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The adaptation of saccadic eye movements to environmental changes occurring throughout life is a good model of motor learning and motor memory. Numerous studies have analyzed the behavioral properties and neural substrate of oculomotor learning in short-term saccadic adaptation protocols, but to our knowledge, none have tested the persistence of the oculomotor memory. In the present study, the double-step target protocol was used in five human subjects to adaptively decrease the amplitude of reactive saccades triggered by a horizontally-stepping visual target. We tested the amplitude of visually guided saccades just before and at different times (up to 19 days) after the adaptation session. The results revealed that immediately after the adaptation session, saccade amplitude was significantly reduced by 22% on average. Although progressively recovering over days, this change in saccade gain was still statistically significant on days 1 and 5, with an average retention rate of 36% and 19%, respectively. On day 11, saccade amplitude no longer differed from the pre-adaptation value. Adaptation was more effective and more resistant to recovery for leftward saccades than for rightward ones. Lastly, modifications of saccade gain related to adaptation were accompanied by a decrease of both saccade duration and peak velocity. A control experiment indicated that all these findings were specifically related to the adaptation protocol, and further revealed that no change in the main sequence relationships could be specifically related to adaptation. We conclude that in humans, the modifications of saccade amplitude that quickly develop during a double-step target adaptation protocol can remain in memory for a much longer period of time, reflecting enduring plastic changes in the brain. (Contains 7 figures.)

When saccade amplitude becomes systematically inaccurate, adaptation mechanisms gradually decrease or increase it until accurate saccade targeting is recovered. Adaptive shortening and adaptive lengthening of saccade amplitude rely on separate mechanisms in adults. When these adaptation mechanisms emerge during development is poorly known except that adaptive shortening processes are functional in children above 8 years of age. Yet, saccades in infants are consistently inaccurate (hypometric) as if adaptation mechanisms were not fully functional in early childhood. Here, we tested reactive saccade adaptation in 10-41 month-old children compared to a group of 20-30 year-old adults. A visual target representing a cartoon character appeared at successive and unpredictable locations 10° apart on a computer screen. During the eye movement toward the target, it systematically stepped in the direction opposite to the saccade to induce an adaptive shortening of saccade amplitude (Experiment 1). In Experiment 2, the target stepped in the same direction as the ongoing saccade to induce an adaptive lengthening of saccade amplitude. In both backward and forward adaptation experiments, saccade adaptation was compared to a control condition where there was no intrasaccadic target step. Analysis of baseline performance revealed both longer saccade reaction times and hypometric saccades in children compared to adults. In both experiments, children on average showed gradual changes in saccade amplitude consistent with the systematic intrasaccadic target steps. Moreover, the amount of amplitude change was similar between children and adults for both backward and forward adaptation. Finally, adaptation abilities in our child group were not related to age. Overall the results suggest that the neural mechanisms underlying reactive saccade adaptation are in place early during development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is characterized by degeneration of upper and lower motor neurons, resulting in progressive weak-ness and muscle atrophy. Recent studies suggest that nondemented ALS patients can show selective cognitive impairments, predominantly executive dysfunction, but little is known about the neural basis of these impairments. Oculomotor studies in ALS have described deficits in antisaccade execution, which requires the implementation of a task set that includes inhibition of automatic responses followed by generation of a voluntary action. It has been suggested that the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) contributes in this process. Thus, we investigated whether deterioration of executive functions in ALS patients, such as the ability to implement flexible behavior during the antisaccade task, is related to DLPFC dysfunction. While undergoing an fMRI scan, 12 ALS patients and 12 age-matched controls performed an antisaccade task with concurrent eye tracking. We hypothesized that DLPFC deficits would appear during the antisaccade preparation stage, when the task set is being established. ALS patients made more antisaccade direction errors and showed significant reductions in DLPFC activation. In contrast, regions, such as supplementary eye fields and frontal eye fields, showed increased activation that was anticorrelated with the number of errors. The ALS group also showed reduced saccadic latencies that correlated with increased activation across the oculomotor saccade system. These findings suggest that ALS results in deficits in the inhibition of automatic responses that are related to impaired DLPFC activation. However, they also suggest that ALS patients undergo functional changes that partially compensate the neurological impairment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studying the transfer of visuomotor adaptation from a given effector (e.g., the eye) to another (e.g., the hand) allows us to question whether sensorimotor processes influenced by adaptation are common to both effector control systems and thus to address the level where adaptation takes place. Previous studies have shown only very weak transfer of the amplitude adaptation of reactive saccades—i.e., produced automatically in response to the sudden appearance of visual targets—to hand pointing movements. Here we compared the amplitude of hand pointing movements recorded before and after adaptation of either reactive or voluntary saccades, produced either in a saccade sequence task or in a single saccade task. No transfer to hand pointing movements was found after adaptation of reactive saccades. In contrast, a substantial transfer to the hand was obtained following adaptation of voluntary saccades produced in sequence. Large amounts of transfer between the two saccade types were also found. These results demonstrate that the visuomotor processes influenced by saccadic adaptation depend on the type of saccades and that, in the case of voluntary saccades, they are shared by hand pointing movements. Implications for the neurophysiological substrates of the adaptation of reactive and voluntary saccades are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: Saccadic eye movements are permanently controlled and their accuracy maintained by adaptive mechanisms that compensate for physiological or pathological perturbations. In contrast to the adaptation of reactive saccades (RS) which are automatically triggered by the sudden appearance of a single target, little is known about the adaptation of voluntary saccades which allow us to intentionally scan our environment in nearly all our daily activities. In this study, we addressed this issue in human subjects by determining the properties of adaptation of scanning voluntary saccades (SVS) and comparing these features to those of RS. We also tested the reciprocal transfers of adaptation between the two saccade types. Our results revealed that SVS and RS adaptations disclosed similar adaptation fields, time course and recovery levels, with only a slightly lower after-effect for SVS. Moreover, RS and SVS main sequences both remained unaffected after adaptation. Finally and quite unexpectedly, the pattern of adaptation transfers was asymmetrical, with a much stronger transfer from SVS to RS (79%) than in the reverse direction (22%). These data demonstrate that adaptations of RS and SVS share several behavioural properties but at the same time rely on partially distinct processes. Based on these findings, it is proposed that adaptations of RS and SVS may involve a neural network including both a common site and two separate sites specifically recruited for each saccade type. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Sensorimotor adaptation is fundamental to maintain accurate saccadic eye movements for optimal perception and interaction with the environment throughout life. We previously showed that adaptation mechanisms for reactive (externally-triggered) saccades (RS) are in place early during development (Lemoine-Lardennois et al., 2016). Nevertheless, this cannot be automatically extended to voluntary (internally-guided) saccades (VS). Indeed, adaptation mechanisms are partially separate for RS and VS in adults (Pélisson et al., 2010), and brain regions involved in VS adaptation also show late maturation (e.g., Lenroot & Gieed, 2006). Here we adapted our previous protocol to elicit VS, without verbal instruction, in toddlers (age < 3.5 years) and adults, using an overlap procedure. To prompt a decision, two identical peripheral stimuli appeared simultaneously at 10° eccentricity from a fixation point (140 trials). During the saccade toward the target, it systematically stepped in the direction opposite to the saccade to induce an adaptive decrease in saccade amplitude. Preliminary results showed that toddlers were able to select and direct their gaze toward one target without any explicit task instruction. Analysis of baseline performance revealed longer saccade latency (M = 415ms, SD = 112ms) and lower accuracy (M = 9.2°, SD = 0.4°) in toddlers compared to adults (M = 205ms, SD = 111ms; M = 9.6°, SD = 0.6°). Crucially, both adult and toddler groups exhibited an adaptive decrease in saccade amplitude, with similar amount of adaptation. Overall, our results suggest that the neural mechanisms underlying VS adaptation are in place early during development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]