Abstract: Many key brain functions emerge from the coordinated activity of distributed regions that integrate sensory inputs with predictions and modulatory signals. Yet we lack clear understanding of how brain areas interact during learning and prediction, and how the brain reconciles learned expectations with new sensory evidence. We combine multi-sensory discrimination tasks (auditory tones, whisker texture cues) with simultaneous multi-area two-photon calcium imaging in primary somatosensory cortex (S1) and higher association posterior parietal cortex (PPC). This approach allows to track learning-related adaptations at multiple scales, from single neurons to population dynamics and inter-area communication. The presentation will comprise our latest results on multi-area implementation of predictive processing in the neocortex, and how coordinated refinement across areas supports learning and adaptive decision-making.
