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Xia R, Chen X, Engel TA, Moore T. Common and distinct neural mechanisms of attention. Trends Cogn Sci 2024; 28:554-567. [PMID: 38388258 PMCID: PMC11153008 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2024.01.005] [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: 08/03/2022] [Revised: 01/10/2024] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
Despite a constant deluge of sensory stimulation, only a fraction of it is used to guide behavior. This selective processing is generally referred to as attention, and much research has focused on the neural mechanisms controlling it. Recently, research has broadened to include more ways by which different species selectively process sensory information, whether due to the sensory input itself or to different behavioral and brain states. This work has produced a complex and disjointed body of evidence across different species and forms of attention. However, it has also provided opportunities to better understand the breadth of attentional mechanisms. Here, we summarize the evidence that suggests that different forms of selective processing are supported by mechanisms both common and distinct.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruobing Xia
- Department of Neurobiology and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Xiaomo Chen
- Department of Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Tatiana A Engel
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Tirin Moore
- Department of Neurobiology and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA.
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2
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Wegner-Clemens K, Malcolm GL, Shomstein S. Predicting attentional allocation in real-world environments: The need to investigate crossmodal semantic guidance. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2024; 15:e1675. [PMID: 38243393 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.1675] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2023] [Revised: 12/01/2023] [Accepted: 12/07/2023] [Indexed: 01/21/2024]
Abstract
Real-world environments are multisensory, meaningful, and highly complex. To parse these environments in a highly efficient manner, a subset of this information must be selected both within and across modalities. However, the bulk of attention research has been conducted within sensory modalities, with a particular focus on vision. Visual attention research has made great strides, with over a century of research methodically identifying the underlying mechanisms that allow us to select critical visual information. Spatial attention, attention to features, and object-based attention have all been studied extensively. More recently, research has established semantics (meaning) as a key component to allocating attention in real-world scenes, with the meaning of an item or environment affecting visual attentional selection. However, a full understanding of how semantic information modulates real-world attention requires studying more than vision in isolation. The world provides semantic information across all senses, but with this extra information comes greater complexity. Here, we summarize visual attention (including semantic-based visual attention), crossmodal attention, and argue for the importance of studying crossmodal semantic guidance of attention. This article is categorized under: Psychology > Attention Psychology > Perception and Psychophysics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kira Wegner-Clemens
- Psychological and Brain Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
| | | | - Sarah Shomstein
- Psychological and Brain Sciences, George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA
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3
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Ptak R, Bourgeois A. Disengagement of attention with spatial neglect: A systematic review of behavioral and anatomical findings. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 160:105622. [PMID: 38490498 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105622] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2023] [Revised: 02/10/2024] [Accepted: 03/11/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024]
Abstract
The present review examined the consequences of focal brain injury on spatial attention studied with cueing paradigms, with a particular focus on the disengagement deficit, which refers to the abnormal slowing of reactions following an ipsilesional cue. Our review supports the established notion that the disengagement deficit is a functional marker of spatial neglect and is particularly pronounced when elicited by peripheral cues. Recent research has revealed that this deficit critically depends on cues that have task-relevant characteristics or are associated with negative reinforcement. Attentional capture by task-relevant cues is contingent on damage to the right temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) and is modulated by functional connections between the TPJ and the right insular cortex. Furthermore, damage to the dorsal premotor or prefrontal cortex (dPMC/dPFC) reduces the effect of task-relevant cues. These findings support an interactive model of the disengagement deficit, involving the right TPJ, the insula, and the dPMC/dPFC. These interconnected regions play a crucial role in regulating and adapting spatial attention to changing intrinsic values of stimuli in the environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Radek Ptak
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neurorehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva 1206, Switzerland; Division of Neurorehabilitation, University Hospitals of Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, Geneva 1205, Switzerland.
| | - Alexia Bourgeois
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neurorehabilitation, Faculty of Medicine, University of Geneva, Geneva 1206, Switzerland; University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Western Switzerland, School of Health Sciences, Avenue de Champel 47, Geneva 1206, Switzerland
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4
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Ritz H, Shenhav A. Orthogonal neural encoding of targets and distractors supports multivariate cognitive control. Nat Hum Behav 2024; 8:945-961. [PMID: 38459265 PMCID: PMC11219097 DOI: 10.1038/s41562-024-01826-7] [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: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 03/10/2024]
Abstract
The complex challenges of our mental life require us to coordinate multiple forms of neural information processing. Recent behavioural studies have found that people can coordinate multiple forms of attention, but the underlying neural control process remains obscure. We hypothesized that the brain implements multivariate control by independently monitoring feature-specific difficulty and independently prioritizing feature-specific processing. During functional MRI, participants performed a parametric conflict task that separately tags target and distractor processing. Consistent with feature-specific monitoring, univariate analyses revealed spatially segregated encoding of target and distractor difficulty in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex. Consistent with feature-specific attentional priority, our encoding geometry analysis revealed overlapping but orthogonal representations of target and distractor coherence in the intraparietal sulcus. Coherence representations were mediated by control demands and aligned with both performance and frontoparietal activity, consistent with top-down attention. Together, these findings provide evidence for the neural geometry necessary to coordinate multivariate cognitive control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harrison Ritz
- Cognitive, Linguistic & Psychological Science, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
- Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
| | - Amitai Shenhav
- Cognitive, Linguistic & Psychological Science, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
- Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
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5
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Sun R, Fietz J, Erhart M, Poehlchen D, Henco L, Brückl TM, Czisch M, Saemann PG, Spoormaker VI. Free-viewing gaze patterns reveal a mood-congruency bias in MDD during an affective fMRI/eye-tracking task. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2024; 274:559-571. [PMID: 37087709 PMCID: PMC10995059 DOI: 10.1007/s00406-023-01608-8] [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: 10/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/04/2023] [Indexed: 04/24/2023]
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) has been related to abnormal amygdala activity during emotional face processing. However, a recent large-scale study (n = 28,638) found no such correlation, which is probably due to the low precision of fMRI measurements. To address this issue, we used simultaneous fMRI and eye-tracking measurements during a commonly employed emotional face recognition task. Eye-tracking provide high-precision data, which can be used to enrich and potentially stabilize fMRI readouts. With the behavioral response, we additionally divided the active task period into a task-related and a free-viewing phase to explore the gaze patterns of MDD patients and healthy controls (HC) and compare their respective neural correlates. Our analysis showed that a mood-congruency attentional bias could be detected in MDD compared to healthy controls during the free-viewing phase but without parallel amygdala disruption. Moreover, the neural correlates of gaze patterns reflected more prefrontal fMRI activity in the free-viewing than the task-related phase. Taken together, spontaneous emotional processing in free viewing might lead to a more pronounced mood-congruency bias in MDD, which indicates that combined fMRI with eye-tracking measurement could be beneficial for our understanding of the underlying psychopathology of MDD in different emotional processing phases.Trial Registration: The BeCOME study is registered on ClinicalTrials (gov: NCT03984084) by the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry in Munich, Germany.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Sun
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Department of Behavioral and Psychological Science, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Julia Fietz
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- International Max Planck Research School for Translational Psychiatry (IMPRS-TP), Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Mira Erhart
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- International Max Planck Research School for Translational Psychiatry (IMPRS-TP), Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Dorothee Poehlchen
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- International Max Planck Research School for Translational Psychiatry (IMPRS-TP), Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Lara Henco
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Tanja M Brückl
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | | | | | - Victor I Spoormaker
- Department of Translational Research in Psychiatry, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany.
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Teng C, Postle BR. Investigating the Roles of the Visual and Parietal Cortex in Representing Content versus Context in Visual Working Memory. eNeuro 2024; 11:ENEURO.0270-20.2024. [PMID: 38336475 PMCID: PMC10860598 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0270-20.2024] [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: 08/30/2023] [Revised: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/04/2024] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Content-to-context binding is crucial for working memory performance. Using a dual-serial retrocueing (DSR) task on oriented gratings, Yu et al. (2020) found that content (orientation) of both prioritized and unprioritized memory items (PMI; UMI) was represented simultaneously in visual cortex, while their context (location) was represented in intraparietal sulcus (IPS), with a priority-based remapping of the representation of content and context of the UMI in each region, respectively. This registered report acquired fMRI of 24 healthy adults while they performed a DSR task with location as the to-be-reported content and orientation as the task-relevant context. We contrasted three accounts: domain-dependent, the engagement of visual and parietal regions depends on the feature domain (orientation vs location); functional, the engagement of these regions depends on their function (content vs context); and hybrid-a combination of the domain-dependent account and the additional stipulation that IPS encodes context regardless of domain. Delay-period activity in early visual cortex conformed most closely with functional predictions: robust priority-sensitive representation of stimulus location (content), but no evidence for the active representation of stimulus orientation (context). Delay-period activity in IPS, in contrast, conformed most closely to predictions of the hybrid account: active representation of content (location) and of prioritized context (orientation). Exploratory analyses further supported the hybrid account of IPS, revealing univariate sensitivity to variation in both content and context load, the latter in a manner that predicted individual differences in behavior. The representation of visual information in working memory is highly dependent on behavioral context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunyue Teng
- University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison 53719, Wisconsin
- Lawrence University, Appleton 54911, Wisconsin
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Bosco A, Sanz Diez P, Filippini M, De Vitis M, Fattori P. A focus on the multiple interfaces between action and perception and their neural correlates. Neuropsychologia 2023; 191:108722. [PMID: 37931747 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108722] [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: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 10/13/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 11/08/2023]
Abstract
Successful behaviour relies on the appropriate interplay between action and perception. The well-established dorsal and ventral stream theories depicted two distinct functional pathways for the processes of action and perception, respectively. In physiological conditions, the two pathways closely cooperate in order to produce successful adaptive behaviour. As the coupling between perception and action exists, this requires an interface that is responsible for a common reading of the two functions. Several studies have proposed different types of perception and action interfaces, suggesting their role in the creation of the shared interaction channel. In the present review, we describe three possible perception and action interfaces: i) the motor code, including common coding approaches, ii) attention, and iii) object affordance; we highlight their potential neural correlates. From this overview, a recurrent neural substrate that underlies all these interface functions appears to be crucial: the parieto-frontal circuit. This network is involved in the mirror mechanism which underlies the perception and action interfaces identified as common coding and motor code theories. The same network is also involved in the spotlight of attention and in the encoding of potential action towards objects; these are manifested in the perception and action interfaces for common attention and object affordance, respectively. Within this framework, most studies were dedicated to the description of the role of the inferior parietal lobule; growing evidence, however, suggests that the superior parietal lobule also plays a crucial role in the interplay between action and perception. The present review proposes a novel model that is inclusive of the superior parietal regions and their relative contribution to the different action and perception interfaces.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Bosco
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Piazza di Porta San Donato 2, 40126, Bologna, Italy; Alma Mater Research Institute For Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (Alma Human AI), University of Bologna, Via Galliera 3 Bologna, 40121, Bologna, Italy.
| | - P Sanz Diez
- Carl Zeiss Vision International GmbH, Turnstrasse 27, 73430, Aalen, Germany; Institute for Ophthalmic Research, Eberhard Karls University Tuebingen, Elfriede-Aulhorn-Straße 7, 72076, Tuebingen, Germany
| | - M Filippini
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Piazza di Porta San Donato 2, 40126, Bologna, Italy; Alma Mater Research Institute For Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (Alma Human AI), University of Bologna, Via Galliera 3 Bologna, 40121, Bologna, Italy
| | - M De Vitis
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Piazza di Porta San Donato 2, 40126, Bologna, Italy
| | - P Fattori
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Piazza di Porta San Donato 2, 40126, Bologna, Italy; Alma Mater Research Institute For Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (Alma Human AI), University of Bologna, Via Galliera 3 Bologna, 40121, Bologna, Italy
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Antono JE, Dang S, Auksztulewicz R, Pooresmaeili A. Distinct Patterns of Connectivity between Brain Regions Underlie the Intra-Modal and Cross-Modal Value-Driven Modulations of the Visual Cortex. J Neurosci 2023; 43:7361-7375. [PMID: 37684031 PMCID: PMC10621764 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0355-23.2023] [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: 02/24/2023] [Revised: 07/30/2023] [Accepted: 08/26/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Past reward associations may be signaled from different sensory modalities; however, it remains unclear how different types of reward-associated stimuli modulate sensory perception. In this human fMRI study (female and male participants), a visual target was simultaneously presented with either an intra- (visual) or a cross-modal (auditory) cue that was previously associated with rewards. We hypothesized that, depending on the sensory modality of the cues, distinct neural mechanisms underlie the value-driven modulation of visual processing. Using a multivariate approach, we confirmed that reward-associated cues enhanced the target representation in early visual areas and identified the brain valuation regions. Then, using an effective connectivity analysis, we tested three possible patterns of connectivity that could underlie the modulation of the visual cortex: a direct pathway from the frontal valuation areas to the visual areas, a mediated pathway through the attention-related areas, and a mediated pathway that additionally involved sensory association areas. We found evidence for the third model demonstrating that the reward-related information in both sensory modalities is communicated across the valuation and attention-related brain regions. Additionally, the superior temporal areas were recruited when reward was cued cross-modally. The strongest dissociation between the intra- and cross-modal reward-driven effects was observed at the level of the feedforward and feedback connections of the visual cortex estimated from the winning model. These results suggest that, in the presence of previously rewarded stimuli from different sensory modalities, a combination of domain-general and domain-specific mechanisms are recruited across the brain to adjust the visual perception.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Reward has a profound effect on perception, but it is not known whether shared or disparate mechanisms underlie the reward-driven effects across sensory modalities. In this human fMRI study, we examined the reward-driven modulation of the visual cortex by visual (intra-modal) and auditory (cross-modal) reward-associated cues. Using a model-based approach to identify the most plausible pattern of inter-regional effective connectivity, we found that higher-order areas involved in the valuation and attentional processing were recruited by both types of rewards. However, the pattern of connectivity between these areas and the early visual cortex was distinct between the intra- and cross-modal rewards. This evidence suggests that, to effectively adapt to the environment, reward signals may recruit both domain-general and domain-specific mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica Emily Antono
- Perception and Cognition Lab, European Neuroscience Institute Goettingen-A Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Goettingen and the Max-Planck-Society, Germany, Goettingen, 37077, Germany
| | - Shilpa Dang
- Perception and Cognition Lab, European Neuroscience Institute Goettingen-A Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Goettingen and the Max-Planck-Society, Germany, Goettingen, 37077, Germany
- School of Artificial Intelligence and Data Science, Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur, Karwar, Jodhpur 342030, India
| | - Ryszard Auksztulewicz
- Center for Cognitive Neuroscience Berlin, Free University Berlin, Berlin, 14195, Germany
| | - Arezoo Pooresmaeili
- Perception and Cognition Lab, European Neuroscience Institute Goettingen-A Joint Initiative of the University Medical Center Goettingen and the Max-Planck-Society, Germany, Goettingen, 37077, Germany
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Nishimoto R, Fujiwara S, Kutoku Y, Ogata T, Mihara M. Effect of dual-task interaction combining postural and visual perturbations on cortical activity and postural control ability. Neuroimage 2023; 280:120352. [PMID: 37648121 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.120352] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Revised: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 08/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have suggested cortical involvement in postural control in humans by measuring cortical activities and conducting dual-task paradigms. In dual-task paradigms, task performance deteriorates and can be facilitated in specific dual-task settings. Theoretical frameworks explaining these dual-task interactions have been proposed and debated for decades. Therefore, we investigated postural control performance under different visual conditions using a virtual reality system, simultaneously measuring cortical activities with a functional near-infrared spectroscopy system. Twenty-four healthy participants were included in this study. Postural stability and cortical activities after perturbations were measured under several conditions consisting of postural and visual perturbations. The results showed that concurrent visual and postural perturbations could facilitate cortical activities in the supplementary motor area and superior parietal lobe. Additionally, visual distractors deteriorated postural control ability and cortical activation of the supplementary motor area. These findings supported the theoretical framework of the "Cross talk model", in which concurrent tasks using similar neural domains can facilitate these task performances. Furthermore, it indicated that the cortical resource capacity and domains activated for information processing should be considered in experiments involving dual-task paradigms and training.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryoki Nishimoto
- Department of Neurology, Kawasaki Medical School, Okayama 701-0192, Japan; Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan
| | - Sayaka Fujiwara
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan
| | - Yumiko Kutoku
- Department of Neurology, Kawasaki Medical School, Okayama 701-0192, Japan
| | - Toru Ogata
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan; Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, The University of Tokyo Hospital, Tokyo 113-8655, Japan
| | - Masahito Mihara
- Department of Neurology, Kawasaki Medical School, Okayama 701-0192, Japan.
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Gundlach C, Wehle S, Müller MM. Early sensory gain control is dominated by obligatory and global feature-based attention in top-down shifts of combined spatial and feature-based attention. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:10286-10302. [PMID: 37536059 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad282] [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: 05/24/2023] [Revised: 07/12/2023] [Accepted: 07/13/2023] [Indexed: 08/05/2023] Open
Abstract
What are the dynamics of global feature-based and spatial attention, when deployed together? In an attentional shifting experiment, flanked by three control experiments, we investigated neural temporal dynamics of combined attentional shifts. For this purpose, orange- and blue-frequency-tagged spatially overlapping Random Dot Kinematograms were presented in the left and right visual hemifield to elicit continuous steady-state-visual-evoked-potentials. After being initially engaged in a fixation cross task, participants were at some point in time cued to shift attention to one of the Random Dot Kinematograms, to detect and respond to brief coherent motion events, while ignoring all such events in other Random Dot Kinematograms. The analysis of steady-state visual-evoked potentials allowed us to map time courses and dynamics of early sensory-gain modulations by attention. This revealed a time-invariant amplification of the to-be attended color both at the attended and the unattended side, followed by suppression for the to-be-ignored color at attended and unattended sides. Across all experiments, global and obligatory feature-based selection dominated early sensory gain modulations, whereas spatial attention played a minor modulatory role. However, analyses of behavior and neural markers such as alpha-band activity and event-related potentials to target- and distractor-event processing, revealed clear modulations by spatial attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Gundlach
- Experimental Psychology and Methods, Universität Leipzig, Leipzig 04107, Germany
| | - Sebastian Wehle
- Experimental Psychology and Methods, Universität Leipzig, Leipzig 04107, Germany
| | - Matthias M Müller
- Experimental Psychology and Methods, Universität Leipzig, Leipzig 04107, Germany
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Liao MR, Kim AJ, Anderson BA. Neural correlates of value-driven spatial orienting. Psychophysiology 2023; 60:e14321. [PMID: 37171022 PMCID: PMC10524674 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14321] [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] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2022] [Revised: 04/10/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Reward learning has been shown to habitually guide overt spatial attention to specific regions of a scene. However, the neural mechanisms that support this bias are unknown. In the present study, participants learned to orient themselves to a particular quadrant of a scene (a high-value quadrant) to maximize monetary gains. This learning was scene-specific, with the high-value quadrant varying across different scenes. During a subsequent test phase, participants were faster at identifying a target if it appeared in the high-value quadrant (valid), and initial saccades were more likely to be made to the high-value quadrant. fMRI analyses during the test phase revealed learning-dependent priority signals in the caudate tail, superior colliculus, frontal eye field, anterior cingulate cortex, and insula, paralleling findings concerning feature-based, value-driven attention. In addition, ventral regions typically associated with scene selection and spatial information processing, including the hippocampus, parahippocampal gyrus, and temporo-occipital cortex, were also implicated. Taken together, our findings offer new insights into the neural architecture subserving value-driven attention, both extending our understanding of nodes in the attention network previously implicated in feature-based, value-driven attention and identifying a ventral network of brain regions implicated in reward's influence on scene-dependent spatial orienting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming-Ray Liao
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
| | - Andy J Kim
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
| | - Brian A Anderson
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
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12
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Dolci C, Boehler CN, Santandrea E, Dewulf A, Ben-Hamed S, Macaluso E, Chelazzi L, Rashal E. Integrated effects of top-down attention and statistical learning during visual search: An EEG study. Atten Percept Psychophys 2023; 85:1819-1833. [PMID: 37264294 PMCID: PMC10545573 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-023-02728-y] [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] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/03/2023]
Abstract
The present study aims to investigate how the competition between visual elements is solved by top-down and/or statistical learning (SL) attentional control (AC) mechanisms when active together. We hypothesized that the "winner" element that will undergo further processing is selected either by one AC mechanism that prevails over the other, or by the joint activity of both mechanisms. To test these hypotheses, we conducted a visual search experiment that combined an endogenous cueing protocol (valid vs. neutral cue) and an imbalance of target frequency distribution across locations (high- vs. low-frequency location). The unique and combined effects of top-down control and SL mechanisms were measured on behaviour and amplitudes of three evoked-response potential (ERP) components (i.e., N2pc, P1, CNV) related to attentional processing. Our behavioural results showed better performance for validly cued targets and for targets in the high-frequency location. The two factors were found to interact, so that SL effects emerged only in the absence of top-down guidance. Whereas the CNV and P1 only displayed a main effect of cueing, for the N2pc we observed an interaction between cueing and SL, revealing a cueing effect for targets in the low-frequency condition, but not in the high-frequency condition. Thus, our data support the view that top-down control and SL work in a conjoint, integrated manner during target selection. In particular, SL mechanisms are reduced or even absent when a fully reliable top-down guidance of attention is at play.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carola Dolci
- Department of Neuroscience, Biomedicine, and Movement Science, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie, 8, 37134, Verona, Italy.
| | - C Nico Boehler
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Elisa Santandrea
- Department of Neuroscience, Biomedicine, and Movement Science, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie, 8, 37134, Verona, Italy
| | - Anneleen Dewulf
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | | | | | - Leonardo Chelazzi
- Department of Neuroscience, Biomedicine, and Movement Science, University of Verona, Strada le Grazie, 8, 37134, Verona, Italy
| | - Einat Rashal
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
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Okayasu M, Inukai T, Tanaka D, Tsumura K, Shintaki R, Takeda M, Nakahara K, Jimura K. The Stroop effect involves an excitatory-inhibitory fronto-cerebellar loop. Nat Commun 2023; 14:27. [PMID: 36631460 PMCID: PMC9834394 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-35397-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2022] [Accepted: 11/30/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
The Stroop effect is a classical, well-known behavioral phenomenon in humans that refers to robust interference between language and color information. It remains unclear, however, when the interference occurs and how it is resolved in the brain. Here we show that the Stroop effect occurs during perception of color-word stimuli and involves a cross-hemispheric, excitatory-inhibitory loop functionally connecting the lateral prefrontal cortex and cerebellum. Participants performed a Stroop task and a non-verbal control task (which we term the Swimmy task), and made a response vocally or manually. The Stroop effect involved the lateral prefrontal cortex in the left hemisphere and the cerebellum in the right hemisphere, independently of the response type; such lateralization was absent during the Swimmy task, however. Moreover, the prefrontal cortex amplified cerebellar activity, whereas the cerebellum suppressed prefrontal activity. This fronto-cerebellar loop may implement language and cognitive systems that enable goal-directed behavior during perceptual conflicts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moe Okayasu
- Department of Biosciences and Informatics, Keio University, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Tensei Inukai
- Department of Biosciences and Informatics, Keio University, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Daiki Tanaka
- Department of Biosciences and Informatics, Keio University, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Kaho Tsumura
- Department of Biosciences and Informatics, Keio University, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Reiko Shintaki
- Department of Biosciences and Informatics, Keio University, Yokohama, Japan
| | - Masaki Takeda
- Research Center for Brain Communication, Kochi University of Technology, Kami, Japan
| | - Kiyoshi Nakahara
- Research Center for Brain Communication, Kochi University of Technology, Kami, Japan
| | - Koji Jimura
- Department of Biosciences and Informatics, Keio University, Yokohama, Japan.
- Research Center for Brain Communication, Kochi University of Technology, Kami, Japan.
- Department of Informatics, Gunma University, Maebashi, Japan.
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14
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Jeong E, Ireland SJ. Criterion-Related Validation of a Music-Based Attention Assessment for Individuals with Traumatic Brain Injury. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:16285. [PMID: 36498353 PMCID: PMC9738551 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192316285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2022] [Revised: 11/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
The music-based attention assessment (MAA) is a melody contour identification task that evaluates different types of attention. Previous studies have examined the psychometric and physiological validity of the MAA across various age groups in clinical and typical populations. The purpose of this study was to confirm the MAA's criterion validity in individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and to correlate this with standardized neuropsychological measurements. The MAA and various neurocognitive tests (i.e., the Wechsler adult intelligence scale DST, Delis-Kaplan executive functioning scale color-word interference test, and Conner's continuous performance test) were administered to 38 patients within two weeks prior to or post to the MAA administration. Significant correlations between MAA and neurocognitive batteries were found, indicating the potential of MAA as a valid measure of different types of attention deficits. An additional multiple regression analysis revealed that MAA was a significant factor in predicting attention ability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eunju Jeong
- Department of Music Therapy, Graduate School, Ewha Womans University, Seoul 03760, Republic of Korea
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15
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Bleau M, Paré S, Chebat DR, Kupers R, Nemargut JP, Ptito M. Neural substrates of spatial processing and navigation in blindness: An activation likelihood estimation meta-analysis. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:1010354. [PMID: 36340755 PMCID: PMC9630591 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.1010354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2022] [Accepted: 09/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Even though vision is considered the best suited sensory modality to acquire spatial information, blind individuals can form spatial representations to navigate and orient themselves efficiently in space. Consequently, many studies support the amodality hypothesis of spatial representations since sensory modalities other than vision contribute to the formation of spatial representations, independently of visual experience and imagery. However, given the high variability in abilities and deficits observed in blind populations, a clear consensus about the neural representations of space has yet to be established. To this end, we performed a meta-analysis of the literature on the neural correlates of spatial processing and navigation via sensory modalities other than vision, like touch and audition, in individuals with early and late onset blindness. An activation likelihood estimation (ALE) analysis of the neuroimaging literature revealed that early blind individuals and sighted controls activate the same neural networks in the processing of non-visual spatial information and navigation, including the posterior parietal cortex, frontal eye fields, insula, and the hippocampal complex. Furthermore, blind individuals also recruit primary and associative occipital areas involved in visuo-spatial processing via cross-modal plasticity mechanisms. The scarcity of studies involving late blind individuals did not allow us to establish a clear consensus about the neural substrates of spatial representations in this specific population. In conclusion, the results of our analysis on neuroimaging studies involving early blind individuals support the amodality hypothesis of spatial representations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxime Bleau
- École d’Optométrie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Samuel Paré
- École d’Optométrie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Daniel-Robert Chebat
- Visual and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory (VCN Lab), Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Ariel University, Ariel, Israel
- Navigation and Accessibility Research Center of Ariel University (NARCA), Ariel University, Ariel, Israel
| | - Ron Kupers
- École d’Optométrie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Institute of Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Louvain, Brussels, Belgium
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | | | - Maurice Ptito
- École d’Optométrie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada
- *Correspondence: Maurice Ptito,
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16
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The posterior parietal area V6A: an attentionally-modulated visuomotor region involved in the control of reach-toF-grasp action. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 141:104823. [PMID: 35961383 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2022] [Revised: 07/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
In the macaque, the posterior parietal area V6A is involved in the control of all phases of reach-to-grasp actions: the transport phase, given that reaching neurons are sensitive to the direction and amplitude of arm movement, and the grasping phase, since reaching neurons are also sensitive to wrist orientation and hand shaping. Reaching and grasping activity are corollary discharges which, together with the somatosensory and visual signals related to the same movement, allow V6A to act as a state estimator that signals discrepancies during the motor act in order to maintain consistency between the ongoing movement and the desired one. Area V6A is also able to encode the target of an action because of gaze-dependent visual neurons and real-position cells. Here, we advance the hypothesis that V6A also uses the spotlight of attention to guide goal-directed movements of the hand, and hosts a priority map that is specific for the guidance of reaching arm movement, combining bottom-up inputs such as visual responses with top-down signals such as reaching plans.
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17
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Musz E, Loiotile R, Chen J, Cusack R, Bedny M. Naturalistic stimuli reveal a sensitive period in cross modal responses of visual cortex: Evidence from adult-onset blindness. Neuropsychologia 2022; 172:108277. [PMID: 35636634 PMCID: PMC9648859 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108277] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2021] [Revised: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2022] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
How do life experiences impact cortical function? In people who are born blind, the "visual" cortices are recruited during nonvisual tasks, such as Braille reading and sound localization. Do visual cortices have a latent capacity to respond to nonvisual information throughout the lifespan? Alternatively, is there a sensitive period of heightened plasticity that makes visual cortex repurposing especially possible during childhood? To gain insight into these questions, we leveraged meaningful naturalistic auditory stimuli to simultaneously engage a broad range of cognitive domains and quantify cross-modal responses across congenitally blind (n = 22), adult-onset blind (vision loss >18 years-of-age, n = 14) and sighted (n = 22) individuals. During fMRI scanning, participants listened to two types of meaningful naturalistic auditory stimuli: excerpts from movies and a spoken narrative. As controls, participants heard the same narrative with the sentences shuffled and the narrative played backwards (i.e., meaningless sounds). We correlated the voxel-wise timecourses of different participants within condition and group. For all groups, all stimulus conditions induced synchrony in auditory cortex while only the narrative stimuli synchronized responses in higher-cognitive fronto-parietal and temporal regions. As previously reported, inter-subject synchrony in visual cortices was higher in congenitally blind than sighted blindfolded participants and this between-group difference was particularly pronounced for meaningful stimuli (movies and narrative). Critically, visual cortex synchrony was no higher in adult-onset blind than sighted blindfolded participants and did not increase with blindness duration. Sensitive period plasticity enables cross-modal repurposing in visual cortices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth Musz
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - Rita Loiotile
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Janice Chen
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Rhodri Cusack
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, School of Psychology, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Marina Bedny
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
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18
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Yoo AH, Bolaños A, Hallenbeck GE, Rahmati M, Sprague TC, Curtis CE. Behavioral Prioritization Enhances Working Memory Precision and Neural Population Gain. J Cogn Neurosci 2022; 34:365-379. [PMID: 34942647 PMCID: PMC9017245 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01804] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Humans allocate visual working memory (WM) resource according to behavioral relevance, resulting in more precise memories for more important items. Theoretically, items may be maintained by feature-tuned neural populations, where the relative gain of the populations encoding each item determines precision. To test this hypothesis, we compared the amplitudes of delay period activity in the different parts of retinotopic maps representing each of several WM items, predicting the amplitudes would track behavioral priority. Using fMRI, we scanned participants while they remembered the location of multiple items over a WM delay and then reported the location of one probed item using a memory-guided saccade. Importantly, items were not equally probable to be probed (0.6, 0.3, 0.1, 0.0), which was indicated with a precue. We analyzed fMRI activity in 10 visual field maps in occipital, parietal, and frontal cortex known to be important for visual WM. In early visual cortex, but not association cortex, the amplitude of BOLD activation within voxels corresponding to the retinotopic location of visual WM items increased with the priority of the item. Interestingly, these results were contrasted with a common finding that higher-level brain regions had greater delay period activity, demonstrating a dissociation between the absolute amount of activity in a brain area and the activity of different spatially selective populations within it. These results suggest that the distribution of WM resources according to priority sculpts the relative gains of neural populations that encode items, offering a neural mechanism for how prioritization impacts memory precision.
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19
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Wang L, Huang L, Li M, Wang X, Wang S, Lin Y, Zhang X. An awareness-dependent mapping of saliency in the human visual system. Neuroimage 2021; 247:118864. [PMID: 34965453 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118864] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2021] [Revised: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The allocation of exogenously cued spatial attention is governed by a saliency map. Yet, how salience is mapped when multiple salient stimuli are present simultaneously, and how this mapping interacts with awareness remains unclear. These questions were addressed here using either visible or invisible displays presenting two foreground stimuli (whose bars were oriented differently from the bars in the otherwise uniform background): a high salience target and a distractor of varied, lesser salience. Interference, or not, by the distractor with the effective salience of the target served to index a graded or non-graded nature of salience mapping, respectively. The invisible and visible displays were empirically validated by a two-alternative forced choice test (detecting the quadrant of the target) demonstrating subjects' performance at or above chance level, respectively. By combining psychophysics, fMRI, and effective connectivity analysis, we found a graded distribution of salience with awareness, changing to a non-graded distribution without awareness. Crucially, we further revealed that the graded distribution was contingent upon feedback from the posterior intraparietal sulcus (pIPS, especially from the right pIPS), whereas the non-graded distribution was innate to V1. Together, this awareness-dependent mapping of saliency reconciles several previous, seemingly contradictory findings regarding the nature of the saliency map.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lijuan Wang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Ling Huang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Mengsha Li
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Xiaotong Wang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Shiyu Wang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Yuefa Lin
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China
| | - Xilin Zhang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510631, China.
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20
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Ouerfelli-Ethier J, Salemme R, Fournet R, Urquizar C, Pisella L, Khan AZ. Impaired Spatial Inhibition Processes for Interhemispheric Anti-saccades following Dorsal Posterior Parietal Lesions. Cereb Cortex Commun 2021; 2:tgab054. [PMID: 34604753 PMCID: PMC8481671 DOI: 10.1093/texcom/tgab054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2021] [Revised: 08/25/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Anti-saccades are eye movements that require inhibition to stop the automatic saccade to the visual target and to perform instead a saccade in the opposite direction. The inhibitory processes underlying anti-saccades have been primarily associated with frontal cortex areas for their role in executive control. Impaired performance in anti-saccades has also been associated with the parietal cortex, but its role in inhibitory processes remains unclear. Here, we tested the assumption that the dorsal parietal cortex contributes to spatial inhibition processes of contralateral visual target. We measured anti-saccade performance in 2 unilateral optic ataxia patients and 15 age-matched controls. Participants performed 90 degree (across and within visual fields) and 180 degree inversion anti-saccades, as well as pro-saccades. The main result was that our patients took longer to inhibit visually guided saccades when the visual target was presented in the ataxic hemifield and the task required a saccade across hemifields. This was observed through anti-saccades latencies and error rates. These deficits show the crucial role of the dorsal posterior parietal cortex in spatial inhibition of contralateral visual target representations to plan an accurate anti-saccade toward the ipsilesional side.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Ouerfelli-Ethier
- School of Optometry, University of Montreal, Montreal H3T 1P1, Canada
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, Trajectoires Team, INSERM 1028, CNRS UMR 5292, University of Lyon I Claude-Bernard, Lyon 69500, France
| | - Romeo Salemme
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, Trajectoires Team, INSERM 1028, CNRS UMR 5292, University of Lyon I Claude-Bernard, Lyon 69500, France
| | - Romain Fournet
- School of Optometry, University of Montreal, Montreal H3T 1P1, Canada
| | - Christian Urquizar
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, Trajectoires Team, INSERM 1028, CNRS UMR 5292, University of Lyon I Claude-Bernard, Lyon 69500, France
| | - Laure Pisella
- Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, Trajectoires Team, INSERM 1028, CNRS UMR 5292, University of Lyon I Claude-Bernard, Lyon 69500, France
| | - Aarlenne Z Khan
- School of Optometry, University of Montreal, Montreal H3T 1P1, Canada
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21
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Jamoulle T, Ran Q, Meersmans K, Schaeverbeke J, Dupont P, Vandenberghe R. Posterior Intraparietal Sulcus Mediates Detection of Salient Stimuli Outside the Endogenous Focus of Attention. Cereb Cortex 2021; 32:1455-1469. [PMID: 34467392 PMCID: PMC8971085 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab299] [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: 03/25/2021] [Revised: 07/16/2021] [Accepted: 07/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Visual consciousness is shaped by the interplay between endogenous selection and exogenous capture. If stimulus saliency is aligned with a subject’s attentional priorities, endogenous selection will be facilitated. In case of a misalignment, endogenous selection may be compromised as attentional capture is a strong and automatic process. We manipulated task-congruent versus -incongruent saliency in a functional magnetic resonance imaging change-detection task and analyzed brain activity patterns in the cortex surrounding the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) within the Julich-Brain probabilistic cytoarchitectonic mapping reference frame. We predicted that exogenous effects would be seen mainly in the posterior regions of the IPS (hIP4–hIP7–hIP8), whereas a conflict between endogenous and exogenous orienting would elicit activity from more anterior cytoarchitectonic areas (hIP1–hIP2–hIP3). Contrary to our hypothesis, a conflict between endogenous and exogenous orienting had an effect early in the IPS (mainly in hIP7 and hIP8). This is strong evidence for an endogenous component in hIP7/8 responses to salient stimuli beyond effects of attentional bottom-up sweep. Our results suggest that hIP7 and hIP8 are implicated in the individuation of attended locations based on saliency as well as endogenous instructions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tarik Jamoulle
- Laboratory for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Qian Ran
- Laboratory for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Karen Meersmans
- Laboratory for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jolien Schaeverbeke
- Laboratory for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Patrick Dupont
- Laboratory for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Rik Vandenberghe
- Laboratory for Cognitive Neurology, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Neurology Department, University Hospitals Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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22
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Nah JC, Malcolm GL, Shomstein S. Task-Irrelevant Semantic Properties of Objects Impinge on Sensory Representations within the Early Visual Cortex. Cereb Cortex Commun 2021; 2:tgab049. [PMID: 34447936 PMCID: PMC8382923 DOI: 10.1093/texcom/tgab049] [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: 07/06/2021] [Revised: 07/06/2021] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Objects can be described in terms of low-level (e.g., boundaries) and high-level properties (e.g., object semantics). While recent behavioral findings suggest that the influence of semantic relatedness between objects on attentional allocation can be independent of task-relevance, the underlying neural substrate of semantic influences on attention remains ill-defined. Here, we employ behavioral and functional magnetic resonance imaging measures to uncover the mechanism by which semantic information increases visual processing efficiency. We demonstrate that the strength of the semantic relatedness signal decoded from the left inferior frontal gyrus: 1) influences attention, producing behavioral semantic benefits; 2) biases spatial attention maps in the intraparietal sulcus, subsequently modulating early visual cortex activity; and 3) directly predicts the magnitude of behavioral semantic benefit. Altogether, these results identify a specific mechanism driving task-independent semantic influences on attention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph C Nah
- Center for Mind and Brain, University of California at Davis, Davis, CA 95618, USA
| | - George L Malcolm
- School of Psychology, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - Sarah Shomstein
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, The George Washington University, Washington, DC 20052, USA
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23
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Brinkhuis MAB, Kristjánsson Á, Harvey BM, Brascamp JW. Temporal Characteristics of Priming of Attention Shifts Are Mirrored by BOLD Response Patterns in the Frontoparietal Attention Network. Cereb Cortex 2021; 30:2267-2280. [PMID: 31701138 PMCID: PMC7174988 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhz238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Priming of attention shifts involves the reduction in search RTs that occurs when target location or target features repeat. We used functional magnetic resonance imaging to investigate the neural basis of such attentional priming, specifically focusing on its temporal characteristics over trial sequences. We first replicated earlier findings by showing that repetition of target color and of target location from the immediately preceding trial both result in reduced blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) signals in a cortical network that encompasses occipital, parietal, and frontal cortices: lag-1 repetition suppression. While such lag-1 suppression can have a number of explanations, behaviorally, the influence of attentional priming extends further, with the influence of past search trials gradually decaying across multiple subsequent trials. Our results reveal that the same regions within the frontoparietal network that show lag-1 suppression, also show longer term BOLD reductions that diminish over the course of several trial presentations, keeping pace with the decaying behavioral influence of past target properties across trials. This distinct parallel between the across-trial patterns of cortical BOLD and search RT reductions, provides strong evidence that these cortical areas play a key role in attentional priming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manje A B Brinkhuis
- Department of Psychology, University of Iceland, IS-101 Reykjavík, Iceland.,Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, 3584 CS, Netherlands
| | - Árni Kristjánsson
- Department of Psychology, University of Iceland, IS-101 Reykjavík, Iceland.,School of Psychology, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russian Federation
| | - Ben M Harvey
- Experimental Psychology, Helmholtz Institute, Utrecht University, Utrecht, 3584 CS, Netherlands
| | - Jan W Brascamp
- Department of Psychology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48823, United States
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24
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Huddleston WE, Swanson AN, Lytle JR, Aleksandrowicz MS. Distinct saccade planning and endogenous visuospatial attention maps in parietal cortex: A basis for functional differences in sensory and motor attention. Cortex 2021; 137:292-304. [PMID: 33676176 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2021.01.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2020] [Revised: 11/20/2020] [Accepted: 01/14/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Parietal cortex activity contributes to higher-level cognitive processes, including endogenous visual attention and saccade planning. While visual attention is the process of selecting pertinent information from the environment, saccade planning may involve motor attention in the planning of a specific movement, including the process of selecting the correct path. We isolated areas in parietal cortex involved in saccade planning, while controlling visual attention, to understand the relationship between the two processes. Using our novel stimulus, participants performed a delayed saccade task and an endogenous covert visuospatial attention task with peripheral targets in identical locations. We compared multiple target locations across the two domains at the level of the individual to better understand variability in the relationship between these two maps. The anterior-posterior organization of saccade planning and visual attention maps varied among, but not within, participants, and 14-29% of the maps for each task overlapped one another across hemispheres. Interestingly, within the region of co-activation, over 67% of the voxels responded to the same location for both tasks. These cortical areas of overlap may represent regions of the brain specifically involved in the transfer of information from vision to action along the visuomotor pathway. These results further establish the relationship between maps associated with saccade planning and visual attention at the individual level, indicating the lack of a single saliency map in parietal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wendy E Huddleston
- Department of Rehabilitation Sciences & Technology, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA.
| | - Alex N Swanson
- Department of Rehabilitation Sciences & Technology, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA
| | - James R Lytle
- Department of Rehabilitation Sciences & Technology, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA
| | - Michael S Aleksandrowicz
- Department of Rehabilitation Sciences & Technology, University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI, USA
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25
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Qiao L, Xu M, Luo X, Zhang L, Li H, Chen A. Flexible adjustment of the effective connectivity between the fronto-parietal and visual regions supports cognitive flexibility. Neuroimage 2020; 220:117158. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2019] [Revised: 07/05/2020] [Accepted: 07/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
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26
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Affect-biased attention and predictive processing. Cognition 2020; 203:104370. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2020.104370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2019] [Revised: 05/22/2020] [Accepted: 06/03/2020] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
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27
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Cona G, Wiener M, Scarpazza C. From ATOM to GradiATOM: Cortical gradients support time and space processing as revealed by a meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies. Neuroimage 2020; 224:117407. [PMID: 32992001 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117407] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2019] [Revised: 08/31/2020] [Accepted: 09/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
According to the ATOM (A Theory Of Magnitude), formulated by Walsh more than fifteen years ago, there is a general system of magnitude in the brain that comprises regions, such as the parietal cortex, shared by space, time and other magnitudes. The present meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies used the Activation Likelihood Estimation (ALE) method in order to determine the set of regions commonly activated in space and time processing and to establish the neural activations specific to each magnitude domain. Following PRISMA guidelines, we included in the analysis a total of 112 and 114 experiments, exploring space and time processing, respectively. We clearly identified the presence of a system of brain regions commonly recruited in both space and time that includes: bilateral insula, the pre-supplementary motor area (pre-SMA), the right frontal operculum and the intraparietal sulci. These regions might be the best candidates to form the core magnitude neural system. Surprisingly, along each of these regions but the insula, ALE values progressed in a cortical gradient from time to space. The SMA exhibited an anterior-posterior gradient, with space activating more-anterior regions (i.e., pre-SMA) and time activating more-posterior regions (i.e., SMA-proper). Frontal and parietal regions showed a dorsal-ventral gradient: space is mediated by dorsal frontal and parietal regions, and time recruits ventral frontal and parietal regions. Our study supports but also expands the ATOM theory. Therefore, we here re-named it the 'GradiATOM' theory (Gradient Theory of Magnitude), proposing that gradient organization can facilitate the transformations and integrations of magnitude representations by allowing space- and time-related neural populations to interact with each other over minimal distances.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgia Cona
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Via Venezia 8, 35131, Padua, Italy; Padova Neuroscience Center, University of Padua, Italy.
| | - Martin Wiener
- Department of Psychology, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA.
| | - Cristina Scarpazza
- Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Via Venezia 8, 35131, Padua, Italy.
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28
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Nested oscillations and brain connectivity during sequential stages of feature-based attention. Neuroimage 2020; 223:117354. [PMID: 32916284 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2020] [Revised: 08/10/2020] [Accepted: 09/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Brain mechanisms of visual selective attention involve both local and network-level activity changes at specific oscillatory rhythms, but their interplay remains poorly explored. Here, we investigate anticipatory and reactive effects of feature-based attention using separate fMRI and EEG recordings, while participants attended to one of two spatially overlapping visual features (motion and orientation). We focused on EEG source analysis of local neuronal rhythms and nested oscillations and on graph analysis of connectivity changes in a network of fMRI-defined regions of interest, and characterized a cascade of attentional effects at multiple spatial scales. We discuss how the results may reconcile several theories of selective attention, by showing how β rhythms support anticipatory information routing through increased network efficiency, while reactive α-band desynchronization patterns and increased α-γ coupling in task-specific sensory areas mediate stimulus-evoked processing of task-relevant signals.
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McCusker MC, Wiesman AI, Schantell MD, Eastman JA, Wilson TW. Multi-spectral oscillatory dynamics serving directed and divided attention. Neuroimage 2020; 217:116927. [PMID: 32438050 PMCID: PMC7573387 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.116927] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2020] [Revised: 05/01/2020] [Accepted: 05/07/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Attention-related amplification of neural representations of external stimuli has been well documented in the visual domain, however, research concerning the oscillatory dynamics of such directed attention is relatively sparse in humans. Specifically, it is unknown which spectrally-specific neural responses are mainly impacted by the direction and division of attention, as well as whether the effects of attention on these oscillations are spatially disparate. In this study, we use magnetoencephalography and a visual-somatosensory oddball task to investigate the whole-brain oscillatory dynamics of directed (Experiment 1; N = 26) and divided (Experiment 2; N = 34) visual attention. Sensor-level data were transformed into the time-frequency domain and significant responses from baseline were imaged using a frequency-resolved beamformer. We found that multi-spectral cortical oscillations were stronger when attention was sustained in the visual space and that these effects exhibited informative spatial distributions that differed by frequency. More specifically, we found stronger frontal theta (4–8 Hz), frontal and occipital alpha (8–14 Hz), occipital beta (16–22 Hz), and frontal gamma (74–84 Hz) responses when visual attention was sustained than when it was directed away from the visual domain. Similarly, in the divided attention condition, we observed stronger fronto-parietal theta activity and temporo-parietal alpha and beta oscillations when visual attention was sustained toward the visual stimuli than divided between the visual and somatosensory domains. Investigating how attentional gain is implemented in the human brain is essential for better understanding how this process is degraded in disease, and may provide useful targets for future therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie C McCusker
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA; Cognitive Neuroscience of Development & Aging (CoNDA) Center, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Alex I Wiesman
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA; Cognitive Neuroscience of Development & Aging (CoNDA) Center, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA; Department of Neurological Sciences, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Mikki D Schantell
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA; Cognitive Neuroscience of Development & Aging (CoNDA) Center, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Jacob A Eastman
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA; Cognitive Neuroscience of Development & Aging (CoNDA) Center, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Tony W Wilson
- Center for Magnetoencephalography, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA; Cognitive Neuroscience of Development & Aging (CoNDA) Center, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA; Department of Neurological Sciences, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, NE, USA.
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30
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Bourgeois A, Guedj C, Carrera E, Vuilleumier P. Pulvino-cortical interaction: An integrative role in the control of attention. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 111:104-113. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2018] [Revised: 12/02/2019] [Accepted: 01/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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31
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ElShafei HA, Fornoni L, Masson R, Bertrand O, Bidet-Caulet A. Age-related modulations of alpha and gamma brain activities underlying anticipation and distraction. PLoS One 2020; 15:e0229334. [PMID: 32163441 PMCID: PMC7067396 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0229334] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2019] [Accepted: 02/04/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Attention operates through top-down (TD) and bottom-up (BU) mechanisms. Recently, it has been shown that slow (alpha) frequencies index facilitatory and suppressive mechanisms of TD attention and faster (gamma) frequencies signal BU attentional capture. Ageing is characterized by increased behavioral distractibility, resulting from either a reduced efficiency of TD attention or an enhanced triggering of BU attention. However, only few studies have investigated the impact of ageing upon the oscillatory activities involved in TD and BU attention. MEG data were collected from 14 elderly and 14 matched young healthy human participants while performing the Competitive Attention Task. Elderly participants displayed (1) exacerbated behavioral distractibility, (2) altered TD suppressive mechanisms, indexed by a reduced alpha synchronization in task-irrelevant regions, (3) less prominent alpha peak-frequency differences between cortical regions, (4) a similar BU system activation indexed by gamma activity, and (5) a reduced activation of lateral prefrontal inhibitory control regions. These results show that the ageing-related increased distractibility is of TD origin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hesham A. ElShafei
- Brain Dynamics and Cognition Team, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CRNL, INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, University of Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
- Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- * E-mail:
| | - Lesly Fornoni
- Brain Dynamics and Cognition Team, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CRNL, INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, University of Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Rémy Masson
- Brain Dynamics and Cognition Team, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CRNL, INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, University of Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Olivier Bertrand
- Brain Dynamics and Cognition Team, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CRNL, INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, University of Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
| | - Aurélie Bidet-Caulet
- Brain Dynamics and Cognition Team, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, CRNL, INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, University of Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France
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32
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Machner B, Lencer MC, Möller L, von der Gablentz J, Heide W, Helmchen C, Sprenger A. Unbalancing the Attentional Priority Map via Gaze-Contingent Displays Induces Neglect-Like Visual Exploration. Front Hum Neurosci 2020; 14:41. [PMID: 32153377 PMCID: PMC7045871 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2020.00041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2019] [Accepted: 01/27/2020] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Selective spatial attention is a crucial cognitive process that guides us to the behaviorally relevant objects in a complex visual world by using exploratory eye movements. The spatial location of objects, their (bottom-up) saliency and (top-down) relevance is assumed to be encoded in one “attentional priority map” in the brain, using different egocentric (eye-, head- and trunk-centered) spatial reference frames. In patients with hemispatial neglect, this map is supposed to be imbalanced, leading to a spatially biased exploration of the visual environment. As a proof of concept, we altered the visual saliency (and thereby attentional priority) of objects in a naturalistic scene along a left-right spatial gradient and investigated whether this can induce a bias in the exploratory eye movements of healthy humans (n = 28; all right-handed; mean age: 23 years, range 19–48). We developed a computerized mask, using high-end “gaze-contingent display (GCD)” technology, that immediately and continuously reduced the saliency of objects on the left—“left” with respect to the head (body-centered) and the current position on the retina (eye-centered). In both experimental conditions, task-free viewing and goal-driven visual search, this modification induced a mild but significant bias in visual exploration similar to hemispatial neglect. Accordingly, global eye movement parameters changed (reduced number and increased duration of fixations) and the spatial distribution of fixations indicated an attentional bias towards the right (rightward shift of first orienting, fixations favoring the scene’s outmost right over left). Our results support the concept of an attentional priority map in the brain as an interface between perception and behavior and as one pathophysiological ground of hemispatial neglect.
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Affiliation(s)
- Björn Machner
- Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Marie C Lencer
- Department of Psychology II, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | - Lisa Möller
- Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
| | | | - Wolfgang Heide
- Department of Neurology, General Hospital Celle, Celle, Germany
| | | | - Andreas Sprenger
- Department of Neurology, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany.,Department of Psychology II, University of Lübeck, Lübeck, Germany
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33
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Abstract
Spatial attention is comprised of neural mechanisms that boost sensory processing at a behaviorally relevant location while filtering out competing information. The present review examines functional specialization in the network of brain regions that directs such preferential processing. This attention network includes both cortical (e.g., frontal and parietal cortices) and subcortical (e.g., the superior colliculus and the pulvinar nucleus of the thalamus) structures. Here, we piece together existing evidence that these various nodes of the attention network have dissociable functional roles by synthesizing results from electrophysiology and neuroimaging studies. We describe functional specialization across several dimensions (e.g., at different processing stages and within different behavioral contexts), while focusing on spatial attention as a dynamic process that unfolds over time. Functional contributions from each node of the attention network can change on a moment-to-moment timescale, providing the necessary cognitive flexibility for sampling from highly dynamic environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian C Fiebelkorn
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA;
| | - Sabine Kastner
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA;
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34
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Mäki-Marttunen V, Hagen T, Laeng B, Espeseth T. Distinct Neural Mechanisms Meet Challenges in Dynamic Visual Attention due to Either Load or Object Spacing. J Cogn Neurosci 2020; 32:65-84. [DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
When engaged in dynamic visuospatial tasks, the brain copes with perceptual and cognitive processing challenges. During multiple-object tracking (MOT), the number of objects to be tracked (i.e., load) imposes attentional demands, but so does spatial interference from irrelevant objects (i.e., close encounters). Presently, it is not clear whether the effect of load on accuracy solely depends on the number of close encounters. If so, the same cognitive and physiological mechanisms deal with increasing load by preparing for and dealing with spatial interference. However, this has never been directly tested. Such knowledge is important to understand the neurophysiology of dynamic visual attention and resolve conflicting views within visual cognition concerning sources of capacity limitations. We varied the processing challenge in MOT task in two ways: the number of targets and the minimum spatial proximity between targets and distractors. In a first experiment, we measured task-induced pupil dilations and saccades during MOT. In a separate cohort, we measured fMRI activity. In both cohorts, increased load and close encounters (i.e., close spatial proximity) led to reduced accuracy in an additive manner. Load was associated with pupil dilations, whereas close encounters were not. Activity in dorsal attentional areas and frequency of saccades were proportionally larger both with higher levels of load and close encounters. Close encounters recruited additionally ventral attentional areas that may reflect orienting mechanisms. The activity in two brainstem nuclei, ventral tegmental area/substantia nigra and locus coeruleus, showed clearly dissociated patterns. Our results constitute convergent evidence indicating that different mechanisms underlie processing challenges due to load and object spacing.
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35
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Abstract
Visual attention prioritizes the processing of sensory information at specific spatial locations (spatial attention; SA) or with specific feature values (feature-based attention; FBA). SA is well characterized in terms of behavior, brain activity, and temporal dynamics-for both top-down (endogenous) and bottom-up (exogenous) spatial orienting. FBA has been thoroughly studied in terms of top-down endogenous orienting, but much less is known about the potential of bottom-up exogenous influences of FBA. Here, in four experiments, we adapted a procedure used in two previous studies that reported exogenous FBA effects, with the goal of replicating and expanding on these findings, especially regarding its temporal dynamics. Unlike the two previous studies, we did not find significant effects of exogenous FBA. This was true (1) whether accuracy or RT was prioritized as the main measure, (2) with precues presented peripherally or centrally, (3) with cue-to-stimulus ISIs of varying durations, (4) with four or eight possible target locations, (5) at different meridians, (6) with either brief or long stimulus presentations, (7) and with either fixation contingent or noncontingent stimulus displays. In the last experiment, a postexperiment participant questionnaire indicated that only a small subset of participants, who mistakenly believed the irrelevant color of the precue indicated which stimulus was the target, exhibited benefits for valid exogenous FBA precues. Overall, we conclude that with the protocol used in the studies reporting exogenous FBA, the exogenous stimulus-driven influence of FBA is elusive at best, and that FBA is primarily a top-down, goal-driven process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ian Donovan
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ying Joey Zhou
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Marisa Carrasco
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
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36
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Pierce JE, Saj A, Vuilleumier P. Differential parietal activations for spatial remapping and saccadic control in a visual memory task. Neuropsychologia 2019; 131:129-138. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.05.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2018] [Revised: 03/13/2019] [Accepted: 05/10/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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37
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Di Caro V, Theeuwes J, Della Libera C. Suppression history of distractor location biases attentional and oculomotor control. VISUAL COGNITION 2019. [DOI: 10.1080/13506285.2019.1617376] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Di Caro
- Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, Italy
| | - Jan Theeuwes
- Department of Experimental and Applied Psychology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Institute Brain and Behavior Amsterdam (iBBA), Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Chiara Della Libera
- Department of Neurosciences, Biomedicine and Movement Sciences, University of Verona, Verona, Italy
- National Institute of Neuroscience, Verona, Italy
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38
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Cona G, Scarpazza C. Where is the "where" in the brain? A meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies on spatial cognition. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 40:1867-1886. [PMID: 30600568 PMCID: PMC6865398 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2018] [Revised: 11/06/2018] [Accepted: 11/29/2018] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Spatial representations are processed in the service of several different cognitive functions. The present study capitalizes on the Activation Likelihood Estimation (ALE) method of meta-analysis to identify: (a) the shared neural activations among spatial functions to reveal the "core" network of spatial processing; (b) the specific neural activations associated with each of these functions. Following PRISMA guidelines, a total of 133 fMRI and PET studies were included in the meta-analysis. The overall analysis showed that the core network of spatial processing comprises regions that are symmetrically distributed on both hemispheres and that include dorsal frontoparietal regions, presupplementary motor area, anterior insula, and frontal operculum. The specific analyses revealed the brain regions that are selectively recruited for each spatial function, such as the right temporoparietal junction for shift of spatial attention, the right parahippocampal gyrus, and the retrosplenial cortex for navigation and spatial long-term memory. The findings are integrated within a systematic review of the neuroimaging literature and a new neurocognitive model of spatial cognition is proposed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgia Cona
- Department of General PsychologyUniversity of PaduaPaduaItaly
- Padova Neuroscience CenterUniversity of PaduaPaduaItaly
| | - Cristina Scarpazza
- Department of General PsychologyUniversity of PaduaPaduaItaly
- Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & NeuroscienceKing's College Health Partners, King's College LondonLondonUnited Kingdom
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Suárez-Suárez S, Rodríguez Holguín S, Cadaveira F, Nobre AC, Doallo S. Punishment-related memory-guided attention: Neural dynamics of perceptual modulation. Cortex 2019; 115:231-245. [PMID: 30852377 PMCID: PMC6525146 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2019.01.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2018] [Revised: 10/03/2018] [Accepted: 01/30/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Remembering the outcomes of past experiences allows us to generate future expectations and shape selection in the long-term. A growing number of studies has shown that learned positive reward values impact spatial memory-based attentional biases on perception. However, whether memory-driven attentional biases extend to punishment-related values has received comparatively less attention. Here, we manipulated whether recent spatial contextual memories became associated with successful avoidance of punishment (potential monetary loss). Behavioral and electrophysiological measures were collected from 27 participants during a subsequent memory-based attention task, in which we tested for the effect of punishment avoidance associations. Punishment avoidance significantly amplified effects of spatial contextual memories on visual search processes within natural scenes. Compared to non-associated scenes, contextual memories paired with punishment avoidance lead to faster responses to targets presented at remembered locations. Event-related potentials elicited by target stimuli revealed that acquired motivational value of specific spatial locations, by virtue of their association with past avoidance of punishment, dynamically affected neural signatures of early visual processing (indexed by larger P1 and earlier N1 potentials) and target selection (as indicated by reduced N2pc potentials). The present results extend our understanding of how memory, attention, and punishment-related mechanisms interact to optimize perceptual decision in real world environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samuel Suárez-Suárez
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Socorro Rodríguez Holguín
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Fernando Cadaveira
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
| | - Anna C Nobre
- Department of Experimental Psychology and Oxford Centre for Human Brain Activity, Department of Psychiatry, Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Sonia Doallo
- Department of Clinical Psychology and Psychobiology, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
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40
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Neurons in FEF Keep Track of Items That Have Been Previously Fixated in Free Viewing Visual Search. J Neurosci 2019; 39:2114-2124. [PMID: 30647149 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1767-18.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2018] [Revised: 11/30/2018] [Accepted: 12/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
When searching a visual scene for a target, we tend not to look at items or locations we have already searched. It is thought that this behavior is driven by an inhibitory tagging mechanism that inhibits responses on priority maps to the relevant items. We hypothesized that this inhibitory tagging signal should be represented as an elevated response in neurons that keep track of stimuli that have been fixated. We recorded from 231 neurons in the frontal eye field (FEF) of 2 male animals performing a visual foraging task, in which they had to find a reward linked to one of five identical targets (Ts) among five distractors. We identified 38 neurons with activity that was significantly greater when the stimulus in the receptive field had been fixated previously in the trial than when it had not been fixated. The response to a fixated object began before the saccade ended, suggesting that this information is remapped. Unlike most FEF neurons, the activity in these cells was not suppressed during active fixation, had minimal motor responses, and did not change through the trial. Yet using traditional classifications from a memory-guided saccade, they were indistinguishable from the rest of the FEF population. We propose that these neurons keep track of any items that have been fixated within the trial and this signal is propagated by remapping. These neurons could be the source of the inhibitory tagging signal to parietal cortex, where a neuronal instantiation of inhibitory tagging is seen.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT When we search a scene for an item, we rarely examine the same location twice. It is thought that this is due to a neural mechanism that keeps track of the items at which we have looked. Here we identified a subset of neurons in the frontal eye field that preferentially responded to items that had been fixated earlier in the trial. These responses were remapped, appearing before the saccade even ended, and were not suppressed during maintained fixation. We propose that these neurons keep track of which items have been examined in search and could be the source of feedback that creates the inhibitory tagging seen in parietal cortex.
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41
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Goal-driven, stimulus-driven, and history-driven selection. Curr Opin Psychol 2019; 29:97-101. [PMID: 30711911 DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2018.12.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2018] [Revised: 11/26/2018] [Accepted: 12/31/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
In this paper, I present a framework which considers three independent factors that drive attentional selection. In addition to goal-driven and stimulus-driven selection, I discuss how lingering biases of selection history play a major role in attentional selection. Visual statistical learning of the regularities in the environment forms the basis for this history-based selection which provides an elaborate and flexible attentional biasing mechanism above and beyond goal-driven and stimulus-driven factors. A selection based on experience and history is fast, automatic and occurs without much, if any, effort. I conclude that learning and extracting the distributional properties of the environment have a major impact on attentional selection.
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42
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Jeong E, Ryu H, Shin JH, Kwon GH, Jo G, Lee JY. High Oxygen Exchange to Music Indicates Auditory Distractibility in Acquired Brain Injury: An fNIRS Study with a Vector-Based Phase Analysis. Sci Rep 2018; 8:16737. [PMID: 30425287 PMCID: PMC6233191 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-35172-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2018] [Accepted: 10/31/2018] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Attention deficits due to auditory distractibility are pervasive among patients with acquired brain injury (ABI). It remains unclear, however, whether attention deficits following ABI specific to auditory modality are associated with altered haemodynamic responses. Here, we examined cerebral haemodynamic changes using functional near-infrared spectroscopy combined with a topological vector-based analysis method. A total of thirty-seven participants (22 healthy adults, 15 patients with ABI) performed a melodic contour identification task (CIT) that simulates auditory distractibility. Findings demonstrated that the melodic CIT was able to detect auditory distractibility in patients with ABI. The rate-corrected score showed that the ABI group performed significantly worse than the non-ABI group in both CIT1 (target contour identification against environmental sounds) and CIT2 (target contour identification against target-like distraction). Phase-associated response intensity during the CITs was greater in the ABI group than in the non-ABI group. Moreover, there existed a significant interaction effect in the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) during CIT1 and CIT2. These findings indicated that stronger hemodynamic responses involving oxygen exchange in the left DLPFC can serve as a biomarker for evaluating and monitoring auditory distractibility, which could potentially lead to the discovery of the underlying mechanism that causes auditory attention deficits in patients with ABI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eunju Jeong
- Department of Arts and Technology, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea.
- Division of Industrial Information Studies, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea.
| | - Hokyoung Ryu
- Department of Arts and Technology, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea
- Graduate School of Technology and Innovation Management, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea
| | - Joon-Ho Shin
- Department of Neurorehabilitation, National Rehabilitation Center, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Seoul, 01022, Republic of Korea
| | - Gyu Hyun Kwon
- Department of Arts and Technology, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea
- Graduate School of Technology and Innovation Management, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea
| | - Geonsang Jo
- Department of Arts and Technology, Hanyang University, Seoul, 04763, Republic of Korea
| | - Ji-Yeong Lee
- Department of Neurorehabilitation, National Rehabilitation Center, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Seoul, 01022, Republic of Korea
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Brissenden JA, Tobyne SM, Osher DE, Levin EJ, Halko MA, Somers DC. Topographic Cortico-cerebellar Networks Revealed by Visual Attention and Working Memory. Curr Biol 2018; 28:3364-3372.e5. [PMID: 30344119 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2018.08.059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2018] [Revised: 08/03/2018] [Accepted: 08/29/2018] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Substantial portions of the cerebellum appear to support non-motor functions; however, previous investigations of cerebellar involvement in cognition have revealed only a coarse degree of specificity. Although somatotopic maps have been observed within cerebellum, similar precision within cortico-cerebellar networks supporting non-motor functions has not previously been reported. Here, we find that human cerebellar lobule VIIb/VIIIa differentially codes key aspects of visuospatial cognition. Ipsilateral visuospatial representations were observed during both a visual working memory and an attentionally demanding visual receptive field-mapping fMRI task paradigm. Moreover, within lobule VIIb/VIIIa, we observed a functional dissociation between spatial coding and visual working memory processing. Visuospatial representations were found in the dorsomedial portion of lobule VIIb/VIIIa, and load-dependent visual working memory processing was shifted ventrolaterally. A similar functional gradient for spatial versus load processing was found in posterior parietal cortex. This cerebral cortical organization was well predicted by functional connectivity with spatial and load regions of cerebellar lobule VIIb/VIIIa. Collectively, our findings indicate that recruitment by visuospatial attentional functions within cerebellar lobule VIIb/VIIIa is highly specific. Furthermore, the topographic arrangement of these functions is mirrored in frontal and parietal cortex. These findings motivate a closer examination of cortico-cerebellar functional specialization across a broad range of cognitive domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- James A Brissenden
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, 64 Cummington Mall, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Sean M Tobyne
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, 64 Cummington Mall, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - David E Osher
- Department of Psychology, Ohio State University, 1835 Neil Avenue, Columbus, OH 43210, USA
| | - Emily J Levin
- Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, 190 Thayer Street, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Mark A Halko
- Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, 330 Brookline Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - David C Somers
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, 64 Cummington Mall, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
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Neural correlates of risk perception as a function of risk level: An approach to the study of risk through a daily life task. Neuropsychologia 2018; 119:464-473. [PMID: 30244003 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.09.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2018] [Revised: 09/17/2018] [Accepted: 09/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
We are often required to make decisions that can have safe or risky consequences. Evaluating the risk of each possible alternative is an important step before making our final decision. The main goal of the present research was to explore the neural basis of risk perception in a naturalistic context (driving). Twenty-two drivers evaluated the perceived risk in 72 traffic situations (previously categorized by driving instructors) while brain activity was recorded using fMRI. A neural network involving attentional factors, emotional processing, stimulus-response associations, and risk aversion was related to the perception of risks. Given the nature of our task, a more prominent role was played by emotional factors (evaluation of the consequences) than cognitive factors (e.g. probabilistic calculations). Moreover, activation in the insula, inferior frontal gyrus, precentral/postcentral gyrus, inferior parietal gyrus, and temporal and occipital regions linearly increased as a function of risk level. Our findings provide a new step towards understanding the neural processing underlying risk behavior in daily life tasks, which is particularly relevant given the study context and its important practical implications for our society.
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Salmi J, Salmela V, Salo E, Mikkola K, Leppämäki S, Tani P, Hokkanen L, Laasonen M, Numminen J, Alho K. Out of focus – Brain attention control deficits in adult ADHD. Brain Res 2018; 1692:12-22. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2018.04.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2017] [Revised: 04/06/2018] [Accepted: 04/18/2018] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
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Tompary A, Al-Aidroos N, Turk-Browne NB. Attending to What and Where: Background Connectivity Integrates Categorical and Spatial Attention. J Cogn Neurosci 2018; 30:1281-1297. [PMID: 29791296 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01284] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Top-down attention prioritizes the processing of goal-relevant information throughout visual cortex based on where that information is found in space and what it looks like. Whereas attentional goals often have both spatial and featural components, most research on the neural basis of attention has examined these components separately. Here we investigated how these attentional components are integrated by examining the attentional modulation of functional connectivity between visual areas with different selectivity. Specifically, we used fMRI to measure temporal correlations between spatially selective regions of early visual cortex and category-selective regions in ventral temporal cortex while participants performed a task that benefitted from both spatial and categorical attention. We found that categorical attention modulated the connectivity of category-selective areas, but only with retinotopic areas that coded for the spatially attended location. Similarly, spatial attention modulated the connectivity of retinotopic areas only with the areas coding for the attended category. This pattern of results suggests that attentional modulation of connectivity is driven both by spatial selection and featural biases. Combined with exploratory analyses of frontoparietal areas that track these changes in connectivity among visual areas, this study begins to shed light on how different components of attention are integrated in support of more complex behavioral goals.
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Ljubojevic V, Luu P, Gill PR, Beckett LA, Takehara-Nishiuchi K, De Rosa E. Cholinergic Modulation of Frontoparietal Cortical Network Dynamics Supporting Supramodal Attention. J Neurosci 2018; 38:3988-4005. [PMID: 29572433 PMCID: PMC6705925 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2350-17.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2017] [Revised: 02/24/2018] [Accepted: 03/13/2018] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
A critical function of attention is to support a state of readiness to enhance stimulus detection, independent of stimulus modality. The nucleus basalis magnocellularis (NBM) is the major source of the neurochemical acetylcholine (ACh) for frontoparietal cortical networks thought to support attention. We examined a potential supramodal role of ACh in a frontoparietal cortical attentional network supporting target detection. We recorded local field potentials (LFPs) in the prelimbic frontal cortex (PFC) and the posterior parietal cortex (PPC) to assess whether ACh contributed to a state of readiness to alert rats to an impending presentation of visual or olfactory targets in one of five locations. Twenty male Long-Evans rats underwent training and then lesions of the NBM using the selective cholinergic immunotoxin 192 IgG-saporin (0.3 μg/μl; ACh-NBM-lesion) to reduce cholinergic afferentation of the cortical mantle. Postsurgery, ACh-NBM-lesioned rats had less correct responses and more omissions than sham-lesioned rats, which changed parametrically as we increased the attentional demands of the task with decreased target duration. This parametric deficit was found equally for both sensory targets. Accurate detection of visual and olfactory targets was associated specifically with increased LFP coherence, in the beta range, between the PFC and PPC, and with increased beta power in the PPC before the target's appearance in sham-lesioned rats. Readiness-associated changes in brain activity and visual and olfactory target detection were attenuated in the ACh-NBM-lesioned group. Accordingly, ACh may support supramodal attention via modulating activity in a frontoparietal cortical network, orchestrating a state of readiness to enhance target detection.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT We examined whether the neurochemical acetylcholine (ACh) contributes to a state of readiness for target detection, by engaging frontoparietal cortical attentional networks independent of modality. We show that ACh supported alerting attention to an impending presentation of either visual or olfactory targets. Using local field potentials, enhanced stimulus detection was associated with an anticipatory increase in power in the beta oscillation range before the target's appearance within the posterior parietal cortex (PPC) as well as increased synchrony, also in beta, between the prefrontal cortex and PPC. These readiness-associated changes in brain activity and behavior were attenuated in rats with reduced cortical ACh. Thus, ACh may act, in a supramodal manner, to prepare frontoparietal cortical attentional networks for target detection.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Paul Luu
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A8, Canada
| | | | - Lee-Anne Beckett
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 3G3, Canada, and
| | | | - Eve De Rosa
- Department of Human Development and Human Neuroscience Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York 14853
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Ekanayake J, Hutton C, Ridgway G, Scharnowski F, Weiskopf N, Rees G. Real-time decoding of covert attention in higher-order visual areas. Neuroimage 2018; 169:462-472. [PMID: 29247807 PMCID: PMC5864512 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.12.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2017] [Revised: 12/06/2017] [Accepted: 12/09/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Brain-computer-interfaces (BCI) provide a means of using human brain activations to control devices for communication. Until now this has only been demonstrated in primary motor and sensory brain regions, using surgical implants or non-invasive neuroimaging techniques. Here, we provide proof-of-principle for the use of higher-order brain regions involved in complex cognitive processes such as attention. Using realtime fMRI, we implemented an online 'winner-takes-all approach' with quadrant-specific parameter estimates, to achieve single-block classification of brain activations. These were linked to the covert allocation of attention to real-world images presented at 4-quadrant locations. Accuracies in three target regions were significantly above chance, with individual decoding accuracies reaching upto 70%. By utilising higher order mental processes, 'cognitive BCIs' access varied and therefore more versatile information, potentially providing a platform for communication in patients who are unable to speak or move due to brain injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinendra Ekanayake
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Interventional and Surgical Sciences, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
| | - Chloe Hutton
- Siemens Molecular Imaging, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | | | - Frank Scharnowski
- Psychiatric University Hospital, University of Zürich, Lenggstrasse 31, 8032 Zürich, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zürich, University of Zürich and Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Winterthurerstr. 190, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland; Zürich Center for Integrative Human Physiology (ZIHP), University of Zürich, Winterthurerstr. 190, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Nikolaus Weiskopf
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Neurophysics, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Geraint Rees
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, United Kingdom; Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, United Kingdom
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Thomas NA, Nicholls MER. Asymmetries in Distractibility: Left Distractors Improve Reaction Time Performance. Sci Rep 2018; 8:5157. [PMID: 29581447 PMCID: PMC5979947 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-23498-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2017] [Accepted: 03/14/2018] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Research using the irrelevant-distractor paradigm shows perceptual load influences distractibility, such that distractors are more likely to be processed and decrease reaction times during low perceptual load. In contrast, under high load, attentional resources are limited, and the likelihood of distractibility is decreased. We manipulated distractor placement to determine whether location differentially influenced distractibility. During low load, reaction times were increased equally for all distractor locations. Under high load, left distractors speeded reaction times significantly more than right distractors. We suggest two potential explanations: (1) the central focus of attention was sufficiently large to encapsulate both the distractor and the visual array during low perceptual load, leading to increased distraction—during high load, attention was split across the two visual stimuli, allowing the distractors and array to be processed independently; (2) superior executive control for stimuli in the left visual field allowed participants to ‘catch and release’ left distractors more efficiently, ultimately decreasing distraction and providing a performance benefit. Our findings represent an intriguing development in relation to visual asymmetries in distractibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole A Thomas
- College of Healthcare Sciences, James Cook University, Cairns, Australia. .,College of Education, Psychology, and Social Work, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia.
| | - Michael E R Nicholls
- College of Education, Psychology, and Social Work, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia
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Sung K, Gordon B. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) facilitates overall visual search response times but does not interact with visual search task factors. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0194640. [PMID: 29558513 PMCID: PMC5860774 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0194640] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2017] [Accepted: 03/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Whether transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) affects mental functions, and how any such effects arise from its neural effects, continue to be debated. We investigated whether tDCS applied over the visual cortex (Oz) with a vertex (Cz) reference might affect response times (RTs) in a visual search task. We also examined whether any significant tDCS effects would interact with task factors (target presence, discrimination difficulty, and stimulus brightness) that are known to selectively influence one or the other of the two information processing stages posited by current models of visual search. Based on additive factor logic, we expected that the pattern of interactions involving a significant tDCS effect could help us colocalize the tDCS effect to one (or both) of the processing stages. In Experiment 1 (n = 12), anodal tDCS improved RTs significantly; cathodal tDCS produced a nonsignificant trend toward improvement. However, there were no interactions between the anodal tDCS effect and target presence or discrimination difficulty. In Experiment 2 (n = 18), we manipulated stimulus brightness along with target presence and discrimination difficulty. Anodal and cathodal tDCS both produced significant improvements in RTs. Again, the tDCS effects did not interact with any of the task factors. In Experiment 3 (n = 16), electrodes were placed at Cz and on the upper arm, to test for a possible effect of incidental stimulation of the motor regions under Cz. No effect of tDCS on RTs was found. These findings strengthen the case for tDCS having real effects on cerebral information processing. However, these effects did not clearly arise from either of the two processing stages of the visual search process. We suggest that this is because tDCS has a DIFFUSE, pervasive action across the task-relevant neuroanatomical region(s), not a discrete effect in terms of information processing stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyongje Sung
- Department of Neurology, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Barry Gordon
- Department of Neurology, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
- Cognitive Science Department, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, United States of America
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