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The ability to make predictive saccadic eye movements is dependent on neural signals that anticipate the onset of a visual target. We used a novel paradigm—based on the saccade-countermanding task—as a tool to investigate rhythm saccade pacing and to provide information on the mechanisms of predictive timing. In particular, we examined the ability of normal subjects to stop a sequence of periodically paced eye movements when cued by a stop signal that was presented at different times with respect to the last target of the sequence (stop signal delay, SSD). The timing of the stop signal affected the ability to stop the saccadic sequence (make a saccade to a central target rather than to the peripheral alternating targets) in different ways, depending on the preceding tracking behavior. For the same SSD, subjects cancelled fewer trials during predictive tracking (promoted by tracking targets alternating at a fast pacing rate, 1.0 Hz) than during reactive tracking (tracking alternating targets at a low pacing rate, 0.2 Hz). In addition, on non-canceled trials, there was an increase in the delay of the corrective saccade to the central target with increasing SSD for pacing at 0.2 Hz, but the timing of the corrective saccade remained near constant for 1.0 Hz pacing. In examining the timing between movements, we estimate that the repetitive GO process that drives the saccades during predictive tracking begins earlier and has a shorter duration than the repetitive GO process during reactive tracking. These behavioral results provide further insight into the initiation process of predictive responses. In particular, the reduced reaction time and the corresponding short duration of the predictive process may result from a faster accumulation of neuronal discharge to a relatively fixed threshold. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previously we demonstrated the presence of a behavioral phase transition between reactive and predictive eye tracking of alternating targets. Prior studies of repetitive movements have proposed that an “internal clock” is the neural mechanism by which interval timing is achieved. In the present report we tested whether predictive oculomotor (saccade) tracking is based on an internal time reference (clock) by examining the effect of transient perturbations to the periodic pacing stimulus. These perturbations consisted of altering the timing of the stimulus (abruptly increasing or decreasing the inter-stimulus interval) or extinguishing the targets altogether. Although reactive tracking (at low pacing rates) was greatly affected by these timing perturbations, once predictive tracking was established subjects continued to time their eye movement responses at the pre-existing rate despite the perturbation. As expected from certain clock models, inter-stimulus intervals for predictive tracking followed Weber’s law and the scalar property (timing variability increases in proportion to interval duration), but this was not true for reactive tracking. In addition, the perturbation results show that subjects can establish an internal representation of target pacing (the internal clock) in as little as two eye-movement intervals, which suggests that this mechanism is relevant for real-world situations. These findings are consistent with the presence of an internal clock for the generation of these predictive movements, and demonstrate that the neural mechanism responsible for this behavior is temporally accurate and flexible. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Data from previous human and primate studies on saccadic and smooth pursuit eye movements suggest that there are shared internal inputs (for example, perception, attention, expectation, and memory) for the initiation of the two types of movements. Additional reports examining the effect of preparation time on movement responses have shown that when ample time is allowed subjects usually generate long-latency “reactive” responses. When the time allowed to prepare a movement is short, however, subjects respond with reduced latency and often anticipate the stimulus (“predictive” response). Based on these findings, we believe that the shared internal inputs at early stages of movement preparation may result in saccade and pursuit eye movements demonstrating the same dependence on preparation time despite acting through different neural pathways further downstream. Previously we demonstrated a behavioral “phase transition” when normal subjects tracked alternating targets with saccades. When preparation time was long (low-frequency pacing) subjects made reactive saccades (latency ~180 ms). As preparation time monotonically decreased (pacing frequency increased), there was an abrupt transition to a predictive response (latency <100 ms). In the present study we show that a similar transition exists in smooth pursuit tracking and that the point of transition between the two behaviors is the same for both systems. In other words, the same behavior (reactive versus predictive) is selected when pursuit and saccade tracking are tested under the same time constraints. This provides further evidence that the two types of movements are different motor outcomes of a common decision process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]