Temporal properties of shape processing by event-related MEG adaptation

Magnetoencephalography adaptation reveals depth-cue-invariant object representations in the visual cortex

Independent of edges and 2-D shape that can be highly informative of object identity, depth cues alone can also give rise to vivid and effective object percepts. The processing of different depth cues engages segregated cortical areas, and an efficient object representation would be one that is invariant to depth cues. Here, we investigated depth-cue invariance of object representations by measuring the category-specific response to faces-the M170 response measured with magnetoencephalography. The M170 response is strongest to faces and is sensitive to adaptation, such that repeated presentation of a face diminishes subsequent M170 responses. We used this feature of the M170 and measured the degree to which the adaptation effect is affected by variations in depth cue and 3-D object shape. Subjects viewed a rapid presentation of two stimuli-an adaptor and a test stimulus. The adaptor was either a face, a chair, or a face-like oval surface, and rendered with a single depth cue (shading, structure from motion, or texture). The test stimulus was always a shaded face of a random identity, thus completely controlling for low-level influences on the M170 response to the test stimulus. In the left fusiform face area, we found strong M170 adaptation when the adaptor was a face regardless of its depth cue. This adaptation was marginal in the right fusiform and negligible in the occipital regions. Our results support the presence of depth-cue-invariant representations in the human visual system, alongside size, position, and viewpoint invariance.

MEG adaptation reveals action representations in posterior occipitotemporal regions

When we observe other people's actions, a number of parietal and precentral regions known to be involved in the planning and execution of actions are recruited for example seen as power decreases in alpha and beta frequencies indicative of increased activation. It has been argued that this recruitment reflects the process of simulating the observed action, thereby providing access to the meaning of the action. Alternatively, it has been suggested that rather than providing access to the meaning of an action, parietal and precentral regions might be recruited as a consequence of action understanding. A way to distinguish between these alternatives is to examine where in the brain and at which time point it is possible to discriminate between different types of actions (e.g., pointing or grasping) irrespective of the way these are performed. To this aim, we presented participants with videos of simple hand actions performed with the left or right hand towards a target on the left or the right side while recording magnetoencephalography (MEG) data. In each trial, participants were presented with two subsequent videos (S1, S2) depicting either the same (repeat trials) or different (non-repeat trials) actions. We predicted that areas that are sensitive to the type of action should show stronger adaptation (i.e., a smaller decrease in alpha and beta power) in repeat in comparison to non-repeat trials. Indeed, we observed less alpha and beta power decreases during the presentation of S2 when the action was repeated compared to when two different actions were presented indicating adaptation of neuronal populations that are selective for the type of action. Sources were obtained exclusively in posterior occipitotemporal regions, supporting the notion that an early differentiation of actions occurs outside the motor system.

Repetition and ERPs during emotional scene processing: A selective review

A set of studies are reviewed that investigate the effects of repetition during scene perception on event-related potentials, elucidating perceptual, memory and emotional processes. Repetition suppression was consistently found for the amplitude of early frontal N2 and posterior P2 components, which was greatly enhanced for massed, compared to distributed, repetition. Both repetition suppression and enhancement of the amplitude of a centro-parietal positive potential (LPP) were found in specific contexts. Suppression was reliably found following a massive number of repetitions of few items, whereas enhancement is found when repetitions are spaced; enhancement was apparent both during simple free viewing as well as on an explicit recognition test. Regardless of repetition, an enhanced LPP was always found for emotional, compared to neutral, scenes. Taken together, the data suggest that different effects of massed and distributed repetitions on specific ERP components index perceptual priming, habituation, and spontaneous episodic retrieval.

Imaging distributed and massed repetitions of natural scenes: spontaneous retrieval and maintenance

Repetitions that are distributed (spaced) across time prompt enhancement of a memory-related event-related potential, compared to when repetitions are massed (contiguous). Here, we used fMRI to investigate neural enhancement and suppression effects during free viewing of natural scenes that were either novel or repeated four times with massed or distributed repetitions. Distributed repetition was uniquely associated with a repetition enhancement effect in a bilateral posterior parietal cluster that included the precuneus and posterior cingulate and which has previously been implicated in episodic memory retrieval. Unique to massed repetition, conversely, was enhancement in a right dorsolateral prefrontal cluster that has been implicated in short-term maintenance. Repetition suppression effects for both types of spacing were widespread in regions activated during novel picture processing. Taken together, the data are consistent with a hypothesis that distributed repetition prompts spontaneous retrieval of prior occurrences, whereas massed repetition prompts short-term maintenance of the episodic representation, due to contiguous presentation. These processing differences may mediate the classic spacing effect in learning and memory.