Pinwheel Stabilization by Ocular Dominance Segregation

Abstract

We present an analytical approach for studying the coupled development of ocular dominance and orientation preference columns. Using this approach we demonstrate that ocular dominance segregation can induce the stabilization and even the production of pinwheels by their crystallization in two types of periodic lattices. Pinwheel crystallization depends on the overall dominance of one eye over the other, a condition that is fulfilled during early cortical development. Increasing the strength of intermap coupling induces a transition from pinwheel-free stripe solutions to intermediate and high pinwheel density states.