Ayako Ouchi, Shigeyoshi Fujisawa ,Predictive grid coding in the medial entorhinal cortex.Science 385,776-784(2024).DOI:10.1126/science.ado4166

Editor’s summary
“Grid cells in the entorhinal cortex create a coordinate system of the environment for spatial navigation. However, it is not clear whether the entorhinal grid system is also involved in predicting where an animal will be in the next moment. Ouchi and Fujisawa performed high-density neuronal recordings in the entorhinal cortex and hippocampal area CA1 of rats during goal-directed behavior in an open field. They observed neurons in layer 3 of the medial entorhinal cortex that explicitly encode a grid representation of an animal’s future projected location, not the current position, and named them ““predictive grid cells.” Neuronal assemblies in the medial entorhinal cortex thus organize a predictive cognitive map. “—Peter Stern

Abstract
“The entorhinal cortex represents allocentric spatial geometry and egocentric speed and heading information required for spatial navigation. However, it remains unclear whether it contributes to the prediction of an animal’s future location. We discovered grid cells in the medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) that have grid fields representing future locations during goal-directed behavior. These predictive grid cells represented prospective spatial information by shifting their grid fields against the direction of travel. Predictive grid cells discharged at the trough phases of the hippocampal CA1 theta oscillation and, together with other types of grid cells, organized sequences of the trajectory from the current to future positions across each theta cycle. Our results suggest that the MEC provides a predictive map that supports forward planning in spatial navigation.”

Ayako Ouchi, Shigeyoshi Fujisawa ,Predictive grid coding in the medial entorhinal cortex.Science 385,776-784(2024).DOI:10.1126/science.ado4166