Structure and function of visual area MT

Annu Rev Neurosci. 2005:28:157-89. doi: 10.1146/annurev.neuro.26.041002.131052.

Abstract

The small visual area known as MT or V5 has played a major role in our understanding of the primate cerebral cortex. This area has been historically important in the concept of cortical processing streams and the idea that different visual areas constitute highly specialized representations of visual information. MT has also proven to be a fertile culture dish--full of direction- and disparity-selective neurons--exploited by many labs to study the neural circuits underlying computations of motion and depth and to examine the relationship between neural activity and perception. Here we attempt a synthetic overview of the rich literature on MT with the goal of answering the question, What does MT do?

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Brain Mapping
  • Evoked Potentials, Visual
  • Humans
  • Neural Networks, Computer
  • Noise
  • Photic Stimulation / methods
  • Space Perception / physiology
  • Visual Cortex / anatomy & histology*
  • Visual Cortex / physiology*
  • Visual Pathways / anatomy & histology
  • Visual Pathways / physiology*
  • Visual Perception / physiology*