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Sperber C, Wiesen D, Karnath H, de Haan B. The neuroanatomy of visual extinction following right hemisphere brain damage: Insights from multivariate and Bayesian lesion analyses in acute stroke. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26639. [PMID: 38433712 PMCID: PMC10910281 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Revised: 01/08/2024] [Accepted: 02/06/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Multi-target attention, that is, the ability to attend and respond to multiple visual targets presented simultaneously on the horizontal meridian across both visual fields, is essential for everyday real-world behaviour. Given the close link between the neuropsychological deficit of extinction and attentional limits in healthy subjects, investigating the anatomy that underlies extinction is uniquely capable of providing important insights concerning the anatomy critical for normal multi-target attention. Previous studies into the brain areas critical for multi-target attention and its failure in extinction patients have, however, produced heterogeneous results. In the current study, we used multivariate and Bayesian lesion analysis approaches to investigate the anatomical substrate of visual extinction in a large sample of 108 acute right hemisphere stroke patients. The use of acute stroke patient data and multivariate/Bayesian lesion analysis approaches allowed us to address limitations associated with previous studies and so obtain a more complete picture of the functional network associated with visual extinction. Our results demonstrate that the right temporo-parietal junction (TPJ) is critically associated with visual extinction. The Bayesian lesion analysis additionally implicated the right intraparietal sulcus (IPS), in line with the results of studies in neurologically healthy participants that highlighted the IPS as the area critical for multi-target attention. Our findings resolve the seemingly conflicting previous findings, and emphasise the urgent need for further research to clarify the precise cognitive role of the right TPJ in multi-target attention and its failure in extinction patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christoph Sperber
- Center of Neurology, Division of NeuropsychologyHertie‐Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of TübingenTübingenGermany
- Department of NeurologyInselspital, University Hospital BernBernSwitzerland
| | - Daniel Wiesen
- Center of Neurology, Division of NeuropsychologyHertie‐Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of TübingenTübingenGermany
| | - Hans‐Otto Karnath
- Center of Neurology, Division of NeuropsychologyHertie‐Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of TübingenTübingenGermany
- Department of PsychologyUniversity of South CarolinaColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
| | - Bianca de Haan
- Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience, College of Health and Life Sciences, Brunel University LondonUxbridgeUK
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2
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Scharf C, Koschutnig K, Zussner T, Fink A, Tilp M. Twelve weeks of physical exercise breaks with coordinative exercises at the workplace increase the sulcal depth and decrease gray matter volume in brain structures related to visuomotor processes. Brain Struct Funct 2024; 229:63-74. [PMID: 38070007 PMCID: PMC10827861 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-023-02732-w] [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: 03/17/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2024]
Abstract
Physical exercise can evoke changes in the brain structure. Consequently, these can lead to positive impacts on brain health. However, physical exercise studies including coordinative exercises are rare. Therefore, in this study, we investigated how 12 weeks of physical exercise breaks (PEBs) with coordinative exercises, focusing mainly on juggling tasks, affected the brain structure. The participants were randomly allocated to an intervention group (IG, n = 16; 42.8 ± 10.2 years) and a control group (CG, n = 9; 44.2 ± 12.3 years). The IG performed the PEBs with coordinative exercises twice per week for 15-20 min per session. Before the intervention, after 6 weeks of the intervention, and after 12 weeks of the intervention, participants underwent a high-resolution 3T T1-weighted magnetic resonance imagining scan. Juggling performance was assessed by measuring the time taken to perform a three-ball cascade. A surface-based analysis revealed an increase in vertex-wise cortical depth in a cluster including the inferior parietal lobe after 6 and 12 weeks of training in the IG. After 12 weeks, the IG showed a decrease in gray matter (GM) volume in a cluster primarily involving the right insula and the right operculum. The changes in the GM volume were related to improvements in juggling performance. No significant changes were found for the CG. To conclude, the present study showed that regular engagement in PEBs with coordinative exercises led to changes in brain structures strongly implicated in visuomotor processes involving hand and arm movements.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina Scharf
- Institute of Human Movement Science, Sport and Health, University of Graz, Mozartgasse 14, 8010, Graz, Austria.
| | - Karl Koschutnig
- Institute of Psychology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010, Graz, Austria
| | - Thomas Zussner
- Institute of Psychology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010, Graz, Austria
| | - Andreas Fink
- Institute of Psychology, University of Graz, Universitätsplatz 2, 8010, Graz, Austria
| | - Markus Tilp
- Institute of Human Movement Science, Sport and Health, University of Graz, Mozartgasse 14, 8010, Graz, Austria
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3
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Raposo I, Szczepanski SM, Haaland K, Endestad T, Solbakk AK, Knight RT, Helfrich RF. Periodic attention deficits after frontoparietal lesions provide causal evidence for rhythmic attentional sampling. Curr Biol 2023; 33:4893-4904.e3. [PMID: 37852264 PMCID: PMC10842514 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.09.065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2023] [Revised: 08/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023]
Abstract
Contemporary models conceptualize spatial attention as a blinking spotlight that sequentially samples visual space. Hence, behavior fluctuates over time, even in states of presumed "sustained" attention. Recent evidence has suggested that rhythmic neural activity in the frontoparietal network constitutes the functional basis of rhythmic attentional sampling. However, causal evidence to support this notion remains absent. Using a lateralized spatial attention task, we addressed this issue in patients with focal lesions in the frontoparietal attention network. Our results revealed that frontoparietal lesions introduce periodic attention deficits, i.e., temporally specific behavioral deficits that are aligned with the underlying neural oscillations. Attention-guided perceptual sensitivity was on par with that of healthy controls during optimal phases but was attenuated during the less excitable sub-cycles. Theta-dependent sampling (3-8 Hz) was causally dependent on the prefrontal cortex, while high-alpha/low-beta sampling (8-14 Hz) emerged from parietal areas. Collectively, our findings reveal that lesion-induced high-amplitude, low-frequency brain activity is not epiphenomenal but has immediate behavioral consequences. More generally, these results provide causal evidence for the hypothesis that the functional architecture of attention is inherently rhythmic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Raposo
- Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University Medical Center Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany; International Max Planck Research School for the Mechanisms of Mental Function and Dysfunction, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Sara M Szczepanski
- Department of Psychology and the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Kathleen Haaland
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of New Mexico Health Sciences, Albuquerque, NM 87102, USA
| | - Tor Endestad
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, 0373 Oslo, Norway; RITMO Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Rhythm, Time, and Motion, University of Oslo, 0371 Oslo, Norway
| | - Anne-Kristin Solbakk
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, 0373 Oslo, Norway; RITMO Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies in Rhythm, Time, and Motion, University of Oslo, 0371 Oslo, Norway; Department of Neurosurgery, Oslo University Hospital, 0372 Oslo, Norway; Department of Neuropsychology, Helgeland Hospital, 8656 Mosjøen, Norway
| | - Robert T Knight
- Department of Psychology and the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, UC Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Randolph F Helfrich
- Hertie Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University Medical Center Tübingen, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.
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4
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Contò F, Tyler S, Paletta P, Battelli L. The role of the parietal lobe in task-irrelevant suppression during learning. Brain Stimul 2023; 16:715-723. [PMID: 37062348 DOI: 10.1016/j.brs.2023.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Revised: 04/07/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 04/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Attention optimizes the selection of visual information, while suppressing irrelevant visual input through cortical mechanisms that are still unclear. We set to investigate these processes using an attention task with an embedded to-be-ignored interfering visual input. OBJECTIVE We delivered electrical stimulation to attention-related brain areas to modulate these facilitatory/inhibitory attentional mechanisms. We asked whether overtly training on a task while being covertly exposed to visual features from a visually identical but different task tested at baseline might influence post-training performance on the baseline task. METHODS In Experiment one, at baseline subjects performed an orientation discrimination (OD) task using a pair of gratings presented at individual's psychophysical threshold. We then trained participants over three-day separate sessions on a temporal order judgment task (TOJ), using the exact same gratings but presented with different time offsets. On the last post-training session we re-tested OD. We coupled training with transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS) over the parietal cortex, the human middle temporal area or sham, in three separate groups. In Experiment two, subjects performed the same OD task at baseline and post-training, while tRNS was delivered at rest during the same sessions and stimulation conditions as in Experiment one. RESULTS Results showed that tRNS over parietal cortex facilitated learning of the trained TOJ task. Moreover, we found a detrimental effect on the untrained OD task when subjects received parietal tRNS coupled with training (Experiment one), but a benefit on OD when subjects received stimulation while at rest (Experiment two). CONCLUSIONS These results clearly indicate that task-irrelevant information is actively suppressed during learning, and that this prioritization mechanism of selection likely resides in the parietal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- F Contò
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068, Rovereto (TN), Italy.
| | - S Tyler
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068, Rovereto (TN), Italy; Butte College, Oroville, CA, 95965, USA
| | - P Paletta
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068, Rovereto (TN), Italy
| | - L Battelli
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Corso Bettini 31, 38068, Rovereto (TN), Italy; Department of Neurology, Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02215, USA; Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 01238, USA.
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5
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Masina F, Pezzetta R, Lago S, Mantini D, Scarpazza C, Arcara G. Disconnection from prediction: A systematic review on the role of right temporoparietal junction in aberrant predictive processing. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 138:104713. [PMID: 35636560 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Revised: 05/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The right temporoparietal junction (rTPJ) is a brain area that plays a critical role in a variety of cognitive functions. Although different theoretical proposals tried to explain the ubiquitous role of rTPJ, recent evidence suggests that rTPJ may be a fundamental cortical region involved in different kinds of predictions. This systematic review aims to better investigate the potential role of rTPJ under a predictive processing perspective, providing an overview of cognitive impairments in neurological patients as the consequence of structural or functional disconnections or damage of rTPJ. Results confirm the involvement of rTPJ across several tasks and neurological pathologies. RTPJ, via its connections with other brain networks, would integrate diverse information and update internal models of the world. Against traditional views, which tend to focus on distinct domains, we argue that the role of rTPJ can be parsimoniously interpreted as a key hub involved in domain-general predictions. This alternative account of rTPJ role in aberrant predictive processing opens different perspectives, stimulating new hypotheses in basic research and clinical contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Sara Lago
- IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy.
| | - Dante Mantini
- Research Center for Motor Control and Neuroplasticity, KU Leuven, Leuven 3001, Belgium.
| | - Cristina Scarpazza
- IRCCS San Camillo Hospital, Venice, Italy; Department of General Psychology, University of Padua, Padua, Italy.
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Honma M, Saito S, Atsumi T, Tokushige SI, Inomata-Terada S, Chiba A, Terao Y. Inducing Cortical Plasticity to Manipulate and Consolidate Subjective Time Interval Production. Neuromodulation 2022; 25:511-519. [PMID: 35667769 DOI: 10.1111/ner.13413] [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: 10/13/2020] [Revised: 02/27/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Time awareness may change depending on the mental state or disease conditions, although each individual perceives his/her own sense of time as stable and accurate. Nevertheless, the processes that consolidate altered duration production remain unclear. The present study aimed to manipulate the subjective duration production via memory consolidation through the modulation of neural plasticity. MATERIALS AND METHODS We first performed false feedback training of duration or length production and examined the period required for natural recovery from the altered production. Next, persistent neural plasticity was promoted by quadripulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (QPS) over the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), temporoparietal junction (TPJ), and primary motor cortex (M1). We conducted the same feedback training in the individual and studied how the time course of false learning changed. RESULTS We observed that altered duration production after false feedback returned to baseline within two hours. Next, immediate exposure to false feedback during neural plasticity enhancement revealed that in individuals who received QPS over the right DLPFC, but not over TPJ or M1, false duration production was maintained for four hours; furthermore, the efficacy persisted for at least one week. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that, while learned altered duration production decays over several hours, QPS over the right DLPFC enables the consolidation of newly learned duration production.
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Affiliation(s)
- Motoyasu Honma
- Department of Medical Physiology, Kyorin University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
| | - Shoko Saito
- Department of Medical Physiology, Kyorin University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Takeshi Atsumi
- Department of Medical Physiology, Kyorin University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | | | - Satomi Inomata-Terada
- Department of Medical Physiology, Kyorin University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Atsuro Chiba
- Department of Neurology, Kyorin University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yasuo Terao
- Department of Medical Physiology, Kyorin University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
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7
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Nascimben M, Wang YK, King JT, Jung TP, Touryan J, Lance BJ, Lin CT. Alpha Correlates of Practice During Mental Preparation for Motor Imagery. IEEE Trans Cogn Dev Syst 2022. [DOI: 10.1109/tcds.2020.3026530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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8
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Nakajima R, Kinoshita M, Nakada M. Simultaneous Damage of the Cingulate Cortex Zone II and Fronto-Striatal Circuit Causes Prolonged Selective Attentional Deficits. Front Hum Neurosci 2022; 15:762578. [PMID: 35002655 PMCID: PMC8740164 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2021.762578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Selective attention is essential for successful cognitive performance. Although several brain areas are known to be involved in selective attention, damage to some of these areas does not necessarily cause attentional deficits. In the current study, we hypothesized that damage to specific parts of the right cerebral hemisphere, especially the cingulate cortex (CC), causes prolonged selective attentional deficits, and examined the influence of focal brain damage on selective attention. We recruited 36 patients with right cerebral hemispheric WHO grade 2 and 3 brain tumors who underwent surgery. We assessed selective attention over time from pre-operation to 3 months postoperatively using the cancelation test and color Stroop test, and calculated the percentage of deficit. Additionally, two types of imaging analyses were performed: voxel-based lesion symptom mapping (VLSM) and multiple logistic regression analysis, to reveal related brain regions for selective attention. Consequently, we found that the CC and deep part of the middle frontal gyrus were associated with deficits in selective attention via VLSM. Using multiple logistic regression analysis, the CC zone II at the cortical level (p < 0.0001) and the fronto-striatal tract (FST) at the subcortical level (p = 0.0079) were associated with attentional deficit among several regions identified in the VLSM. At 3 months postoperatively, selective attention was impaired in patients who underwent resection of these regions. Moreover, only patients with simultaneous damage of the CC zone II and FST had prolonged attentional deficits until the chronic phase. Our results suggest that the right CC zone II and FST are critical areas for the selective attentional networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Riho Nakajima
- Department of Occupational Therapy, Faculty of Health Science, Institute of Medical, Pharmaceutical and Health Sciences, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Japan
| | - Masashi Kinoshita
- Department of Neurosurgery, Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Medical, Pharmaceutical and Health Sciences, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Japan
| | - Mitsutoshi Nakada
- Department of Neurosurgery, Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Medical, Pharmaceutical and Health Sciences, Kanazawa University, Kanazawa, Japan
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9
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Contò F, Edwards G, Tyler S, Parrott D, Grossman E, Battelli L. Attention network modulation via tRNS correlates with attention gain. eLife 2021; 10:e63782. [PMID: 34826292 PMCID: PMC8626087 DOI: 10.7554/elife.63782] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS) can enhance vision in the healthy and diseased brain. Yet, the impact of multi-day tRNS on large-scale cortical networks is still unknown. We investigated the impact of tRNS coupled with behavioral training on resting-state functional connectivity and attention. We trained human subjects for 4 consecutive days on two attention tasks, while receiving tRNS over the intraparietal sulci, the middle temporal areas, or Sham stimulation. We measured resting-state functional connectivity of nodes of the dorsal and ventral attention network (DVAN) before and after training. We found a strong behavioral improvement and increased connectivity within the DVAN after parietal stimulation only. Crucially, behavioral improvement positively correlated with connectivity measures. We conclude changes in connectivity are a marker for the enduring effect of tRNS upon behavior. Our results suggest that tRNS has strong potential to augment cognitive capacity in healthy individuals and promote recovery in the neurological population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federica Contò
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of TrentoRoveretoItaly
| | - Grace Edwards
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Department of Psychology, Harvard UniversityCambridgeUnited States
| | - Sarah Tyler
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Butte CollegeOrovilleUnited States
| | - Danielle Parrott
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of TrentoRoveretoItaly
| | - Emily Grossman
- Department of Cognitive Sciences, University of California, IrvineIrvineUnited States
| | - Lorella Battelli
- Center for Neuroscience and Cognitive Systems@UniTn, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaRoveretoItaly
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of TrentoRoveretoItaly
- Department of Psychology, Harvard UniversityCambridgeUnited States
- Department of Neurology, Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation, Beth Israel, Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical SchoolBostonUnited States
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10
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Garakh Z, Larionova E, Zaytseva Y. EEG activity for semantic task in paranoid schizophrenia. Psych J 2020; 9:760-763. [PMID: 32896092 DOI: 10.1002/pchj.391] [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: 11/25/2019] [Revised: 05/08/2020] [Accepted: 06/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
We identified a potential neurophysiological marker for processing of verbal cues in paranoid schizophrenia: high desynchronization in the beta-2 band in the right parietal area for meaningless cues, and no synchronization differences in the beta-2 and gamma bands in the left prefrontal area pointing to deficient categorization of the stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhanna Garakh
- Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology of RAS, Moscow, Russia
| | - Ekaterina Larionova
- Institute of Higher Nervous Activity and Neurophysiology of RAS, Moscow, Russia
| | - Yuliya Zaytseva
- National Institute of Mental Health, Klecany, Czech Republic
- Third Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic
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11
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Winter U, LeVan P, Borghardt TL, Akin B, Wittmann M, Leyens Y, Schmidt S. Content-Free Awareness: EEG-fcMRI Correlates of Consciousness as Such in an Expert Meditator. Front Psychol 2020; 10:3064. [PMID: 32132942 PMCID: PMC7040185 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.03064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2019] [Accepted: 12/26/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The minimal neural correlate of the conscious state, regardless of the neural activity correlated with the ever-changing contents of experience, has still not been identified. Different attempts have been made, mainly by comparing the normal waking state to seemingly unconscious states, such as deep sleep or general anesthesia. A more direct approach would be the neuroscientific investigation of conscious states that are experienced as free of any specific phenomenal content. Here we present serendipitous data on content-free awareness (CFA) during an EEG-fMRI assessment reported by an extraordinarily qualified meditator with over 50,000 h of practice. We focused on two specific cortical networks related to external and internal awareness, i.e., the dorsal attention network (DAN) and the default mode network (DMN), to explore the neural correlates of this experience. The combination of high-resolution EEG and ultrafast fMRI enabled us to analyze the dynamic aspects of fMRI connectivity informed by EEG power analysis. The neural correlates of CFA were characterized by a sharp decrease in alpha power and an increase in theta power as well as increases in functional connectivity in the DAN and decreases in the posterior DMN. We interpret these findings as correlates of a top-down-initiated attentional state excluding external sensory stimuli and internal mentation from conscious experience. We conclude that the investigation of states of CFA could provide valuable input for new methodological and conceptual approaches in the search for the minimal neural correlate of consciousness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulf Winter
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Pierre LeVan
- Department of Radiology - Medical Physics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany.,Departments of Radiology and Paediatrics, Hotchkiss Brain Institute and Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | | | - Burak Akin
- Department of Radiology - Medical Physics, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany.,Center for Basics in NeuroModulation (NeuroModulBasics), Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Marc Wittmann
- Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Yeshe Leyens
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
| | - Stefan Schmidt
- Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg im Breisgau, Germany
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12
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Lateralized cognitive functions in Parkinson’s patients: A behavioral approach for the early detection of sustained attention deficits. Brain Res 2020; 1726:146486. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2019.146486] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2019] [Revised: 08/22/2019] [Accepted: 09/29/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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13
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Devaney KJ, Rosen ML, Levin EJ, Somers DC. Identification of Visual Attentional Regions of the Temporoparietal Junction in Individual Subjects using a Vivid, Novel Oddball Paradigm. Front Hum Neurosci 2019; 13:424. [PMID: 31920587 PMCID: PMC6917576 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2019.00424] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2018] [Accepted: 11/14/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The Temporoparietal Junction (TPJ) of the cerebral cortex is a functionally heterogeneous region that also exhibits substantial anatomical variability across individuals. As a result, the precise functional organization of TPJ remains controversial. One or more regions within TPJ support visual attention processes, but the "attention TPJ" is difficult to functionally observe in individual subjects, and thus is typically identified by averaging across a large group of subjects. However, group-averaging also blurs localization and can obscure functional organization. Here, we develop and test an individual-subject approach to identifying attentional TPJ. This paradigm employs novel oddball images with a strong visual drive to produce robust TPJ responses in individuals. Vivid, novel oddballs drive responses in two TPJ regions bilaterally, a posterior region centered in posterior Superior Temporal Sulcus (TPJSTS) and an anterior region in ventral Supramarginal Gyrus (TPJSMG). Although an attentional reorienting task fails to drive TPJ activation in individuals, group analysis of the attentional reorienting contrast reveals recruitment of right TPJSTS, but not right TPJSMG. Similarly, right TPJSTS, as identified in individual subjects by the vivid, novel oddball contrast, is activated by attentional reorienting, but right TPJSMG is not. These findings advance an individual-subject based approach to understanding the functional organization of TPJ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn J Devaney
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Health and Human Performance, Stanford University Medical School, Stanford, CA, United States
| | - Maya L Rosen
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Emily J Levin
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Cognitive, Linguistic and Psychological Sciences, Brown University, Providence, RI, United States
| | - David C Somers
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, United States
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14
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Howard CJ, Boulton H, Bedwell SA, Boatman CA, Roberts KL, Mitra S. Low-Frequency Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation to Right Parietal Cortex Disrupts Perception of Briefly Presented Stimuli. Perception 2019; 48:346-355. [PMID: 30832537 DOI: 10.1177/0301006619834251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Right parietal cortex has recently been linked to the temporal resolution of attention. We therefore sought to investigate whether disruption to right parietal cortex would affect attention to visual stimuli presented for brief durations. Participants performed a visual discrimination task before and after 10 minutes repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (1 Hz) to right or central parietal cortex as well as 20 minutes after the second block of trials. Participants reported the spatial frequency of a masked Gabor patch presented for a brief duration of 60, 120, or 240 ms. We calculated error magnitudes by comparing accuracy to a guessing model. We then compared error magnitudes to blocks with no stimulation, producing a measure of baselined performance. Baselined performance was poorer at longer stimulus durations after right parietal than central parietal stimulation, suggesting that right parietal cortex is involved in attention to briefly presented stimuli, particularly in situations where rapid accumulation of visual evidence is needed.
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Hanayik T, Yourganov G, Newman-Norlund R, Gibson M, Rorden C. Visual Simultaneity Judgments Activate a Bilateral Frontoparietal Timing System. J Cogn Neurosci 2018; 31:431-441. [PMID: 30457918 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
In everyday life, we often make judgments regarding the sequence of events, for example, deciding whether a baseball runner's foot hit the plate before or after the ball hit the glove. Numerous studies have examined the functional correlates of temporal processing using variations of the temporal order judgment and simultaneity judgment (SJ) tasks. To perform temporal order judgment tasks, observers must bind temporal information with identity and/or spatial information relevant to the task itself. SJs, on the other hand, require observers to detect stimulus asynchrony but not the order of stimulus presentation and represent a purer measure of temporal processing. Some previous studies suggest that these temporal decisions rely primarily on right-hemisphere parietal structures, whereas others provide evidence that temporal perception depends on bilateral TPJ or inferior frontal regions (inferior frontal gyrus). Here, we report brain activity elicited by a visual SJ task. Our methods are unique given our use of two orthogonal control conditions, discrimination of spatial orientation and color, which were used to control for brain activation associated with the classic dorsal ("where/how") and ventral ("what") visual pathways. Our neuroimaging experiment shows that performing the SJ task selectively activated a bilateral network in the parietal (TPJ) and frontal (inferior frontal gyrus) cortices. We argue that SJ tasks are a purer measure of temporal perception because they do not require observers to process either identity or spatial information, both of which may activate separate cognitive networks.
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Tyler SC, Contò F, Battelli L. Rapid Improvement on a Temporal Attention Task within a Single Session of High-frequency Transcranial Random Noise Stimulation. J Cogn Neurosci 2018; 30:656-666. [PMID: 29324073 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01235] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
This study explored the modulatory effects of high-frequency transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS) on visual sensitivity during a temporal attention task. We measured sensitivity to different onset asynchronies during a temporal order judgment task as a function of active stimulation relative to sham. While completing the task, participants were stimulated bilaterally for 20 min over either the TPJ or the human middle temporal area. We hypothesized that tRNS over the TPJ, which is critical to the temporal attention network, would selectively increase cortical excitability and induce cognitive training-like effects on performance, perhaps more so in the left visual field [Matthews, N., & Welch, L. Left visual field attentional advantage in judging simultaneity and temporal order. Journal of Vision, 15, 1-13, 2015; Romanska, A., Rezlescu, C., Susilo, T., Duchaine, B., & Banissy, M. J. High-frequency transcranial random noise stimulation enhances perception of facial identity. Cerebral Cortex, 25, 4334-4340, 2015]. In Experiment 1, we measured the performance of participants who judged the order of Gabors temporally imbedded in flickering discs, presented with onset asynchronies ranging from -75 msec (left disc first) to +75 msec (right disc first). In Experiment 2, we measured whether each participant's temporal sensitivity increased with stimulation by using temporal offsets that the participant initially perceived as simultaneous. We found that parietal cortex stimulation temporarily increased sensitivity on the temporal order judgment task, especially in the left visual field. Stimulation over human middle temporal area did not alter cortical excitability in a way that affected performance. The effects were cumulative across blocks of trials for tRNS over parietal cortex but dissipated when stimulation ended. We conclude that single-session tRNS can induce temporary improvements in behavioral sensitivity and that this shows promising insight into the relationship between cortical stimulation and neural plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah C Tyler
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Rovereto, Italy.,University of California, San Diego
| | - Federica Contò
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Rovereto, Italy.,University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
| | - Lorella Battelli
- Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Rovereto, Italy.,Harvard Medical School
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Delle Monache S, Lacquaniti F, Bosco G. Differential contributions to the interception of occluded ballistic trajectories by the temporoparietal junction, area hMT/V5+, and the intraparietal cortex. J Neurophysiol 2017; 118:1809-1823. [PMID: 28701531 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00068.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2017] [Revised: 06/27/2017] [Accepted: 07/10/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to catch objects when transiently occluded from view suggests their motion can be extrapolated. Intraparietal cortex (IPS) plays a major role in this process along with other brain structures, depending on the task. For example, interception of objects under Earth's gravity effects may depend on time-to-contact predictions derived from integration of visual signals processed by hMT/V5+ with a priori knowledge of gravity residing in the temporoparietal junction (TPJ). To investigate this issue further, we disrupted TPJ, hMT/V5+, and IPS activities with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) while subjects intercepted computer-simulated projectile trajectories perturbed randomly with either hypo- or hypergravity effects. In experiment 1, trajectories were occluded either 750 or 1,250 ms before landing. Three subject groups underwent triple-pulse TMS (tpTMS, 3 pulses at 10 Hz) on one target area (TPJ | hMT/V5+ | IPS) and on the vertex (control site), timed at either trajectory perturbation or occlusion. In experiment 2, trajectories were entirely visible and participants received tpTMS on TPJ and hMT/V5+ with same timing as experiment 1 tpTMS of TPJ, hMT/V5+, and IPS affected differently the interceptive timing. TPJ stimulation affected preferentially responses to 1-g motion, hMT/V5+ all response types, and IPS stimulation induced opposite effects on 0-g and 2-g responses, being ineffective on 1-g responses. Only IPS stimulation was effective when applied after target disappearance, implying this area might elaborate memory representations of occluded target motion. Results are compatible with the idea that IPS, TPJ, and hMT/V5+ contribute to distinct aspects of visual motion extrapolation, perhaps through parallel processing.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Visual extrapolation represents a potential neural solution to afford motor interactions with the environment in the face of missing information. We investigated relative contributions by temporoparietal junction (TPJ), hMT/V5+, and intraparietal cortex (IPS), cortical areas potentially involved in these processes. Parallel organization of visual extrapolation processes emerged with respect to the target's motion causal nature: TPJ was primarily involved for visual motion congruent with gravity effects, IPS for arbitrary visual motion, whereas hMT/V5+ contributed at earlier processing stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Delle Monache
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.,Center of Space Biomedicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy; and.,Laboratory of Neuromotor Physiology, Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy
| | - Francesco Lacquaniti
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.,Center of Space Biomedicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy; and.,Laboratory of Neuromotor Physiology, Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy
| | - Gianfranco Bosco
- Department of Systems Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy; .,Center of Space Biomedicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy; and.,Laboratory of Neuromotor Physiology, Santa Lucia Foundation, Rome, Italy
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