Generation of stable heading representations in diverse visual scenes (datasets and software)

Many animals rely on an internal heading representation when navigating in varied environments. How this representation is linked to the sensory cues that define different surroundings is unclear. In the fly brain, heading is represented by 'compass' neurons that innervate a ring-shaped structure known as the ellipsoid body. Each compass neuron receives inputs from 'ring' neurons that are selective for particular visual features; this combination provides an ideal substrate for the extraction of directional information from a visual scene. Here we combine two-photon calcium imaging and optogenetics in tethered flying flies with circuit modelling, and show how the correlated activity of compass and visual neurons drives plasticity, which flexibly transforms two-dimensional visual cues into a stable heading representation. We also describe how this plasticity enables the fly to convert a partial heading representation, established from orienting within part of a novel setting, into a complete heading representation. Our results provide mechanistic insight into the memory-related computations that are essential for flexible navigation in varied surroundings.

The calcium imaging data (.tiff files), pre-processed data (.mat files) and analysis code (.m files) is included in this collection. These datasets and software support the publication: Kim, S.S., Hermundstad, A.M., Romani, S. et al. Generation of stable heading representations in diverse visual scenes. Nature 576, 126–131 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-019-1767-1