Decoding spatial locations from primate lateral prefrontal cortex neural activity during virtual navigation

Abstract

Objective. Decoding the intended trajectories from brain signals using a brain-computer interface system could be used to improve the mobility of patients with disabilities. Approach. Neuronal activity associated with spatial locations was examined while macaques performed a navigation task within a virtual environment. Main results. Here, we provide proof of principle that multi-unit spiking activity recorded from the lateral prefrontal cortex of non-human primates can be used to predict the location of a subject in a virtual maze during a navigation task. The spatial positions within the maze that require a choice or are associated with relevant task events can be better predicted than the locations where no relevant events occur. Importantly, within a task epoch of a single trial, multiple locations along the maze can be independently identified using a support vector machine model. Significance. Considering that the lateral prefrontal cortex of macaques and humans share similar properties, our results suggest that this area could be a valuable implant location for an intracortical brain computer interface system used for spatial navigation in patients with disabilities.

View cells in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex of macaques during virtual navigation

“…Over half of these cells were also modulated by which side the monkey was looking at. Interestingly a recent study has reported that spatial position in the X‐maze can be decoded from neural population activity in the LPFC of macaque monkeys (Johnston et al, 2023). This suggests that LPFC neurons also encode view or spatial information that may be available during navigation tasks.…”

Neural Ensembles in the Lateral Prefrontal Cortex Temporally Multiplex Task Features During Virtual Navigation

“…This capacity to execute actions that cause a change in the virtual world is referred to as a feeling of agency (Bódi, 2022). Other studies have used virtual environments as a surrogate for real-world naturalistic settings and reported tuning for spatial working memory in LPFC and for stimulus features in the hippocampus (Corrigan et al, 2022; Gulli et al, 2020; Johnston et al, 2023; Roussy et al, 2021; Wirth et al, 2017). This factor should not be underestimated since here animals do not act as passive observers but as actors, triggering task events.…”