Corticopontine projections of the lateral suprasylvian cortex: de-emphasis of the central visual field.

Layer V pyramidal cells of the cat lateral suprasylvian visual areas project to the pontine nuclei. Although all 6 of the suprasylvian visual areas project to the pons, the densest projections are from 3 areas: anterior medial lateral suprasylvian (AMLS), posterior medial lateral suprasylvian (PMSL) and ventral lateral suprasylvian (VLS). The organization of the corticopontine pathway from one of these areas (PMLS) suggests a disproportionate representation of the peripheral visual fields. This pattern of projection would serve to de-emphasize the central visual field.