Prefrontal Cortex Deactivation in Macaques Alters Activity in the Superior Colliculus and Impairs Voluntary Control of Saccades

Authors

Michael J. Koval, Graduate Program in Neuroscience, and Departments of
Stephen G. Lombar, Graduate Program in Neuroscience, and Departments of & Physiology and Pharmacology, Psychology Western University &
Stefan Everling, Graduate Program in Neuroscience, and Departments of & hysiology and Pharmacology, Psychology Western University & & Robarts Research Intitute, London Canada

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

6-8-2011

Journal

The Journal of Neuroscience

Volume

31

Issue

23

First Page

8659

Last Page

8668

URL with Digital Object Identifier

10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1258-11.2011

Abstract

The cognitive control of action requires both the suppression of automatic responses to sudden stimuli and the generation of behavior specified by abstract instructions. Though patient, functional imaging and neurophysiological studies have implicated the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) in these abilities, the mechanism by which the dlPFC exerts this control remains unknown. Here we examined the functional interaction of the dlPFC with the saccade circuitry by deactivating area 46 of the dlPFC and measuring its effects on the activity of single superior colliculus neurons in monkeys performing a cognitive saccade task. Deactivation of the dlPFC reduced preparatory activity and increased stimulus-related activity in these neurons. These changes in neural activity were accompanied by marked decreases in task performance as evidenced by longer reaction times and more task errors. The results suggest that the dlPFC participates in the cognitive control of gaze by suppressing stimulus-evoked automatic saccade programs.