration (MSI). Previously, we showed that the temporal dependence of MSI in the optic tectum of Xenopus laevis tadpoles is mediated by the network dynamics of the recruitment of local inhibition by sensory input (Felch et al., 2016). This was one of the first cellular-level mechanisms described for MSI. Here, we expand this cellular level view of MSI by focusing on the principle of inverse effectiveness, another central feature of MSI stating that the amount of multisensory enhancement observed inversely depends on the size of unisensory responses. We show that non-linear summation of crossmodal synaptic responses, mediated by NMDA-type glutamate receptor (NMDARs) activation, form the cellular basis for inverse effectiveness, both at the cellular and behavioral levels.
Source: eLife
DOI: 10.7554/elife.25392
Institutions: Brown University, Bard College, Roger Williams University
Language: English
Subfield: Experimental and Cognitive Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,500
Funders: National Science Foundation, American Physiological Society, Brown University, Bard Summer Research Institute, Bard College, National Institutes of Health, NIH Office of the Director, National Eye Institute, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, Division of Integrative Organismal Systems
Awards: Cellular mechanisms underlying the development of visually-guided behavior, G3888411974, Investigating multisensory integration properties in the developing neural network of Xenopus laevis tadpoles, G689002391, Neuroscience Advanced Predoctoral institutional Training Grant, Interdisciplinary Vision Training Program
OpenAlex ID: W2597271299