Adaptation, not prediction, drives neuronal spiking responses in mammalian sensory cortex

Predictive coding (PC) hypothesizes that the brain computes internal models of predicted events and that unpredicted stimuli are signaled with prediction errors that feed forward. We tested this hypothesis using a visual oddball task. A repetitive sequence interrupted by a novel stimulus is a “local” oddball. “Global” oddballs defy predictions while repeating the local context, thereby dissociating genuine prediction errors from adaptation-related responses. We recorded neuronal spiking activity across the visual hierarchy in mice and monkeys viewing these oddballs. Local oddball responses largely followed PC: they were robust, emerged early in layers 2/3, and fed forward. Global oddball responses challenged PC: they were weak, absent in most visual areas, more robust in prefrontal cortex, emerged in non-granular layers, and did not involve inhibitory interneurons relaying predictive suppression. Contrary to PC, genuine predictive coding does not emerge early in sensory processing, and is instead exclusive to more cognitive, higher-order areas.

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@article{Westerberg2024.10.02.616378,
	author = {Westerberg, Jacob A. and Xiong, Yihan S. and Nejat, Hamed and Sennesh, Eli and Durand, S{\'e}verine and Hardcastle, Ben and Cabasco, Hannah and Belski, Hannah and Bawany, Ahad and Gillis, Ryan and Loeffler, Henry and Peene, Carter R. and Han, Warren and Nguyen, Katrina and Ha, Vivian and Johnson, Tye and Grasso, Conor and Young, Ahrial and Swapp, Jackie and Ouellette, Ben and Caldejon, Shiella and Williford, Ali and Groblewski, Peter A. and Olsen, Shawn R. and Kiselycznyk, Carly and Lecoq, Jerome A. and Maier, Alexander and Bastos, Andr{\'e} M.},
	journal = {bioRxiv},
	title = {Adaptation, not prediction, drives neuronal spiking responses in mammalian sensory cortex},
	year = {2025}
}