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Shead KD, Salyahetdinova V, Baillie GS. Charting the importance of filamin A posttranslational modifications. Biochem J 2024; 481:865-881. [PMID: 38958472 DOI: 10.1042/bcj20240121] [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: 03/18/2024] [Revised: 06/17/2024] [Accepted: 06/18/2024] [Indexed: 07/04/2024]
Abstract
Filamin A is an essential protein in the cell cytoskeleton because of its actin binding properties and unique homodimer rod-shaped structure, which organises actin into three-dimensional orthogonal networks imperative to cell motility, spreading and adhesion. Filamin A is subject to extensive posttranslational modification (PTM) which serves to co-ordinate cellular architecture and to modulate its large protein-protein interaction network which is key to the protein's role as a cellular signalling hub. Characterised PTMs include phosphorylation, irreversible cleavage, ubiquitin mediated degradation, hydroxylation and O-GlcNAcylation, with preliminary evidence of tyrosylation, carbonylation and acetylation. Each modification and its relation to filamin A function will be described here. These modifications are often aberrantly applied in a range of diseases including, but not limited to, cancer, cardiovascular disease and neurological disease and we discuss the concept of target specific PTMs with novel therapeutic modalities. In summary, our review represents a topical 'one-stop-shop' that enables understanding of filamin A function in cell homeostasis and provides insight into how a variety of modifications add an extra level of Filamin A control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle D Shead
- School of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Health, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G128QQ, U.K
| | - Veneta Salyahetdinova
- School of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Health, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G128QQ, U.K
| | - George S Baillie
- School of Cardiovascular and Metabolic Health, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G128QQ, U.K
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2
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Pais ML, Teixeira M, Soares C, Lima G, Rijo P, Cabral C, Castelo-Branco M. Rapid effects of tryptamine psychedelics on perceptual distortions and early visual cortical population receptive fields. Neuroimage 2024; 297:120718. [PMID: 38964563 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120718] [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: 04/27/2024] [Revised: 06/28/2024] [Accepted: 07/01/2024] [Indexed: 07/06/2024] Open
Abstract
N, N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) is a psychedelic tryptamine acting on 5-HT2A serotonin receptors, which is associated with intense visual hallucinatory phenomena and perceptual changes such as distortions in visual space. The neural underpinnings of these effects remain unknown. We hypothesised that changes in population receptive field (pRF) properties in the primary visual cortex (V1) might underlie visual perceptual experience. We tested this hypothesis using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in a within-subject design. We used a technique called pRF mapping, which measures neural population visual response properties and retinotopic maps in early visual areas. We show that in the presence of visual effects, as documented by the Hallucinogen Rating Scale (HRS), the mean pRF sizes in V1 significantly increase in the peripheral visual field for active condition (inhaled DMT) compared to the control. Eye and head movement differences were absent across conditions. This evidence for short-term effects of DMT in pRF may explain perceptual distortions induced by psychedelics such as field blurring, tunnel vision (peripheral vision becoming blurred while central vision remains sharp) and the enlargement of nearby visual space, particularly at the visual locations surrounding the fovea. Our findings are also consistent with a mechanistic framework whereby gain control of ongoing and evoked activity in the visual cortex is controlled by activation of 5-HT2A receptors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Lapo Pais
- Coimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), University of Coimbra, Portugal; Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), Portugal
| | - Marta Teixeira
- Coimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), University of Coimbra, Portugal; Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), Portugal
| | - Carla Soares
- Coimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), University of Coimbra, Portugal; Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), Portugal
| | - Gisela Lima
- Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), Portugal; University of Maastricht, the Netherlands; Faculty of Medicine (FMUC), University of Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Patrícia Rijo
- CBIOS-Universidade Lusófona's Research Center for Biosciences & Health Technologies, Portugal; iMed.ULisboa, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Célia Cabral
- Coimbra Institute for Clinical and Biomedical Research (iCBR), Clinic Academic Center of Coimbra (CACC), University of Coimbra, FMUC, Portugal; Center for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology (CIBB), University of Coimbra, Portugal; Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Miguel Castelo-Branco
- Coimbra Institute for Biomedical Imaging and Translational Research (CIBIT), University of Coimbra, Portugal; Institute of Nuclear Sciences Applied to Health (ICNAS), Portugal; University of Maastricht, the Netherlands; Faculty of Medicine (FMUC), University of Coimbra, Portugal.
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3
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Tünçok E, Carrasco M, Winawer J. Spatial attention alters visual cortical representation during target anticipation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.02.583127. [PMID: 38496524 PMCID: PMC10942396 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.02.583127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
Attention enables us to efficiently and flexibly interact with the environment by prioritizing some image features in preparation for responding to a stimulus. Using a concurrent psychophysics- fMRI experiment, we investigated how covert spatial attention affects responses in human visual cortex prior to target onset, and how it affects subsequent behavioral performance. Performance improved at cued locations and worsened at uncued locations, relative to distributed attention, demonstrating a selective tradeoff in processing. Pre-target BOLD responses in cortical visual field maps changed in two ways: First, there was a stimulus-independent baseline shift, positive in map locations near the cued location and negative elsewhere, paralleling the behavioral results. Second, population receptive field centers shifted toward the attended location. Both effects increased in higher visual areas. Together, the results show that spatial attention has large effects on visual cortex prior to target appearance, altering neural response properties throughout and across multiple visual field maps.
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4
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Kirsch W, Kunde W. An attentional approach to geometrical illusions. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1360160. [PMID: 38686092 PMCID: PMC11056548 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1360160] [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: 12/22/2023] [Accepted: 04/01/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
It is known for a long time that some drawings composed of points, lines, and areas are systematically misperceived. The origin of these geometrical illusions is still unknown. Here we outline how a recent progress in attentional research contributes to a better understanding of such perceptual distortions. The basic idea behind this approach is that crucial elements of a drawing are differently attended. These changes in the allocation of spatial attention go along with systematic changes in low-level spatial coding. As a result, changes in the perception of spatial extent, angles, positions, and shapes can arise. How this approach can be applied to individual illusions is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wladimir Kirsch
- Department of Psychology, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
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5
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DeYoe EA, Huddleston W, Greenberg AS. Are neuronal mechanisms of attention universal across human sensory and motor brain maps? Psychon Bull Rev 2024:10.3758/s13423-024-02495-3. [PMID: 38587756 DOI: 10.3758/s13423-024-02495-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/09/2024]
Abstract
One's experience of shifting attention from the color to the smell to the act of picking a flower seems like a unitary process applied, at will, to one modality after another. Yet, the unique and separable experiences of sight versus smell versus movement might suggest that the neural mechanisms of attention have been separately optimized to employ each modality to its greatest advantage. Moreover, addressing the issue of universality can be particularly difficult due to a paucity of existing cross-modal comparisons and a dearth of neurophysiological methods that can be applied equally well across disparate modalities. Here we outline some of the conceptual and methodological issues related to this problem and present an instructive example of an experimental approach that can be applied widely throughout the human brain to permit detailed, quantitative comparison of attentional mechanisms across modalities. The ultimate goal is to spur efforts across disciplines to provide a large and varied database of empirical observations that will either support the notion of a universal neural substrate for attention or more clearly identify the degree to which attentional mechanisms are specialized for each modality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edgar A DeYoe
- Department of Radiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 Watertown Plank Rd, Milwaukee, WI, 53226, USA.
- , Signal Mountain, USA.
| | - Wendy Huddleston
- School of Rehabilitation Sciences and Technology, College of Health Professions and Sciences, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, 3409 N. Downer Ave, Milwaukee, WI, 53211, USA
| | - Adam S Greenberg
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Medical College of Wisconsin and Marquette University, Milwaukee, WI, 53226, USA
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6
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Wang Y, Wu Y, Luo L, Li F. Structural and functional alterations in the brains of patients with anisometropic and strabismic amblyopia: a systematic review of magnetic resonance imaging studies. Neural Regen Res 2023; 18:2348-2356. [PMID: 37282452 PMCID: PMC10360096 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.371349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Amblyopia is the most common cause of vision loss in children and can persist into adulthood in the absence of effective intervention. Previous clinical and neuroimaging studies have suggested that the neural mechanisms underlying strabismic amblyopia and anisometropic amblyopia may be different. Therefore, we performed a systematic review of magnetic resonance imaging studies investigating brain alterations in patients with these two subtypes of amblyopia; this study is registered with PROSPERO (registration ID: CRD42022349191). We searched three online databases (PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science) from inception to April 1, 2022; 39 studies with 633 patients (324 patients with anisometropic amblyopia and 309 patients with strabismic amblyopia) and 580 healthy controls met the inclusion criteria (e.g., case-control designed, peer-reviewed articles) and were included in this review. These studies highlighted that both strabismic amblyopia and anisometropic amblyopia patients showed reduced activation and distorted topological cortical activated maps in the striate and extrastriate cortices during task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging with spatial-frequency stimulus and retinotopic representations, respectively; these may have arisen from abnormal visual experiences. Compensations for amblyopia that are reflected in enhanced spontaneous brain function have been reported in the early visual cortices in the resting state, as well as reduced functional connectivity in the dorsal pathway and structural connections in the ventral pathway in both anisometropic amblyopia and strabismic amblyopia patients. The shared dysfunction of anisometropic amblyopia and strabismic amblyopia patients, relative to controls, is also characterized by reduced spontaneous brain activity in the oculomotor cortex, mainly involving the frontal and parietal eye fields and the cerebellum; this may underlie the neural mechanisms of fixation instability and anomalous saccades in amblyopia. With regards to specific alterations of the two forms of amblyopia, anisometropic amblyopia patients suffer more microstructural impairments in the precortical pathway than strabismic amblyopia patients, as reflected by diffusion tensor imaging, and more significant dysfunction and structural loss in the ventral pathway. Strabismic amblyopia patients experience more attenuation of activation in the extrastriate cortex than in the striate cortex when compared to anisometropic amblyopia patients. Finally, brain structural magnetic resonance imaging alterations tend to be lateralized in the adult anisometropic amblyopia patients, and the patterns of brain alterations are more limited in amblyopic adults than in children. In conclusion, magnetic resonance imaging studies provide important insights into the brain alterations underlying the pathophysiology of amblyopia and demonstrate common and specific alterations in anisometropic amblyopia and strabismic amblyopia patients; these alterations may improve our understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying amblyopia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuxia Wang
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Ye Wu
- Department of Ophthalmology, Laboratory of Optometry and Vision Sciences, West China Hospital/West China School of Medicine, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Lekai Luo
- Department of Radiology, West China Second Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
| | - Fei Li
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China
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7
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Molz B, Herbik A, Baseler HA, de Best P, Raz N, Gouws A, Ahmadi K, Lowndes R, McLean RJ, Gottlob I, Kohl S, Choritz L, Maguire J, Kanowski M, Käsmann-Kellner B, Wieland I, Banin E, Levin N, Morland AB, Hoffmann MB. Achromatopsia-Visual Cortex Stability and Plasticity in the Absence of Functional Cones. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 2023; 64:23. [PMID: 37847226 PMCID: PMC10584018 DOI: 10.1167/iovs.64.13.23] [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: 01/20/2023] [Accepted: 08/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Purpose Achromatopsia is a rare inherited disorder rendering retinal cone photoreceptors nonfunctional. As a consequence, the sizable foveal representation in the visual cortex is congenitally deprived of visual input, which prompts a fundamental question: is the cortical representation of the central visual field in patients with achromatopsia remapped to take up processing of paracentral inputs? Such remapping might interfere with gene therapeutic treatments aimed at restoring cone function. Methods We conducted a multicenter study to explore the nature and plasticity of vision in the absence of functional cones in a cohort of 17 individuals affected by autosomal recessive achromatopsia and confirmed biallelic disease-causing CNGA3 or CNGB3 mutations. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis of foveal remapping in human achromatopsia. For this purpose, we applied two independent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)-based mapping approaches, i.e. conventional phase-encoded eccentricity and population receptive field mapping, to separate data sets. Results Both fMRI approaches produced the same result in the group comparison of achromatopsia versus healthy controls: sizable remapping of the representation of the central visual field in the primary visual cortex was not apparent. Conclusions Remapping of the cortical representation of the central visual field is not a general feature in achromatopsia. It is concluded that plasticity of the human primary visual cortex is less pronounced than previously assumed. A pretherapeutic imaging workup is proposed to optimize interventions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Barbara Molz
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, United Kingdom
- Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
- Language & Genetics Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Anne Herbik
- Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Heidi A. Baseler
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, United Kingdom
- Hull York Medical School, University of York, Heslington, York, United Kingdom
- York Biomedical Research Institute, University of York, Heslington, York, United Kingdom
| | - Peter de Best
- fMRI Unit, Department of Neurology, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Noa Raz
- fMRI Unit, Department of Neurology, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Andre Gouws
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, United Kingdom
- York Neuroimaging Centre, Department of Psychology, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Khazar Ahmadi
- Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Rebecca Lowndes
- York Neuroimaging Centre, Department of Psychology, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Rebecca J. McLean
- University of Leicester Ulverscroft Eye Unit, University of Leicester, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Irene Gottlob
- University of Leicester Ulverscroft Eye Unit, University of Leicester, Leicester Royal Infirmary, Leicester, United Kingdom
| | - Susanne Kohl
- Molecular Genetics Laboratory, Institute for Ophthalmic Research, Centre for Ophthalmology, University Clinics Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Lars Choritz
- Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - John Maguire
- School of Optometry and Vision Sciences, University of Bradford, Bradford, United Kingdom
- Department of Neurophysiology, Children's Health Ireland (CHI) at Crumlin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Martin Kanowski
- Department of Neurology, University Hospital, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Barbara Käsmann-Kellner
- Department of Ophthalmology, Saarland University Hospital and Medical Faculty of the Saarland University Hospital, Homburg, Germany
| | - Ilse Wieland
- Department for Molecular Genetics, Institute for Human Genetics, University Hospital, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Eyal Banin
- Center for Retinal and Macular Degenerations, Department of Ophthalmology, Hadassah-Hebrew University Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Netta Levin
- fMRI Unit, Department of Neurology, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Antony B. Morland
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, United Kingdom
- York Biomedical Research Institute, University of York, Heslington, York, United Kingdom
- York Neuroimaging Centre, Department of Psychology, University of York, York, United Kingdom
| | - Michael B. Hoffmann
- Department of Ophthalmology, University Hospital, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
- Center for Behavioral Brain Sciences, Magdeburg, Germany
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8
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Kirsch W, Kunde W. On the origin of the Helmholtz's square illusion: An attentional account. Atten Percept Psychophys 2023; 85:2018-2032. [PMID: 37157009 PMCID: PMC10545586 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-023-02717-1] [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] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
A square filled with parallel horizontal or vertical lines appears perceptually extended in the direction orthogonal to the lines. Here, we suggest that this Helmholtz illusion arises due to changes in spatial attention that entail changes at very early stages of perceptual processing. Three experiments are reported which tested this assumption. In Experiment1 and Experiment2, transient attentional cues were flashed in such a way that they either promoted (congruent condition) or hindered (incongruent condition) the attentional state presumably induced by the target objects. We predicted a decline of the illusion in the incongruent condition compared with the congruent condition. This prediction was confirmed in both experiments. However, the influence of (in)congruent attention cuing on the Helmholtz illusion depended on more sustained distributions of attention as well. An influence of sustained attention on the illusion was confirmed in Experiment 3, in which changes of attentional focus were induced by a secondary task. Overall, the results were consistent with our claim that the origin of the Helmholtz illusion is closely linked to the distribution of spatial attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wladimir Kirsch
- Institut für Psychologie III der Universität Würzburg, Röntgenring 11, D-97070, Würzburg, Germany.
| | - Wilfried Kunde
- Institut für Psychologie III der Universität Würzburg, Röntgenring 11, D-97070, Würzburg, Germany
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9
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Gaglianese A, Fracasso A, Fernandes FG, Harvey B, Dumoulin SO, Petridou N. Mechanisms of speed encoding in the human middle temporal cortex measured by 7T fMRI. Hum Brain Mapp 2023; 44:2050-2061. [PMID: 36637226 PMCID: PMC9980888 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2022] [Revised: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 12/11/2022] [Indexed: 01/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Perception of dynamic scenes in our environment results from the evaluation of visual features such as the fundamental spatial and temporal frequency components of a moving object. The ratio between these two components represents the object's speed of motion. The human middle temporal cortex hMT+ has a crucial biological role in the direct encoding of object speed. However, the link between hMT+ speed encoding and the spatiotemporal frequency components of a moving object is still under explored. Here, we recorded high resolution 7T blood oxygen level-dependent BOLD responses to different visual motion stimuli as a function of their fundamental spatial and temporal frequency components. We fitted each hMT+ BOLD response with a 2D Gaussian model allowing for two different speed encoding mechanisms: (1) distinct and independent selectivity for the spatial and temporal frequencies of the visual motion stimuli; (2) pure tuning for the speed of motion. We show that both mechanisms occur but in different neuronal groups within hMT+, with the largest subregion of the complex showing separable tuning for the spatial and temporal frequency of the visual stimuli. Both mechanisms were highly reproducible within participants, reconciling single cell recordings from MT in animals that have showed both encoding mechanisms. Our findings confirm that a more complex process is involved in the perception of speed than initially thought and suggest that hMT+ plays a primary role in the evaluation of the spatial features of the moving visual input.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Gaglianese
- The Laboratory for Investigative Neurophysiology (The LINE), Department of RadiologyUniversity Hospital Center and University of LausanneLausanneSwitzerland
- Department of Neurosurgery and Neurology, UMC Utrecht Brain CenterUniversity Medical CenterUtrechtNetherlands
- Department of Radiology, Center for Image SciencesUniversity Medical CenterUtrechtNetherlands
| | - Alessio Fracasso
- Department of Radiology, Center for Image SciencesUniversity Medical CenterUtrechtNetherlands
- University of GlasgowSchool of Psychology and NeuroscienceGlasgowUK
- Spinoza Center for NeuroimagingAmsterdamNetherlands
| | - Francisco G. Fernandes
- Department of Neurosurgery and Neurology, UMC Utrecht Brain CenterUniversity Medical CenterUtrechtNetherlands
| | - Ben Harvey
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz InstituteUtrecht UniversityUtrechtNetherlands
| | - Serge O. Dumoulin
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz InstituteUtrecht UniversityUtrechtNetherlands
| | - Natalia Petridou
- Department of Radiology, Center for Image SciencesUniversity Medical CenterUtrechtNetherlands
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10
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Bowen JD, Alforque CV, Silver MA. Effects of involuntary and voluntary attention on critical spacing of visual crowding. J Vis 2023; 23:2. [PMID: 36862108 PMCID: PMC9987171 DOI: 10.1167/jov.23.3.2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Visual spatial attention can be allocated in two distinct ways: one that is voluntarily directed to behaviorally relevant locations in the world, and one that is involuntarily captured by salient external stimuli. Precueing spatial attention has been shown to improve perceptual performance on a number of visual tasks. However, the effects of spatial attention on visual crowding, defined as the reduction in the ability to identify target objects in clutter, are far less clear. In this study, we used an anticueing paradigm to separately measure the effects of involuntary and voluntary spatial attention on a crowding task. Each trial began with a brief peripheral cue that predicted that the crowded target would appear on the opposite side of the screen 80% of the time and on the same side of the screen 20% of the time. Subjects performed an orientation discrimination task on a target Gabor patch that was flanked by other similar Gabor patches with independent random orientations. For trials with a short stimulus onset asynchrony between cue and target, involuntary capture of attention led to faster response times and smaller critical spacing when the target appeared on the cue side. For trials with a long stimulus onset asynchrony, voluntary allocation of attention led to faster reaction times but no significant effect on critical spacing when the target appeared on the opposite side to the cue. We additionally found that the magnitudes of these cueing effects of involuntary and voluntary attention were not strongly correlated across subjects for either reaction time or critical spacing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joel D Bowen
- Vision Science Graduate Group, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.,
| | - Carissa V Alforque
- Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry & Vision Science, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.,
| | - Michael A Silver
- Vision Science Graduate Group, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry & Vision Science, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.,Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA.,
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11
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Agostino CS, Merkel C, Ball F, Vavra P, Hinrichs H, Noesselt T. Seeing and extrapolating motion trajectories share common informative activation patterns in primary visual cortex. Hum Brain Mapp 2023; 44:1389-1406. [PMID: 36288211 PMCID: PMC9921241 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2022] [Revised: 10/06/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The natural environment is dynamic and moving objects become constantly occluded, engaging the brain in a challenging completion process to estimate where and when the object might reappear. Although motion extrapolation is critical in daily life-imagine crossing the street while an approaching car is occluded by a larger standing vehicle-its neural underpinnings are still not well understood. While the engagement of low-level visual cortex during dynamic occlusion has been postulated, most of the previous group-level fMRI-studies failed to find evidence for an involvement of low-level visual areas during occlusion. In this fMRI-study, we therefore used individually defined retinotopic maps and multivariate pattern analysis to characterize the neural basis of visible and occluded changes in motion direction in humans. To this end, participants learned velocity-direction change pairings (slow motion-upwards; fast motion-downwards or vice versa) during a training phase without occlusion and judged the change in stimulus direction, based on its velocity, during a following test phase with occlusion. We find that occluded motion direction can be predicted from the activity patterns during visible motion within low-level visual areas, supporting the notion of a mental representation of motion trajectory in these regions during occlusion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camila Silveira Agostino
- Department of Biological Psychology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany.,European Structural and Investment Funds-International Graduate School (ESF-GS) Analysis, Imaging, and Modeling of Neuronal and Inflammatory Processes (ABINEP) International Graduate School, Otto-Von-Guericke-University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Christian Merkel
- Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Felix Ball
- Department of Biological Psychology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany.,Centre for Behavioural Brain Sciences, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Peter Vavra
- Department of Biological Psychology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Hermann Hinrichs
- Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany.,Centre for Behavioural Brain Sciences, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Magdeburg, Germany.,Department of Behavioural Neurology, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Toemme Noesselt
- Department of Biological Psychology, Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany.,Centre for Behavioural Brain Sciences, Otto-von-Guericke-University, Magdeburg, Germany
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12
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Carvalho J, Invernizzi A, Martins J, Renken RJ, Cornelissen FW. Local neuroplasticity in adult glaucomatous visual cortex. Sci Rep 2022; 12:21981. [PMID: 36539453 PMCID: PMC9767937 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-24709-1] [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: 07/03/2022] [Accepted: 11/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The degree to which the adult human visual cortex retains the ability to functionally adapt to damage at the level of the eye remains ill-understood. Previous studies on cortical neuroplasticity primarily focused on the consequences of foveal visual field defects (VFD), yet these findings may not generalize to peripheral defects such as occur in glaucoma. Moreover, recent findings on neuroplasticity are often based on population receptive field (pRF) mapping, but interpreting these results is complicated in the absence of appropriate control conditions. Here, we used fMRI-based neural modeling to assess putative changes in pRFs associated with glaucomatous VFD. We compared the fMRI-signals and pRF in glaucoma participants to those of controls with case-matched simulated VFD. We found that the amplitude of the fMRI-signal is reduced in glaucoma compared to control participants and correlated with disease severity. Furthermore, while coarse retinotopic structure is maintained in all participants with glaucoma, we observed local pRF shifts and enlargements in early visual areas, relative to control participants. These differences suggest that the adult brain retains some degree of local neuroplasticity. This finding has translational relevance, as it is consistent with VFD masking, which prevents glaucoma patients from noticing their VFD and seeking timely treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joana Carvalho
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands ,grid.421010.60000 0004 0453 9636Pre-Clinical MRI Laboratory, Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown, Avenida de Brasilia, 1400-038 Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Azzurra Invernizzi
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands ,grid.59734.3c0000 0001 0670 2351Department of Environmental Medicine and Public Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY USA
| | - Joana Martins
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Remco J. Renken
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands ,grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Cognitive Neuroscience Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Frans W. Cornelissen
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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13
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Kanamori T, Mrsic-Flogel TD. Independent response modulation of visual cortical neurons by attentional and behavioral states. Neuron 2022; 110:3907-3918.e6. [PMID: 36137550 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2022.08.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Revised: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Sensory processing is influenced by cognitive and behavioral states, but how these states interact to modulate responses of individual neurons is unknown. We trained mice in a visual discrimination task wherein they attended to different locations within a hemifield while running or sitting still, enabling us to examine how visual responses are modulated by spatial attention and running behavior. We found that spatial attention improved discrimination performance and strengthened visual responses of excitatory neurons in the primary visual cortex whose receptive fields overlapped with the attended location. Although individual neurons were modulated by both spatial attention and running, the magnitudes of these influences were not correlated. While running-dependent modulation was stable across days, attentional modulation was dynamic, influencing individual neurons to different degrees after repeated changes in attentional states. Thus, despite similar effects on neural responses, spatial attention and running act independently with different dynamics, implying separable mechanisms for their implementation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takahiro Kanamori
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London, 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, UK.
| | - Thomas D Mrsic-Flogel
- Sainsbury Wellcome Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University College London, 25 Howland Street, London W1T 4JG, UK.
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14
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Pitfalls in Post Hoc Analyses of Population Receptive Field Data. Neuroimage 2022; 263:119557. [PMID: 35970472 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119557] [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: 03/30/2021] [Revised: 08/02/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2022] [Indexed: 10/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Data binning involves grouping observations into bins and calculating bin-wise summary statistics. It can cope with overplotting and noise, making it a versatile tool for comparing many observations. However, data binning goes awry if the same observations are used for binning (selection) and contrasting (selective analysis). This creates circularity, biasing noise components and resulting in artifactual changes in the form of regression towards the mean. Importantly, these artifactual changes are a statistical necessity. Here, we use (null) simulations and empirical repeat data to expose this flaw in the scope of post hoc analyses of population receptive field data. In doing so, we reveal that the type of data analysis, data properties, and circular data cleaning are factors shaping the appearance of such artifactual changes. We furthermore highlight that circular data cleaning and circular sorting of change scores are selection practices that result in artifactual changes even without circular data binning. These pitfalls might have led to erroneous claims about changes in population receptive fields in previous work and can be mitigated by using independent data for selection purposes. Our evaluations highlight the urgency for us researchers to make the validation of analysis pipelines standard practice.
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15
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Kirsch W. On the origin of the Roelofs and induced Roelofs effects. VISUAL COGNITION 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/13506285.2022.2092572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Wladimir Kirsch
- Department of Psychology, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
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16
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van Ackooij M, Paul JM, van der Zwaag W, van der Stoep N, Harvey BM. Auditory timing-tuned neural responses in the human auditory cortices. Neuroimage 2022; 258:119366. [PMID: 35690255 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2022] [Revised: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 06/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Perception of sub-second auditory event timing supports multisensory integration, and speech and music perception and production. Neural populations tuned for the timing (duration and rate) of visual events were recently described in several human extrastriate visual areas. Here we ask whether the brain also contains neural populations tuned for auditory event timing, and whether these are shared with visual timing. Using 7T fMRI, we measured responses to white noise bursts of changing duration and rate. We analyzed these responses using neural response models describing different parametric relationships between event timing and neural response amplitude. This revealed auditory timing-tuned responses in the primary auditory cortex, and auditory association areas of the belt, parabelt and premotor cortex. While these areas also showed tonotopic tuning for auditory pitch, pitch and timing preferences were not consistently correlated. Auditory timing-tuned response functions differed between these areas, though without clear hierarchical integration of responses. The similarity of auditory and visual timing tuned responses, together with the lack of overlap between the areas showing these responses for each modality, suggests modality-specific responses to event timing are computed similarly but from different sensory inputs, and then transformed differently to suit the needs of each modality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martijn van Ackooij
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands
| | - Jacob M Paul
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands; Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne, Redmond Barry Building, Parkville 3010, Victoria, Australia
| | | | - Nathan van der Stoep
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands
| | - Ben M Harvey
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands.
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17
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Wu J, Wang C, Wang L, Wang Y, Yang J, Yan T, Suo D, Wang L, Liu X, Zhang J. Development of a Piezoelectric Actuated Tactile Stimulation Device for Population Receptive Field Mapping in Human Somatosensory Cortex With fMRI. J Magn Reson Imaging 2022; 56:1055-1065. [PMID: 35324031 DOI: 10.1002/jmri.28173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2021] [Revised: 03/11/2022] [Accepted: 03/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Multichannel tactile stimulation devices is need to investigate human finger population receptive field (pRF) characteristics in the primary somatosensory cortex during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). PURPOSE To accurately characterize right-hand somatosensory representation based on the Bayesian pRF model. STUDY TYPE Prospective. POPULATION A water phantom and six healthy participants (four males, mean 23.8 years old). FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE T1-weighted magnetization-prepared rapid gradient-echo, T2*-weighted echo planar imaging at 3 T. ASSESSMENT The piezoelectric actuated tactile stimulation device consisted of execution unit and control unit. The output performance of the device was measured by a laser displacement sensor. The effect of the device on images' signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) was measured by phantom experiments. The activation representation arrangement order, relative volumes, and receptive field size of the right hand were assessed during the along-digits and cross-digits paradigms. STATISTICAL TESTS The normality of the data was tested by the Shapiro-Wilk method. A paired-sample t test was performed to test pRF characteristics for all digit pairings. The significance level was set to P = 0.05 (false discovery rate [FDR] correct). RESULTS Percussive stimulation provided by the piezoelectric actuated tactile stimulator had a stable displacement (2.64 mm) over a wide range of vibration frequencies (0-30 Hz). The output delay of the device was 1 millisecond. The device did not affect the image's SNR (without the device: SNR = 138.24 ± 7.87, temporal SNR [TSNR] = 440.03 ± 52.08. With the device: SNR = 138.06 ± 8.44, TSNR = 438.52 ± 56.38. PSNR = 0.88, PTSNR = 0.46). Representations of right-hand fingers showed the same arrangement order in both experiments (D1-D5 arranged along the central sulcus). However, the relative volumes of D3 showed significant differences in S1 (P = 0.003). Among four subareas, the relative volumes of D3 were significantly different in area 1 (P = 0.047). DATA CONCLUSION This developed stimulator, through experimental verification, could play a role in pRF mapping exploration. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE 2 TECHNICAL EFFICACY STAGE: 1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinglong Wu
- School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China.,Research Center for Medical Artificial Intelligence, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Science, Shenzhen, China
| | - Chenyu Wang
- Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Health Systems, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan
| | - Luyao Wang
- School of Life Science, Shanghai University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yutong Wang
- School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Jiajia Yang
- Graduate School of Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering in Health Systems, Okayama University, Okayama, Japan.,Section on Functional Imaging Methods, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Tianyi Yan
- School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Dingjie Suo
- School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Li Wang
- School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
| | - Xin Liu
- Department of Radiology, Beijing Chaoyang Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Jian Zhang
- School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing, China
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18
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Horikawa T, Kamitani Y. Attention modulates neural representation to render reconstructions according to subjective appearance. Commun Biol 2022; 5:34. [PMID: 35017660 PMCID: PMC8752808 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-02975-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2021] [Accepted: 12/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Stimulus images can be reconstructed from visual cortical activity. However, our perception of stimuli is shaped by both stimulus-induced and top-down processes, and it is unclear whether and how reconstructions reflect top-down aspects of perception. Here, we investigate the effect of attention on reconstructions using fMRI activity measured while subjects attend to one of two superimposed images. A state-of-the-art method is used for image reconstruction, in which brain activity is translated (decoded) to deep neural network (DNN) features of hierarchical layers then to an image. Reconstructions resemble the attended rather than unattended images. They can be modeled by superimposed images with biased contrasts, comparable to the appearance during attention. Attentional modulations are found in a broad range of hierarchical visual representations and mirror the brain-DNN correspondence. Our results demonstrate that top-down attention counters stimulus-induced responses, modulating neural representations to render reconstructions in accordance with subjective appearance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomoyasu Horikawa
- Department of Neuroinformatics, ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories, Kyoto, Japan.
| | - Yukiyasu Kamitani
- Department of Neuroinformatics, ATR Computational Neuroscience Laboratories, Kyoto, Japan. .,Graduate School of Informatics, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan.
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19
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Keller AS, Jagadeesh AV, Bugatus L, Williams LM, Grill-Spector K. Attention enhances category representations across the brain with strengthened residual correlations to ventral temporal cortex. Neuroimage 2022; 249:118900. [PMID: 35021039 PMCID: PMC8947761 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.118900] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2021] [Revised: 01/06/2022] [Accepted: 01/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
How does attention enhance neural representations of goal-relevant stimuli while suppressing representations of ignored stimuli across regions of the brain? While prior studies have shown that attention enhances visual responses, we lack a cohesive understanding of how selective attention modulates visual representations across the brain. Here, we used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while participants performed a selective attention task on superimposed stimuli from multiple categories and used a data-driven approach to test how attention affects both decodability of category information and residual correlations (after regressing out stimulus-driven variance) with category-selective regions of ventral temporal cortex (VTC). Our data reveal three main findings. First, when two objects are simultaneously viewed, the category of the attended object can be decoded more readily than the category of the ignored object, with the greatest attentional enhancements observed in occipital and temporal lobes. Second, after accounting for the response to the stimulus, the correlation in the residual brain activity between a cortical region and a category-selective region of VTC was elevated when that region’s preferred category was attended vs. ignored, and more so in the right occipital, parietal, and frontal cortices. Third, we found that the stronger the residual correlations between a given region of cortex and VTC, the better visual category information could be decoded from that region. These findings suggest that heightened residual correlations by selective attention may reflect the sharing of information between sensory regions and higher-order cortical regions to provide attentional enhancement of goal-relevant information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arielle S Keller
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA; Neurosciences Graduate Program, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA.
| | | | - Lior Bugatus
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA
| | - Leanne M Williams
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA
| | - Kalanit Grill-Spector
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA; Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA
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20
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Kiroy V, Bakhtin O, Krivko E, Lazurenko D, Aslanyan E, Shaposhnikov D, Shcherban I. Spoken and Inner Speech-related EEG Connectivity in Different Spatial Direction. Biomed Signal Process Control 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bspc.2021.103224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
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21
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Oliveira ÍAF, Cai Y, Hofstetter S, Siero JCW, van der Zwaag W, Dumoulin SO. Comparing BOLD and VASO-CBV population receptive field estimates in human visual cortex. Neuroimage 2021; 248:118868. [PMID: 34974115 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118868] [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: 10/28/2021] [Revised: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/29/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Vascular Space Occupancy (VASO) is an alternative fMRI approach based on changes in Cerebral Blood Volume (CBV). VASO-CBV fMRI can provide higher spatial specificity than the blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) method because the CBV response is thought to be limited to smaller vessels. To investigate how this technique compares to BOLD fMRI for cognitive neuroscience applications, we compared population receptive field (pRF) mapping estimates between BOLD and VASO-CBV. We hypothesized that VASO-CBV would elicit distinct pRF properties compared to BOLD. Specifically, since pRF size estimates also depend on vascular sources, we hypothesized that reduced vascular blurring might yield narrower pRFs for VASO-CBV measurements. We used a VASO sequence with a double readout 3D EPI sequence at 7T to simultaneously measure VASO-CBV and BOLD responses in the visual cortex while participants viewed conventional pRF mapping stimuli. Both VASO-CBV and BOLD images show similar eccentricity and polar angle maps across all participants. Compared to BOLD-based measurements, VASO-CBV yielded lower tSNR and variance explained. The pRF size changed with eccentricity similarly for VASO-CBV and BOLD, and the pRF size estimates were similar for VASO-CBV and BOLD, even when we equate variance explained between VASO-CBV and BOLD. This result suggests that the vascular component of the pRF size is not dominating in either VASO-CBV or BOLD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ícaro A F Oliveira
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherland; Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam, the Netherland.
| | - Yuxuan Cai
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherland; Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam, the Netherland
| | - Shir Hofstetter
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherland
| | - Jeroen C W Siero
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherland; Radiology, Utrecht Center for Image Sciences, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherland
| | | | - Serge O Dumoulin
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherland; Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam, the Netherland; Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherland
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22
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Yoo AH, Bolaños A, Hallenbeck GE, Rahmati M, Sprague TC, Curtis CE. Behavioral Prioritization Enhances Working Memory Precision and Neural Population Gain. J Cogn Neurosci 2021; 34:365-379. [PMID: 34942647 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Humans allocate visual working memory (WM) resource according to behavioral relevance, resulting in more precise memories for more important items. Theoretically, items may be maintained by feature-tuned neural populations, where the relative gain of the populations encoding each item determines precision. To test this hypothesis, we compared the amplitudes of delay period activity in the different parts of retinotopic maps representing each of several WM items, predicting the amplitudes would track behavioral priority. Using fMRI, we scanned participants while they remembered the location of multiple items over a WM delay and then reported the location of one probed item using a memory-guided saccade. Importantly, items were not equally probable to be probed (0.6, 0.3, 0.1, 0.0), which was indicated with a precue. We analyzed fMRI activity in 10 visual field maps in occipital, parietal, and frontal cortex known to be important for visual WM. In early visual cortex, but not association cortex, the amplitude of BOLD activation within voxels corresponding to the retinotopic location of visual WM items increased with the priority of the item. Interestingly, these results were contrasted with a common finding that higher-level brain regions had greater delay period activity, demonstrating a dissociation between the absolute amount of activity in a brain area and the activity of different spatially selective populations within it. These results suggest that the distribution of WM resources according to priority sculpts the relative gains of neural populations that encode items, offering a neural mechanism for how prioritization impacts memory precision.
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23
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Theiss JD, Bowen JD, Silver MA. Spatial Attention Enhances Crowded Stimulus Encoding Across Modeled Receptive Fields by Increasing Redundancy of Feature Representations. Neural Comput 2021; 34:190-218. [PMID: 34710898 PMCID: PMC8693207 DOI: 10.1162/neco_a_01447] [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: 01/28/2021] [Accepted: 07/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Any visual system, biological or artificial, must make a trade-off between the number of units used to represent the visual environment and the spatial resolution of the sampling array. Humans and some other animals are able to allocate attention to spatial locations to reconfigure the sampling array of receptive fields (RFs), thereby enhancing the spatial resolution of representations without changing the overall number of sampling units. Here, we examine how representations of visual features in a fully convolutional neural network interact and interfere with each other in an eccentricity-dependent RF pooling array and how these interactions are influenced by dynamic changes in spatial resolution across the array. We study these feature interactions within the framework of visual crowding, a well-characterized perceptual phenomenon in which target objects in the visual periphery that are easily identified in isolation are much more difficult to identify when flanked by similar nearby objects. By separately simulating effects of spatial attention on RF size and on the density of the pooling array, we demonstrate that the increase in RF density due to attention is more beneficial than changes in RF size for enhancing target classification for crowded stimuli. Furthermore, by varying target/flanker spacing, as well as the spatial extent of attention, we find that feature redundancy across RFs has more influence on target classification than the fidelity of the feature representations themselves. Based on these findings, we propose a candidate mechanism by which spatial attention relieves visual crowding through enhanced feature redundancy that is mostly due to increased RF density.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Joel D Bowen
- University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, U.S.A.
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24
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Attention Field Size Alters Patterns of Population Receptive Fields in the Early Visual Cortex. Neurosci Bull 2021; 38:205-208. [PMID: 34855143 PMCID: PMC8821761 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-021-00789-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2021] [Accepted: 08/28/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
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25
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Kupers ER, Edadan A, Benson NC, Zuiderbaan W, de Jong MC, Dumoulin SO, Winawer J. A population receptive field model of the magnetoencephalography response. Neuroimage 2021; 244:118554. [PMID: 34509622 PMCID: PMC8631249 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2020] [Revised: 07/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Computational models which predict the neurophysiological response from experimental stimuli have played an important role in human neuroimaging. One type of computational model, the population receptive field (pRF), has been used to describe cortical responses at the millimeter scale using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electrocorticography (ECoG). However, pRF models are not widely used for non-invasive electromagnetic field measurements (EEG/MEG), because individual sensors pool responses originating from several centimeter of cortex, containing neural populations with widely varying spatial tuning. Here, we introduce a forward-modeling approach in which pRFs estimated from fMRI data are used to predict MEG sensor responses. Subjects viewed contrast-reversing bar stimuli sweeping across the visual field in separate fMRI and MEG sessions. Individual subject's pRFs were modeled on the cortical surface at the millimeter scale using the fMRI data. We then predicted cortical time series and projected these predictions to MEG sensors using a biophysical MEG forward model, accounting for the pooling across cortex. We compared the predicted MEG responses to observed visually evoked steady-state responses measured in the MEG session. We found that pRF parameters estimated by fMRI could explain a substantial fraction of the variance in steady-state MEG sensor responses (up to 60% in individual sensors). Control analyses in which we artificially perturbed either pRF size or pRF position reduced MEG prediction accuracy, indicating that MEG data are sensitive to pRF properties derived from fMRI. Our model provides a quantitative approach to link fMRI and MEG measurements, thereby enabling advances in our understanding of spatiotemporal dynamics in human visual field maps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eline R Kupers
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, United States; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, United States; Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, United States.
| | - Akhil Edadan
- Spinoza Center for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherlands; Department of Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands
| | - Noah C Benson
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, United States; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, United States; Sciences Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, United States
| | | | - Maartje C de Jong
- Spinoza Center for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherlands; Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1001 NK, the Netherlands; Amsterdam Brain and Cognition (ABC), University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1001 NK, the Netherlands
| | - Serge O Dumoulin
- Spinoza Center for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam 1105 BK, the Netherlands; Department of Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands; Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam 1081 BT, the Netherlands
| | - Jonathan Winawer
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10003, United States; Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, United States
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26
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Foster JJ, Ling S. Normalizing population receptive fields. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2118367118. [PMID: 34789580 PMCID: PMC8617414 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2118367118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Joshua J Foster
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215
- Center for Systems Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215
| | - Sam Ling
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215;
- Center for Systems Neuroscience, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215
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27
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Groen IIA, Dekker TM, Knapen T, Silson EH. Visuospatial coding as ubiquitous scaffolding for human cognition. Trends Cogn Sci 2021; 26:81-96. [PMID: 34799253 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2021.10.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2021] [Revised: 10/19/2021] [Accepted: 10/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
For more than 100 years we have known that the visual field is mapped onto the surface of visual cortex, imposing an inherently spatial reference frame on visual information processing. Recent studies highlight visuospatial coding not only throughout visual cortex, but also brain areas not typically considered visual. Such widespread access to visuospatial coding raises important questions about its role in wider cognitive functioning. Here, we synthesise these recent developments and propose that visuospatial coding scaffolds human cognition by providing a reference frame through which neural computations interface with environmental statistics and task demands via perception-action loops.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iris I A Groen
- Institute for Informatics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Tessa M Dekker
- Institute of Ophthalmology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Tomas Knapen
- Behavioral and Movement Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Spinoza Centre for NeuroImaging, Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Edward H Silson
- Department of Psychology, School of Philosophy, Psychology & Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK.
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28
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Divisive normalization unifies disparate response signatures throughout the human visual hierarchy. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2108713118. [PMID: 34772812 PMCID: PMC8609633 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2108713118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
A canonical neural computation is a mathematical operation applied by the brain in a wide variety of contexts and capable of explaining and unifying seemingly unrelated neural and perceptual phenomena. Here, we use a combination of state-of-the-art experiments (ultra-high-field functional MRI) and mathematical methods (population receptive field [pRF] modeling) to uniquely demonstrate the role of divisive normalization (DN) as the canonical neural computation underlying visuospatial responses throughout the human visual hierarchy. The DN pRF model provides a tool to investigate and interpret the computational processes underlying neural responses in human and animal recordings, but also in clinical and cognitive dimensions. Neural processing is hypothesized to apply the same mathematical operations in a variety of contexts, implementing so-called canonical neural computations. Divisive normalization (DN) is considered a prime candidate for a canonical computation. Here, we propose a population receptive field (pRF) model based on DN and evaluate it using ultra-high-field functional MRI (fMRI). The DN model parsimoniously captures seemingly disparate response signatures with a single computation, superseding existing pRF models in both performance and biological plausibility. We observe systematic variations in specific DN model parameters across the visual hierarchy and show how they relate to differences in response modulation and visuospatial information integration. The DN model delivers a unifying framework for visuospatial responses throughout the human visual hierarchy and provides insights into its underlying information-encoding computations. These findings extend the role of DN as a canonical computation to neuronal populations throughout the human visual hierarchy.
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29
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Carvalho J, Renken RJ, Cornelissen FW. Predictive masking of an artificial scotoma is associated with a system-wide reconfiguration of neural populations in the human visual cortex. Neuroimage 2021; 245:118690. [PMID: 34758382 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118690] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2021] [Revised: 10/19/2021] [Accepted: 10/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The visual brain has the remarkable capacity to complete our percept of the world even when the information extracted from the visual scene is incomplete. This ability to predict missing information based on information from spatially adjacent regions is an intriguing attribute of healthy vision. Yet, it gains particular significance when it masks the perceptual consequences of a retinal lesion, leaving patients unaware of their partial loss of vision and ultimately delaying diagnosis and treatment. At present, our understanding of the neural basis of this masking process is limited which hinders both quantitative modeling as well as translational application. To overcome this, we asked the participants to view visual stimuli with and without superimposed artificial scotoma (AS). We used fMRI to record the associated cortical activity and applied model-based analyzes to track changes in cortical population receptive fields and connectivity in response to the introduction of the AS. We found that throughout the visual field and cortical hierarchy, pRFs shifted their preferred position towards the AS border. Moreover, extrastriate areas biased their sampling of V1 towards sections outside the AS projection zone, thereby effectively masking the AS with signals from spared portions of the visual field. We speculate that the signals that drive these system-wide population modifications originate in extrastriate visual areas and, through feedback, also reconfigure the neural populations in the earlier visual areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joana Carvalho
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands; Laboratory of Preclinical MRI, Champalimaud Centre for the Unknown, Avenida de Brasília, Lisbon, Portugal 1400-038.
| | - Remco J Renken
- Cognitive Neuroscience Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Frans W Cornelissen
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
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30
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Tsouli A, Harvey BM, Hofstetter S, Cai Y, van der Smagt MJ, Te Pas SF, Dumoulin SO. The role of neural tuning in quantity perception. Trends Cogn Sci 2021; 26:11-24. [PMID: 34702662 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2021.10.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Revised: 10/01/2021] [Accepted: 10/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Perception of quantities, such as numerosity, timing, and size, is essential for behavior and cognition. Accumulating evidence demonstrates neurons processing quantities are tuned, that is, have a preferred quantity amount, not only for numerosity, but also other quantity dimensions and sensory modalities. We argue that quantity-tuned neurons are fundamental to understanding quantity perception. We illustrate how the properties of quantity-tuned neurons can underlie a range of perceptual phenomena. Furthermore, quantity-tuned neurons are organized in distinct but overlapping topographic maps. We suggest that this overlap in tuning provides the neural basis for perceptual interactions between different quantities, without the need for a common neural representational code.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andromachi Tsouli
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Ben M Harvey
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Shir Hofstetter
- The Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Yuxuan Cai
- The Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Maarten J van der Smagt
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Susan F Te Pas
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Serge O Dumoulin
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands; The Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam, The Netherlands; Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
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31
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Bhat S, Lührs M, Goebel R, Senden M. Extremely fast pRF mapping for real-time applications. Neuroimage 2021; 245:118671. [PMID: 34710584 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118671] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2021] [Revised: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Population receptive field (pRF) mapping is a popular tool in computational neuroimaging that allows for the investigation of receptive field properties, their topography and interrelations in health and disease. Furthermore, the possibility to invert population receptive fields provides a decoding model for constructing stimuli from observed cortical activation patterns. This has been suggested to pave the road towards pRF-based brain-computer interface (BCI) communication systems, which would be able to directly decode internally visualized letters from topographically organized brain activity. A major stumbling block for such an application is, however, that the pRF mapping procedure is computationally heavy and time consuming. To address this, we propose a novel and fast pRF mapping procedure that is suitable for real-time applications. The method is built upon hashed-Gaussian encoding of the stimulus, which tremendously reduces computational resources. After the stimulus is encoded, mapping can be performed using either ridge regression for fast offline analyses or gradient descent for real-time applications. We validate our model-agnostic approach in silico, as well as on empirical fMRI data obtained from 3T and 7T MRI scanners. Our approach is capable of estimating receptive fields and their parameters for millions of voxels in mere seconds. This method thus facilitates real-time applications of population receptive field mapping.
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Affiliation(s)
- Salil Bhat
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Maastricht Brain Imaging Centre, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Michael Lührs
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Department of Research and Development, Brain Innovation B.V., Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Rainer Goebel
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Maastricht Brain Imaging Centre, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Department of Research and Development, Brain Innovation B.V., Maastricht, the Netherlands; Department of Neuroimaging and Neuromodeling, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Mario Senden
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Maastricht Brain Imaging Centre, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, the Netherlands
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32
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Spared perilesional V1 activity underlies training-induced recovery of luminance detection sensitivity in cortically-blind patients. Nat Commun 2021; 12:6102. [PMID: 34671032 PMCID: PMC8528839 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26345-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Damage to the primary visual cortex (V1) causes homonymous visual-field loss long considered intractable. Multiple studies now show that perceptual training can restore visual functions in chronic cortically-induced blindness (CB). A popular hypothesis is that training can harness residual visual functions by recruiting intact extrageniculostriate pathways. Training may also induce plastic changes within spared regions of the damaged V1. Here, we link changes in luminance detection sensitivity with retinotopic fMRI activity before and after visual discrimination training in eleven patients with chronic, stroke-induced CB. We show that spared V1 activity representing perimetrically-blind locations prior to training predicts the amount of training-induced recovery of luminance detection sensitivity. Additionally, training results in an enlargement of population receptive fields in perilesional V1, which increases blind-field coverage and may support further recovery with subsequent training. These findings uncover fundamental changes in perilesional V1 cortex underlying training-induced restoration of conscious luminance detection sensitivity in CB. In humans, stroke damage to V1 causes large visual field defects. Spared V1 activity prior to training predicts the amount of training-induced recovery in luminance detection sensitivity. Moreover, visual training changes population receptive field properties within residual V1 circuits.
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33
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Wang L, Zhang Z, Okada T, Li C, Chen D, Funahashi S, Wu J, Yan T. Population Receptive Field Characteristics in the between- and Within-Digit Dimensions of the Undominant Hand in the Primary Somatosensory Cortex. Cereb Cortex 2021; 31:4427-4438. [PMID: 33973012 PMCID: PMC8408438 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2021] [Revised: 03/02/2021] [Accepted: 03/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Somatotopy is an important guiding principle for sensory fiber organization in the primary somatosensory cortex (S1), which reflects tactile information processing and is associated with disease-related reorganization. However, it is difficult to measure the neuronal encoding scheme in S1 in vivo in normal participants. Here, we investigated the somatotopic map of the undominant hand using a Bayesian population receptive field (pRF) model. The model was established in hand space with between- and within-digit dimensions. In the between-digit dimension, orderly representation was found, which had low variability across participants. The pRF shape tended to be elliptical for digits with high spatial acuity, for which the long axis was along the within-digit dimension. In addition, the pRF width showed different change trends in the 2 dimensions across digits. These results provide new insights into the neural mechanisms in S1, allowing for in-depth investigation of somatosensory information processing and disease-related reorganization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luyao Wang
- School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China.,Department of Psychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Zhilin Zhang
- Department of Psychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan
| | - Tomohisa Okada
- Human Brain Research Center, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan
| | - Chunlin Li
- School of Biomedical Engineering, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China
| | - Duanduan Chen
- School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Shintaro Funahashi
- Advanced research institute of multidisciplinary science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Jinglong Wu
- School of Mechatronical Engineering, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Tianyi Yan
- School of Life Science, Beijing Institute of Technology, Beijing 100081, China
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34
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Jigo M, Heeger DJ, Carrasco M. An image-computable model of how endogenous and exogenous attention differentially alter visual perception. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:e2106436118. [PMID: 34389680 PMCID: PMC8379934 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2106436118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Attention alters perception across the visual field. Typically, endogenous (voluntary) and exogenous (involuntary) attention similarly improve performance in many visual tasks, but they have differential effects in some tasks. Extant models of visual attention assume that the effects of these two types of attention are identical and consequently do not explain differences between them. Here, we develop a model of spatial resolution and attention that distinguishes between endogenous and exogenous attention. We focus on texture-based segmentation as a model system because it has revealed a clear dissociation between both attention types. For a texture for which performance peaks at parafoveal locations, endogenous attention improves performance across eccentricity, whereas exogenous attention improves performance where the resolution is low (peripheral locations) but impairs it where the resolution is high (foveal locations) for the scale of the texture. Our model emulates sensory encoding to segment figures from their background and predict behavioral performance. To explain attentional effects, endogenous and exogenous attention require separate operating regimes across visual detail (spatial frequency). Our model reproduces behavioral performance across several experiments and simultaneously resolves three unexplained phenomena: 1) the parafoveal advantage in segmentation, 2) the uniform improvements across eccentricity by endogenous attention, and 3) the peripheral improvements and foveal impairments by exogenous attention. Overall, we unveil a computational dissociation between each attention type and provide a generalizable framework for predicting their effects on perception across the visual field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Jigo
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003;
| | - David J Heeger
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10003
| | - Marisa Carrasco
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10003
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35
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Poltoratski S, Kay K, Finzi D, Grill-Spector K. Holistic face recognition is an emergent phenomenon of spatial processing in face-selective regions. Nat Commun 2021; 12:4745. [PMID: 34362883 PMCID: PMC8346587 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-24806-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Spatial processing by receptive fields is a core property of the visual system. However, it is unknown how spatial processing in high-level regions contributes to recognition behavior. As face inversion is thought to disrupt typical holistic processing of information in faces, we mapped population receptive fields (pRFs) with upright and inverted faces in the human visual system. Here we show that in face-selective regions, but not primary visual cortex, pRFs and overall visual field coverage are smaller and shifted downward in response to face inversion. From these measurements, we successfully predict the relative behavioral detriment of face inversion at different positions in the visual field. This correspondence between neural measurements and behavior demonstrates how spatial processing in face-selective regions may enable holistic perception. These results not only show that spatial processing in high-level visual regions is dynamically used towards recognition, but also suggest a powerful approach for bridging neural computations by receptive fields to behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Kendrick Kay
- Center for Magnetic Resonance Research (CMRR), Department of Radiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Dawn Finzi
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Kalanit Grill-Spector
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
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36
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Kirsch W, Kunde W. On the origin of the Ebbinghaus illusion: The role of figural extent and spatial frequency of stimuli. Vision Res 2021; 188:193-201. [PMID: 34364022 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2021.07.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2021] [Revised: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 07/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
An object is perceived as larger when it is surrounded by smaller context objects than when it is surrounded by larger context objects. The origin of this well-known phenomenon, called as Ebbinghaus or Titchener circles illusion, is still puzzling. Here we introduce a basic explanation of how this illusion could emerge and provide some preliminary empirical support for this idea. In essence, we suggest that changes in the figural extent and in the spatial frequency of the stimulus pattern entail adjustments of the size and resolution of the attentional field, which are accompanied by changes in spatial coding. This approach is consistent with previous observations and can enable a deeper understanding of geometric illusions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Wilfried Kunde
- Department of Psychology, University of Würzburg, Germany
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37
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Benson NC, Kupers ER, Barbot A, Carrasco M, Winawer J. Cortical magnification in human visual cortex parallels task performance around the visual field. eLife 2021; 10:e67685. [PMID: 34342581 PMCID: PMC8378846 DOI: 10.7554/elife.67685] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2021] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Human vision has striking radial asymmetries, with performance on many tasks varying sharply with stimulus polar angle. Performance is generally better on the horizontal than vertical meridian, and on the lower than upper vertical meridian, and these asymmetries decrease gradually with deviation from the vertical meridian. Here, we report cortical magnification at a fine angular resolution around the visual field. This precision enables comparisons between cortical magnification and behavior, between cortical magnification and retinal cell densities, and between cortical magnification in twin pairs. We show that cortical magnification in the human primary visual cortex, measured in 163 subjects, varies substantially around the visual field, with a pattern similar to behavior. These radial asymmetries in the cortex are larger than those found in the retina, and they are correlated between monozygotic twin pairs. These findings indicate a tight link between cortical topography and behavior, and suggest that visual field asymmetries are partly heritable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noah C Benson
- Department of Psychology, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
- Center for Neural Sciences, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
| | - Eline R Kupers
- Department of Psychology, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
- Center for Neural Sciences, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
| | - Antoine Barbot
- Department of Psychology, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
- Center for Neural Sciences, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
| | - Marisa Carrasco
- Department of Psychology, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
- Center for Neural Sciences, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
| | - Jonathan Winawer
- Department of Psychology, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
- Center for Neural Sciences, New York UniversityNew YorkUnited States
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38
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Li HH, Hanning NM, Carrasco M. To look or not to look: dissociating presaccadic and covert spatial attention. Trends Neurosci 2021; 44:669-686. [PMID: 34099240 PMCID: PMC8552810 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2021.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2021] [Revised: 04/25/2021] [Accepted: 05/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Attention is a central neural process that enables selective and efficient processing of visual information. Individuals can attend to specific visual information either overtly, by making an eye movement to an object of interest, or covertly, without moving their eyes. We review behavioral, neuropsychological, neurophysiological, and computational evidence of presaccadic attentional modulations that occur while preparing saccadic eye movements, and highlight their differences from those of covert spatial endogenous (voluntary) and exogenous (involuntary) attention. We discuss recent studies and experimental procedures on how these different types of attention impact visual performance, alter appearance, differentially modulate the featural representation of basic visual dimensions (orientation and spatial frequency), engage different neural computations, and recruit partially distinct neural substrates. We conclude that presaccadic attention and covert attention are dissociable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsin-Hung Li
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Nina M Hanning
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Marisa Carrasco
- Department of Psychology and Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
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39
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Goddard E, Mullen KT. Attention selectively enhances stimulus information for surround over foveal stimulus representations in occipital cortex. J Vis 2021; 21:20. [PMID: 33749755 PMCID: PMC7991976 DOI: 10.1167/jov.21.3.20] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
By attending to part of a visual scene, we can prioritize processing of the most relevant visual information and so use our limited resources effectively. Previous functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) work has shown that attention can increase overall blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signal responsiveness but also enhances the stimulus information in terms of classifier performance. Here, we investigate how these effects vary across the visual field. We compare attention-enhanced fMRI-BOLD amplitude responses and classifier accuracy in fovea and surrounding stimulus regions using a set of four simple stimuli subdivided into a foveal region (1.4° diameter) and a surround region (15° diameter). We found dissociations between the effects of attention on average response and in enhancing stimulus information. In early visual cortex, we found that attention increased the amplitude of responses to both foveal and surround parts of the stimuli and increased classifier performance only for the surround stimulus. Conversely, ventral visual areas showed less change in average response but greater changes in decoding. Unlike for early visual cortex, in the ventral visual cortex attention produced similar changes in decoding for center and surround stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin Goddard
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, McGill Vision Research, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Present Address: School of Psychology, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.,
| | - Kathy T Mullen
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences, McGill Vision Research, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,
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40
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Linhardt D, Pawloff M, Hummer A, Woletz M, Tik M, Ritter M, Schmidt-Erfurth U, Windischberger C. Combining stimulus types for improved coverage in population receptive field mapping. Neuroimage 2021; 238:118240. [PMID: 34116157 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118240] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2021] [Accepted: 06/04/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Retinotopy experiments using population receptive field (pRF) mapping are ideal for assigning regions in the visual field to cortical brain areas. While various designs for visual stimulation were suggested in the literature, all have specific shortcomings regarding visual field coverage. Here we acquired high-resolution 7 Tesla fMRI data to compare pRF-based coverage maps obtained with the two most commonly used stimulus variants: moving bars; rotating wedges and expanding rings. We find that stimulus selection biases the spatial distribution of pRF centres. In addition, eccentricity values and pRF sizes obtained from wedge/ring or bar stimulation runs show systematic differences. Wedge/ring stimulation results show lower eccentricity values and strongly reduced pRF sizes compared to bar stimulation runs. Statistical comparison shows significantly higher pRF centre numbers in the foveal 2° region of the visual field for wedge/ring compared to bar stimuli. We suggest and evaluate approaches for combining pRF data from different visual stimulus patterns to obtain improved mapping results.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Linhardt
- High Field MR Center, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Maximilian Pawloff
- Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Allan Hummer
- High Field MR Center, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Michael Woletz
- High Field MR Center, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Martin Tik
- High Field MR Center, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Markus Ritter
- Department of Ophthalmology, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Christian Windischberger
- High Field MR Center, Center for Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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41
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Schellekens W, Thio M, Badde S, Winawer J, Ramsey N, Petridou N. A touch of hierarchy: population receptive fields reveal fingertip integration in Brodmann areas in human primary somatosensory cortex. Brain Struct Funct 2021; 226:2099-2112. [PMID: 34091731 PMCID: PMC8354965 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-021-02309-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Accepted: 05/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Several neuroimaging studies have shown the somatotopy of body part representations in primary somatosensory cortex (S1), but the functional hierarchy of distinct subregions in human S1 has not been adequately addressed. The current study investigates the functional hierarchy of cyto-architectonically distinct regions, Brodmann areas BA3, BA1, and BA2, in human S1. During functional MRI experiments, we presented participants with vibrotactile stimulation of the fingertips at three different vibration frequencies. Using population Receptive Field (pRF) modeling of the fMRI BOLD activity, we identified the hand region in S1 and the somatotopy of the fingertips. For each voxel, the pRF center indicates the finger that most effectively drives the BOLD signal, and the pRF size measures the spatial somatic pooling of fingertips. We find a systematic relationship of pRF sizes from lower-order areas to higher-order areas. Specifically, we found that pRF sizes are smallest in BA3, increase slightly towards BA1, and are largest in BA2, paralleling the increase in visual receptive field size as one ascends the visual hierarchy. Additionally, we find that the time-to-peak of the hemodynamic response in BA3 is roughly 0.5 s earlier compared to BA1 and BA2, further supporting the notion of a functional hierarchy of subregions in S1. These results were obtained during stimulation of different mechanoreceptors, suggesting that different afferent fibers leading up to S1 feed into the same cortical hierarchy.
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Affiliation(s)
- W Schellekens
- Department of Radiology, Center for Image Sciences, UMC Utrecht, Q101.132, P.O.Box 85500, 3508 GA, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - M Thio
- Department of Radiology, Center for Image Sciences, UMC Utrecht, Q101.132, P.O.Box 85500, 3508 GA, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - S Badde
- Department of Psychology and Center of Neural Science, NYU, New York, USA
| | - J Winawer
- Department of Psychology and Center of Neural Science, NYU, New York, USA
| | - N Ramsey
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - N Petridou
- Department of Radiology, Center for Image Sciences, UMC Utrecht, Q101.132, P.O.Box 85500, 3508 GA, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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Abstract
The present study explored the origin of perceptual changes repeatedly observed in the context of actions. In Experiment 1, participants tried to hit a circular target with a stylus movement under restricted feedback conditions. We measured the perception of target size during action planning and observed larger estimates for larger movement distances. In Experiment 2, we then tested the hypothesis that this action specific influence on perception is due to changes in the allocation of spatial attention. For this purpose, we replaced the hitting task by conditions of focused and distributed attention and measured the perception of the former target stimulus. The results revealed changes in the perceived stimulus size very similar to those observed in Experiment 1. These results indicate that action’s effects on perception root in changes of spatial attention.
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43
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Kristensen S, Fracasso A, Dumoulin SO, Almeida J, Harvey BM. Size constancy affects the perception and parietal neural representation of object size. Neuroimage 2021; 232:117909. [PMID: 33652148 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.117909] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Humans and animals rely on accurate object size perception to guide behavior. Object size is judged from visual input, but the relationship between an object's retinal size and its real-world size varies with distance. Humans perceive object sizes to be relatively constant when retinal size changes. Such size constancy compensates for the variable relationship between retinal size and real-world size, using the context of recent retinal sizes of the same object to bias perception towards its likely real-world size. We therefore hypothesized that object size perception may be affected by the range of recently viewed object sizes, attracting perceived object sizes towards recently viewed sizes. We demonstrate two systematic biases: a central tendency attracting perceived size towards the average size across all trials, and a serial dependence attracting perceived size towards the size presented on the previous trial. We recently described topographic object size maps in the human parietal cortex. We therefore hypothesized that neural representations of object size here would be attracted towards recently viewed sizes. We used ultra-high-field (7T) functional MRI and population receptive field modeling to compare object size representations measured with small (0.05-1.4°diameter) and large objects sizes (0.1-2.8°). We found that parietal object size preferences and tuning widths follow this presented range, but change less than presented object sizes. Therefore, perception and neural representation of object size are attracted towards recently viewed sizes. This context-dependent object size representation reveals effects on neural response preferences that may underlie context dependence of object size perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie Kristensen
- Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Coimbra, Rua do Colégio Novo, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Alessio Fracasso
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, 1105 BK Amsterdam, the Netherlands.; Institute of Neuroscience and Psychology, University of Glasgow, 62 Hillhead Street, Glasgow G12 8QB, United Kingdom
| | - Serge O Dumoulin
- Spinoza Centre for Neuroimaging, Meibergdreef 75, 1105 BK Amsterdam, the Netherlands.; Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands; Experimental and Applied Psychology, VU University Amsterdam, Van der Boechorststraat 1, Amsterdam 1081 BT, the Netherlands
| | - Jorge Almeida
- Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Coimbra, Rua do Colégio Novo, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Ben M Harvey
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Heidelberglaan 1, Utrecht 3584 CS, the Netherlands.
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Pinto M, Pellegrino M, Lasaponara S, Scozia G, D'Onofrio M, Raffa G, Nigro S, Arnaud CR, Tomaiuolo F, Doricchi F. Number space is made by response space: Evidence from left spatial neglect. Neuropsychologia 2021; 154:107773. [PMID: 33567295 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2021.107773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2020] [Revised: 01/26/2021] [Accepted: 02/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Whether the semantic representation of numbers is endowed with an intrinsic spatial component, so that smaller numbers are inherently represented to the left of larger ones on a Mental Number Line (MNL), is a central matter of debate in numerical cognition. To gain an insight into this issue, we investigated the performance of right brain damaged patients with left spatial neglect (N+) in a bimanual Magnitude Comparison SNARC task and in a uni-manual Magnitude Comparison Go/No-Go task (i.e. "is the number smaller or larger than 5?"). While the first task requires the use of contrasting left/right spatial codes for response selection, the second task does not require the use of these codes. In line with previous evidence, in the SNARC task N+ patients displayed a significant asymmetry in Reaction Times (RTs), with slower RTs to number "4", that was immediately precedent to the numerical reference "5", with respect to the number "6", that immediately followed the same reference. This RTs asymmetry was correlated with lesion of white matter tracts, i.e. Fronto-Occipital-Fasciculus, that allows prefrontal Ba 8 and 46 to regulate the distribution of attention on sensory and memory traces in posterior occipital, temporal and parietal areas. In contrast, no similar RTs asymmetry was found in the Go/No-Go task. These findings suggest that while in the SNARC task numbers get mentally organised from left-to-right as a function of their increasing magnitude, so that N+ patients display a delay in the processing of number-magnitudes that are immediately smaller than a given numerical reference, in the Go/No-Go task no left-to-right organization is activated. These results support the idea that it is the use of contrasting left/right spatial codes, whether motor or conceptual, that triggers the generation of a spatially left-to-right organised MNL and that the representation of number magnitude is not endowed with an inherent spatial component.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Michele Pellegrino
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Roma, Italy
| | - Stefano Lasaponara
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Libera Università Maria Santissima Assunta - LUMSA, Roma, Italy
| | - Gabriele Scozia
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy
| | - Marianna D'Onofrio
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy
| | - Giovanni Raffa
- Division of Neurosurgery, Dept. BIOMORF, University of Messina, Italy
| | - Salvatore Nigro
- Institute of Nanotechnology (NANOTEC), National Research Council, Lecce, Italy
| | - Clelia Rossi Arnaud
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy
| | - Francesco Tomaiuolo
- Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Università degli studi di Messina, Messina, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Doricchi
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, Università degli Studi di Roma 'La Sapienza', Roma, Italy; Fondazione Santa Lucia IRCCS, Roma, Italy.
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Zooming-in on higher-level vision: High-resolution fMRI for understanding visual perception and awareness. Prog Neurobiol 2021; 207:101998. [PMID: 33497652 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2021.101998] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2020] [Revised: 11/11/2020] [Accepted: 01/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
One of the central questions in visual neuroscience is how the sparse retinal signals leaving our eyes are transformed into a rich subjective visual experience of the world. Invasive physiology studies, which offers the highest spatial resolution, have revealed many facts about the processing of simple visual features like contrast, color, and orientation, focusing on the early visual areas. At the same time, standard human fMRI studies with comparably coarser spatial resolution have revealed more complex, functionally specialized, and category-selective responses in higher visual areas. Although the visual system is the best understood among the sensory modalities, these two areas of research remain largely segregated. High-resolution fMRI opens up a possibility for linking them. On the one hand, it allows studying how the higher-level visual functions affect the fine-scale activity in early visual areas. On the other hand, it allows discovering the fine-scale functional organization of higher visual areas and exploring their functional connectivity with visual areas lower in the hierarchy. In this review, I will discuss examples of successful work undertaken in these directions using high-resolution fMRI and discuss where this method could be applied in the future to advance our understanding of the complexity of higher-level visual processing.
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Adaptation to visual numerosity changes neural numerosity selectivity. Neuroimage 2021; 229:117794. [PMID: 33497778 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.117794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2020] [Revised: 01/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Perceiving numerosity, i.e. the set size of a group of items, is an evolutionarily preserved ability found in humans and animals. A useful method to infer the neural underpinnings of a given perceptual property is sensory adaptation. Like other primary perceptual attributes, numerosity is susceptible to adaptation. Recently, we have shown numerosity-selective neural populations with a topographic organization in the human brain. Here, we investigated whether numerosity adaptation can affect the numerosity selectivity of these populations using ultra-high field (7 Tesla) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Participants viewed stimuli of changing numerosity (1 to 7 dots), which allowed the mapping of numerosity selectivity. We interleaved a low or high numerosity adapter stimulus with these mapping stimuli, repeatedly presenting 1 or 20 dots respectively to adapt the numerosity-selective neural populations. We analyzed the responses using custom-build population receptive field neural models of numerosity encoding and compared estimated numerosity preferences between adaptation conditions. We replicated our previous studies where we found several topographic maps of numerosity-selective responses. We found that overall, numerosity adaptation altered the preferred numerosities within the numerosity maps, resulting in predominantly attractive biases towards the numerosity of the adapter. The differential biases could be explained by the difference between the unadapted preferred numerosity and the numerosity of the adapter, with attractive biases being observed with higher difference. The results could link perceptual numerosity adaptation effects to changes in neural numerosity selectivity.
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Carvalho J, Invernizzi A, Martins J, Jansonius NM, Renken RJ, Cornelissen FW. Visual Field Reconstruction Using fMRI-Based Techniques. Transl Vis Sci Technol 2021; 10:25. [PMID: 33520421 PMCID: PMC7814355 DOI: 10.1167/tvst.10.1.25] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2020] [Accepted: 11/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose To evaluate the accuracy and reliability of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI)-based techniques to assess the integrity of the visual field (VF). Methods We combined 3T fMRI and neurocomputational models, that is, conventional population receptive field (pRF) mapping and a new advanced pRF framework "microprobing" (MP), to reconstruct the VF representations of different cortical areas. To demonstrate their scope, both approaches were applied in healthy participants with simulated scotomas and participants with glaucoma. For the latter group we compared the VFs obtained with standard automated perimetry (SAP) and via fMRI. Results Using SS, we found that the fMRI-based techniques can detect absolute defects in VFs that are larger than 3°, in single participants, based on 12 minutes of fMRI scan time. Moreover, we found that the MP approach results in a less biased estimation of the preserved VF. In participants with glaucoma, we found that fMRI-based VF reconstruction detected VF defects with a correspondence to SAP that was decent, reflected by the positive correlation between fMRI-based sampling density and SAP-based contrast sensitivity loss (SAP) r2 = 0.44, P = 0.0002. This correlation was higher for MP compared to that for the conventional pRF analysis. Conclusions The fMRI-based reconstruction of the VF enables the evaluation of vision loss and provides useful details on the properties of the visual cortex. Translational Relevance The fMRI-based VF reconstruction provides an objective alternative to detect VF defects. It may either complement SAP or could provide VF information in patients unable to perform SAP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joana Carvalho
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Azzurra Invernizzi
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Joana Martins
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Nomdo M. Jansonius
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Remco J. Renken
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
- Cognitive Neuroscience Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Frans W. Cornelissen
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, The Netherlands
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48
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Differential impact of endogenous and exogenous attention on activity in human visual cortex. Sci Rep 2020; 10:21274. [PMID: 33277552 PMCID: PMC7718281 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-78172-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2020] [Accepted: 11/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
How do endogenous (voluntary) and exogenous (involuntary) attention modulate activity in visual cortex? Using ROI-based fMRI analysis, we measured fMRI activity for valid and invalid trials (target at cued/un-cued location, respectively), pre- or post-cueing endogenous or exogenous attention, while participants performed the same orientation discrimination task. We found stronger modulation in contralateral than ipsilateral visual regions, and higher activity in valid- than invalid-trials. For endogenous attention, modulation of stimulus-evoked activity due to a pre-cue increased along the visual hierarchy, but was constant due to a post-cue. For exogenous attention, modulation of stimulus-evoked activity due to a pre-cue was constant along the visual hierarchy, but was not modulated due to a post-cue. These findings reveal that endogenous and exogenous attention distinctly modulate activity in visuo-occipital areas during orienting and reorienting; endogenous attention facilitates both the encoding and the readout of visual information whereas exogenous attention only facilitates the encoding of information.
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49
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The size of attentional focus modulates the perception of object location. Vision Res 2020; 179:1-8. [PMID: 33264688 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2020.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2020] [Revised: 11/12/2020] [Accepted: 11/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The present study examined how the size of attended area affects the repulsion of perceived object location from the focus of attention reported previously (attentional repulsion effect). We induced sustained changes in the size of attentional focus and tested the impact of this experimental variation on the perception of object location. The results of three experiments revealed reliable repulsion effects for each size of attentional focus. However, the magnitude of the effect decreased substantially with an increase in focus size. This outcome extends the knowledge about how spatial attention affects visual perception.
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50
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Prabhakaran GT, Carvalho J, Invernizzi A, Kanowski M, Renken RJ, Cornelissen FW, Hoffmann MB. Foveal pRF properties in the visual cortex depend on the extent of stimulated visual field. Neuroimage 2020; 222:117250. [PMID: 32798683 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117250] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2020] [Revised: 07/29/2020] [Accepted: 08/03/2020] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous studies demonstrated that alterations in functional MRI derived receptive field (pRF) properties in cortical projection zones of retinal lesions can erroneously be mistaken for cortical large-scale reorganization in response to visual system pathologies. We tested, whether such confounds are also evident in the normal cortical projection zone of the fovea for simulated peripheral visual field defects. We applied fMRI-based visual field mapping of the central visual field at 3 T in eight controls to compare the pRF properties of the central visual field of a reference condition (stimulus radius: 14°) and two conditions with simulated peripheral visual field defect, i.e., with a peripheral gray mask, stimulating only the central 7° or 4° radius. We quantified, for the cortical representation of the actually stimulated visual field, the changes in the position and size of the pRFs associated with reduced peripheral stimulation using conventional and advanced pRF modeling. We found foveal pRF-positions (≤3°) to be significantly shifted towards the periphery (p<0.05, corrected). These pRF-shifts were largest for the 4° condition [visual area (mean eccentricity shift): V1 (0.9°), V2 (0.9°), V3 (1.0°)], but also evident for the 7° condition [V1 (0.5°), V2 (0.5°), V3 (0.9°)]. Further, an overall enlargement of pRF-sizes was observed. These findings indicate the dependence of foveal pRF parameters on the spatial extent of the stimulated visual field and are likely associated with methodological biases and/or physiological mechanisms. Consequently, our results imply that, previously reported similar findings in patients with actual peripheral scotomas need to be interpreted with caution and indicate the need for adequate control conditions in investigations of visual cortex reorganization.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Joana Carvalho
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Azzurra Invernizzi
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Martin Kanowski
- Department of Neurology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Remco J Renken
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands; Cognitive Neuroscience Center, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Frans W Cornelissen
- Laboratory of Experimental Ophthalmology, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Michael B Hoffmann
- Department of Ophthalmology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany; Center for Behavioural Brain Sciences, Magdeburg, Germany.
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