Horizontal saccades and the central mesencephalic reticular formation

The superior colliculus (SC) plays an important role in directing orientation of gaze. SC has the appropriate neural activity and requisite anatomic connections to sense peripheral targets and to initiate saccades and head movements in all directions. However, destruction of SC has a relatively minor effect on the generation of saccades, suggesting that other areas in the cerebrum may also participate in their production. In agreement with this, combined SC and frontal eye field lesions produce a more profound deficit in eye movements. This chapter describes other facets of organization between the collicular output, the MRF and saccade-generating portions of the pontine reticular formation. The data indicate that the central MRF is an area that can contribute to the production of saccades and gaze movements in the horizontal plane.