Subcortical projections of the dorsomedial visual area (DM) of visual association cortex in the owl monkey, Aotus trivirgatus

Abstract

The efferent subcortical connections of the dorsomedial cortical visual area (DM) in the owl monkey were determined by tracing degenerating axons following lesions or by tracing axonal pathways following injection of radioactively labeled proline. Areas of termination included structures which are known to receive input from many other regions of cortex such as the claustrum, putamen, caudate nucleus, reticular nucleus of the thalamus and pontine nuclei. Other terminations were in subcortical structures which primarily receive input from visual area: these included the pregeniculate nucleus, the medial and central divisions of the inferior pulvinar nucleus, two loci in the superior pulvinar complex, the pretectum and the superior colliculus. Terminations were also seen in the lateral posterior nucleus, a part of the thalamus associated with the somatosensory system. These results further identify Area DM as an integral part of the visual system, suggest functional subdivisions of the pulvinar complex, and implicate the lateral posterior nucleus in the mediation of visual, as well as somatosensory, behavior.