A Retinal Source of Spatial Contrast Gain Control

Sensory cortex is able to encode a broad range of stimulus features despite a great variation in signal strength. In cat primary visual cortex (V1), for example, neurons are able to extract stimulus features like orientation or spatial configuration over a wide range of stimulus contrasts. The contrast-invariant spatial tuning found in V1 neuron responses has been modeled as a gain control mechanism, but at which stage of the visual pathway it emerges has remained unclear. Here we describe our findings that contrast-invariant spatial tuning occurs not only in the responses of lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) relay cells but also in their afferent retinal input. Our evidence suggests that a similar contrast-invariant mechanism is found throughout the stages of the early visual pathway, and that the contrast-invariant spatial selectivity is evident in both retinal ganglion cell and LGN cell responses.