{
  "abstract": "Visual processing unfolds across hierarchically organized brain circuits. Existing theories largely explain changes in population geometry through local shifts in gain, firing-rate statistics, or recurrent dynamics, yet do not account for how interareal coordination interacts with local population geometry to constrain downstream population states. We used task engagement, compared to a passive condition, to probe this coordination in Neuropixels recordings spanning the mouse visual thalamocortical-midbrain circuit. Engagement reduced network activity, response participation, and dimensionality across the hierarchy. To account for this circuit-level organization, we developed a theoretical framework in which afferent population geometry interacts with local recurrent dynamics to constrain the accessible dynamics of downstream populations. Across the thalamocortical stages, population-wide afferent statistics predicted downstream activity and dimensionality. At the cortex--midbrain interface, engagement instead reorganized interareal communication geometry. Together, these results identify interareal input geometry as a key constraint on neural population dynamics and uncover a general principle by which behavioral engagement constrains neural state spaces across distributed visual circuits.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Israel Institute of Technology"
  ],
  "article_type": "New results",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 6,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "L. Amalberti"
    },
    {
      "name": "M. Hauer"
    },
    {
      "name": "C. Bennett"
    },
    {
      "name": "S. R. Olsen"
    },
    {
      "name": "D. Dahmen"
    },
    {
      "name": "S. Recanatesi"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fyc47em9pnxv7.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.64898/2026.09.15.751810",
  "fulltext_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.15.751810v1.full",
  "id": "fyc47em9pnxv7",
  "issns": [],
  "landing_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.15.751810v1",
  "language": null,
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "biorxiv",
      "neuroscience"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2805|Neural dynamics and brain function"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7213955458",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.15.751810v1.full.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-09-15",
  "publisher": null,
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fyc47em9pnxv7.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T12:23:33Z",
      "native_id": "10.64898/2026.09.15.751810",
      "source": "biorxiv",
      "url": "https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.09.15.751810v1"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "biorxiv:neuroscience",
      "subfield": "neuroscience"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Task Engagement Gates Interareal Communication Geometry in the Mouse Thalamocortical-Midbrain Visual Circuit",
  "title_text": "Task Engagement Gates Interareal Communication Geometry in the Mouse Thalamocortical-Midbrain Visual Circuit",
  "type": "preprint",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T12:23:33Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/fyc47em9pnxv7",
  "venue": "bioRxiv",
  "versions": []
}