Sensory-motor plasticity in the visual system: saccadic adaptation

In order to sample visual information from different parts of the visual field, the oculomotor system programs rapid eye movements, saccades, which bring objects of interest onto the area of the retina with maximal acuity, the fovea Saccade metrics (amplitude and direction) are normally appropriate to visual target eccentricity, but targeting errors can occur after extraocular muscle damage. These errors can be mimicked in the laboratory by displacing the visual target during the saccade directed towards it. Saccadic adaptation progressively modifies amplitude to compensate for errors, and is ideal for the study of visuo-motor processes because it introduces a spatial dissociation between the visual saccade target and the saccade endpoint. The present review presents methodological findings about saccadic adaptation, experimental findings about the signal that drives saccadic adaptation and its behavioral characteristics. Finally, the potential neural substrates of such motor plasticity are presented.