研究人员证明，体感和视觉回路不是默认分离的，而是需要最早的视网膜活动来实现。在胚胎中，体感和视觉回路在上丘交织在一起，导致大脑皮层对胡须垫刺激的多模式反应。在出生时，这些回路被分离，反应转为单模态。阻断第一阶段的视网膜波可将多模态配置延长到出生后，上丘保持着混合的体视分子身份，并在视觉系统的空间组织中产生缺陷。因此，上丘以输入依赖的方式介导感觉模式的及时分离，将特定的感觉线索引导到其适当的感觉通路上。
据介绍，虽然感官知觉依赖于专门的感官通路，但目前还不清楚这些通路是否起源于特定的模式回路。
附：英文原文
Title: Input-dependent segregation of visual and somatosensory circuits in the mouse superior colliculus
Author: Teresa Guillamón-Vivancos, Mar Aníbal-Martínez, Lorenzo Puche-Aroca, Juan Antonio Moreno-Bravo, Miguel Valdeolmillos, Francisco J. Martini, Guillermina López-Bendito
Issue&Volume: 2022-08-19
Abstract: Whereas sensory perception relies on specialized sensory pathways, it is unclear whether these pathways originate as modality-specific circuits. We demonstrated that somatosensory and visual circuits are not by default segregated but require the earliest retinal activity to do so. In the embryo, somatosensory and visual circuits are intermingled in the superior colliculus, leading to cortical multimodal responses to whisker pad stimulation. At birth, these circuits segregate, and responses switch to unimodal. Blocking stage I retinal waves prolongs the multimodal configuration into postnatal life, with the superior colliculus retaining a mixed somato-visual molecular identity and defects arising in the spatial organization of the visual system. Hence, the superior colliculus mediates the timely segregation of sensory modalities in an input-dependent manner, channeling specific sensory cues to their appropriate sensory pathway.
DOI: abq2960
Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abq2960