PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Todd R. Appleby
AU  - Michael B. Manookin
TI  - Neural sensitization improves encoding fidelity in the primate retina
AID  - 10.1101/482190
DP  - 2018 Jan 01
TA  - bioRxiv
PG  - 482190
4099  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2018/11/28/482190.short
4100  - http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2018/11/28/482190.full
AB  - Sensory neural circuits must create internal representations of the natural environment and update those representations when the environment changes. Many neurons perform these adjustments by adapting to the statistics of incoming stimuli, allowing these cells to then report when those statistics change. Other neural populations exhibit sensitization. Instead of aligning their input-output properties with stimulus statistics, the outputs of sensitizing cells closely track the variance of incoming stimuli. These forms of short-term plasticity are commonly thought to be opposing and complementary with adapting and sensitizing cells encoding strong and weak stimuli, respectively. We report that the numerically dominant output pathway in the macaque monkey retina, the midget (parvocellular-projecting) pathway, constitutes an exception to this rule. Midget cells strongly sensitize and lack a functional counterpart that displays adaptation. Instead of counterbalancing adapting cells, sensitization in midget cells supports accurate sensory encoding and prevents a loss of responsiveness during dynamic vision.