Latency of adaptive vergence eye movements induced by vergence-vestibular interaction training in monkeys

Clear vision of objects that move in depth toward or away from an observer requires vergence eye movements. The vergence system must interact with the vestibular system to maintain the object images on the foveae of both eyes during head movement. Previous studies have shown that training with sinusoidal vergence-vestibular interaction improves the frequency response of vergence eye movements during pitch rotation: vergence eye velocity gains increase and phase-lags decrease. To further understand the changes in eye movement responses in this adaptation, we examined latencies of vergence eye movements before and after vergence-vestibular training. Two head-stabilized Japanese monkeys were rewarded for tracking a target spot moving in depth that required vergence eye movements of 10°/s. This target motion was synchronized with pitch rotation at 20°/s. Both target and chair moved in a trapezoidal waveform interspersed with random inter-trial intervals. Before training, pitch rotation in complete darkness without a target did not induce vergence eye movements. Mean latencies of convergence and divergence eye movements induced by vergence target motion alone were 182 and 169 ms, respectively. After training, mean latencies of convergence and divergence eye movements to a target synchronized with pitch rotation shortened to 65 and 53 ms, and vergence eye velocity gains (relative to vergence target velocity) at the normal latencies were 0.68 and 1.53, respectively. Pitch rotation alone without a target induced vergence eye movements with similar latencies after training. These results indicate that vestibular information can be used effectively to initiate vergence eye movements following vergence-vestibular training.