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Maimon A, Wald IY, Snir A, Ben Oz M, Amedi A. Perceiving depth beyond sight: Evaluating intrinsic and learned cues via a proof of concept sensory substitution method in the visually impaired and sighted. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0310033. [PMID: 39321152 PMCID: PMC11423994 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0310033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2024] [Accepted: 08/23/2024] [Indexed: 09/27/2024] Open
Abstract
This study explores spatial perception of depth by employing a novel proof of concept sensory substitution algorithm. The algorithm taps into existing cognitive scaffolds such as language and cross modal correspondences by naming objects in the scene while representing their elevation and depth by manipulation of the auditory properties for each axis. While the representation of verticality utilized a previously tested correspondence with pitch, the representation of depth employed an ecologically inspired manipulation, based on the loss of gain and filtration of higher frequency sounds over distance. The study, involving 40 participants, seven of which were blind (5) or visually impaired (2), investigates the intrinsicness of an ecologically inspired mapping of auditory cues for depth by comparing it to an interchanged condition where the mappings of the two axes are swapped. All participants successfully learned to use the algorithm following a very brief period of training, with the blind and visually impaired participants showing similar levels of success for learning to use the algorithm as did their sighted counterparts. A significant difference was found at baseline between the two conditions, indicating the intuitiveness of the original ecologically inspired mapping. Despite this, participants were able to achieve similar success rates following the training in both conditions. The findings indicate that both intrinsic and learned cues come into play with respect to depth perception. Moreover, they suggest that by employing perceptual learning, novel sensory mappings can be trained in adulthood. Regarding the blind and visually impaired, the results also support the convergence view, which claims that with training, their spatial abilities can converge with those of the sighted. Finally, we discuss how the algorithm can open new avenues for accessibility technologies, virtual reality, and other practical applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amber Maimon
- Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- Computational Psychiatry and Neurotechnology Lab, Ben Gurion University, Be'er Sheva, Israel
| | - Iddo Yehoshua Wald
- Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- Digital Media Lab, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
| | - Adi Snir
- Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Meshi Ben Oz
- Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Amir Amedi
- Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
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Ness T, Barclay L. Disability, Transition Costs, and the Things That Really Matter. THE JOURNAL OF MEDICINE AND PHILOSOPHY 2023; 48:591-602. [PMID: 37421413 PMCID: PMC10629941 DOI: 10.1093/jmp/jhad034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/10/2023] Open
Abstract
This article develops a detailed, empirically driven analysis of the nature of the transition costs incurred in becoming disabled. Our analysis of the complex nature of these costs supports the claim that it can be wrong to cause disability, even if disability is just one way of being different. We also argue that close attention to the nature of transition costs gives us reason to doubt that well-being, including transitory impacts on well-being, is the only thing that should determine the wrongness of causing or removing disability. Non-welfare considerations also defeat the claim that it is always wrong to cause disability. The upshot of these conclusions is that closer attention to the nature of transition costs supports disabled people who strenuously contest the assumption that their well-being is lower than nondisabled people. It also suggests that, in addition, disabled people should contest their opponents' narrow account of how we should make ethical decisions regarding causing or failing to prevent disability.
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Ricatti MJ, Savazzi S, Cesari P, Cecchini MP. Olfaction and gustation in blindness: a state of the art of the literature. Neurol Sci 2023:10.1007/s10072-023-06734-8. [PMID: 36913147 DOI: 10.1007/s10072-023-06734-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 03/04/2023] [Indexed: 03/14/2023]
Abstract
To date, there are quite a few studies assessing olfaction and gustation in blindness, with great variability in sample size, participants' age, blindness onset and smell and taste evaluation methods. Indeed, the evaluation of olfactory and gustatory performance can differ depending on several factors, including cultural differences. Therefore, here we analysed through a narrative review, all the works reporting a smell and taste assessment in blind individuals during the last 130 years, trying to summarize and address the knowledge in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Jimena Ricatti
- Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, Anatomy and Histology Section, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie 8, 37134, Verona, Italy
| | - Silvia Savazzi
- Perception and Awareness (PandA) Laboratory, Department of Neuroscience, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie 8, 37134, Verona, Italy
| | - Paola Cesari
- Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, Movement Sciences Section, University of Verona, Via Casorati 43, 37131, Verona, Italy
| | - Maria Paola Cecchini
- Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, Anatomy and Histology Section, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie 8, 37134, Verona, Italy.
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Maimon A, Netzer O, Heimler B, Amedi A. Testing geometry and 3D perception in children following vision restoring cataract-removal surgery. Front Neurosci 2023; 16:962817. [PMID: 36711132 PMCID: PMC9879291 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.962817] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
As neuroscience and rehabilitative techniques advance, age-old questions concerning the visual experience of those who gain sight after blindness, once thought to be philosophical alone, take center stage and become the target for scientific inquiries. In this study, we employ a battery of visual perception tasks to study the unique experience of a small group of children who have undergone vision-restoring cataract removal surgery as part of the Himalayan Cataract Project. We tested their abilities to perceive in three dimensions (3D) using a binocular rivalry task and the Brock string task, perceive visual illusions, use cross-modal mappings between touch and vision, and spatially group based on geometric cues. Some of the children in this study gained a sense of sight for the first time in their lives, having been born with bilateral congenital cataracts, while others suffered late-onset blindness in one eye alone. This study simultaneously supports yet raises further questions concerning Hubel and Wiesel's critical periods theory and provides additional insight into Molyneux's problem, the ability to correlate vision with touch quickly. We suggest that our findings present a relatively unexplored intermediate stage of 3D vision development. Importantly, we spotlight some essential geometrical perception visual abilities that strengthen the idea that spontaneous geometry intuitions arise independently from visual experience (and education), thus replicating and extending previous studies. We incorporate a new model, not previously explored, of testing children with congenital cataract removal surgeries who perform the task via vision. In contrast, previous work has explored these abilities in the congenitally blind via touch. Taken together, our findings provide insight into the development of what is commonly known as the visual system in the visually deprived and highlight the need to further empirically explore an amodal, task-based interpretation of specializations in the development and structure of the brain. Moreover, we propose a novel objective method, based on a simple binocular rivalry task and the Brock string task, for determining congenital (early) vs. late blindness where medical history and records are partial or lacking (e.g., as is often the case in cataract removal cases).
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Affiliation(s)
- Amber Maimon
- The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel,The Ruth & Meir Rosenthal Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel,*Correspondence: Amber Maimon,
| | - Ophir Netzer
- Gonda Brain Research Center, Bar-Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Benedetta Heimler
- Center of Advanced Technologies in Rehabilitation (CATR), Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Amir Amedi
- The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel,The Ruth & Meir Rosenthal Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
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Shvadron S, Snir A, Maimon A, Yizhar O, Harel S, Poradosu K, Amedi A. Shape detection beyond the visual field using a visual-to-auditory sensory augmentation device. Front Hum Neurosci 2023; 17:1058617. [PMID: 36936618 PMCID: PMC10017858 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1058617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Current advancements in both technology and science allow us to manipulate our sensory modalities in new and unexpected ways. In the present study, we explore the potential of expanding what we perceive through our natural senses by utilizing a visual-to-auditory sensory substitution device (SSD), the EyeMusic, an algorithm that converts images to sound. The EyeMusic was initially developed to allow blind individuals to create a spatial representation of information arriving from a video feed at a slow sampling rate. In this study, we aimed to use the EyeMusic for the blind areas of sighted individuals. We use it in this initial proof-of-concept study to test the ability of sighted subjects to combine visual information with surrounding auditory sonification representing visual information. Participants in this study were tasked with recognizing and adequately placing the stimuli, using sound to represent the areas outside the standard human visual field. As such, the participants were asked to report shapes' identities as well as their spatial orientation (front/right/back/left), requiring combined visual (90° frontal) and auditory input (the remaining 270°) for the successful performance of the task (content in both vision and audition was presented in a sweeping clockwise motion around the participant). We found that participants were successful at a highly above chance level after a brief 1-h-long session of online training and one on-site training session of an average of 20 min. They could even draw a 2D representation of this image in some cases. Participants could also generalize, recognizing new shapes they were not explicitly trained on. Our findings provide an initial proof of concept indicating that sensory augmentation devices and techniques can potentially be used in combination with natural sensory information in order to expand the natural fields of sensory perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shira Shvadron
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- The Ruth and Meir Rosenthal, Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- *Correspondence: Shira Shvadron,
| | - Adi Snir
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- The Ruth and Meir Rosenthal, Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Amber Maimon
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- The Ruth and Meir Rosenthal, Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Or Yizhar
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- The Ruth and Meir Rosenthal, Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- Research Group Adaptive Memory and Decision Making, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
- Max Planck Dahlem Campus of Cognition (MPDCC), Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sapir Harel
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- The Ruth and Meir Rosenthal, Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Keinan Poradosu
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- The Ruth and Meir Rosenthal, Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Amir Amedi
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
- The Ruth and Meir Rosenthal, Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel
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Maimon A, Yizhar O, Buchs G, Heimler B, Amedi A. A case study in phenomenology of visual experience with retinal prosthesis versus visual-to-auditory sensory substitution. Neuropsychologia 2022; 173:108305. [PMID: 35752268 PMCID: PMC9297294 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2021] [Revised: 04/30/2022] [Accepted: 06/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The phenomenology of the blind has provided an age-old, unparalleled means of exploring the enigmatic link between the brain and mind. This paper delves into the unique phenomenological experience of a man who became blind in adulthood. He subsequently underwent both an Argus II retinal prosthesis implant and training, and extensive training on the EyeMusic visual to auditory sensory substitution device (SSD), thereby becoming the first reported case to date of dual proficiency with both devices. He offers a firsthand account into what he considers the great potential of combining sensory substitution devices with visual prostheses as part of a complete visual restoration protocol. While the Argus II retinal prosthesis alone provided him with immediate visual percepts by way of electrically stimulated phosphenes elicited by the device, the EyeMusic SSD requires extensive training from the onset. Yet following the extensive training program with the EyeMusic sensory substitution device, our subject reports that the sensory substitution device allowed him to experience a richer, more complex perceptual experience, that felt more "second nature" to him, while the Argus II prosthesis (which also requires training) did not allow him to achieve the same levels of automaticity and transparency. Following long-term use of the EyeMusic SSD, our subject reported that visual percepts representing mainly, but not limited to, colors portrayed by the EyeMusic SSD are elicited in association with auditory stimuli, indicating the acquisition of a high level of automaticity. Finally, the case study indicates an additive benefit to the combination of both devices on the user's subjective phenomenological visual experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amber Maimon
- The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, The Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel; The Ruth & Meir Rosenthal Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel.
| | - Or Yizhar
- The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, The Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel; Department of Cognitive and Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel; Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Research Group Adaptive Memory and Decision Making, Berlin, Germany; Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Max Planck Dahlem Campus of Cognition (MPDCC), Berlin, Germany
| | - Galit Buchs
- The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, The Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel; Department of Cognitive and Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Benedetta Heimler
- Center of Advanced Technologies in Rehabilitation (CATR), Sheba Medical Center, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Amir Amedi
- The Baruch Ivcher Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Technology, The Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel; The Ruth & Meir Rosenthal Brain Imaging Center, Reichman University, Herzliya, Israel.
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de Sousa AA, Todorov OS, Proulx MJ. A natural history of vertebrate vision loss: Insight from mammalian vision for human visual function. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 134:104550. [PMID: 35074313 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104550] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2020] [Revised: 10/08/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Research on the origin of vision and vision loss in naturally "blind" animal species can reveal the tasks that vision fulfills and the brain's role in visual experience. Models that incorporate evolutionary history, natural variation in visual ability, and experimental manipulations can help disentangle visual ability at a superficial level from behaviors linked to vision but not solely reliant upon it, and could assist the translation of ophthalmological research in animal models to human treatments. To unravel the similarities between blind individuals and blind species, we review concepts of 'blindness' and its behavioral correlates across a range of species. We explore the ancestral emergence of vision in vertebrates, and the loss of vision in blind species with reference to an evolution-based classification scheme. We applied phylogenetic comparative methods to a mammalian tree to explore the evolution of visual acuity using ancestral state estimations. Future research into the natural history of vision loss could help elucidate the function of vision and inspire innovations in how to address vision loss in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra A de Sousa
- Centre for Health and Cognition, Bath Spa University, Bath, United Kingdom; UKRI Centre for Accessible, Responsible & Transparent Artificial Intelligence (ART:AI), University of Bath, United Kingdom.
| | - Orlin S Todorov
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia
| | - Michael J Proulx
- UKRI Centre for Accessible, Responsible & Transparent Artificial Intelligence (ART:AI), University of Bath, United Kingdom; Department of Psychology, REVEAL Research Centre, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
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Manescu S, Chouinard-Leclaire C, Collignon O, Lepore F, Frasnelli J. Enhanced Odorant Localization Abilities in Congenitally Blind but not in Late-Blind Individuals. Chem Senses 2021; 46:bjaa073. [PMID: 33140091 PMCID: PMC7909301 DOI: 10.1093/chemse/bjaa073] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Although often considered a nondominant sense for spatial perception, chemosensory perception can be used to localize the source of an event and potentially help us navigate through our environment. Would blind people who lack the dominant spatial sense-vision-develop enhanced spatial chemosensation or suffer from the lack of visual calibration on spatial chemosensory perception? To investigate this question, we tested odorant localization abilities across nostrils in blind people compared to sighted controls and if the time of vision loss onset modulates those abilities. We observed that congenitally blind individuals (10 subjects) outperformed sighted (20 subjects) and late-blind subjects (10 subjects) in a birhinal localization task using mixed olfactory-trigeminal stimuli. This advantage in congenitally blind people was selective to olfactory localization but not observed for odorant detection or identification. We, therefore, showed that congenital blindness but not blindness acquired late in life is linked to enhanced localization of chemosensory stimuli across nostrils, most probably of the trigeminal component. In addition to previous studies highlighting enhanced localization abilities in auditory and tactile modalities, our current results extend such enhanced abilities to chemosensory localization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simona Manescu
- Centre de Recherche en Neuropsychologie et Cognition, Département de psychologie, Université de Montréal, Pavillon Marie-Victorin, CP, succursale Centre-Ville, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Christine Chouinard-Leclaire
- Centre de Recherche en Neuropsychologie et Cognition, Département de psychologie, Université de Montréal, Pavillon Marie-Victorin, CP, succursale Centre-Ville, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Olivier Collignon
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences of University of Trento, Via Delle Regole, Mattarello, Trentino, Italy
- Institutes for Research in Psychology and Neurosciences, University of Louvain, IPSY - Place du Cardinal Mercier, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Franco Lepore
- Centre de Recherche en Neuropsychologie et Cognition, Département de psychologie, Université de Montréal, Pavillon Marie-Victorin, CP, succursale Centre-Ville, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Johannes Frasnelli
- Centre de Recherche en Neuropsychologie et Cognition, Département de psychologie, Université de Montréal, Pavillon Marie-Victorin, CP, succursale Centre-Ville, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Centre d’études avancées en médecine du sommeil, Centre de Recherche de l’Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal, Centre intégré universitaire de santé et de services sociaux du Nord-de-l’Île-de-Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- Department of Anatomy, Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, boulevard des Forges, Trois-Rivières, Québec, Canada
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Bedard KM, Myrna KE, Diehl KA. Preliminary evaluation of effect of two visual aid devices on navigation in blind dogs. J Small Anim Pract 2020; 61:308-315. [PMID: 32077502 DOI: 10.1111/jsap.13120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2019] [Revised: 12/20/2019] [Accepted: 01/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To evaluate two visual aid devices in blind dogs. MATERIALS AND METHODS Transit time and number of collisions through a maze were recorded for 12 chronically and irreversibly blind dogs. Each dog repeated the maze while fitted with a BlindSight® echolocation device, or Muffin's Halo® physical barrier. They then repeated another maze test after a 30-day device acclimation period at home. RESULTS All dogs had fewer collisions when wearing the halo device versus their baseline with no device. Dogs ≤11.8 kg had fewer collisions when acclimated to the halo versus their baseline with no device or when acclimated to the BlindSight®. For dogs >11.8 kg, maze completion time was faster when acclimated to the BlindSight® versus their baseline with no device or when acclimated to a halo. Owner surveys indicated no noticeable improvement in quality of life or dog navigation at home with either device. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE This study demonstrates the utility of commercially available visual aid devices in aiding blind dogs' navigation and may help veterinarians make recommendations to owners of blind dogs regarding the purchase of these devices.
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Affiliation(s)
- K M Bedard
- College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, 2200 College Station Road, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
| | - K E Myrna
- College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, 2200 College Station Road, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
| | - K A Diehl
- College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, 2200 College Station Road, Athens, GA, 30602, USA
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Bennett CR, Bauer CM, Bailin ES, Merabet LB. Neuroplasticity in cerebral visual impairment (CVI): Assessing functional vision and the neurophysiological correlates of dorsal stream dysfunction. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 108:171-181. [PMID: 31655075 PMCID: PMC6949360 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2019.10.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2019] [Revised: 10/15/2019] [Accepted: 10/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Cerebral visual impairment (CVI) results from perinatal injury to visual processing structures and pathways and is the most common individual cause of pediatric visual impairment and blindness in developed countries. While there is mounting evidence demonstrating extensive neuroplastic reorganization in early onset, profound ocular blindness, how the brain reorganizes in the setting of congenital damage to cerebral (i.e. retro-geniculate) visual pathways remains comparatively poorly understood. Individuals with CVI exhibit a wide range of visual deficits and, in particular, present with impairments of higher order visual spatial processing (referred to as "dorsal stream dysfunction") as well as object recognition (associated with processing along the ventral stream). In this review, we discuss the need for ongoing work to develop novel, neuroscience-inspired approaches to investigate functional visual deficits in this population. We also outline the role played by advanced structural and functional neuroimaging in helping to elucidate the underlying neurophysiology of CVI, and highlight key differences with regard to patterns of neural reorganization previously described in ocular blindness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher R Bennett
- Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, 20 Staniford Street, Boston, MA 02114, United States
| | - Corinna M Bauer
- Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, 20 Staniford Street, Boston, MA 02114, United States
| | - Emma S Bailin
- Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, 20 Staniford Street, Boston, MA 02114, United States
| | - Lotfi B Merabet
- Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Harvard Medical School, 20 Staniford Street, Boston, MA 02114, United States.
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Goodwyn E. Comments on the 2018 IAAP Conference on Archetype Theory: defending a non‐reductive biological approach. THE JOURNAL OF ANALYTICAL PSYCHOLOGY 2019; 64:720-737. [DOI: 10.1111/1468-5922.12543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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12
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Tactile recognition of visual stimuli: Specificity versus generalization of perceptual learning. Vision Res 2018; 152:40-50. [DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2017.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2017] [Revised: 10/30/2017] [Accepted: 11/16/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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13
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Voss P. Brain (re)organization following visual loss. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2018; 10:e1468. [PMID: 29878533 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1468] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2017] [Revised: 05/04/2018] [Accepted: 05/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
The study of the neural consequences of sensory loss provides a unique window into the brain's functional and organizational principles. Although the blind visual cortex has been implicated in the cross-modal processing of nonvisual inputs for quite some time, recent research has shown that certain cortical organizational principles are preserved even in the case of complete sensory loss. Furthermore, a growing body of work has shown that markers of neuroplasticity extend to neuroanatomical metrics that include cortical thickness and myelinization. Although our understanding of the mechanisms that underlie sensory deprivation-driven cross-modal plasticity is improving, several critical questions remain unanswered. The specific pathways that underlie the rerouting of nonvisual information, for instance, have not been fully elucidated. The fact that important cross-modal recruitment occurs following transient deprivation in sighted individuals suggests that significant rewiring following blindness may not be required. Furthermore, there are marked individual differences regarding the magnitude and functional relevance of the cross-modal reorganization. It is also not clear to what extent precise environmental factors may play a role in establishing the degree of reorganization across individuals, as opposed to factors that might specifically relate to the cause or the nature of the visual loss. In sum, although many unresolved questions remain, sensory deprivation continues to be an excellent model for studying the plastic nature of the brain. This article is categorized under: Psychology > Brain Function and Dysfunction Psychology > Perception and Psychophysics Neuroscience > Plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrice Voss
- Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
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14
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Thalamocortical Connectivity and Microstructural Changes in Congenital and Late Blindness. Neural Plast 2017; 2017:9807512. [PMID: 28386486 PMCID: PMC5366815 DOI: 10.1155/2017/9807512] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2016] [Revised: 02/02/2017] [Accepted: 02/19/2017] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
There is ample evidence that the occipital cortex of congenitally blind individuals processes nonvisual information. It remains a debate whether the cross-modal activation of the occipital cortex is mediated through the modulation of preexisting corticocortical projections or the reorganisation of thalamocortical connectivity. Current knowledge on this topic largely stems from anatomical studies in animal models. The aim of this study was to test whether purported changes in thalamocortical connectivity in blindness can be revealed by tractography based on diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. To assess the thalamocortical network, we used a clustering method based on the thalamic white matter projections towards predefined cortical regions. Five thalamic clusters were obtained in each group representing their cortical projections. Although we did not find differences in the thalamocortical network between congenitally blind individuals, late blind individuals, and normal sighted controls, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) indices revealed significant microstructural changes within thalamic clusters of both blind groups. Furthermore, we find a significant decrease in fractional anisotropy (FA) in occipital and temporal thalamocortical projections in both blind groups that were not captured at the network level. This suggests that plastic microstructural changes have taken place, but not in a degree to be reflected in the tractography-based thalamocortical network.
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Cecchetti L, Kupers R, Ptito M, Pietrini P, Ricciardi E. Are Supramodality and Cross-Modal Plasticity the Yin and Yang of Brain Development? From Blindness to Rehabilitation. Front Syst Neurosci 2016; 10:89. [PMID: 27877116 PMCID: PMC5099160 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2016.00089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2016] [Accepted: 10/27/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Research in blind individuals has primarily focused for a long time on the brain plastic reorganization that occurs in early visual areas. Only more recently, scientists have developed innovative strategies to understand to what extent vision is truly a mandatory prerequisite for the brain's fine morphological architecture to develop and function. As a whole, the studies conducted to date in sighted and congenitally blind individuals have provided ample evidence that several "visual" cortical areas develop independently from visual experience and do process information content regardless of the sensory modality through which a particular stimulus is conveyed: a property named supramodality. At the same time, lack of vision leads to a structural and functional reorganization within "visual" brain areas, a phenomenon known as cross-modal plasticity. Cross-modal recruitment of the occipital cortex in visually deprived individuals represents an adaptative compensatory mechanism that mediates processing of non-visual inputs. Supramodality and cross-modal plasticity appears to be the "yin and yang" of brain development: supramodal is what takes place despite the lack of vision, whereas cross-modal is what happens because of lack of vision. Here we provide a critical overview of the research in this field and discuss the implications that these novel findings have for the development of educative/rehabilitation approaches and sensory substitution devices (SSDs) in sensory-impaired individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Cecchetti
- Department of Surgical, Medical, Molecular Pathology and Critical Care, University of PisaPisa, Italy; Clinical Psychology Branch, Pisa University HospitalPisa, Italy
| | - Ron Kupers
- BRAINlab, Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Panum Institute, University of CopenhagenCopenhagen, Denmark; Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale UniversityNew Haven, CT, USA
| | - Maurice Ptito
- Laboratory of Neuropsychiatry, Psychiatric Centre CopenhagenCopenhagen, Denmark; School of Optometry, Université de MontréalMontréal, QC, Canada
| | | | - Emiliano Ricciardi
- Department of Surgical, Medical, Molecular Pathology and Critical Care, University of PisaPisa, Italy; MOMILab, IMT School for Advanced Studies LuccaLucca, Italy
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Proulx MJ, Gwinnutt J, Dell'Erba S, Levy-Tzedek S, de Sousa AA, Brown DJ. Other ways of seeing: From behavior to neural mechanisms in the online "visual" control of action with sensory substitution. Restor Neurol Neurosci 2016; 34:29-44. [PMID: 26599473 PMCID: PMC4927905 DOI: 10.3233/rnn-150541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Vision is the dominant sense for perception-for-action in humans and other higher primates. Advances in sight restoration now utilize the other intact senses to provide information that is normally sensed visually through sensory substitution to replace missing visual information. Sensory substitution devices translate visual information from a sensor, such as a camera or ultrasound device, into a format that the auditory or tactile systems can detect and process, so the visually impaired can see through hearing or touch. Online control of action is essential for many daily tasks such as pointing, grasping and navigating, and adapting to a sensory substitution device successfully requires extensive learning. Here we review the research on sensory substitution for vision restoration in the context of providing the means of online control for action in the blind or blindfolded. It appears that the use of sensory substitution devices utilizes the neural visual system; this suggests the hypothesis that sensory substitution draws on the same underlying mechanisms as unimpaired visual control of action. Here we review the current state of the art for sensory substitution approaches to object recognition, localization, and navigation, and the potential these approaches have for revealing a metamodal behavioral and neural basis for the online control of action.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael J Proulx
- Crossmodal Cognition Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, UK
| | - James Gwinnutt
- Crossmodal Cognition Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, UK
| | - Sara Dell'Erba
- Crossmodal Cognition Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, UK
| | - Shelly Levy-Tzedek
- Cognition, Aging and Rehabilitation Lab, Recanati School for Community Health Professions, Department of Physical Therapy & Zlotowski Center for Neuroscience, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
| | - Alexandra A de Sousa
- Crossmodal Cognition Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, UK.,Department of Science, Bath Spa University, Bath, UK
| | - David J Brown
- Crossmodal Cognition Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Bath, Bath, UK
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Brodoehl S, Klingner C, Schaller D, Witte OW. Plasticity During Short-Term Visual Deprivation. ZEITSCHRIFT FUR PSYCHOLOGIE-JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY 2016. [DOI: 10.1027/2151-2604/a000246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Abstract. During everyday experiences, people sometimes close their eyes to better understand spoken words, to listen to music, or when touching textures and objects. A plausible explanation for this observation is that a reversible loss of vision changes the perceptual function of the remaining non-deprived sensory modalities. Within this work, we discuss general aspects of the effects of visual deprivation on the perceptual performance of the non-deprived sensory modalities with a focus on the time dependency of these modifications. In light of ambiguous findings concerning the effects of short-term visual deprivation and because recent literature provides evidence that the act of blindfolding can change the function of the non-deprived senses within seconds, we performed additional psychophysiological and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) analysis to provide new insight into this matter. Eye closure for several seconds led to a substantial impact on tactile perception probably caused by an unmasking of preformed neuronal pathways.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Brodoehl
- Hans Berger Department of Neurology, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
- Brain Imaging Center, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
| | - Carsten Klingner
- Hans Berger Department of Neurology, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
- Brain Imaging Center, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
| | - Denise Schaller
- Hans Berger Department of Neurology, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
- Brain Imaging Center, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
| | - Otto W. Witte
- Hans Berger Department of Neurology, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
- Brain Imaging Center, Jena University Hospital – Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany
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Simultaneous Assessment of White Matter Changes in Microstructure and Connectedness in the Blind Brain. Neural Plast 2016; 2016:6029241. [PMID: 26881120 PMCID: PMC4736370 DOI: 10.1155/2016/6029241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2015] [Accepted: 10/28/2015] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the human brain has provided converging evidence that visual deprivation induces regional changes in white matter (WM) microstructure. It remains unclear how these changes modify network connections between brain regions. Here we used diffusion-weighted MRI to relate differences in microstructure and structural connectedness of WM in individuals with congenital or late-onset blindness relative to normally sighted controls. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) provided voxel-specific microstructural features of the tissue, while anatomical connectivity mapping (ACM) assessed the connectedness of each voxel with the rest of the brain. ACM yielded reduced anatomical connectivity in the corpus callosum in individuals with congenital but not late-onset blindness. ACM did not identify any brain region where blindness resulted in increased anatomical connectivity. DTI revealed widespread microstructural differences as indexed by a reduced regional fractional anisotropy (FA). Blind individuals showed lower FA in the primary visual and the ventral visual processing stream relative to sighted controls regardless of the blindness onset. The results show that visual deprivation shapes WM microstructure and anatomical connectivity, but these changes appear to be spatially dissociated as changes emerge in different WM tracts. They also indicate that regional differences in anatomical connectivity depend on the onset of blindness.
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Schinazi VR, Thrash T, Chebat DR. Spatial navigation by congenitally blind individuals. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2015; 7:37-58. [PMID: 26683114 PMCID: PMC4737291 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1375] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2015] [Revised: 10/16/2015] [Accepted: 11/17/2015] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Spatial navigation in the absence of vision has been investigated from a variety of perspectives and disciplines. These different approaches have progressed our understanding of spatial knowledge acquisition by blind individuals, including their abilities, strategies, and corresponding mental representations. In this review, we propose a framework for investigating differences in spatial knowledge acquisition by blind and sighted people consisting of three longitudinal models (i.e., convergent, cumulative, and persistent). Recent advances in neuroscience and technological devices have provided novel insights into the different neural mechanisms underlying spatial navigation by blind and sighted people and the potential for functional reorganization. Despite these advances, there is still a lack of consensus regarding the extent to which locomotion and wayfinding depend on amodal spatial representations. This challenge largely stems from methodological limitations such as heterogeneity in the blind population and terminological ambiguity related to the concept of cognitive maps. Coupled with an over‐reliance on potential technological solutions, the field has diffused into theoretical and applied branches that do not always communicate. Here, we review research on navigation by congenitally blind individuals with an emphasis on behavioral and neuroscientific evidence, as well as the potential of technological assistance. Throughout the article, we emphasize the need to disentangle strategy choice and performance when discussing the navigation abilities of the blind population. WIREs Cogn Sci 2016, 7:37–58. doi: 10.1002/wcs.1375 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor R Schinazi
- Department of Humanities, Social, and Political Sciences, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Tyler Thrash
- Department of Humanities, Social, and Political Sciences, ETH Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
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20
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Blindness alters the microstructure of the ventral but not the dorsal visual stream. Brain Struct Funct 2015; 221:2891-903. [PMID: 26134685 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-015-1078-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2014] [Accepted: 06/22/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Visual deprivation from birth leads to reorganisation of the brain through cross-modal plasticity. Although there is a general agreement that the primary afferent visual pathways are altered in congenitally blind individuals, our knowledge about microstructural changes within the higher-order visual streams, and how this is affected by onset of blindness, remains scant. We used diffusion tensor imaging and tractography to investigate microstructural features in the dorsal (superior longitudinal fasciculus) and ventral (inferior longitudinal and inferior fronto-occipital fasciculi) visual pathways in 12 congenitally blind, 15 late blind and 15 normal sighted controls. We also studied six prematurely born individuals with normal vision to control for the effects of prematurity on brain connectivity. Our data revealed a reduction in fractional anisotropy in the ventral but not the dorsal visual stream for both congenitally and late blind individuals. Prematurely born individuals, with normal vision, did not differ from normal sighted controls, born at term. Our data suggest that although the visual streams are structurally developing without normal visual input from the eyes, blindness selectively affects the microstructure of the ventral visual stream regardless of the time of onset. We suggest that the decreased fractional anisotropy of the ventral stream in the two groups of blind subjects is the combined result of both degenerative and cross-modal compensatory processes, affecting normal white matter development.
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Abstract
We review our recent behavioural and imaging studies testing the consequences of congenital blindness on the chemical senses in comparison with the condition of anosmia. We found that congenitally blind (CB) subjects have increased sensitivity for orthonasal odorants and recruit their visually deprived occipital cortex to process orthonasal olfactory stimuli. In sharp contrast, CB perform less well than sighted controls in taste and retronasal olfaction, i.e. when processing chemicals inside the mouth. Interestingly, CB do not recruit their occipital cortex to process taste stimuli. In contrast to these findings in blindness, congenital anosmia is associated with lower taste and trigeminal sensitivity, accompanied by weaker activations within the 'flavour network' upon exposure to such stimuli. We conclude that functional adaptations to congenital anosmia or blindness are quite distinct, such that CB can train their exteroceptive chemical senses and recruit normally visual cortical areas to process chemical information from the surrounding environment.
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22
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Congenital blindness affects diencephalic but not mesencephalic structures in the human brain. Brain Struct Funct 2015; 221:1465-80. [DOI: 10.1007/s00429-014-0984-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2014] [Accepted: 12/28/2014] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Tomaiuolo F, Campana S, Collins DL, Fonov VS, Ricciardi E, Sartori G, Pietrini P, Kupers R, Ptito M. Morphometric changes of the corpus callosum in congenital blindness. PLoS One 2014; 9:e107871. [PMID: 25255324 PMCID: PMC4177862 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0107871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2014] [Accepted: 08/20/2014] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
We examined the effects of visual deprivation at birth on the development of the corpus callosum in a large group of congenitally blind individuals. We acquired high-resolution T1-weighted MRI scans in 28 congenitally blind and 28 normal sighted subjects matched for age and gender. There was no overall group effect of visual deprivation on the total surface area of the corpus callosum. However, subdividing the corpus callosum into five subdivisions revealed significant regional changes in its three most posterior parts. Compared to the sighted controls, congenitally blind individuals showed a 12% reduction in the splenium, and a 20% increase in the isthmus and the posterior part of the body. A shape analysis further revealed that the bending angle of the corpus callosum was more convex in congenitally blind compared to the sighted control subjects. The observed morphometric changes in the corpus callosum are in line with the well-described cross-modal functional and structural neuroplastic changes in congenital blindness.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Serena Campana
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
| | - D. Louis Collins
- McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Vladimir S. Fonov
- McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Emiliano Ricciardi
- Laboratory of Clinical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Department of Surgery, Medical, Molecular, and Critical Area Pathology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
- MRI Lab, Fondazione Toscana ‘G. Monasterio’, Pisa, Italy
| | - Giuseppe Sartori
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
| | - Pietro Pietrini
- Laboratory of Clinical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Department of Surgery, Medical, Molecular, and Critical Area Pathology, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
- Clinical Psychology Branch, Pisa University Hospital, Pisa, Italy
| | - Ron Kupers
- Harland Sanders Chair in Visual Science, École d’optométrie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- BRAINlab, Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Panum Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- * E-mail:
| | - Maurice Ptito
- Harland Sanders Chair in Visual Science, École d’optométrie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- BRAINlab, Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, Panum Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
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Burton H, Snyder AZ, Raichle ME. Resting state functional connectivity in early blind humans. Front Syst Neurosci 2014; 8:51. [PMID: 24778608 PMCID: PMC3985019 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2014.00051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2013] [Accepted: 03/19/2014] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Task-based neuroimaging studies in early blind humans (EB) have demonstrated heightened visual cortex responses to non-visual paradigms. Several prior functional connectivity studies in EB have shown altered connections consistent with these task-based results. But these studies generally did not consider behavioral adaptations to lifelong blindness typically observed in EB. Enhanced cognitive abilities shown in EB include greater serial recall and attention to memory. Here, we address the question of the extent to which brain intrinsic activity in EB reflects such adaptations. We performed a resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging study contrasting 14 EB with 14 age/gender matched normally sighted controls (NS). A principal finding was markedly greater functional connectivity in EB between visual cortex and regions typically associated with memory and cognitive control of attention. In contrast, correlations between visual cortex and non-deprived sensory cortices were significantly lower in EB. Thus, the available data, including that obtained in prior task-based and resting state fMRI studies, as well as the present results, indicate that visual cortex in EB becomes more heavily incorporated into functional systems instantiating episodic recall and attention to non-visual events. Moreover, EB appear to show a reduction in interactions between visual and non-deprived sensory cortices, possibly reflecting suppression of inter-sensory distracting activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harold Burton
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis, MO, USA ; Department of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Abraham Z Snyder
- Department of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Marcus E Raichle
- Department of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine St. Louis, MO, USA
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25
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Multisensory perceptual learning and sensory substitution. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2014; 41:16-25. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2012.11.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2012] [Revised: 11/19/2012] [Accepted: 11/28/2012] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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26
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Mind the blind brain to understand the sighted one! Is there a supramodal cortical functional architecture? Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2014; 41:64-77. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 103] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2013] [Revised: 08/13/2013] [Accepted: 10/03/2013] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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Meaidi A, Jennum P, Ptito M, Kupers R. The sensory construction of dreams and nightmare frequency in congenitally blind and late blind individuals. Sleep Med 2014; 15:586-95. [PMID: 24709309 DOI: 10.1016/j.sleep.2013.12.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2013] [Revised: 11/28/2013] [Accepted: 12/11/2013] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES We aimed to assess dream content in groups of congenitally blind (CB), late blind (LB), and age- and sex-matched sighted control (SC) participants. METHODS We conducted an observational study of 11 CB, 14 LB, and 25 SC participants and collected dream reports over a 4-week period. Every morning participants filled in a questionnaire related to the sensory construction of the dream, its emotional and thematic content, and the possible occurrence of nightmares. We also assessed participants' ability of visual imagery during waking cognition, sleep quality, and depression and anxiety levels. RESULTS All blind participants had fewer visual dream impressions compared to SC participants. In LB participants, duration of blindness was negatively correlated with duration, clarity, and color content of visual dream impressions. CB participants reported more auditory, tactile, gustatory, and olfactory dream components compared to SC participants. In contrast, LB participants only reported more tactile dream impressions. Blind and SC participants did not differ with respect to emotional and thematic dream content. However, CB participants reported more aggressive interactions and more nightmares compared to the other two groups. CONCLUSIONS Our data show that blindness considerably alters the sensory composition of dreams and that onset and duration of blindness plays an important role. The increased occurrence of nightmares in CB participants may be related to a higher number of threatening experiences in daily life in this group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amani Meaidi
- BRAINlab, Department of Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Panum Institute, Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; Danish Center for Sleep Medicine, Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Faculty of Health, Glostrup Hospital, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Poul Jennum
- Danish Center for Sleep Medicine, Department of Clinical Neurophysiology, Faculty of Health, Glostrup Hospital, Glostrup, Denmark
| | - Maurice Ptito
- BRAINlab, Department of Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Panum Institute, Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; Laboratory of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Panum Institute, Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ron Kupers
- BRAINlab, Department of Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Panum Institute, Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; Laboratory of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Panum Institute, Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.
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28
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Kupers R, Ptito M. Compensatory plasticity and cross-modal reorganization following early visual deprivation. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2013; 41:36-52. [PMID: 23954750 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2013.08.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 160] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2013] [Revised: 07/30/2013] [Accepted: 08/01/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
For human and non-human primates, vision is one of the most privileged sensory channels used to interact with the environment. The importance of vision is strongly embedded in the organization of the primate brain as about one third of its cortical surface is involved in visual functions. It is therefore not surprising that the absence of vision from birth, or the loss of vision later in life, has huge consequences, both anatomically and functionally. Studies in animals and humans, conducted over the past few decades, have demonstrated that the absence of vision causes massive structural changes that take place not only in the visually deprived cortex but also in other brain areas. These studies have further shown that the visually deprived cortex becomes responsive to a wide variety of non-visual sensory inputs. Recent studies even showed a role of the visually deprived cortex in cognitive processes. At the behavioral level, increases in acuity for auditory and tactile processes have been reported. The study of the congenitally blind brain also offers a unique model to gain better insights into the functioning of the normal sighted brain and to understand to what extent visual experience is necessary for the brain to develop its functional architecture. Finally, the study of the blind brain allows us to investigate how consciousness develops in the absence of vision. How does the brain of someone who has never had any visual perception form an image of the external world? In this paper, we discuss recent findings from animal studies as well as from behavioural and functional brain imaging studies in sighted and blind individuals that address these questions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ron Kupers
- BRAINlab, Department of Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Panum Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; École d'Optométrie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada.
| | - Maurice Ptito
- BRAINlab, Department of Neuroscience & Pharmacology, Panum Institute, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; École d'Optométrie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
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29
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Ioannides AA, Liu L, Poghosyan V, Saridis GA, Gjedde A, Ptito M, Kupers R. MEG reveals a fast pathway from somatosensory cortex to occipital areas via posterior parietal cortex in a blind subject. Front Hum Neurosci 2013; 7:429. [PMID: 23935576 PMCID: PMC3733019 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00429] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2013] [Accepted: 07/15/2013] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Cross-modal activity in visual cortex of blind subjects has been reported during performance of variety of non-visual tasks. A key unanswered question is through which pathways non-visual inputs are funneled to the visual cortex. Here we used tomographic analysis of single trial magnetoencephalography (MEG) data recorded from one congenitally blind and two sighted subjects after stimulation of the left and right median nerves at three intensities: below sensory threshold, above sensory threshold and above motor threshold; the last sufficient to produce thumb twitching. We identified reproducible brain responses in the primary somatosensory (S1) and motor (M1) cortices at around 20 ms post-stimulus, which were very similar in sighted and blind subjects. Time-frequency analysis revealed strong 45-70 Hz activity at latencies of 20-50 ms in S1 and M1, and posterior parietal cortex Brodmann areas (BA) 7 and 40, which compared to lower frequencies, were substantially more pronounced in the blind than the sighted subjects. Critically, at frequencies from α-band up to 100 Hz we found clear, strong, and widespread responses in the visual cortex of the blind subject, which increased with the intensity of the somatosensory stimuli. Time-delayed mutual information (MI) revealed that in blind subject the stimulus information is funneled from the early somatosensory to visual cortex through posterior parietal BA 7 and 40, projecting first to visual areas V5 and V3, and eventually V1. The flow of information through this pathway occurred in stages characterized by convergence of activations into specific cortical regions. In sighted subjects, no linked activity was found that led from the somatosensory to the visual cortex through any of the studied brain regions. These results provide the first evidence from MEG that in blind subjects, tactile information is routed from primary somatosensory to occipital cortex via the posterior parietal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas A Ioannides
- Laboratory for Human Brain Dynamics, AAI Scientific Cultural Services Ltd. Nicosia, Cyprus
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Kapur N, Cole J, Manly T, Viskontas I, Ninteman A, Hasher L, Pascual-Leone A. Positive Clinical Neuroscience. Neuroscientist 2013; 19:354-69. [DOI: 10.1177/1073858412470976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Disorders of the brain and its sensory organs have traditionally been associated with deficits in movement, perception, cognition, emotion, and behavior. It is increasingly evident, however, that positive phenomena may also occur in such conditions, with implications for the individual, science, medicine, and for society. This article provides a selective review of such positive phenomena – enhanced function after brain lesions, better-than-normal performance in people with sensory loss, creativity associated with neurological disease, and enhanced performance associated with aging. We propose that, akin to the well-established field of positive psychology and the emerging field of positive clinical psychology, the nascent fields of positive neurology and positive neuropsychology offer new avenues to understand brain-behavior relationships, with both theoretical and therapeutic implications.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Tom Manly
- MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, Cambridge, UK
| | - Indre Viskontas
- University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | | | - Lynn Hasher
- University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Alvaro Pascual-Leone
- Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
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31
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The effect of age on time dependent EEG-synchronization changes during the performance of mental arithmetic task. Int J Psychophysiol 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2012.07.169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
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32
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Cortical GABAergic interneurons in cross-modal plasticity following early blindness. Neural Plast 2012; 2012:590725. [PMID: 22720175 PMCID: PMC3377178 DOI: 10.1155/2012/590725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2012] [Accepted: 04/04/2012] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Early loss of a given sensory input in mammals causes anatomical and functional modifications in the brain via a process called cross-modal plasticity. In the past four decades, several animal models have illuminated our understanding of the biological substrates involved in cross-modal plasticity. Progressively, studies are now starting to emphasise on cell-specific mechanisms that may be responsible for this intermodal sensory plasticity. Inhibitory interneurons expressing γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) play an important role in maintaining the appropriate dynamic range of cortical excitation, in critical periods of developmental plasticity, in receptive field refinement, and in treatment of sensory information reaching the cerebral cortex. The diverse interneuron population is very sensitive to sensory experience during development. GABAergic neurons are therefore well suited to act as a gate for mediating cross-modal plasticity. This paper attempts to highlight the links between early sensory deprivation, cortical GABAergic interneuron alterations, and cross-modal plasticity, discuss its implications, and further provide insights for future research in the field.
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