Head direction cells use a head-referenced dual-axis updating rule in 3D space.

Merlin Williams, James S Street, Neil Burgess, Kate J Jeffery

Abstract read

In one paragraph

Article in Communications biology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

0citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Merlin WilliamsDepartment of Clinical and Movement Neurosciences, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0003-4844-5375

James S StreetDepartment of Clinical and Experimental Epilepsy, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8500-8463

Neil BurgessDepartment of Clinical and Experimental Epilepsy, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-0646-6584

Kate J JefferyInstitute of Behavioural Neuroscience, University College London, London, UK. kate.jeffery@glasgow.ac.uk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9495-0378

Funding

RCUK | Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) BB/M009513/1Wellcome TrustWellcome Trust (Wellcome) 103896/Z/14/ZWellcome Trust (Wellcome) 202805/Z/16/Z

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Head direction (HD) cells, comprising a compass signal for the brain's spatial map, may update their firing during 3D movement by using a 'dual axis' (DA) rule that sums head rotation around a local axis and local-axis rotation around the gravity axis. To test for operation of this rule we present HD cell activity from rats exploring a hemispherical surface. We assess HD cell tuning curves in either the standard horizontal reference frame or in two reference frames governed by a DA rule, with the local axis referenced to the head (DAH) or local surface (DAS). Tuning curves are best when plotted in the DAH reference frame. This confirms that the cells use a head-referenced DA rule and indicates that the relationship of the head pose to gravity in two planes, one egocentric (head-plane) and one allocentric (earth-horizontal plane), forms a component of the inputs to the HD system.

Indexed as

BrainHeadHead MovementsNeuronsSpace PerceptionAnimalsRats

Identifiers

PMID42086687

DOI10.1038/s42003-026-10086-2

PMCPMC13400642

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.