Overview

• A brainwide functional ultrasound screen in mice found the strongest object preference in navigation circuits, with the postsubiculum standing out over visual cortex.
• Electrophysiology showed that head‑direction cells tuned toward an object increased firing while cells tuned away were suppressed, sharpening directional coding.
• The same object‑driven modulation appeared in both head‑fixed recordings and freely moving experiments with an object present in the environment.
• Authors say the results reframe object processing as part of the spatial navigation system and outline plans to test interactions in disease models.
• The peer‑reviewed study was published Sept. 11 in Science by teams at McGill’s Neuro and University Medical Center Göttingen, with coverage noting potential relevance to early disorientation in Alzheimer’s based on related tau findings.