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Kondat T, Tik N, Sharon H, Tavor I, Censor N. Distinct Neural Plasticity Enhancing Visual Perception. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e0301242024. [PMID: 39103221 PMCID: PMC11376337 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0301-24.2024] [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: 02/14/2024] [Revised: 04/10/2024] [Accepted: 06/04/2024] [Indexed: 08/07/2024] Open
Abstract
The developed human brain shows remarkable plasticity following perceptual learning, resulting in improved visual sensitivity. However, such improvements commonly require extensive stimuli exposure. Here we show that efficiently enhancing visual perception with minimal stimuli exposure recruits distinct neural mechanisms relative to standard repetition-based learning. Participants (n = 20, 12 women, 8 men) encoded a visual discrimination task, followed by brief memory reactivations of only five trials each performed on separate days, demonstrating improvements comparable with standard repetition-based learning (n = 20, 12 women, 8 men). Reactivation-induced learning engaged increased bilateral intraparietal sulcus (IPS) activity relative to repetition-based learning. Complementary evidence for differential learning processes was further provided by temporal-parietal resting functional connectivity changes, which correlated with behavioral improvements. The results suggest that efficiently enhancing visual perception with minimal stimuli exposure recruits distinct neural processes, engaging higher-order control and attentional resources while leading to similar perceptual gains. These unique brain mechanisms underlying improved perceptual learning efficiency may have important implications for daily life and in clinical conditions requiring relearning following brain damage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taly Kondat
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
- The School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
| | - Niv Tik
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
| | - Haggai Sharon
- Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv 6423906, Israel
| | - Ido Tavor
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
- Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
| | - Nitzan Censor
- Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
- The School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
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Namgung E, Kim H, Kim YH, Kim YS, Lee EJ, Lee JH, Sasaki Y, Watanabe T, Kang DW. Customized Visual Discrimination Digital Therapy According to Visual Field Defects in Chronic Stroke Patients. J Clin Neurol 2024; 20:509-518. [PMID: 39227334 PMCID: PMC11372206 DOI: 10.3988/jcn.2024.0015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2024] [Revised: 06/19/2024] [Accepted: 06/21/2024] [Indexed: 09/05/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Visual perceptual learning (VPL) may improve visual field defects (VFDs) after chronic stroke, but the optimal training duration and location remain unknown. This prospective study aimed to determine the efficacy of 8 weeks of VFD-customized visual discrimination training in improving poststroke VFDs. METHODS Prospectively enrolled patients with poststroke VFDs initially received no training for 8 weeks (no-training phase). They subsequently underwent our customized VPL program that included orientation-discrimination tasks in individualized blind fields and central letter-discrimination tasks three times per week for 8 weeks (training phase). We analyzed the luminance detection sensitivity and deviation as measured using Humphrey visual field tests before and after the no-training and training phases. The vision-related quality of life was assessed at baseline and at a 16-week follow-up using the National Eye Institute Visual Function Questionnaire-25 (NEI-VFQ-25). RESULTS Changes in mean total deviation (MTD) scores were greater during the training phase than during the no-training phase (defective hemifield, p=0.002; whole field, p=0.004). The MTD scores improved during the training phase (defective hemifield, p=0.004; whole field, p=0.016), but not during the no-training phase (defective hemifield, p=0.178; whole field, p=0.178). The difference between the improved and worsened areas (≥6 dB changes in luminance detection sensitivity) was greater during the training phase than during the no-training phase (p=0.009). The vision-specific social functioning subscore of the NEI-VFQ-25 improved after the 16-week study period (p=0.040). CONCLUSIONS Our 8-week VFD-customized visual discrimination training protocol may effectively improve VFDs and vision-specific social functioning in chronic stroke patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eun Namgung
- Asan Institute for Life Sciences, Asan Medical Center, Seoul, Korea
| | | | | | | | - Eun-Jae Lee
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea
| | | | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Dong-Wha Kang
- Nunaps Inc., Seoul, Korea
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
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Consorti A, Sansevero G, Di Marco I, Floridia S, Novelli E, Berardi N, Sale A. An essential role for the latero-medial secondary visual cortex in the acquisition and retention of visual perceptual learning in mice. Nat Commun 2024; 15:7322. [PMID: 39183324 PMCID: PMC11345418 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-51817-5] [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] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2024] [Indexed: 08/27/2024] Open
Abstract
Perceptual learning refers to any change in discrimination abilities as a result of practice, a fundamental process that improves the organism's response to the external environment. Visual perceptual learning (vPL) is supposed to rely on functional rearrangements in brain circuity occurring at early stages of sensory processing, with a pivotal role for the primary visual cortex (V1). However, top-down inputs from higher-order visual areas (HVAs) have been suggested to play a key part in vPL, conveying information on attention, expectation and the precise nature of the perceptual task. A direct assessment of the possibility to modulate vPL by manipulating top-down activity in awake subjects is still missing. Here, we used a combination of chemogenetics, behavioral analysis and multichannel electrophysiological assessments to show a critical role in vPL acquisition and retention for neuronal activity in the latero-medial secondary visual cortex (LM), the prime source for top-down feedback projections reentering V1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alan Consorti
- Neuroscience Institute, National Research Council (CNR), Pisa, Italy
- NEUROFARBA, University of Florence, 50139, Florence, Italy
| | | | - Irene Di Marco
- Neuroscience Institute, National Research Council (CNR), Pisa, Italy
- NEUROFARBA, University of Florence, 50139, Florence, Italy
| | - Silvia Floridia
- Neuroscience Institute, National Research Council (CNR), Pisa, Italy
| | - Elena Novelli
- Neuroscience Institute, National Research Council (CNR), Pisa, Italy
| | - Nicoletta Berardi
- Neuroscience Institute, National Research Council (CNR), Pisa, Italy
- NEUROFARBA, University of Florence, 50139, Florence, Italy
| | - Alessandro Sale
- Neuroscience Institute, National Research Council (CNR), Pisa, Italy.
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Haimson B, Gilday OD, Lavi-Rudel A, Sagi H, Lottem E, Mizrahi A. Single neuron responses to perceptual difficulty in the mouse auditory cortex. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadp9816. [PMID: 39141740 PMCID: PMC11323952 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adp9816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2024] [Accepted: 07/09/2024] [Indexed: 08/16/2024]
Abstract
Perceptual learning leads to improvement in behavioral performance, yet how the brain supports challenging perceptual demands is unknown. We used two photon imaging in the mouse primary auditory cortex during behavior in a Go-NoGo task designed to test perceptual difficulty. Using general linear model analysis, we found a subset of neurons that increased their responses during high perceptual demands. Single neurons increased their responses to both Go and NoGo sounds when mice were engaged in the more difficult perceptual discrimination. This increased responsiveness contributes to enhanced cortical network discriminability for the learned sounds. Under passive listening conditions, the same neurons responded weaker to the more similar sound pairs of the difficult task, and the training protocol by itself induced specific suppression to the learned sounds. Our findings identify how neuronal activity in auditory cortex is modulated during high perceptual demands, which is a fundamental feature associated with perceptual improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baruch Haimson
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- Department of Neurobiology, The Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Omri David Gilday
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- Department of Neurobiology, The Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Amichai Lavi-Rudel
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | | | - Eran Lottem
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Adi Mizrahi
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- Department of Neurobiology, The Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
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Watanabe T, Sasaki Y, Ogawa D, Shibata K. Unsupervised learning as a computational principle works in visual learning of natural scenes, but not of artificial stimuli. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.07.31.605957. [PMID: 39211147 PMCID: PMC11361125 DOI: 10.1101/2024.07.31.605957] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
The question of whether we learn exposed visual features remains a subject of controversy. A prevalent computational model suggests that visual features frequently exposed to observers in natural environments are likely to be learned. However, this unsupervised learning model appears to be contradicted by the significant body of experimental results with human participants that indicates visual perceptual learning (VPL) of visible task-irrelevant features does not occur with frequent exposure. Here, we demonstrate a resolution to this controversy with a new finding: Exposure to a dominant global orientation as task-irrelevant leads to VPL of the orientation, particularly when the orientation is derived from natural scene images, whereas VPL did not occur with artificial images even with matched distributions of local orientations and spatial frequencies to natural scene images. Further investigation revealed that this disparity arises from the presence of higher-order statistics derived from natural scene images-global structures such as correlations between different local orientation and spatial frequency channels. Moreover, behavioral and neuroimaging results indicate that the dominant orientation from these higher-order statistics undergoes less attentional suppression than that from artificial images, which may facilitate VPL. Our results contribute to resolving the controversy by affirming the validity of unsupervised learning models for natural scenes but not for artificial stimuli. They challenge the assumption that VPL occurring in everyday life can be predicted by laws governing VPL for conventionally used artificial stimuli.
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Jia S, Mei X, Chen L, Chan LH, Tsang C, Suen V, Li T, Zaw MW, Liu A, Thompson B, Sabel B, Woo G, Leung CKS, Yip SP, Chang DHF, Cheong AMY. Glaucoma Rehabilitation using ElectricAI Transcranial Stimulation (GREAT)-study protocol for randomized controlled trial using combined perceptual learning and transcranial electrical stimulation for vision enhancement. Trials 2024; 25:501. [PMID: 39039582 PMCID: PMC11264395 DOI: 10.1186/s13063-024-08314-3] [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] [Received: 04/10/2024] [Accepted: 07/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/24/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Glaucoma patients with irreversible visual field loss often experience decreased quality of life, impaired mobility, and mental health challenges. Perceptual learning (PL) and transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) have emerged as promising interventions for vision rehabilitation, showing potential in restoring residual visual functions. The Glaucoma Rehabilitation using ElectricAI Transcranial stimulation (GREAT) project aims to investigate whether combining PL and tES is more effective than using either method alone in maximizing the visual function of glaucoma patients. Additionally, the study will assess the impact of these interventions on brain neural activity, blood biomarkers, mobility, mental health, quality of life, and fear of falling. METHODS The study employs a three-arm, double-blind, randomized, superiority-controlled design. Participants are randomly allocated in a 1:1:1 ratio to one of three groups receiving: (1) real PL and real tES, (2) real PL and sham tES, and (3) placebo PL and sham tES. Each participant undergoes 10 sessions per block (~ 1 h each), with a total of three blocks. Assessments are conducted at six time points: baseline, interim 1, interim 2, post-intervention, 1-month post-intervention, and 2-month post-intervention. The primary outcome is the mean deviation of the 24-2 visual field measured by the Humphrey visual field analyzer. Secondary outcomes include detection rate in the suprathreshold visual field, balance and gait functions, and electrophysiological and biological responses. This study also investigates changes in neurotransmitter metabolism, biomarkers, self-perceived quality of life, and psychological status before and after the intervention. DISCUSSION The GREAT project is the first study to assess the effectiveness of PL and tES in the rehabilitation of glaucoma. Our findings will offer comprehensive assessments of the impact of these treatments on a wide range of brain and vision-related metrics including visual field, neural activity, biomarkers, mobility, mental health, fear of falling, and quality of life. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05874258 . Registered on May 15, 2023.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuwen Jia
- School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Xiaolin Mei
- School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Lilin Chen
- School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Lok Hin Chan
- School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Celia Tsang
- School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Venus Suen
- School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Tingni Li
- Centre for Eye and Vision Research Limited, Hong Kong Science Park, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Myo Win Zaw
- Centre for Eye and Vision Research Limited, Hong Kong Science Park, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Amanda Liu
- Centre for Eye and Vision Research Limited, Hong Kong Science Park, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Ben Thompson
- Centre for Eye and Vision Research Limited, Hong Kong Science Park, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
- School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Canada
| | - Bernhard Sabel
- Institute of Medical Psychology, University of Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - George Woo
- School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Christopher K S Leung
- Department of Ophthalmology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Shea-Ping Yip
- Department of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Dorita H F Chang
- Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China
| | - Allen M Y Cheong
- School of Optometry, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China.
- Centre for Eye and Vision Research Limited, Hong Kong Science Park, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China.
- Research Centre for SHARP Vision, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China.
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Shuster AE, Chen PC, Niknazar H, McDevitt EA, Lopour B, Mednick SC. Novel Electrophysiological Signatures of Learning and Forgetting in Human Rapid Eye Movement Sleep. J Neurosci 2024; 44:e1517232024. [PMID: 38670803 PMCID: PMC11170679 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1517-23.2024] [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] [Received: 08/08/2023] [Revised: 03/27/2024] [Accepted: 03/29/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Despite the known behavioral benefits of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, discrete neural oscillatory events in human scalp electroencephalography (EEG) linked with behavior have not been discovered. This knowledge gap hinders mechanistic understanding of the function of sleep, as well as the development of biophysical models and REM-based causal interventions. We designed a detection algorithm to identify bursts of activity in high-density, scalp EEG within theta (4-8 Hz) and alpha (8-13 Hz) bands during REM sleep. Across 38 nights of sleep, we characterized the burst events (i.e., count, duration, density, peak frequency, amplitude) in healthy, young male and female human participants (38; 21F) and investigated burst activity in relation to sleep-dependent memory tasks: hippocampal-dependent episodic verbal memory and nonhippocampal visual perceptual learning. We found greater burst count during the more REM-intensive second half of the night (p < 0.05), longer burst duration during the first half of the night (p < 0.05), but no differences across the night in density or power (p > 0.05). Moreover, increased alpha burst power was associated with increased overnight forgetting for episodic memory (p < 0.05). Furthermore, we show that increased REM theta burst activity in retinotopically specific regions was associated with better visual perceptual performance. Our work provides a critical bridge between discrete REM sleep events in human scalp EEG that support cognitive processes and the identification of similar activity patterns in animal models that allow for further mechanistic characterization.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Pin-Chun Chen
- University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Hamid Niknazar
- Sleep and Cognition Lab, University of California, Irvine, California 92697
| | | | - Beth Lopour
- Sleep and Cognition Lab, University of California, Irvine, California 92697
| | - Sara C Mednick
- Sleep and Cognition Lab, University of California, Irvine, California 92697
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Wang Z, Tan Q, Frank SM, Sasaki Y, Sheinberg D, Phillips KA, Watanabe T. Learning of the same task subserved by substantially different mechanisms between patients with body dysmorphic disorder and healthy individuals. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:bhae215. [PMID: 38798001 PMCID: PMC11128689 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae215] [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] [Received: 01/02/2024] [Revised: 04/18/2024] [Accepted: 05/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024] Open
Abstract
It has remained unclear whether individuals with psychiatric disorders involving altered visual processing employ similar neuronal mechanisms during perceptual learning of a visual task. We investigated this question by training patients with body dysmorphic disorder, a psychiatric disorder characterized by distressing or impairing preoccupation with nonexistent or slight defects in one's physical appearance, and healthy controls on a visual detection task for human faces with low spatial frequency components. Brain activation during task performance was measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging before the beginning and after the end of behavioral training. Both groups of participants improved performance on the trained task to a similar extent. However, neuronal changes in the fusiform face area were substantially different between groups such that activation for low spatial frequency faces in the right fusiform face area increased after training in body dysmorphic disorder patients but decreased in controls. Moreover, functional connectivity between left and right fusiform face area decreased after training in patients but increased in controls. Our results indicate that neuronal mechanisms involved in perceptual learning of a face detection task differ fundamentally between body dysmorphic disorder patients and controls. Such different neuronal mechanisms in body dysmorphic disorder patients might reflect the brain's adaptations to altered functions imposed by the psychiatric disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiyan Wang
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street, Providence, RI 02912, United States
- Institute for Psychology, University of Regensburg, Universitätsstraße 31, Regensburg Bavaria 93053, Germany
| | - Qingleng Tan
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street, Providence, RI 02912, United States
| | - Sebastian M Frank
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street, Providence, RI 02912, United States
- Institute for Psychology, University of Regensburg, Universitätsstraße 31, Regensburg Bavaria 93053, Germany
| | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street, Providence, RI 02912, United States
| | - David Sheinberg
- Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University, 222 Richmond Street, Providence, RI 02903, United States
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, 185 Meeting Street, Providence, RI 02912, United States
| | - Katharine A Phillips
- Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University, 222 Richmond Street, Providence, RI 02903, United States
- Present address: Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, Cornell University, 15 E 62nd Street 5th Floor, New York, NY 10065, United States
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street, Providence, RI 02912, United States
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Namgung E, Kwon SU, Han M, Kim G, Kim HY, Park K, Cho M, Choi H, Nah H, Lim HT, Kang D. Digital therapeutics using virtual reality-based visual perceptual learning for visual field defects in stroke: A double-blind randomized trial. Brain Behav 2024; 14:e3525. [PMID: 38773793 PMCID: PMC11109502 DOI: 10.1002/brb3.3525] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2024] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/24/2024] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Visual field defects (VFDs) represent a debilitating poststroke complication, characterized by unseen parts of the visual field. Visual perceptual learning (VPL), involving repetitive visual training in blind visual fields, may effectively restore visual field sensitivity in cortical blindness. This current multicenter, double-blind, randomized, controlled clinical trial investigated the efficacy and safety of VPL-based digital therapeutics (Nunap Vision [NV]) for treating poststroke VFDs. METHODS Stroke outpatients with VFDs (>6 months after stroke onset) were randomized into NV (defective field training) or Nunap Vision-Control (NV-C, central field training) groups. Both interventions provided visual perceptual training, consisting of orientation, rotation, and depth discrimination, through a virtual reality head-mounted display device 5 days a week for 12 weeks. The two groups received VFD assessments using Humphrey visual field (HVF) tests at baseline and 12-week follow-up. The final analysis included those completed the study (NV, n = 40; NV-C, n = 35). Efficacy measures included improved visual area (sensitivity ≥6 dB) and changes in the HVF scores during the 12-week period. RESULTS With a high compliance rate, NV and NV-C training improved the visual areas in the defective hemifield (>72 degrees2) and the whole field (>108 degrees2), which are clinically meaningful improvements despite no significant between-group differences. According to within-group analyses, mean total deviation scores in the defective hemifield improved after NV training (p = .03) but not after NV-C training (p = .12). CONCLUSIONS The current trial suggests that VPL-based digital therapeutics may induce clinically meaningful visual improvements in patients with poststroke VFDs. Yet, between-group differences in therapeutic efficacy were not found as NV-C training exhibited unexpected improvement comparable to NV training, possibly due to learning transfer effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eun Namgung
- Asan Institute for Life SciencesAsan Medical CenterSeoulSouth Korea
| | - Sun U. Kwon
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical CenterUniversity of Ulsan College of MedicineSeoulSouth Korea
| | - Moon‐Ku Han
- Department of NeurologySeoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seoul National University College of MedicineSeongnamSouth Korea
| | - Gyeong‐Moon Kim
- Department of Neurology, Samsung Medical CenterSungkyunkwan University School of MedicineSeoulSouth Korea
| | - Hahn Young Kim
- Department of NeurologyKonkuk University Medical Center, Konkuk University College of MedicineSeoulSouth Korea
| | - Kwang‐Yeol Park
- Department of NeurologyChung‐Ang University Hospital, Chung‐Ang University College of MedicineSeoulSouth Korea
| | | | | | - Hyun‐Wook Nah
- Department of NeurologyChungnam National University Sejong Hospital, Chungnam National University College of MedicineSejongSouth Korea
| | - Hyun Taek Lim
- Department of Ophthalmology, Asan Medical CenterUniversity of Ulsan College of MedicineSeoulSouth Korea
| | - Dong‐Wha Kang
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical CenterUniversity of Ulsan College of MedicineSeoulSouth Korea
- Nunaps Inc.SeoulSouth Korea
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Malania M, Lin YS, Hörmandinger C, Werner JS, Greenlee MW, Plank T. Training-induced changes in population receptive field properties in visual cortex: Impact of eccentric vision training on population receptive field properties and the crowding effect. J Vis 2024; 24:7. [PMID: 38771584 PMCID: PMC11114612 DOI: 10.1167/jov.24.5.7] [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: 07/11/2023] [Accepted: 02/15/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024] Open
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the impact of eccentric-vision training on population receptive field (pRF) estimates to provide insights into brain plasticity processes driven by practice. Fifteen participants underwent functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) measurements before and after behavioral training on a visual crowding task, where the relative orientation of the opening (gap position: up/down, left/right) in a Landolt C optotype had to be discriminated in the presence of flanking ring stimuli. Drifting checkerboard bar stimuli were used for pRF size estimation in multiple regions of interest (ROIs): dorsal-V1 (dV1), dorsal-V2 (dV2), ventral-V1 (vV1), and ventral-V2 (vV2), including the visual cortex region corresponding to the trained retinal location. pRF estimates in V1 and V2 were obtained along eccentricities from 0.5° to 9°. Statistical analyses revealed a significant decrease of the crowding anisotropy index (p = 0.009) after training, indicating improvement on crowding task performance following training. Notably, pRF sizes at and near the trained location decreased significantly (p = 0.005). Dorsal and ventral V2 exhibited significant pRF size reductions, especially at eccentricities where the training stimuli were presented (p < 0.001). In contrast, no significant changes in pRF estimates were found in either vV1 (p = 0.181) or dV1 (p = 0.055) voxels. These findings suggest that practice on a crowding task can lead to a reduction of pRF sizes in trained visual cortex, particularly in V2, highlighting the plasticity and adaptability of the adult visual system induced by prolonged training.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maka Malania
- Institute of Psychology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Yih-Shiuan Lin
- Institute of Psychology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | | | - John S Werner
- Department of Ophthalmology and Vision Science, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, USA
| | - Mark W Greenlee
- Institute of Psychology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Tina Plank
- Institute of Psychology, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
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11
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Jeong NR, Han S, Choi H. Specificity of tilt illusion reduction through perceptual learning. Front Psychol 2024; 15:1346196. [PMID: 38562236 PMCID: PMC10982466 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1346196] [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: 12/01/2023] [Accepted: 03/08/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Human perceptual ability can be improved by perceptual learning through repeated exposure or training. Perceptual learning studies have focused on achieving accurate perception of stimuli by improving perceptual sensitivity. However, eliminating illusions can also be one of the ways of accurate perception. To determine whether the illusion can be attenuated by perceptual learning, the current study used a tilt illusion where the orientation of the grating presented in the center (central grating) was misperceived because of the orientation of the grating presented in the periphery (surrounding grating). In Experiment 1, participants were trained either in the illusion training condition, in which they trained with illusory stimuli presenting both surrounding and central gratings together, or in the control training condition, where only the central grating was presented. The results confirmed that the tilt illusion was reduced only in the illusion training condition. Experiment 2 tested the transfer effect of learning, which is not often observed in perceptual learning. During training, the orientation of the surrounding grating was fixed to see whether the elimination of the illusion also occurred in the surrounding grating with an orientation that was not used during training. A decrease in the illusion was found only in the case of a surrounding grating with trained orientations, and not in the case of surrounding gratings with untrained orientations. These results suggest that the reduction in tilt illusion through training is due to perceptual learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Na-Ri Jeong
- Department of Psychology, Hallym University, Chuncheon-si, Republic of Korea
| | - Seungmin Han
- Department of Psychology, Hallym University, Chuncheon-si, Republic of Korea
- Graduate School of Digital Contents, Hallym University, Chuncheon-si, Republic of Korea
| | - Hoon Choi
- Department of Psychology, Hallym University, Chuncheon-si, Republic of Korea
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12
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Shen S, Sun Y, Lu J, Li C, Chen Q, Mo C, Fang F, Zhang X. Profiles of visual perceptual learning in feature space. iScience 2024; 27:109128. [PMID: 38384835 PMCID: PMC10879700 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109128] [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: 07/17/2023] [Revised: 01/22/2024] [Accepted: 02/01/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Visual perceptual learning (VPL), experience-induced gains in discriminating visual features, has been studied extensively and intensively for many years, its profile in feature space, however, remains unclear. Here, human subjects were trained to perform either a simple low-level feature (grating orientation) or a complex high-level object (face view) discrimination task over a long-time course. During, immediately after, and one month after training, all results showed that in feature space VPL in grating orientation discrimination was a center-surround profile; VPL in face view discrimination, however, was a monotonic gradient profile. Importantly, these two profiles can be emerged by a deep convolutional neural network with a modified AlexNet consisted of 7 and 12 layers, respectively. Altogether, our study reveals for the first time a feature hierarchy-dependent profile of VPL in feature space, placing a necessary constraint on our understanding of the neural computation of VPL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shiqi Shen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Yueling Sun
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Jiachen Lu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Chu Li
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Qinglin Chen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Ce Mo
- Department of Psychology, Sun-YatSen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510275, China
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Xilin Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
- School of Psychology, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
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13
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Xu R, Walsh EG, Watanabe T, Sasaki Y. Shift in excitation-inhibition balance underlies perceptual learning of temporal discrimination. Neuropsychologia 2024; 195:108814. [PMID: 38316210 PMCID: PMC10923091 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2024.108814] [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] [Received: 05/26/2023] [Revised: 11/28/2023] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/07/2024]
Abstract
Temporal perceptual learning (TPL) constitutes a unique and profound demonstration of neural plasticity within the brain. Our understanding for the neurometabolic changes associated with TPL on the other hand has been limited in part by the use of traditional fMRI approaches. Since plasticity in the visual cortex has been shown to underlie perceptual learning of visual information, we tested the hypothesis that TPL of an auditory interval involves a similar change in plasticity of the auditory pathway and if so, whether these changes take place in a lower-order sensory-specific brain area such as the primary auditory cortex (A1), or a higher-order modality-independent brain area such as the inferior parietal cortex (IPC). This distinction will inform us of the mechanisms underlying perceptual learning as well as the locus of change as it relates to TPL. In the present study, we took advantage of a new technique: proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in combination with psychophysical measures to provide the first evidence of changes in neurometabolic processing following 5 days of temporal discrimination training. We measured the (E)xcitation-to-(I)nhibition ratio as an index of learning in the right IPC and left A1 while participants learned an auditory two-tone discrimination task. During the first day of training, we found a significant task-related increase in functional E/I ratio within the IPC. While the A1 exhibited the opposite pattern of neurochemical activity, this relationship did not reach statistical significance. After timing performance has reached a plateau, there were no further changes to functional E/I. These findings support the hypothesis that improvements in temporal discrimination relies on neuroplastic changes in the IPC, but it is possible that both areas work synergistically to acquire a temporal interval.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rannie Xu
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic & Psychological Sciences, United States.
| | - Edward G Walsh
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, 02912, United States
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic & Psychological Sciences, United States
| | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic & Psychological Sciences, United States
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14
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Shdeour O, Tal-Perry N, Glickman M, Yuval-Greenberg S. Exposure to temporal variability promotes subsequent adaptation to new temporal regularities. Cognition 2024; 244:105695. [PMID: 38183867 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105695] [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: 09/05/2023] [Revised: 12/07/2023] [Accepted: 12/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/08/2024]
Abstract
Noise is intuitively thought to interfere with perceptual learning; However, human and machine learning studies suggest that, in certain contexts, variability may reduce overfitting and improve generalizability. Whereas previous studies have examined the effects of variability in learned stimuli or tasks, it is hitherto unknown what are the effects of variability in the temporal environment. Here, we examined this question in two groups of adult participants (N = 40) presented with visual targets at either random or fixed temporal routines and then tested on the same type of targets at a new nearly-fixed temporal routine. Findings reveal that participants of the random group performed better and adapted quicker following a change in the timing routine, relative to participants of the fixed group. Corroborated with eye-tracking and computational modeling, these findings suggest that prior exposure to temporal variability promotes the formation of new temporal expectations and enhances generalizability in a dynamic environment. We conclude that noise plays an important role in promoting perceptual learning in the temporal domain: rather than interfering with the formation of temporal expectations, noise enhances them. This counterintuitive effect is hypothesized to be achieved through eliminating overfitting and promoting generalizability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Orit Shdeour
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel-Aviv University, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Israel.
| | - Noam Tal-Perry
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel-Aviv University, Israel
| | - Moshe Glickman
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, UK; Max Planck Centre for Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, University College London, UK
| | - Shlomit Yuval-Greenberg
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel-Aviv University, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel-Aviv University, Israel
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15
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Namgung E, Kim YH, Lee EJ, Sasaki Y, Watanabe T, Kang DW. Functional connectivity interacts with visual perceptual learning for visual field recovery in chronic stroke. Sci Rep 2024; 14:3247. [PMID: 38332042 PMCID: PMC10853510 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-52778-x] [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] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/23/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024] Open
Abstract
A reciprocal relationship between perceptual learning and functional brain changes towards perceptual learning effectiveness has been demonstrated previously; however, the underlying neural correlates remain unclear. Further, visual perceptual learning (VPL) is implicated in visual field defect (VFD) recovery following chronic stroke. We investigated resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) in the visual cortices associated with mean total deviation (MTD) scores for VPL-induced VFD recovery in chronic stroke. Patients with VFD due to chronic ischemic stroke in the visual cortex received 24 VPL training sessions over 2 months, which is a dual discrimination task of orientation and letters. At baseline and two months later, the RSFC in the ipsilesional, interhemispheric, and contralesional visual cortices and MTD scores in the affected hemi-field were assessed. Interhemispheric visual RSFC at baseline showed the strongest correlation with MTD scores post-2-month VPL training. Notably, only the subgroup with high baseline interhemispheric visual RSFC showed significant VFD improvement following the VPL training. The interactions between the interhemispheric visual RSFC at baseline and VPL led to improvement in MTD scores and largely influenced the degree of VFD recovery. The interhemispheric visual RSFC at baseline could be a promising brain biomarker for the effectiveness of VPL-induced VFD recovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eun Namgung
- Asan Institute for Life Sciences, Asan Medical Center, Seoul, South Korea
| | | | - Eun-Jae Lee
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, USA
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, USA
| | - Dong-Wha Kang
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.
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16
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Cao R, Wang J, Brunner P, Willie JT, Li X, Rutishauser U, Brandmeir NJ, Wang S. Neural mechanisms of face familiarity and learning in the human amygdala and hippocampus. Cell Rep 2024; 43:113520. [PMID: 38151023 PMCID: PMC10834150 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113520] [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] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Revised: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 11/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Recognizing familiar faces and learning new faces play an important role in social cognition. However, the underlying neural computational mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we record from single neurons in the human amygdala and hippocampus and find a greater neuronal representational distance between pairs of familiar faces than unfamiliar faces, suggesting that neural representations for familiar faces are more distinct. Representational distance increases with exposures to the same identity, suggesting that neural face representations are sharpened with learning and familiarization. Furthermore, representational distance is positively correlated with visual dissimilarity between faces, and exposure to visually similar faces increases representational distance, thus sharpening neural representations. Finally, we construct a computational model that demonstrates an increase in the representational distance of artificial units with training. Together, our results suggest that the neuronal population geometry, quantified by the representational distance, encodes face familiarity, similarity, and learning, forming the basis of face recognition and memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Runnan Cao
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA.
| | - Jinge Wang
- Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
| | - Peter Brunner
- Department of Neurosurgery, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Jon T Willie
- Department of Neurosurgery, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Xin Li
- Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA
| | - Ueli Rutishauser
- Departments of Neurosurgery and Neurology, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | | | - Shuo Wang
- Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA; Lane Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV 26506, USA; Department of Neurosurgery, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
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17
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Alwashmi K, Meyer G, Rowe F, Ward R. Enhancing learning outcomes through multisensory integration: A fMRI study of audio-visual training in virtual reality. Neuroimage 2024; 285:120483. [PMID: 38048921 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120483] [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: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 11/18/2023] [Accepted: 12/01/2023] [Indexed: 12/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The integration of information from different sensory modalities is a fundamental process that enhances perception and performance in real and virtual environments (VR). Understanding these mechanisms, especially during learning tasks that exploit novel multisensory cue combinations provides opportunities for the development of new rehabilitative interventions. This study aimed to investigate how functional brain changes support behavioural performance improvements during an audio-visual (AV) learning task. Twenty healthy participants underwent a 30 min daily VR training for four weeks. The task was an AV adaptation of a 'scanning training' paradigm that is commonly used in hemianopia rehabilitation. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and performance data were collected at baseline, after two and four weeks of training, and four weeks post-training. We show that behavioural performance, operationalised as mean reaction time reduction in VR, significantly improves. In separate tests in a controlled laboratory environment, we showed that the behavioural performance gains in the VR training environment transferred to a significant mean RT reduction for the trained AV voluntary task on a computer screen. Enhancements were observed in both the visual-only and AV conditions, with the latter demonstrating a faster response time supported by the presence of audio cues. The behavioural learning effect also transfers to two additional tasks that were tested: a visual search task and an involuntary visual task. Our fMRI results reveal an increase in functional activation (BOLD signal) in multisensory brain regions involved in early-stage AV processing: the thalamus, the caudal inferior parietal lobe and cerebellum. These functional changes were only observed for the trained, multisensory, task and not for unimodal visual stimulation. Functional activation changes in the thalamus were significantly correlated to behavioural performance improvements. This study demonstrates that incorporating spatial auditory cues to voluntary visual training in VR leads to augmented brain activation changes in multisensory integration, resulting in measurable performance gains across tasks. The findings highlight the potential of VR-based multisensory training as an effective method for enhancing cognitive function and as a potentially valuable tool in rehabilitative programmes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kholoud Alwashmi
- Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, University of Liverpool, United Kingdom; Department of Radiology, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Saudi Arabia.
| | - Georg Meyer
- Digital Innovation Facility, University of Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Fiona Rowe
- Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, United Kingdom
| | - Ryan Ward
- Digital Innovation Facility, University of Liverpool, United Kingdom; School Computer Science and Mathematics, Liverpool John Moores University, United Kingdom
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18
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Yamada T, Watanabe T, Sasaki Y. Plasticity-stability dynamics during post-training processing of learning. Trends Cogn Sci 2024; 28:72-83. [PMID: 37858389 PMCID: PMC10842181 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2023.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2023] [Revised: 09/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/14/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023]
Abstract
Learning continues beyond the end of training. Post-training learning is supported by changes in plasticity and stability in the brain during both wakefulness and sleep. However, the lack of a unified measure for assessing plasticity and stability dynamics during training and post-training periods has limited our understanding of how these dynamics shape learning. Focusing primarily on procedural learning, we integrate work using behavioral paradigms and a recently developed measure, the excitatory-to-inhibitory (E/I) ratio, to explore the delicate balance between plasticity and stability and its relationship to post-training learning. This reveals plasticity-stability cycles during both wakefulness and sleep that enhance learning and protect it from new learning during post-training processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takashi Yamada
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
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19
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Wang Z, Tan Q, Frank SM, Sasaki Y, Sheinberg D, Phillips KA, Watanabe T. Learning of the same task subserved by substantially different mechanisms between patients with Body Dysmorphic Disorder and healthy individuals. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.12.19.571882. [PMID: 38187719 PMCID: PMC10769234 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.19.571882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
It is generally believed that learning of a perceptual task involving low-level neuronal mechanisms is similar between individuals. However, it is unclear whether this assumption also applies to individuals with psychiatric disorders that are known to have altered brain activation during visual processing. We investigated this question in patients with body dysmorphic disorder (BDD), a psychiatric disorder characterized by distressing or impairing preoccupation with nonexistent or slight defects in one's physical appearance, and in healthy controls. Participants completed six training sessions on separate days on a visual detection task for human faces with low spatial frequency (LSF) components. Brain activation during task performance was measured with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) on separate days prior to and after training. The behavioral results showed that both groups of participants improved on the visual detection task to a similar extent through training. Despite this similarity in behavioral improvement, neuronal changes in the Fusiform Face Area (FFA), a core cortical region involved in face processing, with training were substantially different between groups. First, activation in the right FFA for LSF faces relative to High Spatial Frequency (HSF) faces that were used as an untrained control increased after training in BDD patients but decreased in controls. Second, resting state functional connectivity between left and right FFAs decreased after training in BDD patients but increased in controls. Contrary to the assumption that learning of a perceptual task is subserved by the same neuronal mechanisms across individuals, our results indicate that the neuronal mechanisms involved in learning of a face detection task differ fundamentally between patients with BDD and healthy individuals. The involvement of different neuronal mechanisms for learning of even simple perceptual tasks in patients with BDD might reflect the brain's adaptations to altered functions imposed by the psychiatric disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiyan Wang
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer St., Providence, RI 02912, USA
- Institute for Psychology, University of Regensburg, Universitätsstraße 31, Regensburg 93053, Germany
| | - Qingleng Tan
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer St., Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Sebastian M. Frank
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer St., Providence, RI 02912, USA
- Institute for Psychology, University of Regensburg, Universitätsstraße 31, Regensburg 93053, Germany
| | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer St., Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - David Sheinberg
- Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University, 222 Richmond St., Providence, RI 02903, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, 185 Meeting St., Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Katharine A. Phillips
- Warren Alpert Medical School, Brown University, 222 Richmond St., Providence, RI 02903, USA
- Present address: Department of Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine, Cornell University 15 E 62nd St 5th floor, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer St., Providence, RI 02912, USA
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20
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Tan Q, Sasaki Y, Watanabe T. Geometric-relationship specific transfer in visual perceptual learning. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.12.07.570648. [PMID: 38106111 PMCID: PMC10723461 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.07.570648] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2023]
Abstract
Visual perceptual learning (VPL) is defined as long-term improvement on a visual task as a result of visual experience. In many cases, the improvement is highly specific to the location where the target is presented, which refers to location specificity. In the current study, we investigated the effect of a geometrical relationship between the trained location and an untrained location on transfer of VPL. We found that significant transfer occurs either diagonally or along a line passing the fixation point. This indicates that whether location specificity or location transfer occurs at least partially depends on the geometrical relationship between trained location and an untrained location.
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21
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Kim D, Wang Z, Sakagami M, Sasaki Y, Watanabe T. Only cortical prediction error signals are involved in visual learning, despite availability of subcortical prediction error signals. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.11.13.566726. [PMID: 38014275 PMCID: PMC10680585 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.13.566726] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
Both the midbrain systems, encompassing the ventral striatum (VS), and the cortical systems, including the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC), play roles in reinforcing and enhancing learning. However, the specific contributions of signals from these regions in learning remains unclear. To investigate this, we examined how VS and dACC are involved in visual perceptual learning (VPL) through an orientation discrimination task. In the primary experiment, subjects fasted for 5 hours before each of 14 days of training sessions and 3 days of test sessions. Subjects were rewarded with water for accurate trial responses. During the test sessions, BOLD signals were recorded from regions including VS and dACC. Although BOLD signals in both areas were associated with positive and negative RPEs, only those in dACC associated with negative RPE showed a significant correlation with performance improvement. Additionally, no significant correlation was observed between BOLD signals associated with RPEs in VS and dACC. These results suggest that although signals associated with positive and negative RPEs from both midbrain and cortical systems are readily accessible, only RPE signals in the prefrontal system, generated without linking to RPE signals in VS, are utilized for the enhancement of VPL.
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22
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Sakakura K, Kuroda N, Sonoda M, Mitsuhashi T, Firestone E, Luat AF, Marupudi NI, Sood S, Asano E. Developmental atlas of phase-amplitude coupling between physiologic high-frequency oscillations and slow waves. Nat Commun 2023; 14:6435. [PMID: 37833252 PMCID: PMC10575956 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-42091-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2023] [Accepted: 09/28/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
We investigated the developmental changes in high-frequency oscillation (HFO) and Modulation Index (MI) - the coupling measure between HFO and slow-wave phase. We generated normative brain atlases, using subdural EEG signals from 8251 nonepileptic electrode sites in 114 patients (ages 1.0-41.5 years) who achieved seizure control following resective epilepsy surgery. We observed a higher MI in the occipital lobe across all ages, and occipital MI increased notably during early childhood. The cortical areas exhibiting MI co-growth were connected via the vertical occipital fasciculi and posterior callosal fibers. While occipital HFO rate showed no significant age-association, the temporal, frontal, and parietal lobes exhibited an age-inversed HFO rate. Assessment of 1006 seizure onset sites revealed that z-score normalized MI and HFO rate were higher at seizure onset versus nonepileptic electrode sites. We have publicly shared our intracranial EEG data to enable investigators to validate MI and HFO-centric presurgical evaluations to identify the epileptogenic zone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kazuki Sakakura
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, 3058575, Japan
| | - Naoto Kuroda
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
- Department of Epileptology, Tohoku University Graduate School of Medicine, Sendai, 9808575, Japan
| | - Masaki Sonoda
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Yokohama City University, Yokohama-shi, 2360004, Japan
| | - Takumi Mitsuhashi
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Juntendo University, Tokyo, 1138421, Japan
| | - Ethan Firestone
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
- Department of Physiology, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
| | - Aimee F Luat
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
- Department of Neurology, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI, 48858, USA
| | - Neena I Marupudi
- Department of Neurosurgery, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
| | - Sandeep Sood
- Department of Neurosurgery, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA
| | - Eishi Asano
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA.
- Department of Neurology, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, 48201, USA.
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23
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Dinse HR, Höffken O, Tegenthoff M. Cortical excitability in human somatosensory and visual cortex: implications for plasticity and learning - a minireview. Front Hum Neurosci 2023; 17:1235487. [PMID: 37662638 PMCID: PMC10469727 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1235487] [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: 06/06/2023] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The balance of excitation and inhibition plays a key role in plasticity and learning. A frequently used, reliable approach to assess intracortical inhibition relies on measuring paired-pulse behavior. Moreover, recent developments of magnetic resonance spectroscopy allows measuring GABA and glutamate concentrations. We give an overview about approaches employed to obtain information about excitatory states in human participants and discuss their putative relation. We summarize paired-pulse techniques and basic findings characterizing paired-pulse suppression in somatosensory (SI) and (VI) visual areas. Paired-pulse suppression describes the effect of paired sensory stimulation at short interstimulus intervals where the cortical response to the second stimulus is significantly suppressed. Simultaneous assessments of paired-pulse suppression in SI and VI indicated that cortical excitability is not a global phenomenon, but instead reflects the properties of local sensory processing. We review studies using non-invasive brain stimulation and perceptual learning experiments that assessed both perceptual changes and accompanying changes of cortical excitability in parallel. Independent of the nature of the excitation/inhibition marker used these data imply a close relationship between altered excitability and altered performance. These results suggest a framework where increased or decreased excitability is linked with improved or impaired perceptual performance. Recent findings have expanded the potential role of cortical excitability by demonstrating that inhibition markers such as GABA concentrations, paired-pulse suppression or alpha power predict to a substantial degree subsequent perceptual learning outcome. This opens the door for a targeted intervention where subsequent plasticity and learning processes are enhanced by altering prior baseline states of excitability.
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Yamada T, Watanabe T, Sasaki Y. Are sleep disturbances a cause or consequence of autism spectrum disorder? Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2023; 77:377-385. [PMID: 36949621 PMCID: PMC10871071 DOI: 10.1111/pcn.13550] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2022] [Revised: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 03/17/2023] [Indexed: 03/24/2023]
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by core symptoms such as atypical social communication, stereotyped behaviors, and restricted interests. One of the comorbid symptoms of individuals with ASD is sleep disturbance. There are two major hypotheses regarding the neural mechanism underlying ASD, i.e., the excitation/inhibition (E/I) imbalance and the altered neuroplasticity hypotheses. However, the pathology of ASD remains unclear due to inconsistent research results. This paper argues that sleep is a confounding factor, thus, must be considered when examining the pathology of ASD because sleep plays an important role in modulating the E/I balance and neuroplasticity in the human brain. Investigation of the E/I balance and neuroplasticity during sleep might enhance our understanding of the neural mechanisms of ASD. It may also lead to the development of neurobiologically informed interventions to supplement existing psychosocial therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takashi Yamada
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, 02912, USA
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, 02912, USA
| | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, 02912, USA
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25
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He Y, Feng L, Zhou Y, Zhuang Y, Xu Z, Yao Y, Chen X, Jiang R, Yuan J, Ye Q, Wen Y, Jia Y, Liu J, Li J. Characteristics and predictive factors of visual function improvements after monocular perceptual learning in amblyopia. Heliyon 2023; 9:e17281. [PMID: 37416659 PMCID: PMC10320034 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e17281] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2022] [Revised: 06/02/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Monocular perceptual learning has shown promising performance in restoring visual function in amblyopes beyond the critical period in the laboratory. However, the treatment outcome is variable and indeterminate in actual clinical and neuroscientific practice. We aimed to explore the efficacy of monocular perceptual learning in the clinical setting. By combining continuous monitoring of perceptual learning and clinical measurements, we evaluated the efficacy and characteristics of visual acuity and contrast sensitivity function improvement and further explored the individualized effect after perceptual learning. Amblyopes (average age:17 ± 7 years old) were trained in a monocular two-alternative forced choice identification task at the 50% contrast threshold of the amblyopic eye for 10-15 days. We found that monocular perceptual learning improves both visual acuity and contrast sensitivity function in amblyopia. The broader activation of spatial contrast sensitivity, with a significant improvement in lower spatial frequencies, contributed to improving visual acuity. Visual acuity changes in the early stage can predict the endpoint treatment outcomes. Our results confirm the efficacy of monocular perceptual learning and suggest potential predictors of training outcomes to assist in the future management of clinical intervention and vision neuroscience research in amblyopia beyond the critical period of visual plasticity.
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Zhang Y, Bi K, Li J, Wang Y, Fang F. Dyadic visual perceptual learning on orientation discrimination. Curr Biol 2023:S0960-9822(23)00552-3. [PMID: 37224810 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.04.070] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 02/24/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2023] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
The belief that learning can be modulated by social context is mainly supported by high-level value-based learning studies. However, whether social context can even modulate low-level learning such as visual perceptual learning (VPL) is still unknown. Unlike traditional VPL studies in which participants were trained singly, here, we developed a novel dyadic VPL paradigm in which paired participants were trained with the same orientation discrimination task and could monitor each other's performance. We found that the social context (i.e., dyadic training) led to a greater behavioral performance improvement and a faster learning rate compared with the single training. Interestingly, the facilitating effects could be modulated by the performance difference between paired participants. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) results showed that, compared with the single training, social cognition areas including bilateral parietal cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex displayed a different activity pattern and enhanced functional connectivities to early visual cortex (EVC) during the dyadic training. Furthermore, the dyadic training resulted in more refined orientation representation in primary visual cortex (V1), which was closely associated with the greater behavioral performance improvement. Taken together, we demonstrate that the social context, learning with a partner, can remarkably augment the plasticity of low-level visual information process by means of reshaping the neural activities in EVC and social cognition areas, as well as their functional interplays.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yifei Zhang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Keyan Bi
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Jian Li
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Yizhou Wang
- Center on Frontiers of Computing Studies, School of Computer Science, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Key Laboratory of Machine Perception (Ministry of Education), Peking University, Beijing 100871, China; Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.
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27
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Contò F, Tyler S, Paletta P, Battelli L. The role of the parietal lobe in task-irrelevant suppression during learning. Brain Stimul 2023; 16:715-723. [PMID: 37062348 DOI: 10.1016/j.brs.2023.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Revised: 04/07/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 04/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Attention optimizes the selection of visual information, while suppressing irrelevant visual input through cortical mechanisms that are still unclear. We set to investigate these processes using an attention task with an embedded to-be-ignored interfering visual input. OBJECTIVE We delivered electrical stimulation to attention-related brain areas to modulate these facilitatory/inhibitory attentional mechanisms. We asked whether overtly training on a task while being covertly exposed to visual features from a visually identical but different task tested at baseline might influence post-training performance on the baseline task. METHODS In Experiment one, at baseline subjects performed an orientation discrimination (OD) task using a pair of gratings presented at individual's psychophysical threshold. We then trained participants over three-day separate sessions on a temporal order judgment task (TOJ), using the exact same gratings but presented with different time offsets. On the last post-training session we re-tested OD. We coupled training with transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS) over the parietal cortex, the human middle temporal area or sham, in three separate groups. In Experiment two, subjects performed the same OD task at baseline and post-training, while tRNS was delivered at rest during the same sessions and stimulation conditions as in Experiment one. RESULTS Results showed that tRNS over parietal cortex facilitated learning of the trained TOJ task. Moreover, we found a detrimental effect on the untrained OD task when subjects received parietal tRNS coupled with training (Experiment one), but a benefit on OD when subjects received stimulation while at rest (Experiment two). CONCLUSIONS These results clearly indicate that task-irrelevant information is actively suppressed during learning, and that this prioritization mechanism of selection likely resides in the parietal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Contò
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068, Rovereto (TN), Italy.
| | - S Tyler
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068, Rovereto (TN), Italy; Butte College, Oroville, CA, 95965, USA
| | - P Paletta
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068, Rovereto (TN), Italy
| | - L Battelli
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068, Rovereto (TN), Italy; Department of Neurology, Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02215, USA; Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 01238, USA.
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28
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Lin SHN, Lien YR, Shibata K, Sasaki Y, Watanabe T, Lin CP, Chang LH. The phase of plasticity-induced neurochemical changes of high-frequency repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation are different from visual perceptual learning. Sci Rep 2023; 13:5720. [PMID: 37029245 PMCID: PMC10082079 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-32985-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 04/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Numerous studies have found that repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) modulates plasticity. rTMS has often been used to change neural networks underlying learning, often under the assumption that the mechanism of rTMS-induced plasticity should be highly similar to that associated with learning. The presence of visual perceptual learning (VPL) reveals the plasticity of early visual systems, which is formed through multiple phases. Hence, we tested how high-frequency (HF) rTMS and VPL modulate the effect of visual plasticity by investigating neurometabolic changes in early visual areas. We employed an excitatory-to-inhibitory (E/I) ratio, which refers to glutamate concentration divided by GABA+ concentration, as an index of the degree of plasticity. We compared neurotransmitter concentration changes after applying HF rTMS to the visual cortex with those after training in a visual task, in otherwise identical procedures. Both the time courses of the E/I ratios and neurotransmitter contributions to the E/I ratio significantly differed between HF rTMS and training conditions. The peak E/I ratio occurred 3.5 h after HF rTMS with decreased GABA+, whereas the peak E/I ratio occurred 0.5 h after visual training with increased glutamate. Furthermore, HF rTMS temporally decreased the thresholds for detecting phosphene and perceiving low-contrast stimuli, indicating increased visual plasticity. These results suggest that plasticity in early visual areas induced by HF rTMS is not as involved in the early phase of development of VPL that occurs during and immediately after training.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shang-Hua N Lin
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yun R Lien
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | | | - Yuka Sasaki
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistics, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, USA
| | - Takeo Watanabe
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistics, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, USA
| | - Ching-Po Lin
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Li-Hung Chang
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan.
- Institute of Philosophy of Mind and Cognition, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Taipei, Taiwan.
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29
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Denkinger S, Antoniou MP, Tarello D, Levi DM, Backus BT, Bavelier D, Chopin A. The eRDS v6 Stereotest and the Vivid Vision Stereo Test: Two New Tests of Stereoscopic Vision. Transl Vis Sci Technol 2023; 12:1. [PMID: 36857068 PMCID: PMC9987163 DOI: 10.1167/tvst.12.3.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Purpose To describe two new stereoacuity tests: the eRDS v6 stereotest, a global dynamic random dot stereogram (dRDS) test, and the Vivid Vision Stereo Test version 2 (VV), a local or "contour" stereotest for virtual reality (VR) headsets; and to evaluate the tests' reliability, validity compared to a dRDS standard, and learning effects. Methods Sixty-four subjects passed a battery of stereotests, including perceiving depth from RDS. Validity was evaluated relative to a tablet-based dRDS reference test, ASTEROID. Reliability and learning effects were assessed over six sessions. Results eRDS v6 was effective at measuring small thresholds (<10 arcsec) and had a moderate correlation (0.48) with ASTEROID. Across the six sessions, test-retest reliability was good, varying from 0.84 to 0.91, but learning occurred across the first three sessions. VV did not measure stereoacuities below 15 arcsec. It had a weak correlation with ASTEROID (0.27), and test-retest reliability was poor to moderate, varying from 0.35 to 0.74; however, no learning occurred between sessions. Conclusions eRDS v6 is precise and reliable but shows learning effects. If repeated three times at baseline, this test is well suited as an outcome measure for testing interventions. VV is less precise, but it is easy and rapid and shows no learning. It may be useful for testing interventions in patients who have no global stereopsis. Translational Relevance eRDS v6 is well suited as an outcome measure to evaluate treatments that improve adult stereodepth perception. VV can be considered for screening patient with compromised stereovision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sylvie Denkinger
- Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Geneva, Switzerland.,Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, Paris, France
| | - Maria-Paraskevi Antoniou
- Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Geneva, Switzerland.,Institute of Information Systems, University of Applied Sciences & Arts Western Switzerland (HES-SO) Valais-Wallis, Sierre, Switzerland
| | - Demetrio Tarello
- Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Dennis M Levi
- Herbert Wertheim School of Optometry and Vision Science, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
| | | | - Daphné Bavelier
- Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Geneva, Switzerland.,Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Geneva & Campus Biotech, Switzerland
| | - Adrien Chopin
- Psychology and Education Sciences, University of Geneva, Switzerland.,Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, Paris, France
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30
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Li Z, Chang DHF. Context-based modulations of 3D vision are expertise dependent. Cereb Cortex 2023:7035116. [PMID: 36786066 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad026] [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: 10/18/2022] [Revised: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 01/19/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2023] Open
Abstract
An object's identity can influence depth-position judgments. The mechanistic underpinnings underlying this phenomenon are largely unknown. Here, we asked whether context-dependent modulations of stereoscopic depth perception are expertise dependent. In 2 experiments, we tested whether training that attaches meaning (i.e. classification labels) to otherwise novel, stereoscopically presented objects changes observers' sensitivity for judging their depth position. In Experiment 1, observers were randomly assigned to 3 groups: a Greeble-classification training group, an orientation-discrimination training group, or a no-training group, and were tested on their stereoscopic depth sensitivity before and after training. In Experiment 2, participants were tested before and after training while fMRI responses were concurrently imaged. Behaviorally, stereoscopic performance was significantly better following Greeble-classification (but not orientation-discrimination, or no-) training. Using the fMRI data, we trained support vector machines to predict whether the data were from the pre- or post-training sessions. Results indicated that classification accuracies in V4 were higher for the Greeble-classification group as compared with the orientation-discrimination group for which accuracies were at chance level. Furthermore, classification accuracies in V4 were negatively correlated with response times for Greeble identification. We speculate that V4 is implicated in an expertise-dependent, object-tuning manner that allows it to better guide stereoscopic depth retrieval.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen Li
- Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.,The State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Dorita H F Chang
- Department of Psychology, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.,The State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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31
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Bosten JM, Coen-Cagli R, Franklin A, Solomon SG, Webster MA. Calibrating Vision: Concepts and Questions. Vision Res 2022; 201:108131. [PMID: 37139435 PMCID: PMC10151026 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2022.108131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The idea that visual coding and perception are shaped by experience and adjust to changes in the environment or the observer is universally recognized as a cornerstone of visual processing, yet the functions and processes mediating these calibrations remain in many ways poorly understood. In this article we review a number of facets and issues surrounding the general notion of calibration, with a focus on plasticity within the encoding and representational stages of visual processing. These include how many types of calibrations there are - and how we decide; how plasticity for encoding is intertwined with other principles of sensory coding; how it is instantiated at the level of the dynamic networks mediating vision; how it varies with development or between individuals; and the factors that may limit the form or degree of the adjustments. Our goal is to give a small glimpse of an enormous and fundamental dimension of vision, and to point to some of the unresolved questions in our understanding of how and why ongoing calibrations are a pervasive and essential element of vision.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ruben Coen-Cagli
- Department of Systems Computational Biology, and Dominick P. Purpura Department of Neuroscience, and Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx NY
| | | | - Samuel G Solomon
- Institute of Behavioural Neuroscience, Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, UK
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32
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Terauchi R, Horiguchi H, Ogawa S, Sano K, Ogawa T, Shiba T, Nakano T. Age-related visual outcomes in eyes with diffractive multifocal intraocular lenses. Eye (Lond) 2022; 36:2260-2264. [PMID: 34802053 PMCID: PMC9674840 DOI: 10.1038/s41433-021-01854-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2021] [Revised: 10/07/2021] [Accepted: 11/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES To assess the influence of patient age on visual outcomes in eyes with diffractive multifocal intraocular lenses (IOLs) SUBJECTS/METHODS: Based on age, we classified eyes with diffractive multifocal IOL into four groups: u50 (under 50 years old), 50s (50-59 years), 60s, and 70s. Corrected distance (CD), distance-corrected near (DCN) visual acuity (VA), and defocus curve were measured postoperatively. Using an "area-of-focus" metric, the distant, intermediate, and near area-of-focus (AoF) were also measured. These postoperative results were compared between the age groups. RESULTS At 3 months after surgery, the CDVA in the u50, 50s, 60s, and 70s groups were -0.18, -0.16, -0.14, and -0.10 logMAR, respectively. The 70s CDVA was significantly worse than the u50 and 50s groups (P = 0.002, P = 0.049). The DCNVA in the u50, 50s, 60s, and 70s were 0.01, 0.03, 0.03, and 0.08 logMAR. DCNVA in the 70s group was significantly worse than that in the u50 and 60s groups (P = 0.008 and P = 0.019, respectively). The near AoF was smaller in the 70s than in the u50 and 50s groups (P = 0.040, P = 0.047). In both the intermediate and distant AoFs, there was no significant difference between the four age groups. A steep decline in near AoF was observed in patients over 60 years of age. CONCLUSIONS The CDVA, DCNVA, and near AoF declined with patient age in eyes with diffractive multifocal IOL. The near AoF showed a drastic decline over 60 years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryo Terauchi
- Department of Ophthalmology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
| | - Hiroshi Horiguchi
- Department of Ophthalmology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Shumpei Ogawa
- Department of Ophthalmology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kei Sano
- Department of Ophthalmology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Tomoichiro Ogawa
- Department of Ophthalmology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
- Miyamaedaira Ogawa Eye Clinic, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Takuya Shiba
- Department of Ophthalmology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
- Roppongi Shiba Eye Clinic, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Tadashi Nakano
- Department of Ophthalmology, The Jikei University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
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Abstract
In reinforcement learning (RL) experiments, participants learn to make rewarding choices in response to different stimuli; RL models use outcomes to estimate stimulus-response values that change incrementally. RL models consider any response type indiscriminately, ranging from more concretely defined motor choices (pressing a key with the index finger), to more general choices that can be executed in a number of ways (selecting dinner at the restaurant). However, does the learning process vary as a function of the choice type? In Experiment 1, we show that it does: Participants were slower and less accurate in learning correct choices of a general format compared with learning more concrete motor actions. Using computational modeling, we show that two mechanisms contribute to this. First, there was evidence of irrelevant credit assignment: The values of motor actions interfered with the values of other choice dimensions, resulting in more incorrect choices when the correct response was not defined by a single motor action; second, information integration for relevant general choices was slower. In Experiment 2, we replicated and further extended the findings from Experiment 1 by showing that slowed learning was attributable to weaker working memory use, rather than slowed RL. In both experiments, we ruled out the explanation that the difference in performance between two condition types was driven by difficulty/different levels of complexity. We conclude that defining a more abstract choice space used by multiple learning systems for credit assignment recruits executive resources, limiting how much such processes then contribute to fast learning.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Amy Zou
- University of California, Berkeley
| | - Anne G E Collins
- University of California, Berkeley
- Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute Berkeley, CA
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34
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Perceptual integration modulates dissociable components of experience-driven attention. Psychon Bull Rev 2022:10.3758/s13423-022-02203-z. [DOI: 10.3758/s13423-022-02203-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 10/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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35
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Onuki Y, Lakbila-Kamal O, Scheffer B, Van Someren EJW, Van der Werf YD. Selective Enhancement of Post-Sleep Visual Motion Perception by Repetitive Tactile Stimulation during Sleep. J Neurosci 2022; 42:7400-7411. [PMID: 35995563 PMCID: PMC9525164 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1512-21.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2021] [Revised: 05/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Tactile sensations can bias visual perception in the awake state while visual sensitivity is known to be facilitated by sleep. It remains unknown, however, whether the tactile sensation during sleep can bias the visual improvement after sleep. Here, we performed nap experiments in human participants (n = 56, 18 males, 38 females) to demonstrate that repetitive tactile motion stimulation on the fingertip during slow wave sleep selectively enhanced subsequent visual motion detection. The visual improvement was associated with slow wave activity. The high activation at the high beta frequency was found in the occipital electrodes after the tactile motion stimulation during sleep, indicating a visual-tactile cross-modal interaction during sleep. Furthermore, a second experiment (n = 14, 14 females) to examine whether a hand- or head-centered coordination is dominant for the interpretation of tactile motion direction showed that the biasing effect on visual improvement occurs according to the hand-centered coordination. These results suggest that tactile information can be interpreted during sleep, and can induce the selective improvement of post-sleep visual motion detection.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Tactile sensations can bias our visual perception as a form of cross-modal interaction. However, it was reported only in the awake state. Here we show that repetitive directional tactile motion stimulation on the fingertip during slow wave sleep selectively enhanced subsequent visual motion perception. Moreover, the visual improvement was positively associated with sleep slow wave activity. The tactile motion stimulation during slow wave activity increased the activation at the high beta frequency over the occipital electrodes. The visual improvement occurred in agreement with a hand-centered reference frame. These results suggest that our sleeping brain can interpret tactile information based on a hand-centered reference frame, which can cause the sleep-dependent improvement of visual motion detection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshiyuki Onuki
- Department of Sleep and Cognition, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, 1105BA, The Netherlands
| | - Oti Lakbila-Kamal
- Department of Sleep and Cognition, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, 1105BA, The Netherlands
| | - Bo Scheffer
- Department of Sleep and Cognition, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, 1105BA, The Netherlands
| | - Eus J W Van Someren
- Department of Sleep and Cognition, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Amsterdam, 1105BA, The Netherlands
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Amsterdam Neuroscience, VU University Amsterdam, Amsterdam, 1081HV, The Netherlands
- Amsterdam UMC, Vrije Universiteit, Psychiatry, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam, 1081HV, The Netherlands
| | - Ysbrand D Van der Werf
- Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences, Amsterdam UMC, location VU, University Medical Center, Amsterdam, 1081HZ, The Netherlands
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36
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Rassia KEK, Moutoussis K, Pezaris JS. Reading text works better than watching videos to improve acuity in a simulation of artificial vision. Sci Rep 2022; 12:12953. [PMID: 35902596 PMCID: PMC9334451 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-10719-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2021] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Simulated artificial vision is used in visual prosthesis design to answer questions about device usability. We previously reported a striking increase in equivalent visual acuity with daily use of a simulation of artificial vision in an active task, reading sentences, that required high levels of subject engagement, but passive activities are more likely to dominate post-implant experience. Here, we investigated the longitudinal effects of a passive task, watching videos. Eight subjects used a simulation of a thalamic visual prosthesis with 1000 phosphenes to watch 23 episodes of classic American television in daily, 25-min sessions, for a period of 1 month with interspersed reading tests that quantified reading accuracy and reading speed. For reading accuracy, we found similar dynamics to the early part of the learning process in our previous report, here leading to an improvement in visual acuity of 0.15 ± 0.05 logMAR. For reading speed, however, no change was apparent by the end of training. We found that single reading sessions drove about twice the improvement in acuity of single video sessions despite being only half as long. We conclude that while passive viewing tasks may prove useful for post-implant rehabilitation, active tasks are likely to be preferable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katerina Eleonora K Rassia
- Cognitive Science Laboratory, Department of History and Philosophy of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | - Konstantinos Moutoussis
- Cognitive Science Laboratory, Department of History and Philosophy of Science, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | - John S Pezaris
- Department of Neurosurgery, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. .,Department of Neurosurgery, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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Perspectives on the Combined Use of Electric Brain Stimulation and Perceptual Learning in Vision. Vision (Basel) 2022; 6:vision6020033. [PMID: 35737420 PMCID: PMC9227313 DOI: 10.3390/vision6020033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2022] [Revised: 06/07/2022] [Accepted: 06/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
A growing body of literature offers exciting perspectives on the use of brain stimulation to boost training-related perceptual improvements in humans. Recent studies suggest that combining visual perceptual learning (VPL) training with concomitant transcranial electric stimulation (tES) leads to learning rate and generalization effects larger than each technique used individually. Both VPL and tES have been used to induce neural plasticity in brain regions involved in visual perception, leading to long-lasting visual function improvements. Despite being more than a century old, only recently have these techniques been combined in the same paradigm to further improve visual performance in humans. Nonetheless, promising evidence in healthy participants and in clinical population suggests that the best could still be yet to come for the combined use of VPL and tES. In the first part of this perspective piece, we briefly discuss the history, the characteristics, the results and the possible mechanisms behind each technique and their combined effect. In the second part, we discuss relevant aspects concerning the use of these techniques and propose a perspective concerning the combined use of electric brain stimulation and perceptual learning in the visual system, closing with some open questions on the topic.
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Klorfeld-Auslender S, Paz Y, Shinder I, Rosenblatt J, Dinstein I, Censor N. A distinct route for efficient learning and generalization in autism. Curr Biol 2022; 32:3203-3209.e3. [PMID: 35700734 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.05.059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2020] [Revised: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/26/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Visual skill learning is the process of improving responses to surrounding visual stimuli.1 For individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), efficient skill learning may be especially valuable due to potential difficulties with sensory processing2 and challenges in adjusting flexibly to changing environments.3,4 Standard skill learning protocols require extensive practice with multiple stimulus repetitions,5-7 which may be difficult for individuals with ASD and create abnormally specific learning with poor ability to generalize.4 Motivated by findings indicating that brief memory reactivations can facilitate skill learning,8,9 we hypothesized that reactivation learning with few stimulus repetitions will enable efficient learning in individuals with ASD, similar to their learning with standard extensive practice protocols used in previous studies.4,10,11 We further hypothesized that in contrast to experience-dependent plasticity often resulting in specificity, reactivation-induced learning would enable generalization patterns in ASD. To test our hypotheses, high-functioning adults with ASD underwent brief reactivations of an encoded visual learning task, consisting of only 5 trials each instead of hundreds. Remarkably, individuals with ASD improved their visual discrimination ability in the task substantially, demonstrating successful learning. Furthermore, individuals with ASD generalized learning to an untrained visual location, indicating a unique benefit of reactivation learning mechanisms for ASD individuals. Finally, an additional experiment showed that without memory reactivations ASD subjects did not demonstrate efficient learning and generalization patterns. Taken together, the results provide proof-of-concept evidence supporting a distinct route for efficient visual learning and generalization in ASD, which may be beneficial for skill learning in other sensory and motor domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shira Klorfeld-Auslender
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Yaniv Paz
- Cognitive and Brain Science Department, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel; Zlotowsky Center for Neuroscience, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel
| | - Ilana Shinder
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel
| | - Jonathan Rosenblatt
- Zlotowsky Center for Neuroscience, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel; Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel
| | - Ilan Dinstein
- Cognitive and Brain Science Department, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel; Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel; Azrieli National Center for Autism and Neurodevelopment Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 84105, Israel
| | - Nitzan Censor
- School of Psychological Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel; Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 69978, Israel.
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Donato R, Pavan A, Cavallin G, Ballan L, Betteto L, Nucci M, Campana G. Mechanisms Underlying Directional Motion Processing and Form-Motion Integration Assessed with Visual Perceptual Learning. Vision (Basel) 2022; 6:vision6020029. [PMID: 35737415 PMCID: PMC9229663 DOI: 10.3390/vision6020029] [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] [Received: 04/19/2022] [Revised: 05/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Dynamic Glass patterns (GPs) are visual stimuli commonly employed to study form–motion interactions. There is brain imaging evidence that non-directional motion induced by dynamic GPs and directional motion induced by random dot kinematograms (RDKs) depend on the activity of the human motion complex (hMT+). However, whether dynamic GPs and RDKs rely on the same processing mechanisms is still up for dispute. The current study uses a visual perceptual learning (VPL) paradigm to try to answer this question. Identical pre- and post-tests were given to two groups of participants, who had to discriminate random/noisy patterns from coherent form (dynamic GPs) and motion (RDKs). Subsequently, one group was trained on dynamic translational GPs, whereas the other group on RDKs. On the one hand, the generalization of learning to the non-trained stimulus would indicate that the same mechanisms are involved in the processing of both dynamic GPs and RDKs. On the other hand, learning specificity would indicate that the two stimuli are likely to be processed by separate mechanisms possibly in the same cortical network. The results showed that VPL is specific to the stimulus trained, suggesting that directional and non-directional motion may depend on different neural mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Donato
- Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, Italy; (L.B.); (M.N.); (G.C.)
- Human Inspired Technology Research Centre, University of Padova, Via Luzzati 4, 35121 Padova, Italy;
- Proaction Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Colégio de Jesus, Rua Inácio Duarte 65, 3000-481 Coimbra, Portugal
- CINEICC, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Coimbra, Rua Colégio Novo, 3000-115 Coimbra, Portugal
- Correspondence: (R.D.); (A.P.)
| | - Andrea Pavan
- Dipartimento di Psicologia, University of Bologna, Viale Berti Pichat, 5, 40127 Bologna, Italy
- Correspondence: (R.D.); (A.P.)
| | - Giovanni Cavallin
- Dipartimento di Matematica, University of Padova, Via Trieste 63, 35121 Padova, Italy;
| | - Lamberto Ballan
- Human Inspired Technology Research Centre, University of Padova, Via Luzzati 4, 35121 Padova, Italy;
- Dipartimento di Matematica, University of Padova, Via Trieste 63, 35121 Padova, Italy;
| | - Luca Betteto
- Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, Italy; (L.B.); (M.N.); (G.C.)
| | - Massimo Nucci
- Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, Italy; (L.B.); (M.N.); (G.C.)
- Human Inspired Technology Research Centre, University of Padova, Via Luzzati 4, 35121 Padova, Italy;
| | - Gianluca Campana
- Dipartimento di Psicologia Generale, University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, Italy; (L.B.); (M.N.); (G.C.)
- Human Inspired Technology Research Centre, University of Padova, Via Luzzati 4, 35121 Padova, Italy;
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Is perceptual learning always better at task-relevant locations? It depends on the distractors. Atten Percept Psychophys 2022; 84:992-1003. [PMID: 35217980 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-022-02450-1] [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: 01/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The role of attention in task-irrelevant perceptual learning has been contested. Attention has been studied in the past using distractor-type manipulations. Hence, during an initial exposure phase, we manipulated distractor similarity within a set of six gratings, to study its effects on perceptual learning at task-relevant and task-irrelevant locations. Of these six gratings, one was at a task-relevant location, one at a task-irrelvant location, which shared the orientation with the task-relevant grating, and the rest (four) were distractor gratings. The orientations of the distractor gratings were all either the same (homogeneous) or different from each other (heterogeneity). We hypothesized that learning at the task-irrelevant location would be worse than learning at the task-relevant location when distractors are heterogeneous and vice versa when the distractors are homogeneous. Participants were initially exposed to a grating set; they reported contrast changes at only one prespecified task-relevant location. This grating was grouped based on orientation with a task-irrelevant grating presented at the furthermost distractor location and presented alongside four control-distractors (homogeneous or heterogeneous). In the testing phase, orientation discrimination performance was measured at task-relevant, task-irrelevant (grouped), and control-distractor locations. Participants were exposed and tested sequentially, each day for 5 days. Participants learned and performed better at the task-irrelevant location compared to the task-relevant location with homogenous distractors and vice versa with heterogenous distractors. The poorer learning at the task-relevant location compared to the task-irrelevant location challenges current models of perceptual learning. Selection mechanisms driven by the nature of distractors influence perceptual learning at both task-relevant and task-irrelevant locations.
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Improving Functional Connectivity in Developmental Dyslexia through Combined Neurofeedback and Visual Training. Symmetry (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/sym14020369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
This study examined the effects of combined neurofeedback (NF) and visual training (VT) on children with developmental dyslexia (DD). Although NF is the first noninvasive approach to support neurological disorders, the mechanisms of its effects on the brain functional connectivity are still unclear. A key question is whether the functional connectivities of the EEG frequency networks change after the combined NF–VT training of DD children (postD). NF sessions of voluntary α/θ rhythm control were applied in a low-spatial-frequency (LSF) illusion contrast discrimination, which provides feedback with visual cues to improve the brain signals and cognitive abilities in DD children. The measures of connectivity, which are defined by small-world propensity, were sensitive to the properties of the brain electrical oscillations in the quantitative EEG-NF training. In the high-contrast LSF illusion, the z-NF reduced the α/θ scores in the frontal areas, and in the right ventral temporal, occipital–temporal, and middle occipital areas in the postD (vs. the preD) because of their suppression in the local hub θ-network and the altered global characteristics of the functional θ-frequency network. In the low-contrast condition, the z-NF stimulated increases in the α/θ scores, which induced hubs in the left-side α-frequency network of the postD, and changes in the global characteristics of the functional α-frequency network. Because of the anterior, superior, and middle temporal deficits affecting the ventral and occipital–temporal pathways, the z-NF–VT compensated for the more ventral brain regions, mainly in the left hemispheres of the postD group in the low-contrast LSF illusion. Compared to pretraining, the NF–VT increased the segregation of the α, β (low-contrast), and θ networks (high-contrast), as well as the γ2-network integration (both contrasts) after the termination of the training of the children with developmental dyslexia. The remediation compensated more for the dorsal (prefrontal, premotor, occipital–parietal connectivities) dysfunction of the θ network in the developmental dyslexia in the high-contrast LSF illusion. Our findings provide neurobehavioral evidence for the exquisite brain functional plasticity and direct effect of NF–VT on cognitive disabilities in DD children.
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Listman JB, Tsay JS, Kim HE, Mackey WE, Heeger DJ. Long-Term Motor Learning in the "Wild" With High Volume Video Game Data. Front Hum Neurosci 2021; 15:777779. [PMID: 34987368 PMCID: PMC8720934 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.777779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2021] [Accepted: 11/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Motor learning occurs over long periods of practice during which motor acuity, the ability to execute actions more accurately, precisely, and in less time, improves. Laboratory-based studies of motor learning are typically limited to a small number of participants and a time frame of minutes to several hours per participant. There is a need to assess the generalizability of theories and findings from lab-based motor learning studies on larger samples and time scales. In addition, laboratory-based studies of motor learning use relatively simple motor tasks which participants are unlikely to be intrinsically motivated to learn, limiting the interpretation of their findings in more ecologically valid settings ("in the wild"). We studied the acquisition and longitudinal refinement of a complex sensorimotor skill embodied in a first-person shooter video game scenario, with a large sample size (N = 7174, 682,564 repeats of the 60 s game) over a period of months. Participants voluntarily practiced the gaming scenario for up to several hours per day up to 100 days. We found improvement in performance accuracy (quantified as hit rate) was modest over time but motor acuity (quantified as hits per second) improved considerably, with 40-60% retention from 1 day to the next. We observed steady improvements in motor acuity across multiple days of video game practice, unlike most motor learning tasks studied in the lab that hit a performance ceiling rather quickly. Learning rate was a non-linear function of baseline performance level, amount of daily practice, and to a lesser extent, number of days between practice sessions. In addition, we found that the benefit of additional practice on any given day was non-monotonic; the greatest improvements in motor acuity were evident with about an hour of practice and 90% of the learning benefit was achieved by practicing 30 min per day. Taken together, these results provide a proof-of-concept in studying motor skill acquisition outside the confines of the traditional laboratory, in the presence of unmeasured confounds, and provide new insights into how a complex motor skill is acquired in an ecologically valid setting and refined across much longer time scales than typically explored.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jonathan S. Tsay
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
- Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, United States
| | - Hyosub E. Kim
- Department of Physical Therapy, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States
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The need for research-based tools for personnel selection and assessment in the forensic sciences. Forensic Sci Int Synerg 2021; 4:100213. [PMID: 35647510 PMCID: PMC9136313 DOI: 10.1016/j.fsisyn.2021.100213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2020] [Revised: 12/06/2021] [Accepted: 12/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
The popularity of forensic science television programs has created a hiring challenge for forensic science laboratories. Laboratories receive unprecedented numbers of applicants, yet struggle to identify highly-qualified candidates. Forensic examiners must possess a unique set of knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) plus other characteristics. They must be critical thinkers, detail-oriented, decisive, and self-regulated; be able to communicate clearly and effectively within the laboratory, with customers (typically investigators or attorneys), and in the courtroom; and demonstrate the required core competencies. Currently, no validated instruments, standardized job descriptions, or lists of KSAs exist to aid in forensic science personnel recruitment and assessment, often resulting in high turnover leading to costly new recruitment and training cycles. This article describes how industrial/organizational psychology develops methods and tools to improve workforce selection; describes some tools currently in use in forensic science; and advocates for research and development of better tools for use in forensic science.
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Loganathan K. Value-based cognition and drug dependency. Addict Behav 2021; 123:107070. [PMID: 34359016 DOI: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2021.107070] [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: 04/13/2021] [Revised: 07/03/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Value-based decision-making is thought to play an important role in drug dependency. Achieving elevated levels of euphoria or ameliorating dysphoria/pain may motivate goal-directed drug consumption in both drug-naïve and long-time users. In other words, drugs become viewed as the preferred means of attaining a desired internal state. The bias towards choosing drugs may affect one's cognition. Observed biases in learning, attention and memory systems within the brain gradually focus one's cognitive functions towards drugs and related cues to the exclusion of other stimuli. In this narrative review, the effects of drug use on learning, attention and memory are discussed with a particular focus on changes across brain-wide functional networks and the subsequent impact on behaviour. These cognitive changes are then incorporated into the cycle of addiction, an established model outlining the transition from casual drug use to chronic dependency. If drug use results in the elevated salience of drugs and their cues, the studies highlighted in this review strongly suggest that this salience biases cognitive systems towards the motivated pursuit of addictive drugs. This bias is observed throughout the cycle of addiction, possibly contributing to the persistent hold that addictive drugs have over the dependent. Taken together, the excessive valuation of drugs as the preferred means of achieving a desired internal state affects more than just decision-making, but also learning, attentional and mnemonic systems. This eventually narrows the focus of one's thoughts towards the pursuit and consumption of addictive drugs.
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Contò F, Edwards G, Tyler S, Parrott D, Grossman E, Battelli L. Attention network modulation via tRNS correlates with attention gain. eLife 2021; 10:e63782. [PMID: 34826292 PMCID: PMC8626087 DOI: 10.7554/elife.63782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS) can enhance vision in the healthy and diseased brain. Yet, the impact of multi-day tRNS on large-scale cortical networks is still unknown. We investigated the impact of tRNS coupled with behavioral training on resting-state functional connectivity and attention. We trained human subjects for 4 consecutive days on two attention tasks, while receiving tRNS over the intraparietal sulci, the middle temporal areas, or Sham stimulation. We measured resting-state functional connectivity of nodes of the dorsal and ventral attention network (DVAN) before and after training. We found a strong behavioral improvement and increased connectivity within the DVAN after parietal stimulation only. Crucially, behavioral improvement positively correlated with connectivity measures. We conclude changes in connectivity are a marker for the enduring effect of tRNS upon behavior. Our results suggest that tRNS has strong potential to augment cognitive capacity in healthy individuals and promote recovery in the neurological population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federica Contò
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of TrentoRoveretoItaly
| | - Grace Edwards
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Department of Psychology, Harvard UniversityCambridgeUnited States
| | - Sarah Tyler
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Butte CollegeOrovilleUnited States
| | - Danielle Parrott
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of TrentoRoveretoItaly
| | - Emily Grossman
- Department of Cognitive Sciences, University of California, IrvineIrvineUnited States
| | - Lorella Battelli
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of TrentoRoveretoItaly
- Department of Psychology, Harvard UniversityCambridgeUnited States
- Department of Neurology, Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation, Beth Israel, Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical SchoolBostonUnited States
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Herpers J, Arsenault JT, Vanduffel W, Vogels R. Stimulation of the ventral tegmental area induces visual cortical plasticity at the neuronal level. Cell Rep 2021; 37:109998. [PMID: 34758325 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109998] [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: 07/23/2021] [Revised: 09/20/2021] [Accepted: 10/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
fMRI studies have shown that pairing a task-irrelevant visual feature with electrical micro-stimulation of the ventral tegmental area (VTA-EM) is sufficient to increase the sensory cortical representation of the paired feature and to improve perceptual performance. However, since fMRI provides an indirect measure of neural activity, the neural response changes underlying the fMRI activations are unknown. Here, we pair a task-irrelevant grating orientation with VTA-EM while attention is directed to a difficult orthogonal task. We examine the changes in neural response properties in macaques by recording spiking activity in the posterior inferior temporal cortex, the locus of fMRI-defined plasticity in previous studies. We observe a relative increase in mean spike rate and preference for the VTA-EM paired orientation compared to an unpaired orientation, which is unrelated to attention. These results demonstrate that VTA-EM-stimulus pairing is sufficient to induce sensory cortical plasticity at the spiking level in nonhuman primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jerome Herpers
- Laboratory for Neuro- and Psychophysiology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven Medical School, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - John T Arsenault
- Laboratory for Neuro- and Psychophysiology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven Medical School, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Wim Vanduffel
- Laboratory for Neuro- and Psychophysiology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven Medical School, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02144, USA
| | - Rufin Vogels
- Laboratory for Neuro- and Psychophysiology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven Medical School, 3000 Leuven, Belgium; Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
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Domenici N, Inuggi A, Tonelli A, Gori M. A novel Android app to evaluate and enhance auditory and tactile temporal thresholds . ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE OF THE IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY. IEEE ENGINEERING IN MEDICINE AND BIOLOGY SOCIETY. ANNUAL INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE 2021; 2021:5885-5888. [PMID: 34892458 DOI: 10.1109/embc46164.2021.9630028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
With this work, we introduce a novel Android app designed to monitor and enhance auditory and tactile temporal sensitivity. To assess the app's reliability, we tested its technical performance evaluating stimuli production's accuracy (i.e., onset, offset, and duration of stimulation). To validate the app with participants we generated temporal intervals, using either sounds or vibratory stimuli, by implementing two versions of a Two-Alternative Forced-Choice (2AFC) task. Auditory and tactile temporal sensitivity of 12 participants was evaluated using this procedure. To investigate whether temporal abilities could be enhanced using the app, participants were then divided into two groups: one group was trained for four days on the auditory temporal task, while the other was trained for four days on the tactile temporal task. Results suggest that the app can i) effectively measure auditory and tactile temporal thresholds and ii) be used to enhance temporal abilities through perceptual learning. The accessibility of the experimental protocols, combined with our findings, fosters the app's involvement in rehabilitation programs, for example, with a specific focus on sensory disabilities that are associated with temporal deficits (e.g., deafness and Parkinson).Clinical Relevance- The current work introduces a novel app that can be used to monitor and improve temporal abilities, in both the auditory and the tactile modalities.
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Anderson BA, Kim H, Kim AJ, Liao MR, Mrkonja L, Clement A, Grégoire L. The past, present, and future of selection history. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 130:326-350. [PMID: 34499927 PMCID: PMC8511179 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Revised: 07/08/2021] [Accepted: 09/02/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
The last ten years of attention research have witnessed a revolution, replacing a theoretical dichotomy (top-down vs. bottom-up control) with a trichotomy (biased by current goals, physical salience, and selection history). This third new mechanism of attentional control, selection history, is multifaceted. Some aspects of selection history must be learned over time whereas others reflect much more transient influences. A variety of different learning experiences can shape the attention system, including reward, aversive outcomes, past experience searching for a target, target‒non-target relations, and more. In this review, we provide an overview of the historical forces that led to the proposal of selection history as a distinct mechanism of attentional control. We then propose a formal definition of selection history, with concrete criteria, and identify different components of experience-driven attention that fit within this definition. The bulk of the review is devoted to exploring how these different components relate to one another. We conclude by proposing an integrative account of selection history centered on underlying themes that emerge from our review.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian A Anderson
- Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, United States.
| | - Haena Kim
- Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, United States
| | - Andy J Kim
- Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, United States
| | - Ming-Ray Liao
- Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, United States
| | - Lana Mrkonja
- Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, United States
| | - Andrew Clement
- Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, 77843, United States
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Huurneman B, Goossens J. Broad and Long-Lasting Vision Improvements in Youth With Infantile Nystagmus After Home Training With a Perceptual Learning App. Front Neurosci 2021; 15:651205. [PMID: 34489619 PMCID: PMC8417383 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.651205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Current treatments for infantile nystagmus (IN), focused on dampening the oscillating eye movements, yield little to no improvement in visual functioning. It makes sense, however, to treat the visual impairments associated with IN with tailored sensory training. Recently, we developed such a training, targeting visual crowding as an important bottleneck in visual functioning with an eye-movement engaging letter discrimination task. This training improved visual performance of children with IN, but most children had not reached plateau performance after 10 supervised training sessions (3,500 trials). Here, we evaluate the effects of prolonged perceptual learning (14,000 trials) in 7-18-year-old children with IN and test the feasibility of tablet-based, at-home intervention. Results demonstrate that prolonged home-based perceptual training results in stable, long lasting visual acuity improvements at distance and near, with remarkably good transfer to reading and even stereopsis. Improvements on self-reported functional vision scores underline the clinical relevance of perceptual learning with e-health apps for individuals with IN.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bianca Huurneman
- Department Cognitive Neuroscience, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Royal Dutch Visio, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Jeroen Goossens
- Department Cognitive Neuroscience, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, Netherlands
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