A canonical input to the head direction compass carries predominantly eye movement signals
- 1Johns Hopkins University Department of Biomedical Engineering
Abstract
The mammalian head direction (HD) system is thought to update its internal compass using angular head velocity (AHV) signals relayed from the brainstem. We tested this canonical interpretation by recording from the nucleus prepositus hypoglossi (NPH), a proposed AHV relay known to be important for accurate HD tracking, while simultaneously measuring eye and head movements in mice. Neurons classified as AHV-tuned instead predominantly encoded eye movements: most showed saccade-related bursts or pauses, and apparent AHV tuning was largely explained by eye rather than head motion. Optotagging showed that even NPH neurons projecting directly to the HD circuit predominantly encoded eye movements. Empirically constrained population models reconstructed eye position and gaze direction, but head-direction readouts failed when eye and head motion were dissociated. These findings overturn the canonical view of NPH as a dedicated AHV relay, revealing eye movements as a major, previously unmeasured component of the signals entering the mammalian HD circuit and thereby changing the computational problem that the HD system must solve to maintain a stable representation of heading.
Related
- A canonical neural circuit for motion direction estimation
- Cortical diffusion restriction predicts individual cognitive ability and carries cellular information
- Gaze on IPCC climate maps carries behaviour-specific signals for intended low-carbon action
- Serial dependence carries the action that produced the previous report
- “The disease carries different weight”: Gendered pathways of mpox burden during Sierra Leone's 2025 clade IIb outbreak
BibTeX
@misc{stott2026canonical,
title = {{A canonical input to the head direction compass carries predominantly eye movement signals}},
author = {J. J. Stott and H. H. V. Chang and C. Bao and K. Zhang and K. E. Cullen and M. A. van der Meer},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.64898/2026.10.26.761874},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.26.761874v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - A canonical input to the head direction compass carries predominantly eye movement signals
AU - J. J. Stott
AU - H. H. V. Chang
AU - C. Bao
AU - K. Zhang
AU - K. E. Cullen
AU - M. A. van der Meer
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/26
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.10.26.761874
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.10.26.761874v1
AB - The mammalian head direction (HD) system is thought to update its internal compass using angular head velocity (AHV) signals relayed from the brainstem. We tested this canonical interpretation by recording from the nucleus prepositus hypoglossi (NPH), a proposed AHV relay known to be important for accurate HD tracking, while simultaneously measuring eye and head movements in mice. Neurons classified as AHV-tuned instead predominantly encoded eye movements: most showed saccade-related bursts or pauses, and apparent AHV tuning was largely explained by eye rather than head motion. Optotagging showed that even NPH neurons projecting directly to the HD circuit predominantly encoded eye movements. Empirically constrained population models reconstructed eye position and gaze direction, but head-direction readouts failed when eye and head motion were dissociated. These findings overturn the canonical view of NPH as a dedicated AHV relay, revealing eye movements as a major, previously unmeasured component of the signals entering the mammalian HD circuit and thereby changing the computational problem that the HD system must solve to maintain a stable representation of heading.
ER -