How Does the Brain Predict What We’re About to See?
Whether identifying patterns in music or in our surroundings, the brain is constantly trying to anticipate what comes next.
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Our ability to navigate daily life depends on the brain’s capacity to anticipate what will happen next. Whether identifying patterns in music or gauging the temperature of a beverage, such predictive processing enhances the efficiency of perception. However, the neural mechanisms behind these predictions have not been fully understood.
A new study published in Science Advances offers insight into this process. Researchers at the University College London Queen Square Institute of Neurology have shown that the hippocampus communicates with the visual cortex to help the brain predict what is about to be seen.
Mapping brain activity during visual predictions
The team used ultra-high-resolution functional magnetic resonance imaging (7T fMRI) to monitor brain activity in 30 healthy adults. Participants were exposed to sound cues associated with specific abstract shapes. On most trials, the sound was followed by the matching shape. On some trials, however, the shape did not appear, allowing researchers to compare brain activity during predicted and actual visual input.
Analysis revealed that, upon hearing a cue, distinct neural activity patterns emerged in the hippocampus, specifically in subregions CA2/3 and in the parahippocampal cortex (PHC). These patterns differed from those observed when the corresponding shape was shown without an auditory cue.
CA2/3 subregions
Subfields within the hippocampus involved in associating different elements of an experience and supporting predictive processing.
Parahippocampal cortex (PHC)
A region of the brain that connects the hippocampus with the visual cortex, facilitating the exchange of visual and spatial information.
Direction of neural communication
To examine how information travels between brain regions, the researchers studied activity across different cortical layers in the PHC. Anatomical studies indicate that the superficial layers of the PHC send signals to the hippocampus, while its deep layers receive hippocampal signals.
The team found that prediction-related signals from CA2/3 were directed to the deep layers of the PHC. This finding suggests that the hippocampus actively contributes to generating perceptual predictions, rather than merely storing memories.
Implications for understanding cognition
The results highlight the dynamic role of the hippocampus in shaping perception. Rather than serving solely as a repository of past experiences, the hippocampus appears to support the brain’s ability to anticipate future sensory inputs.
This approach to examining directional communication between the hippocampus and neocortex may also help researchers address broader questions about cognition.
"This study provides compelling evidence that the hippocampus is not just involved in remembering the past, but also in anticipating the future," said senior study author Peter Kok, a professor of cognitive neuroscience at the Queen Square Institute of Neurology at UCL.
"By reconstructing expected sensory inputs and sending them to the PHC, it helps the brain anticipate what’s coming next. This predictive function may be essential not only for perception but for decision-making and learning," Kok said.
Reference: Warrington O, Graedel NN, Callaghan MF, Kok P. Communication of perceptual predictions from the hippocampus to the deep layers of the parahippocampal cortex. Sci Adv. 2025;11(21):eads4970. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.ads4970
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