Cortical Connections of Visual Area V4 in the Macaque
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Authors
Chang, Richard
Issue Date
1984
Type
Thesis
Language
en_US
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
V4 is a visual area in the macaque cortex located on
the prelunate gyrus and extending onto the anterior bank of
the lunate sulcus and the posterior bank of the superior
temporal sulcus. Previous investigations in area V4 have
shown that neurons in this visual area send projections into
the inferior temporal cortex, which has been shown to
mediate the recognition of objects. It has been
hypothesized that area V4 is part of a hierarchical pathway
which begins in the primary visual cortex, V1, and continues
through other visual areas, V2 and V3, both of which send
projections to V4. Moving progressively through the
pathway, it has been shown that the complexity of the visual
stimulus needed to drive these neurons also increases.
These facts are presumably due to the convergence of input
from earlier visual areas to subsequent projection fields.
While the cortical connections of visual areas such as
striate cortex, V2 and V3 have been extensively studied,
those of V4 have not. It was the intention of this study to
further elucidate the anatomical connections of visual
cortex, especially those of area V4. These results showed
that area V4 receives input from V2 and V3 and provides
afferents to parts of the inferior temporal cortex. Whereas
foveal or central representations of V4 appeared to project
to both anatomical areas TEO and TE in the inferior temporal
cortex, more peripheral representations of V4 projected only
to TE. Additional cortical connections of V4 were found in
the depths of the intraparietal and the superior temporal
sulci and in the frontal eye fields. The most intriguing
result was the heavier and more extensive input to inferior
temporal cortex from the foveal sites in V4 relative to the
peripheral sites and the heavier and more extensive input to
the posterior parietal cortex from the peripheral sites in
V4 relative to the fovial sites. These results suggest that
inputs for foveal, or central, vision may be sent
preferentially to the inferior temporal cortex while inputs
for peripheral vision may be sent preferentially to the
posterior parietal cortex. This finding is consistent with
the object recognition and visuospatial function of these
two respective cortices.
Description
vii, 53 p.
Citation
Publisher
Kalamazoo College
License
U.S. copyright laws protect this material. Commercial use or distribution of this material is not permitted without prior written permission of the copyright holder.