Entorhinal grid-like codes and time-locked network dynamics track others navigating through space

Isabella C. Wagner (), Luise P. Graichen, Boryana Todorova, Andre Lüttig, David B. Omer, Matthias Stangl and Claus Lamm
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Isabella C. Wagner: Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna
Luise P. Graichen: Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna
Boryana Todorova: Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna
Andre Lüttig: Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna
David B. Omer: The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Givat Ram
Matthias Stangl: Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, University of California Los Angeles
Claus Lamm: Faculty of Psychology, University of Vienna

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-18

Abstract: Abstract Navigating through crowded, dynamically changing environments requires the ability to keep track of other individuals. Grid cells in the entorhinal cortex are a central component of self-related navigation but whether they also track others’ movement is unclear. Here, we propose that entorhinal grid-like codes make an essential contribution to socio-spatial navigation. Sixty human participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while observing and re-tracing different paths of a demonstrator that navigated a virtual reality environment. Results revealed that grid-like codes in the entorhinal cortex tracked the other individual navigating through space. The activity of grid-like codes was time-locked to increases in co-activation and entorhinal-cortical connectivity that included the striatum, the hippocampus, parahippocampal and right posterior parietal cortices. Surprisingly, the grid-related effects during observation were stronger the worse participants performed when subsequently re-tracing the demonstrator’s paths. Our findings suggests that network dynamics time-locked to entorhinal grid-cell-related activity might serve to distribute information about the location of others throughout the brain.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-35819-3

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