Mitchinson, B., Martin, C.J. orcid.org/0000-0002-8186-784X, Grant, R.A. et al. (1 more author) (2007) Feedback control in active sensing: rat exploratory whisking is modulated by environmental contact. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 274 (1613). pp. 1035-1041. ISSN 0962-8452
Abstract
Rats sweep their facial whiskers back and forth to generate tactile sensory information through contact with environmental structure. The neural processes operating on the signals arising from these whisker contacts are widely studied as a model of sensing in general, even though detailed knowledge of the natural circumstances under which such signals are generated is lacking. We used digital video tracking and wireless recording of mystacial electromyogram signals to assess the effects of whisker–object contact on whisking in freely moving animals exploring simple environments. Our results show that contact leads to reduced protraction (forward whisker motion) on the side of the animal ipsilateral to an obstruction and increased protraction on the contralateral side. Reduced ipsilateral protraction occurs rapidly and in the same whisk cycle as the initial contact. We conclude that whisker movements are actively controlled so as to increase the likelihood of environmental contacts while constraining such interactions to involve a gentle touch. That whisking pattern generation is under strong feedback control has important implications for understanding the nature of the signals reaching upstream neural processes.
Metadata
Item Type: | Article |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | © 2007 The Royal Society. This is an author produced version of a paper subsequently published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy. |
Keywords: | active sensing; vibrissae; rat whisking; motor pattern generation; 1st-order vibrissa afferents; central pattern generator; somatosensory cortex; mystacial vibrissae; rhythmic whisking; rodent whisking; head movement; touch; neurons; motor |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of Sheffield |
Academic Units: | The University of Sheffield > Faculty of Science (Sheffield) > Department of Psychology (Sheffield) |
Depositing User: | Symplectic Sheffield |
Date Deposited: | 14 Nov 2016 14:24 |
Last Modified: | 03 Nov 2017 03:13 |
Published Version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2006.0347 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | The Royal Society |
Refereed: | Yes |
Identification Number: | 10.1098/rspb.2006.0347 |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:107043 |