Spatial preference behavior of robo-pigeons induced by electrical stimulus targeting fear nuclei.

Background: Numerous studies have confirmed that stimulating the mid-brain motor nuclei can regulate movement forcibly for robo-pigeons, but research on behavior modulation using non-motor nuclei is scarce.

Objective: In this study, we constructed a spatial preference behavior by stimulating the stratum griseum periventriculare (SGP), a nucleus correlated with fear and escape, for robo-pigeons.

Methods: The study was carried out in a square-enclosed experimental field, with a designated box serving as the 'safe' area for the robo-pigeons.

Wireless-controlled cubic neural stimulator for free-moving animals.

An electrical stimulator transmitting information into selected neural circuits is a promising approach for neural prostheses or animal robots. However, traditional stimulators are based on rigid printed circuit board (PCB) technology; technological limitations hindered the development of stimulators, especially for experiments involving free-moving subjects. Here we described a small (1.

Avian nidopallium caudolaterale mediates decision-making during goal-directed navigation.

Previous work demonstrates that nidopallium caudolaterale, which is considered to be an analog of the mammalian prefrontal cortex, participates in goal-directed navigation in pigeons. However, its role remains unclear. To clarify its role, two goal-directed navigation tasks in plus-maze were designed, in which the goal location of one is random, and the other is fixed, i.

[Comparison of decoding performance between spike and local field potential signals during goal-directed decision-making task of pigeons].

Both spike and local field potential (LFP) signals are two of the most important candidate signals for neural decoding. At present there are numerous studies on their decoding performance in mammals, but the decoding performance in birds is still not clear. We analyzed the decoding performance of both signals recorded from nidopallium caudolaterale area in six pigeons during the goal-directed decision-making task using the decoding algorithm combining leave-one-out and -nearest neighbor (LOO- NN).

Goal-directed behavior elevates gamma oscillations in nidopallium caudolaterale of pigeon.

Avian nidopallium caudolaterale (NCL), a functional analogue of mammalian prefrontal cortex, is thought to be participated to goal-directed behavior. However, few studies so far investigated local field potential (LFP) properties within this area. In this study, we recorded the LFP activity from the NCL of six pigeons when they performed a goal-directed decision-making task in a plus-maze.