Suppressing Sensation during Action across Species and Sensory Modalities: Predictive and Nonpredictive Mechanisms of Sensory Modulation

Abstract

Perception and action are deeply intertwined processes that require the nervous system to distinguish between self-generated (reafferent) and externally generated (exafferent) sensory inputs. To maintain accurate perception during movement, the brain must attenuate predictable sensory consequences of its own actions while remaining sensitive to unexpected external events. Reafference attenuation is a temporally precise process that suppresses expected feedback, facilitating the detection of novel stimuli. This review examines reafference attenuation across species (rodents, nonhuman primates, and humans) and sensory systems (vestibular, auditory, and tactile). We also discuss sensory gating (or sensory suppression), a broader and often less selective mechanism that inhibits both self- and externally generated inputs. Although both mechanisms reduce sensory inflow during movement, they differ in function, specificity, and temporal dynamics, and despite growing insight into their underlying circuitry, important questions remain about their generality and implementation.