1
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Sulpizio V, Teghil A, Pitzalis S, Boccia M. Common and specific activations supporting optic flow processing and navigation as revealed by a meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies. Brain Struct Funct 2024; 229:1021-1045. [PMID: 38592557 PMCID: PMC11147901 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-024-02790-8] [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] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/10/2024]
Abstract
Optic flow provides useful information in service of spatial navigation. However, whether brain networks supporting these two functions overlap is still unclear. Here we used Activation Likelihood Estimation (ALE) to assess the correspondence between brain correlates of optic flow processing and spatial navigation and their specific neural activations. Since computational and connectivity evidence suggests that visual input from optic flow provides information mainly during egocentric navigation, we further tested the correspondence between brain correlates of optic flow processing and that of both egocentric and allocentric navigation. Optic flow processing shared activation with egocentric (but not allocentric) navigation in the anterior precuneus, suggesting its role in providing information about self-motion, as derived from the analysis of optic flow, in service of egocentric navigation. We further documented that optic flow perception and navigation are partially segregated into two functional and anatomical networks, i.e., the dorsal and the ventromedial networks. Present results point to a dynamic interplay between the dorsal and ventral visual pathways aimed at coordinating visually guided navigation in the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Sulpizio
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
- Department of Humanities, Education and Social Sciences, University of Molise, Campobasso, Italy
| | - Alice Teghil
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
- Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy
| | - Sabrina Pitzalis
- Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy
- Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome ''Foro Italico'', Rome, Italy
| | - Maddalena Boccia
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy.
- Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy.
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2
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Kamps FS, Chen EM, Kanwisher N, Saxe R. Representation of navigational affordances and ego-motion in the occipital place area. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.30.591964. [PMID: 38746251 PMCID: PMC11092631 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.30.591964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
Humans effortlessly use vision to plan and guide navigation through the local environment, or "scene". A network of three cortical regions responds selectively to visual scene information, including the occipital (OPA), parahippocampal (PPA), and medial place areas (MPA) - but how this network supports visually-guided navigation is unclear. Recent evidence suggests that one region in particular, the OPA, supports visual representations for navigation, while PPA and MPA support other aspects of scene processing. However, most previous studies tested only static scene images, which lack the dynamic experience of navigating through scenes. We used dynamic movie stimuli to test whether OPA, PPA, and MPA represent two critical kinds of navigationally-relevant information: navigational affordances (e.g., can I walk to the left, right, or both?) and ego-motion (e.g., am I walking forward or backward? turning left or right?). We found that OPA is sensitive to both affordances and ego-motion, as well as the conflict between these cues - e.g., turning toward versus away from an open doorway. These effects were significantly weaker or absent in PPA and MPA. Responses in OPA were also dissociable from those in early visual cortex, consistent with the idea that OPA responses are not merely explained by lower-level visual features. OPA responses to affordances and ego-motion were stronger in the contralateral than ipsilateral visual field, suggesting that OPA encodes navigationally relevant information within an egocentric reference frame. Taken together, these results support the hypothesis that OPA contains visual representations that are useful for planning and guiding navigation through scenes.
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3
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Kennedy B, Malladi SN, Tootell RBH, Nasr S. A previously undescribed scene-selective site is the key to encoding ego-motion in naturalistic environments. eLife 2024; 13:RP91601. [PMID: 38506719 PMCID: PMC10954307 DOI: 10.7554/elife.91601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Current models of scene processing in the human brain include three scene-selective areas: the parahippocampal place area (or the temporal place areas), the restrosplenial cortex (or the medial place area), and the transverse occipital sulcus (or the occipital place area). Here, we challenged this model by showing that at least one other scene-selective site can also be detected within the human posterior intraparietal gyrus. Despite the smaller size of this site compared to the other scene-selective areas, the posterior intraparietal gyrus scene-selective (PIGS) site was detected consistently in a large pool of subjects (n = 59; 33 females). The reproducibility of this finding was tested based on multiple criteria, including comparing the results across sessions, utilizing different scanners (3T and 7T) and stimulus sets. Furthermore, we found that this site (but not the other three scene-selective areas) is significantly sensitive to ego-motion in scenes, thus distinguishing the role of PIGS in scene perception relative to other scene-selective areas. These results highlight the importance of including finer scale scene-selective sites in models of scene processing - a crucial step toward a more comprehensive understanding of how scenes are encoded under dynamic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryan Kennedy
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General HospitalCharlestownUnited States
| | - Sarala N Malladi
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General HospitalCharlestownUnited States
| | - Roger BH Tootell
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General HospitalCharlestownUnited States
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical SchoolBostonUnited States
| | - Shahin Nasr
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General HospitalCharlestownUnited States
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical SchoolBostonUnited States
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4
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Kennedy B, Malladi SN, Tootell RBH, Nasr S. A previously undescribed scene-selective site is the key to encoding ego-motion in naturalistic environments. RESEARCH SQUARE 2024:rs.3.rs-3378081. [PMID: 38260553 PMCID: PMC10802707 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3378081/v2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/24/2024]
Abstract
Current models of scene processing in the human brain include three scene-selective areas: the Parahippocampal Place Area (or the temporal place areas; PPA/TPA), the restrosplenial cortex (or the medial place area; RSC/MPA) and the transverse occipital sulcus (or the occipital place area; TOS/OPA). Here, we challenged this model by showing that at least one other scene-selective site can also be detected within the human posterior intraparietal gyrus. Despite the smaller size of this site compared to the other scene-selective areas, the posterior intraparietal gyrus scene-selective (PIGS) site was detected consistently in a large pool of subjects (n=59; 33 females). The reproducibility of this finding was tested based on multiple criteria, including comparing the results across sessions, utilizing different scanners (3T and 7T) and stimulus sets. Furthermore, we found that this site (but not the other three scene-selective areas) is significantly sensitive to ego-motion in scenes, thus distinguishing the role of PIGS in scene perception relative to other scene-selective areas. These results highlight the importance of including finer scale scene-selective sites in models of scene processing - a crucial step toward a more comprehensive understanding of how scenes are encoded under dynamic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryan Kennedy
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
| | - Sarala N. Malladi
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
| | - Roger B. H. Tootell
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Shahin Nasr
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
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5
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Kennedy B, Malladi SN, Tootell RBH, Nasr S. A previously undescribed scene-selective site is the key to encoding ego-motion in naturalistic environments. RESEARCH SQUARE 2024:rs.3.rs-3378081. [PMID: 38260553 PMCID: PMC10802707 DOI: 10.21203/rs.3.rs-3378081/v3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Current models of scene processing in the human brain include three scene-selective areas: the Parahippocampal Place Area (or the temporal place areas; PPA/TPA), the restrosplenial cortex (or the medial place area; RSC/MPA) and the transverse occipital sulcus (or the occipital place area; TOS/OPA). Here, we challenged this model by showing that at least one other scene-selective site can also be detected within the human posterior intraparietal gyrus. Despite the smaller size of this site compared to the other scene-selective areas, the posterior intraparietal gyrus scene-selective (PIGS) site was detected consistently in a large pool of subjects (n=59; 33 females). The reproducibility of this finding was tested based on multiple criteria, including comparing the results across sessions, utilizing different scanners (3T and 7T) and stimulus sets. Furthermore, we found that this site (but not the other three scene-selective areas) is significantly sensitive to ego-motion in scenes, thus distinguishing the role of PIGS in scene perception relative to other scene-selective areas. These results highlight the importance of including finer scale scene-selective sites in models of scene processing - a crucial step toward a more comprehensive understanding of how scenes are encoded under dynamic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bryan Kennedy
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
| | - Sarala N. Malladi
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
| | - Roger B. H. Tootell
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Shahin Nasr
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA, United States
- Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
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6
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Cardelli L, Tullo MG, Galati G, Sulpizio V. Effect of optic flow on spatial updating: insight from an immersive virtual reality study. Exp Brain Res 2023; 241:865-874. [PMID: 36781456 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-023-06567-z] [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: 11/11/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2023]
Abstract
Self-motion information is required to keep track of where we are with respect to our environment (spatial updating). Visual signals such as optic flow are relevant to provide information about self-motion, especially in the absence of vestibular and/or proprioceptive cues generated by physical movement. However, the role of optic flow on spatial updating is still debated. A virtual reality system based on a head-mounted display was used to allow participants to experience a self-motion sensation within a naturalistic environment in the absence of physical movement. We asked participants to keep track of spatial positions of a target during simulated self-motion while manipulating the availability of optic flow coming from the lower part of the environment (ground plane). In each trial, the ground could be a green lawn (optic flow ON) or covered in snow (optic flow OFF). We observed that the lack of optic flow on the ground had a detrimental effect on spatial updating. Furthermore, we explored the interaction between the optic flow availability and different characteristics of self-motion: we observed that increasing self-motion speed had a detrimental effect on spatial updating, especially in the absence of optic flow, while self-motion direction (leftward, forward, rightward) and path (translational and curvilinear) had no statically significant effect. Overall, we demonstrated that, in the absence of some idiothetic cues, the optic flow provided by the ground has a dominant role for the self-motion estimation and, hence, for the ability to update the spatial relationships between one's position and the position of the surrounding objects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa Cardelli
- Brain Imaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Via Dei Marsi 78, 00185, Rome, Italy
| | - Maria Giulia Tullo
- Brain Imaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Via Dei Marsi 78, 00185, Rome, Italy.,Department of Translational and Precision Medicine, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
| | - Gaspare Galati
- Brain Imaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Via Dei Marsi 78, 00185, Rome, Italy.,Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy
| | - Valentina Sulpizio
- Brain Imaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Via Dei Marsi 78, 00185, Rome, Italy. .,Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy.
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7
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Suzuki S, Kamps FS, Dilks DD, Treadway MT. Two scene navigation systems dissociated by deliberate versus automatic processing. Cortex 2021; 140:199-209. [PMID: 33992908 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2021.03.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2020] [Revised: 11/25/2020] [Accepted: 03/20/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Successfully navigating the world requires avoiding boundaries and obstacles in one's immediately-visible environment, as well as finding one's way to distant places in the broader environment. Recent neuroimaging studies suggest that these two navigational processes involve distinct cortical scene processing systems, with the occipital place area (OPA) supporting navigation through the local visual environment, and the retrosplenial complex (RSC) supporting navigation through the broader spatial environment. Here we hypothesized that these systems are distinguished not only by the scene information they represent (i.e., the local visual versus broader spatial environment), but also based on the automaticity of the process they involve, with navigation through the broader environment (including RSC) operating deliberately, and navigation through the local visual environment (including OPA) operating automatically. We tested this hypothesis using fMRI and a maze-navigation paradigm, where participants navigated two maze structures (complex or simple, testing representation of the broader spatial environment) under two conditions (active or passive, testing deliberate versus automatic processing). Consistent with the hypothesis that RSC supports deliberate navigation through the broader environment, RSC responded significantly more to complex than simple mazes during active, but not passive navigation. By contrast, consistent with the hypothesis that OPA supports automatic navigation through the local visual environment, OPA responded strongly even during passive navigation, and did not differentiate between active versus passive conditions. Taken together, these findings suggest the novel hypothesis that navigation through the broader spatial environment is deliberate, whereas navigation through the local visual environment is automatic, shedding new light on the dissociable functions of these systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shosuke Suzuki
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Frederik S Kamps
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States; Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Daniel D Dilks
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Michael T Treadway
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States.
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8
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Sulpizio V, Galati G, Fattori P, Galletti C, Pitzalis S. A common neural substrate for processing scenes and egomotion-compatible visual motion. Brain Struct Funct 2020; 225:2091-2110. [PMID: 32647918 PMCID: PMC7473967 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-020-02112-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2020] [Accepted: 07/02/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Neuroimaging studies have revealed two separate classes of category-selective regions specialized in optic flow (egomotion-compatible) processing and in scene/place perception. Despite the importance of both optic flow and scene/place recognition to estimate changes in position and orientation within the environment during self-motion, the possible functional link between egomotion- and scene-selective regions has not yet been established. Here we reanalyzed functional magnetic resonance images from a large sample of participants performing two well-known “localizer” fMRI experiments, consisting in passive viewing of navigationally relevant stimuli such as buildings and places (scene/place stimulus) and coherently moving fields of dots simulating the visual stimulation during self-motion (flow fields). After interrogating the egomotion-selective areas with respect to the scene/place stimulus and the scene-selective areas with respect to flow fields, we found that the egomotion-selective areas V6+ and pIPS/V3A responded bilaterally more to scenes/places compared to faces, and all the scene-selective areas (parahippocampal place area or PPA, retrosplenial complex or RSC, and occipital place area or OPA) responded more to egomotion-compatible optic flow compared to random motion. The conjunction analysis between scene/place and flow field stimuli revealed that the most important focus of common activation was found in the dorsolateral parieto-occipital cortex, spanning the scene-selective OPA and the egomotion-selective pIPS/V3A. Individual inspection of the relative locations of these two regions revealed a partial overlap and a similar response profile to an independent low-level visual motion stimulus, suggesting that OPA and pIPS/V3A may be part of a unique motion-selective complex specialized in encoding both egomotion- and scene-relevant information, likely for the control of navigation in a structured environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Sulpizio
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences-DIBINEM, University of Bologna, Piazza di Porta San Donato 2, 40126, Bologna, Italy. .,Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy.
| | - Gaspare Galati
- Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy.,Brain Imaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Fattori
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences-DIBINEM, University of Bologna, Piazza di Porta San Donato 2, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Claudio Galletti
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences-DIBINEM, University of Bologna, Piazza di Porta San Donato 2, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - Sabrina Pitzalis
- Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy.,Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome ''Foro Italico'', Rome, Italy
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9
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Pitzalis S, Serra C, Sulpizio V, Committeri G, de Pasquale F, Fattori P, Galletti C, Sepe R, Galati G. Neural bases of self- and object-motion in a naturalistic vision. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 41:1084-1111. [PMID: 31713304 PMCID: PMC7267932 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2019] [Revised: 10/19/2019] [Accepted: 10/31/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
To plan movements toward objects our brain must recognize whether retinal displacement is due to self-motion and/or to object-motion. Here, we aimed to test whether motion areas are able to segregate these types of motion. We combined an event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging experiment, brain mapping techniques, and wide-field stimulation to study the responsivity of motion-sensitive areas to pure and combined self- and object-motion conditions during virtual movies of a train running within a realistic landscape. We observed a selective response in MT to the pure object-motion condition, and in medial (PEc, pCi, CSv, and CMA) and lateral (PIC and LOR) areas to the pure self-motion condition. Some other regions (like V6) responded more to complex visual stimulation where both object- and self-motion were present. Among all, we found that some motion regions (V3A, LOR, MT, V6, and IPSmot) could extract object-motion information from the overall motion, recognizing the real movement of the train even when the images remain still (on the screen), or moved, because of self-movements. We propose that these motion areas might be good candidates for the "flow parsing mechanism," that is the capability to extract object-motion information from retinal motion signals by subtracting out the optic flow components.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sabrina Pitzalis
- Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome Foro Italico, Rome, Italy.,Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation Unit, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy
| | - Chiara Serra
- Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome Foro Italico, Rome, Italy.,Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation Unit, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy
| | - Valentina Sulpizio
- Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation Unit, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy.,Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Giorgia Committeri
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology and Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, and Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies (ITAB), University G. d'Annunzio, Chieti, Italy
| | - Francesco de Pasquale
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology and Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, and Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies (ITAB), University G. d'Annunzio, Chieti, Italy.,Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Teramo, Teramo, Italy
| | - Patrizia Fattori
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Claudio Galletti
- Department of Pharmacy and Biotechnology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Rosamaria Sepe
- Laboratory of Neuropsychology and Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, and Institute for Advanced Biomedical Technologies (ITAB), University G. d'Annunzio, Chieti, Italy
| | - Gaspare Galati
- Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation Unit, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy.,Brain Imaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
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Serra C, Galletti C, Di Marco S, Fattori P, Galati G, Sulpizio V, Pitzalis S. Egomotion-related visual areas respond to active leg movements. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 40:3174-3191. [PMID: 30924264 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2018] [Revised: 03/07/2019] [Accepted: 03/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Monkey neurophysiology and human neuroimaging studies have demonstrated that passive viewing of optic flow stimuli activates a cortical network of temporal, parietal, insular, and cingulate visual motion regions. Here, we tested whether the human visual motion areas involved in processing optic flow signals simulating self-motion are also activated by active lower limb movements, and hence are likely involved in guiding human locomotion. To this aim, we used a combined approach of task-evoked activity and resting-state functional connectivity by fMRI. We localized a set of six egomotion-responsive visual areas (V6+, V3A, intraparietal motion/ventral intraparietal [IPSmot/VIP], cingulate sulcus visual area [CSv], posterior cingulate sulcus area [pCi], posterior insular cortex [PIC]) by using optic flow. We tested their response to a motor task implying long-range active leg movements. Results revealed that, among these visually defined areas, CSv, pCi, and PIC responded to leg movements (visuomotor areas), while V6+, V3A, and IPSmot/VIP did not (visual areas). Functional connectivity analysis showed that visuomotor areas are connected to the cingulate motor areas, the supplementary motor area, and notably to the medial portion of the somatosensory cortex, which represents legs and feet. We suggest that CSv, pCi, and PIC perform the visual analysis of egomotion-like signals to provide sensory information to the motor system with the aim of guiding locomotion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Serra
- Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome "Foro Italico", Rome, Italy.,Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy
| | - Claudio Galletti
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Sara Di Marco
- Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome "Foro Italico", Rome, Italy.,Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy
| | - Patrizia Fattori
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Gaspare Galati
- Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy.,Brain Imaging Laboratory, Department of Psychology, Sapienza University, Rome, Italy
| | - Valentina Sulpizio
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Sabrina Pitzalis
- Department of Movement, Human and Health Sciences, University of Rome "Foro Italico", Rome, Italy.,Department of Cognitive and Motor Rehabilitation and Neuroimaging, Santa Lucia Foundation (IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia), Rome, Italy
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11
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Hodgetts CJ, Shine JP, Lawrence AD, Downing PE, Graham KS. Evidencing a place for the hippocampus within the core scene processing network. Hum Brain Mapp 2018; 37:3779-3794. [PMID: 27257784 PMCID: PMC5082524 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2015] [Revised: 04/18/2016] [Accepted: 05/17/2016] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Functional neuroimaging studies have identified several “core” brain regions that are preferentially activated by scene stimuli, namely posterior parahippocampal gyrus (PHG), retrosplenial cortex (RSC), and transverse occipital sulcus (TOS). The hippocampus (HC), too, is thought to play a key role in scene processing, although no study has yet investigated scene‐sensitivity in the HC relative to these other “core” regions. Here, we characterised the frequency and consistency of individual scene‐preferential responses within these regions by analysing a large dataset (n = 51) in which participants performed a one‐back working memory task for scenes, objects, and scrambled objects. An unbiased approach was adopted by applying independently‐defined anatomical ROIs to individual‐level functional data across different voxel‐wise thresholds and spatial filters. It was found that the majority of subjects had preferential scene clusters in PHG (max = 100% of participants), RSC (max = 76%), and TOS (max = 94%). A comparable number of individuals also possessed significant scene‐related clusters within their individually defined HC ROIs (max = 88%), evidencing a HC contribution to scene processing. While probabilistic overlap maps of individual clusters showed that overlap “peaks” were close to those identified in group‐level analyses (particularly for TOS and HC), inter‐individual consistency varied across regions and statistical thresholds. The inter‐regional and inter‐individual variability revealed by these analyses has implications for how scene‐sensitive cortex is localised and interrogated in functional neuroimaging studies, particularly in medial temporal lobe regions, such as the HC. Hum Brain Mapp 37:3779–3794, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- C J Hodgetts
- Wales Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom. .,Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC), School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom.
| | - J P Shine
- Wales Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom.,Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC), School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
| | - A D Lawrence
- Wales Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom.,Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC), School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
| | - P E Downing
- Wales Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, United Kingdom
| | - K S Graham
- Wales Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom.,Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre (CUBRIC), School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, United Kingdom
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12
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Kong XZ, Huang Y, Hao X, Hu S, Liu J. Sex-linked association between cortical scene selectivity and navigational ability. Neuroimage 2017; 158:397-405. [PMID: 28720550 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.07.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2016] [Revised: 07/13/2017] [Accepted: 07/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Spatial navigation is a crucial ability for living. Previous studies have shown that males are better at navigation than females, but little is known about the neural basis underlying the sex differences. In this study, we investigated whether cortical scene processing in three well-established scene-selective regions was sexually different, by examining sex differences in scene selectivity and its behavioral relevance to navigation. To do this, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to scan the parahippocampal place area (PPA), retrosplenial complex (RSC), and occipital place area (OPA) in a large cohort of healthy young adults viewing navigationally relevant scenes (N = 202), and correlated their neural selectivity to scenes with their self-reported navigational ability. Behaviorally, we replicated the previous finding that males were better at navigation than females. Neurally, we found that the scene selectivity in the bilateral PPA, not in the RSC or OPA, was significantly higher in males than females. Such differences could not be explained by confounding factors including brain size and fMRI data quality. Importantly, males, not females, with stronger scene selectivity in the left PPA possessed better navigational ability. This brain-behavior association could not be accounted for by non-navigational abilities (i.e., intelligence and mental rotation ability). Overall, our study provides novel empirical evidence demonstrating sex differences in the brain activity, inviting further studies on sex differences in the neural network for spatial navigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiang-Zhen Kong
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Yi Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Xin Hao
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Siyuan Hu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology & National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Jia Liu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Applied Experimental Psychology & National Demonstration Center for Experimental Psychology Education (Beijing Normal University), Faculty of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China.
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Abstract
Parahippocampal cortex (PHc) is known to process spatial information, both in perceptual and episodic memory studies. However, recent theories propose an expanded role for PHc in processing context information in general, whether spatial or nonspatial. The current study used a source memory paradigm to investigate encoding and retrieval of nonspatial context information. Human participants were asked to judge lexical aspects of word stimuli and to retrieve those judgments during a later memory test. Anterior PHc showed significantly greater activation for items associated with correct source judgments than items associated with incorrect source judgments during both encoding and retrieval phases. These findings suggest that the role of PHc in episodic memory cannot be limited to spatial information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel A. Diana
- Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA 24061, USA
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14
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Kamps FS, Lall V, Dilks DD. The occipital place area represents first-person perspective motion information through scenes. Cortex 2016; 83:17-26. [PMID: 27474914 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2016.06.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2016] [Revised: 06/04/2016] [Accepted: 06/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Neuroimaging studies have identified multiple scene-selective regions in human cortex, but the precise role each region plays in scene processing is not yet clear. It was recently hypothesized that two regions, the occipital place area (OPA) and the retrosplenial complex (RSC), play a direct role in navigation, while a third region, the parahippocampal place area (PPA), does not. Some evidence suggests a further division of labor even among regions involved in navigation: While RSC is thought to support navigation through the broader environment, OPA may be involved in navigation through the immediately visible environment, although this role for OPA has never been tested. Here we predict that OPA represents first-person perspective motion information through scenes, a critical cue for such "visually-guided navigation", consistent with the hypothesized role for OPA. Response magnitudes were measured in OPA (as well as RSC and PPA) to i) video clips of first-person perspective motion through scenes ("Dynamic Scenes"), and ii) static images taken from these same movies, rearranged such that first-person perspective motion could not be inferred ("Static Scenes"). As predicted, OPA responded significantly more to the Dynamic than Static Scenes, relative to both RSC and PPA. The selective response in OPA to Dynamic Scenes was not due to domain-general motion sensitivity or to low-level information inherited from early visual regions. Taken together, these findings suggest the novel hypothesis that OPA may support visually-guided navigation, insofar as first-person perspective motion information is useful for such navigation, while RSC and PPA support other aspects of navigation and scene recognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frederik S Kamps
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Vishal Lall
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Daniel D Dilks
- Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States.
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15
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Schindler A, Bartels A. Motion parallax links visual motion areas and scene regions. Neuroimage 2015; 125:803-812. [PMID: 26515906 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2015.10.066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2015] [Revised: 09/09/2015] [Accepted: 10/24/2015] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
When we move, the retinal velocities of objects in our surrounding differ according to their relative distances and give rise to a powerful three-dimensional visual cue referred to as motion parallax. Motion parallax allows us to infer our surrounding's 3D structure as well as self-motion based on 2D retinal information. However, the neural substrates mediating the link between visual motion and scene processing are largely unexplored. We used fMRI in human observers to study motion parallax by means of an ecologically relevant yet highly controlled stimulus that mimicked the observer's lateral motion past a depth-layered scene. We found parallax selective responses in parietal regions IPS3 and IPS4, and in a region lateral to scene selective occipital place area (OPA). The traditionally defined scene responsive regions OPA, the para-hippocampal place area (PPA) and the retrosplenial cortex (RSC) did not respond to parallax. During parallax processing, the occipital parallax selective region entertained highly specific functional connectivity with IPS3 and with scene selective PPA. These results establish a network linking dorsal motion and ventral scene processing regions specifically during parallax processing, which may underlie the brain's ability to derive 3D scene information from motion parallax.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Schindler
- Vision and Cognition Lab, Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen 72076, Germany.
| | - Andreas Bartels
- Vision and Cognition Lab, Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen 72076, Germany.
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