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Saccone EJ, Tian M, Bedny M. Developing cortex is functionally pluripotent: Evidence from blindness. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2024; 66:101360. [PMID: 38394708 PMCID: PMC10899073 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2024.101360] [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: 08/25/2023] [Revised: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 02/19/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
How rigidly does innate architecture constrain function of developing cortex? What is the contribution of early experience? We review insights into these questions from visual cortex function in people born blind. In blindness, occipital cortices are active during auditory and tactile tasks. What 'cross-modal' plasticity tells us about cortical flexibility is debated. On the one hand, visual networks of blind people respond to higher cognitive information, such as sentence grammar, suggesting drastic repurposing. On the other, in line with 'metamodal' accounts, sighted and blind populations show shared domain preferences in ventral occipito-temporal cortex (vOTC), suggesting visual areas switch input modality but perform the same or similar perceptual functions (e.g., face recognition) in blindness. Here we bring these disparate literatures together, reviewing and synthesizing evidence that speaks to whether visual cortices have similar or different functions in blind and sighted people. Together, the evidence suggests that in blindness, visual cortices are incorporated into higher-cognitive (e.g., fronto-parietal) networks, which are a major source long-range input to the visual system. We propose the connectivity-constrained experience-dependent account. Functional development is constrained by innate anatomical connectivity, experience and behavioral needs. Infant cortex is pluripotent, the same anatomical constraints develop into different functional outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth J Saccone
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
| | - Mengyu Tian
- Center for Educational Science and Technology, Beijing Normal University at Zhuhai, China
| | - Marina Bedny
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
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2
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Park WJ, Fine I. A unified model for cross-modal plasticity and skill acquisition. Front Neurosci 2024; 18:1334283. [PMID: 38384481 PMCID: PMC10879418 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1334283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Accepted: 01/22/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Historically, cross-modal plasticity following early blindness has been largely studied in the context of visual deprivation. However, more recently, there has been a shift in focus towards understanding cross-modal plasticity from the perspective of skill acquisition: the striking plasticity observed in early blind individuals reflects the extraordinary perceptual and cognitive challenges they solve. Here, inspired by two seminal papers on skill learning (the "cortical recycling" theory) and cross-modal plasticity (the "metamodal" hypothesis) respectively, we present a unified hypothesis of cortical specialization that describes how shared functional, algorithmic, and structural constraints might mediate both types of plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Woon Ju Park
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
- Center for Human Neuroscience, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Ione Fine
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
- Center for Human Neuroscience, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
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3
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Pang W, Xia Z, Zhang L, Shu H, Zhang Y, Zhang Y. Stimulus-responsive and task-dependent activations in occipital regions during pitch perception by early blind listeners. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26583. [PMID: 38339902 PMCID: PMC10823761 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26583] [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: 02/28/2023] [Revised: 12/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 02/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Although it has been established that cross-modal activations occur in the occipital cortex during auditory processing among congenitally and early blind listeners, it remains uncertain whether these activations in various occipital regions reflect sensory analysis of specific sound properties, non-perceptual cognitive operations associated with active tasks, or the interplay between sensory analysis and cognitive operations. This fMRI study aimed to investigate cross-modal responses in occipital regions, specifically V5/MT and V1, during passive and active pitch perception by early blind individuals compared to sighted individuals. The data showed that V5/MT was responsive to pitch during passive perception, and its activations increased with task complexity. By contrast, widespread occipital regions, including V1, were only recruited during two active perception tasks, and their activations were also modulated by task complexity. These fMRI results from blind individuals suggest that while V5/MT activations are both stimulus-responsive and task-modulated, activations in other occipital regions, including V1, are dependent on the task, indicating similarities and differences between various visual areas during auditory processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wengbin Pang
- Department of Neurology, Beijing Tiantan HospitalCapital Medical UniversityBeijingChina
- China National Clinical Research Center for Neurological DiseasesBeijingChina
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovernBeijing Normal UniversityBeijingChina
| | - Zhichao Xia
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovernBeijing Normal UniversityBeijingChina
- School of Systems ScienceBeijing Normal UniversityBeijingChina
- Department of Psychological Sciences and Brain Imaging Research CenterUniversity of ConnecticutMansfieldConnecticutUSA
| | - Linjun Zhang
- School of Chinese as a Second LanguagePeking UniversityBeijingChina
| | - Hua Shu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovernBeijing Normal UniversityBeijingChina
| | - Yang Zhang
- Department of Speech‐Language‐Hearing Sciences and Center for Neurobehavioral DevelopmentUniversity of MinnesotaMinneapolisMinnesotaUSA
| | - Yumei Zhang
- Department of Rehabilitation, Beijing Tiantan HospitalCapital Medical UniversityBeijingChina
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4
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Park WJ, Fine I. The perception of auditory motion in sighted and early blind individuals. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2310156120. [PMID: 38015842 PMCID: PMC10710053 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2310156120] [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: 06/20/2023] [Accepted: 10/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Motion perception is a fundamental sensory task that plays a critical evolutionary role. In vision, motion processing is classically described using a motion energy model with spatiotemporally nonseparable filters suited for capturing the smooth continuous changes in spatial position over time afforded by moving objects. However, it is still not clear whether the filters underlying auditory motion discrimination are also continuous motion detectors or infer motion from comparing discrete sound locations over time (spatiotemporally separable). We used a psychophysical reverse correlation paradigm, where participants discriminated the direction of a motion signal in the presence of spatiotemporal noise, to determine whether the filters underlying auditory motion discrimination were spatiotemporally separable or nonseparable. We then examined whether these auditory motion filters were altered as a result of early blindness. We found that both sighted and early blind individuals have separable filters. However, early blind individuals show increased sensitivity to auditory motion, with reduced susceptibility to noise and filters that were more accurate in detecting motion onsets/offsets. Model simulations suggest that this reliance on separable filters is optimal given the limited spatial resolution of auditory input.
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Affiliation(s)
- Woon Ju Park
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA98195
| | - Ione Fine
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA98195
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5
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Breitinger E, Dundon NM, Pokorny L, Wunram HL, Roessner V, Bender S. Contingent negative variation to tactile stimuli - differences in anticipatory and preparatory processes between participants with and without blindness. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:7582-7594. [PMID: 36977633 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Revised: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 02/10/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
People who are blind demonstrate remarkable abilities within the spared senses and compensatory enhancement of cognitive skills, underscored by substantial plastic reorganization in relevant neural areas. However, little is known about whether people with blindness form top-down models of the world on short timescales more efficiently to guide goal-oriented behavior. This electroencephalography study investigates this hypothesis at the neurophysiological level, focusing on contingent negative variation (CNV) as a marker of anticipatory and preparatory processes prior to expected events. In sum, 20 participants with blindness and 27 sighted participants completed a classic CNV task and a memory CNV task, both containing tactile stimuli to exploit the expertise of the former group. Although the reaction times in the classic CNV task did not differ between groups, participants who are blind reached higher performance rates in the memory task. This superior performance co-occurred with a distinct neurophysiological profile, relative to controls: greater late CNV amplitudes over central areas, suggesting enhanced stimulus expectancy and motor preparation prior to key events. Controls, in contrast, recruited more frontal sites, consistent with inefficient sensory-aligned control. We conclude that in more demanding cognitive contexts exploiting the spared senses, people with blindness efficiently generate task-relevant internal models to facilitate behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Breitinger
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Germany
| | - Neil M Dundon
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychotherapy, and Psychosomatics, University of Freiburg, Germany
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA
| | - Lena Pokorny
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Germany
| | - Heidrun L Wunram
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Germany
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Germany
| | - Veit Roessner
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Technische Universität Dresden, Faculty of Medicine, University Hospital C. G. Carus, Germany
| | - Stephan Bender
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Germany
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6
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Fine I, Park WJ. Do you hear what I see? How do early blind individuals experience object motion? Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2023; 378:20210460. [PMID: 36511418 PMCID: PMC9745882 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0460] [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: 05/03/2022] [Accepted: 09/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the most important tasks for 3D vision is tracking the movement of objects in space. The ability of early blind individuals to understand motion in the environment from noisy and unreliable auditory information is an impressive example of cortical adaptation that is only just beginning to be understood. Here, we compare visual and auditory motion processing, and discuss the effect of early blindness on the perception of auditory motion. Blindness leads to cross-modal recruitment of the visual motion area hMT+ for auditory motion processing. Meanwhile, the planum temporale, associated with auditory motion in sighted individuals, shows reduced selectivity for auditory motion. We discuss how this dramatic shift in the cortical basis of motion processing might influence the perceptual experience of motion in early blind individuals. This article is part of a discussion meeting issue 'New approaches to 3D vision'.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ione Fine
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1525, USA
| | - Woon Ju Park
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195-1525, USA
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7
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Bang JW, Chan RW, Parra C, Murphy MC, Schuman JS, Nau AC, Chan KC. Diverging patterns of plasticity in the nucleus basalis of Meynert in early- and late-onset blindness. Brain Commun 2023; 5:fcad119. [PMID: 37101831 PMCID: PMC10123399 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcad119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Revised: 02/01/2023] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 04/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Plasticity in the brain is impacted by an individual's age at the onset of the blindness. However, what drives the varying degrees of plasticity remains largely unclear. One possible explanation attributes the mechanisms for the differing levels of plasticity to the cholinergic signals originating in the nucleus basalis of Meynert. This explanation is based on the fact that the nucleus basalis of Meynert can modulate cortical processes such as plasticity and sensory encoding through its widespread cholinergic projections. Nevertheless, there is no direct evidence indicating that the nucleus basalis of Meynert undergoes plastic changes following blindness. Therefore, using multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging, we examined if the structural and functional properties of the nucleus basalis of Meynert differ between early blind, late blind and sighted individuals. We observed that early and late blind individuals had a preserved volumetric size and cerebrovascular reactivity in the nucleus basalis of Meynert. However, we observed a reduction in the directionality of water diffusion in both early and late blind individuals compared to sighted individuals. Notably, the nucleus basalis of Meynert presented diverging patterns of functional connectivity between early and late blind individuals. This functional connectivity was enhanced at both global and local (visual, language and default-mode networks) levels in the early blind individuals, but there were little-to-no changes in the late blind individuals when compared to sighted controls. Furthermore, the age at onset of blindness predicted both global and local functional connectivity. These results suggest that upon reduced directionality of water diffusion in the nucleus basalis of Meynert, cholinergic influence may be stronger for the early blind compared to the late blind individuals. Our findings are important to unravelling why early blind individuals present stronger and more widespread cross-modal plasticity compared to late blind individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ji Won Bang
- Correspondence may also be addressed to: Ji Won Bang, PhD.
| | - Russell W Chan
- Department of Ophthalmology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY 10017, USA
| | - Carlos Parra
- Department of Ophthalmology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY 10017, USA
| | - Matthew C Murphy
- Department of Radiology, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
- Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Joel S Schuman
- Department of Ophthalmology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY 10017, USA
- Neuroscience Institute, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University, New York, NY 10016, USA
- Center for Neural Science, College of Arts and Science, New York University, New York, NY 10003, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Tandon School of Engineering, New York University, New York, NY 11201, USA
| | - Amy C Nau
- Department of Ophthalmology, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
- Korb and Associates, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Kevin C Chan
- Correspondence to: Kevin C. Chan, PhD, Departments of Ophthalmology and Radiology, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, NYU Langone Health, New York University. 222 E 41st Street, Room 362, New York, NY 10017, USA.
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8
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Sabourin CJ, Merrikhi Y, Lomber SG. Do blind people hear better? Trends Cogn Sci 2022; 26:999-1012. [PMID: 36207258 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2022.08.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2022] [Revised: 08/22/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
For centuries, anecdotal evidence such as the perfect pitch of the blind piano tuner or blind musician has supported the notion that individuals who have lost their sight early in life have superior hearing abilities compared with sighted people. Recently, auditory psychophysical and functional imaging studies have identified that specific auditory enhancements in the early blind can be linked to activation in extrastriate visual cortex, suggesting crossmodal plasticity. Furthermore, the nature of the sensory reorganization in occipital cortex supports the concept of a task-based functional cartography for the cerebral cortex rather than a sensory-based organization. In total, studies of early-blind individuals provide valuable insights into mechanisms of cortical plasticity and principles of cerebral organization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina J Sabourin
- Department of Physiology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada; Biological and Biomedical Engineering Graduate Program, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada
| | - Yaser Merrikhi
- Department of Physiology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada
| | - Stephen G Lomber
- Department of Physiology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada; Biological and Biomedical Engineering Graduate Program, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada; Department of Psychology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada; Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada.
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9
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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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10
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Mattioni S, Rezk M, Battal C, Vadlamudi J, Collignon O. Impact of blindness onset on the representation of sound categories in occipital and temporal cortices. eLife 2022; 11:79370. [PMID: 36070354 PMCID: PMC9451537 DOI: 10.7554/elife.79370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The ventral occipito-temporal cortex (VOTC) reliably encodes auditory categories in people born blind using a representational structure partially similar to the one found in vision (Mattioni et al.,2020). Here, using a combination of uni- and multivoxel analyses applied to fMRI data, we extend our previous findings, comprehensively investigating how early and late acquired blindness impact on the cortical regions coding for the deprived and the remaining senses. First, we show enhanced univariate response to sounds in part of the occipital cortex of both blind groups that is concomitant to reduced auditory responses in temporal regions. We then reveal that the representation of the sound categories in the occipital and temporal regions is more similar in blind subjects compared to sighted subjects. What could drive this enhanced similarity? The multivoxel encoding of the ‘human voice’ category that we observed in the temporal cortex of all sighted and blind groups is enhanced in occipital regions in blind groups , suggesting that the representation of vocal information is more similar between the occipital and temporal regions in blind compared to sighted individuals. We additionally show that blindness does not affect the encoding of the acoustic properties of our sounds (e.g. pitch, harmonicity) in occipital and in temporal regions but instead selectively alter the categorical coding of the voice category itself. These results suggest a functionally congruent interplay between the reorganization of occipital and temporal regions following visual deprivation, across the lifespan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Mattioni
- Institute for research in Psychology (IPSY) & Neuroscience (IoNS), Louvain Bionics, Crossmodal Perception and Plasticity Laboratory - University of Louvain (UCLouvain), Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.,Department of Brain and Cognition, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Mohamed Rezk
- Institute for research in Psychology (IPSY) & Neuroscience (IoNS), Louvain Bionics, Crossmodal Perception and Plasticity Laboratory - University of Louvain (UCLouvain), Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Ceren Battal
- Institute for research in Psychology (IPSY) & Neuroscience (IoNS), Louvain Bionics, Crossmodal Perception and Plasticity Laboratory - University of Louvain (UCLouvain), Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Jyothirmayi Vadlamudi
- Institute for research in Psychology (IPSY) & Neuroscience (IoNS), Louvain Bionics, Crossmodal Perception and Plasticity Laboratory - University of Louvain (UCLouvain), Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Olivier Collignon
- Institute for research in Psychology (IPSY) & Neuroscience (IoNS), Louvain Bionics, Crossmodal Perception and Plasticity Laboratory - University of Louvain (UCLouvain), Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.,Center for Mind/Brain Studies, University of Trento, Trento, Italy.,School of Health Sciences, HES-SO Valais-Wallis, Sion, Switzerland.,The Sense Innovation and Research Center, Lausanne and Sion, Sion, Switzerland
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11
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Bola Ł. Rethinking the representation of sound. eLife 2022; 11:e82747. [PMID: 36070353 PMCID: PMC9451532 DOI: 10.7554/elife.82747] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Blindness triggers a reorganization of the visual and auditory cortices in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Łukasz Bola
- Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of SciencesWarsawPoland
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12
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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: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [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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13
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Watkins KE, Coullon GSL, Bridge H. Language and nonverbal auditory processing in the occipital cortex of individuals who are congenitally blind due to anophthalmia. Neuropsychologia 2022; 173:108304. [PMID: 35716797 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108304] [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: 08/31/2021] [Revised: 05/17/2022] [Accepted: 06/13/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
Individuals with congenital blindness due to bilateral anophthalmia offer a unique opportunity to examine cross-modal plasticity in the complete absence of any stimulation of the 'visual' pathway even during development in utero. Our previous work has suggested that this complete sensory deafferentation results in different patterns of reorganisation compared with those seen in other early blind populations. Here, we further test the functional specialisation of occipital cortex in six well-studied cases with anophthalmia. Whole brain functional MRI was obtained while these human participants and a group of sighted controls performed two experiments involving phonological and semantic processing of words (verbal experiment) and spatial and identity processing of piano chords (nonverbal experiment). Both experiments were predicted to show a dorsal-ventral difference in activity based on the specific task performed. All tasks evoked activation in occipital cortex in the individuals with anophthalmia but not in the sighted controls. For the verbal experiment, both dorsal and ventral occipital areas were strongly activated by the phonological and semantic tasks in anophthalmia. For the nonverbal experiment, both the spatial and the identity task robustly activated the dorsal occipital area V3a but showed inconsistent activity elsewhere in the occipital lobe. V1 was most strongly activated by the verbal tasks, showing greater activity on the left for the verbal task relative to the nonverbal one. For individual anophthalmic participants, however, activity in V1 was inconsistent across tasks and hemispheres with many participants showing activity levels in the control range, which was not significantly above baseline. Despite the homogeneous nature of the cause of blindness in the anophthalmic group, there remain differences in patterns of activation among the individuals with this condition. Investigation at the case level might further our understanding of how post-natal experiences shape functional reorganisation in deafferented cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kate E Watkins
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, UK; Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, OX1 3UD, UK
| | - Gaelle S L Coullon
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, UK; Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Holly Bridge
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, UK; Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK.
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14
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Battal C, Gurtubay-Antolin A, Rezk M, Mattioni S, Bertonati G, Occelli V, Bottini R, Targher S, Maffei C, Jovicich J, Collignon O. Structural and Functional Network-Level Reorganization in the Coding of Auditory Motion Directions and Sound Source Locations in the Absence of Vision. J Neurosci 2022; 42:4652-4668. [PMID: 35501150 PMCID: PMC9186796 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1554-21.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2021] [Revised: 03/16/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
hMT+/V5 is a region in the middle occipitotemporal cortex that responds preferentially to visual motion in sighted people. In cases of early visual deprivation, hMT+/V5 enhances its response to moving sounds. Whether hMT+/V5 contains information about motion directions and whether the functional enhancement observed in the blind is motion specific, or also involves sound source location, remains unsolved. Moreover, the impact of this cross-modal reorganization of hMT+/V5 on the regions typically supporting auditory motion processing, like the human planum temporale (hPT), remains equivocal. We used a combined functional and diffusion-weighted MRI approach and individual in-ear recordings to study the impact of early blindness on the brain networks supporting spatial hearing in male and female humans. Whole-brain univariate analysis revealed that the anterior portion of hMT+/V5 responded to moving sounds in sighted and blind people, while the posterior portion was selective to moving sounds only in blind participants. Multivariate decoding analysis revealed that the presence of motion direction and sound position information was higher in hMT+/V5 and lower in hPT in the blind group. While both groups showed axis-of-motion organization in hMT+/V5 and hPT, this organization was reduced in the hPT of blind people. Diffusion-weighted MRI revealed that the strength of hMT+/V5-hPT connectivity did not differ between groups, whereas the microstructure of the connections was altered by blindness. Our results suggest that the axis-of-motion organization of hMT+/V5 does not depend on visual experience, but that congenital blindness alters the response properties of occipitotemporal networks supporting spatial hearing in the sighted.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Spatial hearing helps living organisms navigate their environment. This is certainly even more true in people born blind. How does blindness affect the brain network supporting auditory motion and sound source location? Our results show that the presence of motion direction and sound position information was higher in hMT+/V5 and lower in human planum temporale in blind relative to sighted people; and that this functional reorganization is accompanied by microstructural (but not macrostructural) alterations in their connections. These findings suggest that blindness alters cross-modal responses between connected areas that share the same computational goals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ceren Battal
- Institute of Research in Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of NeuroScience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Ane Gurtubay-Antolin
- Institute of Research in Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of NeuroScience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- BCBL, Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language, 20009, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
| | - Mohamed Rezk
- Institute of Research in Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of NeuroScience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Stefania Mattioni
- Institute of Research in Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of NeuroScience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Giorgia Bertonati
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Valeria Occelli
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
- Department of Psychology, Edge Hill University, Ormskirk L39 4QP, United Kingdom
| | - Roberto Bottini
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Stefano Targher
- Institute of Research in Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of NeuroScience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Chiara Maffei
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, Massachusetts 01129
| | - Jorge Jovicich
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
| | - Olivier Collignon
- Institute of Research in Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of NeuroScience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
- School of Health Sciences, HES-SO Valais-Wallis, 1950 Sion, Switzerland
- The Sense Innovation and Research Center, CH-1011 Lausanne, Switzerland
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15
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Wang F, Zhou T, Wang P, Li Z, Meng X, Jiang J. Study of extravisual resting-state networks in pituitary adenoma patients with vision restoration. BMC Neurosci 2022; 23:15. [PMID: 35300588 PMCID: PMC8932055 DOI: 10.1186/s12868-022-00701-3] [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: 12/17/2020] [Accepted: 03/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Pituitary adenoma (PA) may compress the optic apparatus, resulting in impaired vision. Some patients can experience improved vision rapidly after surgery. During the early period after surgery, however, the change in neurofunction in the extravisual cortex and higher cognitive cortex has yet to be explored. Objective Our study focused on the changes in the extravisual resting-state networks in patients with PA after vision restoration. Methods We recruited 14 patients with PA who experienced visual improvement after surgery. The functional connectivity (FC) of 6 seeds [auditory cortex (A1), Broca’s area, posterior cingulate cortex (PCC) for the default mode network (DMN), right caudal anterior cingulate cortex for the salience network (SN) and left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for the executive control network (ECN)] were evaluated. A paired t test was conducted to identify the differences between two groups of patients. Results Compared with their preoperative counterparts, patients with PA with improved vision exhibited decreased FC with the right A1 in the left insula lobule, right middle temporal gyrus and left postcentral gyrus and increased FC in the right paracentral lobule; decreased FC with the Broca in the left middle temporal gyrus and increased FC in the left insula lobule and right thalamus; decreased FC with the DMN in the right declive and right precuneus; increased FC in right Brodmann area 17, the left cuneus and the right posterior cingulate; decreased FC with the ECN in the right posterior cingulate, right angular and right precuneus; decreased FC with the SN in the right middle temporal gyrus, right hippocampus, and right precuneus; and increased FC in the right fusiform gyrus, the left lingual gyrus and right Brodmann area 19. Conclusions Vision restoration may cause a response of cross-modal plasticity and multisensory systems related to A1 and the Broca. The DMN and SN may be involved in top-down control of the subareas within the visual cortex. The precuneus may be involved in the DMN, ECN and SN simultaneously.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fuyu Wang
- Department of Neurosurgery, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.
| | - Tao Zhou
- Department of Neurosurgery, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Peng Wang
- Department of Neurosurgery, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Ze Li
- Department of Neurosurgery, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Xianghui Meng
- Department of Neurosurgery, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Jinli Jiang
- Department of Neurosurgery, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
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16
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Bertonati G, Amadeo MB, Campus C, Gori M. Auditory speed processing in sighted and blind individuals. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0257676. [PMID: 34551010 PMCID: PMC8457492 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0257676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Accepted: 09/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Multisensory experience is crucial for developing a coherent perception of the world. In this context, vision and audition are essential tools to scaffold spatial and temporal representations, respectively. Since speed encompasses both space and time, investigating this dimension in blindness allows deepening the relationship between sensory modalities and the two representation domains. In the present study, we hypothesized that visual deprivation influences the use of spatial and temporal cues underlying acoustic speed perception. To this end, ten early blind and ten blindfolded sighted participants performed a speed discrimination task in which spatial, temporal, or both cues were available to infer moving sounds' velocity. The results indicated that both sighted and early blind participants preferentially relied on temporal cues to determine stimuli speed, by following an assumption that identified as faster those sounds with a shorter duration. However, in some cases, this temporal assumption produces a misperception of the stimulus speed that negatively affected participants' performance. Interestingly, early blind participants were more influenced by this misleading temporal assumption than sighted controls, resulting in a stronger impairment in the speed discrimination performance. These findings demonstrate that the absence of visual experience in early life increases the auditory system's preference for the time domain and, consequentially, affects the perception of speed through audition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giorgia Bertonati
- Unit for Visually Impaired People (U-VIP), Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
- Department of Informatics, Bioengineering, Robotics and Systems Engineering (DIBRIS), Università degli Studi di Genova, Genova, Italy
| | - Maria Bianca Amadeo
- Unit for Visually Impaired People (U-VIP), Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - Claudio Campus
- Unit for Visually Impaired People (U-VIP), Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
| | - Monica Gori
- Unit for Visually Impaired People (U-VIP), Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy
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17
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Bridge H, Coullon GSL, Morjaria R, Trossman R, Warnaby CE, Leatherbarrow B, Foster RG, Downes SM. The Effect of Congenital and Acquired Bilateral Anophthalmia on Brain Structure. Neuroophthalmology 2021; 45:75-86. [PMID: 34108778 PMCID: PMC8158038 DOI: 10.1080/01658107.2020.1856143] [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] [Indexed: 11/02/2022] Open
Abstract
The aim of this study was to compare the pattern of changes in brain structure resulting from congenital and acquired bilateral anophthalmia. Brain structure was investigated using 3T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in Oxford (congenital) or Manchester (acquired). T1-weighted structural and diffusion-weighted scans were acquired from people with anophthalmia and sighted control participants. Differences in grey matter between the groups were quantified using voxel-based morphometry and differences in white matter microstructure using tract-based spatial statistics. Quantification of optic nerve volume and cortical thickness in visual regions was also performed in all groups. The optic nerve was reduced in volume in both anophthalmic populations, but to a greater extent in the congenital group and anophthalmia acquired at an early age. A similar pattern was found for the white matter microstructure throughout the occipitotemporal regions of the brain, suggesting a greater reduction of integrity with increasing duration of anophthalmia. In contrast, grey matter volume changes differed between the two groups, with the acquired anophthalmia group showing a decrease in the calcarine sulcus, corresponding to the area that would have been peripheral primary visual cortex. In contrast, the acquired anophthalmia group showed a decrease in grey matter volume in the calcarine sulcus corresponding to the area that would have been peripheral primary visual cortex. There are both qualitative and quantitative differences in structural brain changes in congenital and acquired anophthalmia, indicating differential effects of development and degeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Holly Bridge
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK
| | - Gaelle S L Coullon
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK
| | - Rupal Morjaria
- Oxford Eye Hospital, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK.,Birmingham Midland Eye Centre, Sandwell & West Birmingham Hospitals NHS Trust, Birmingham, West Midlands, UK
| | - Rebecca Trossman
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK
| | - Catherine E Warnaby
- Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Russell G Foster
- Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Sleep & Circadian Neuroscience Institute (SCNi) and Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Oxford, UK
| | - Susan M Downes
- Oxford Eye Hospital, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UK
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18
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Visual motion processing recruits regions selective for auditory motion in early deaf individuals. Neuroimage 2021; 230:117816. [PMID: 33524580 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.117816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2020] [Revised: 01/18/2021] [Accepted: 01/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
In early deaf individuals, the auditory deprived temporal brain regions become engaged in visual processing. In our study we tested further the hypothesis that intrinsic functional specialization guides the expression of cross-modal responses in the deprived auditory cortex. We used functional MRI to characterize the brain response to horizontal, radial and stochastic visual motion in early deaf and hearing individuals matched for the use of oral or sign language. Visual motion showed enhanced response in the 'deaf' mid-lateral planum temporale, a region selective to auditory motion as demonstrated by a separate auditory motion localizer in hearing people. Moreover, multivariate pattern analysis revealed that this reorganized temporal region showed enhanced decoding of motion categories in the deaf group, while visual motion-selective region hMT+/V5 showed reduced decoding when compared to hearing people. Dynamic Causal Modelling revealed that the 'deaf' motion-selective temporal region shows a specific increase of its functional interactions with hMT+/V5 and is now part of a large-scale visual motion selective network. In addition, we observed preferential responses to radial, compared to horizontal, visual motion in the 'deaf' right superior temporal cortex region that also show preferential response to approaching/receding sounds in the hearing brain. Overall, our results suggest that the early experience of auditory deprivation interacts with intrinsic constraints and triggers a large-scale reallocation of computational load between auditory and visual brain regions that typically support the multisensory processing of motion information.
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19
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Crollen V, Collignon O. How visual is the « number sense »? Insights from the blind. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 118:290-297. [PMID: 32711006 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.07.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/03/2019] [Revised: 06/18/2020] [Accepted: 07/20/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
Is vision a necessary building block for the foundations of mathematical cognition? A straightforward model to test the causal role visual experience plays in the development of numerical abilities is to study people born without sight. In this review we will demonstrate that congenitally blind people can develop numerical abilities that equal or even surpass those of sighted individuals, despite representing numbers using a qualitatively different representational format. We will also show that numerical thinking in blind people maps onto regions typically involved in visuo-spatial processing in the sighted, highlighting how intrinsic computational biases may constrain the reorganization of numerical networks in case of early visual deprivation. More generally, we will illustrate how the study of arithmetic abilities in congenitally blind people represents a compelling model to understand how sensory experience scaffolds the development of higher-level cognitive representations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Virginie Crollen
- Institute of Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of Neuroscience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, Place Cardinal Mercier 10, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium.
| | - Olivier Collignon
- Institute of Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of Neuroscience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, Place Cardinal Mercier 10, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium; Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Trento, Italy.
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20
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Andelin AK, Olavarria JF, Fine I, Taber EN, Schwartz D, Kroenke CD, Stevens AA. The Effect of Onset Age of Visual Deprivation on Visual Cortex Surface Area Across-Species. Cereb Cortex 2020; 29:4321-4333. [PMID: 30561529 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhy315] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2018] [Revised: 10/25/2018] [Accepted: 11/23/2018] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Blindness early in life induces permanent alterations in brain anatomy, including reduced surface area of primary visual cortex (V1). Bilateral enucleation early in development causes greater reductions in primary visual cortex surface area than at later times. However, the time at which cortical surface area expansion is no longer sensitive to enucleation is not clearly established, despite being an important milestone for cortical development. Using histological and MRI techniques, we investigated how reductions in the surface area of V1 depends on the timing of blindness onset in rats, ferrets and humans. To compare data across species, we translated ages of all species to a common neuro-developmental event-time (ET) scale. Consistently, blindness during early cortical expansion induced large (~40%) reductions in V1 surface area, in rats and ferrets, while blindness occurring later had diminishing effects. Longitudinal measurements on ferrets confirmed that early enucleation disrupted cortical expansion, rather than inducing enhanced pruning. We modeled the ET associated with the conclusion of the effect of blindness on surface area at maturity (ETc), relative to the normal conclusion of visual cortex surface area expansion, (ETdev). A final analysis combining our data with extant published data confirmed that ETc occurred well before ETdev.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adrian K Andelin
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Jaime F Olavarria
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Ione Fine
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Erin N Taber
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Daniel Schwartz
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Christopher D Kroenke
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA.,Division of Neuroscience, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Beaverton, OR, USA.,Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA
| | - Alexander A Stevens
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR, USA
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21
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Kanjlia S, Pant R, Bedny M. Sensitive Period for Cognitive Repurposing of Human Visual Cortex. Cereb Cortex 2020; 29:3993-4005. [PMID: 30418533 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhy280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2018] [Revised: 09/03/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Studies of sensory loss are a model for understanding the functional flexibility of human cortex. In congenital blindness, subsets of visual cortex are recruited during higher-cognitive tasks, such as language and math tasks. Is such dramatic functional repurposing possible throughout the lifespan or restricted to sensitive periods in development? We compared visual cortex function in individuals who lost their vision as adults (after age 17) to congenitally blind and sighted blindfolded adults. Participants took part in resting-state and task-based fMRI scans during which they solved math equations of varying difficulty and judged the meanings of sentences. Blindness at any age caused "visual" cortices to synchronize with specific frontoparietal networks at rest. However, in task-based data, visual cortices showed regional specialization for math and language and load-dependent activity only in congenital blindness. Thus, despite the presence of long-range functional connectivity, cognitive repurposing of human cortex is limited by sensitive periods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shipra Kanjlia
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - Rashi Pant
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
| | - Marina Bedny
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
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22
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Park WJ, Fine I. New insights into cortical development and plasticity: from molecules to behavior. CURRENT OPINION IN PHYSIOLOGY 2020; 16:50-60. [PMID: 32923755 PMCID: PMC7480792 DOI: 10.1016/j.cophys.2020.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The human brain contains 100 billion neurons, and each neuron can have up to 200,000 connections to other neurons. Recent advancements in neuroscience-ranging from molecular studies in animal models to behavioral studies in humans-have given us deeper insights into the development of this extraordinarily intricate system. Studies show a complex interaction between biological predispositions and environment; while the gross neuroanatomy and low-level functions develop early prior to receiving environmental inputs, functional selectivity is shaped through experience, governed by the maturation of local excitatory and inhibitory circuits and synaptic plasticity during sensitive periods early in development. Plasticity does not end with the closing of the early sensitive period - the environment continues to play an important role in learning throughout the lifespan. Recent work delineating the cascade of events that initiates, controls and ends sensitive periods, offers new hope of eventually being able to remediate various clinical conditions by selectively reopening plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Woon Ju Park
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
| | - Ione Fine
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195
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23
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It's not you, it's me - disgust sensitivity towards body odor in deaf and blind individuals. Atten Percept Psychophys 2020; 82:3728-3736. [PMID: 32529574 DOI: 10.3758/s13414-020-02075-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Disgust might be elicited by various sensory channels, including the sense of smell. It has been previously demonstrated that unpleasant odors emitted by an external source are more disgusting than those emitted by oneself (the source effect). As disgust's main purpose is to help organisms avoid potentially dangerous, contaminating objects, individuals with visual or hearing sensory impairment (thus, with an impeded ability to detect cues indicating pathogen threat) might have developed an increased levels of olfactory disgust sensitivity (modality compensation in disgust sensitivity). We set out to investigate disgust sensitivity in olfaction using the Body Odor Disgust Scale (BODS) on a large sample of 74 deaf and 98 blind participants, with comparison to control groups without sensory impairment (N = 199 in total). The results did not support the hypothesis of modality compensation in disgust sensitivity. Contrary to previous research, neither sex nor age influenced the outcomes. Evidence for the source effect was found. Acquired data are interpreted in the light of social desirability. The emphasis put on the olfaction by blind and deaf individuals is discussed.
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24
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Mowad TG, Willett AE, Mahmoudian M, Lipin M, Heinecke A, Maguire AM, Bennett J, Ashtari M. Compensatory Cross-Modal Plasticity Persists After Sight Restoration. Front Neurosci 2020; 14:291. [PMID: 32477041 PMCID: PMC7235304 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2020.00291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2019] [Accepted: 03/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Sensory deprivation prompts extensive structural and functional reorganizations of the cortex resulting in the occupation of space for the lost sense by the intact sensory systems. This process, known as cross-modal plasticity, has been widely studied in individuals with vision or hearing loss. However, little is known on the neuroplastic changes in restoring the deprived sense. Some reports consider the cross-modal functionality maladaptive to the return of the original sense, and others view this as a critical process in maintaining the neurons of the deprived sense active and operational. These controversial views have been challenged in both auditory and vision restoration reports for decades. Recently with the approval of Luxturna as the first retinal gene therapy (GT) drug to reverse blindness, there is a renewed interest for the crucial role of cross-modal plasticity on sight restoration. Employing a battery of task and resting state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI), in comparison to a group of sighted controls, we tracked the functional changes in response to auditory and visual stimuli and at rest, in a group of patients with biallelic mutations in the RPE65 gene (“RPE65 patients”) before and 3 years after GT. While the sighted controls did not present any evidence for auditory cross-modal plasticity, robust responses to the auditory stimuli were found in occipital cortex of the RPE65 patients overlapping visual responses and significantly elevated 3 years after GT. The rsfMRI results showed significant connectivity between the auditory and visual areas for both groups albeit attenuated in patients at baseline but enhanced 3 years after GT. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that (1) RPE65 patients present with an auditory cross-modal component; (2) visual and non-visual responses of the visual cortex are considerably enhanced after vision restoration; and (3) auditory cross-modal functions did not adversely affect the success of vision restitution. We hypothesize that following GT, to meet the demand for the newly established retinal signals, remaining or dormant visual neurons are revived or unmasked for greater participation. These neurons or a subset of these neurons respond to both the visual and non-visual demands and further strengthen connectivity between the auditory and visual cortices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Theresa G Mowad
- Department of Ophthalmology, Center for Advanced Retinal and Ocular Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Aimee E Willett
- The Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, Blacksburg, VA, United States
| | | | - Mikhail Lipin
- Department of Ophthalmology, Center for Advanced Retinal and Ocular Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Armin Heinecke
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Albert M Maguire
- Department of Ophthalmology, Center for Advanced Retinal and Ocular Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States.,Department of Ophthalmology, F.M. Kirby Center for Molecular Ophthalmology, Scheie Eye Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States.,Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Jean Bennett
- Department of Ophthalmology, Center for Advanced Retinal and Ocular Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States.,Department of Ophthalmology, F.M. Kirby Center for Molecular Ophthalmology, Scheie Eye Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States.,Center for Cellular and Molecular Therapeutics, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Manzar Ashtari
- Department of Ophthalmology, Center for Advanced Retinal and Ocular Therapeutics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States.,Department of Ophthalmology, F.M. Kirby Center for Molecular Ophthalmology, Scheie Eye Institute, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States.,Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
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25
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Castaldi E, Lunghi C, Morrone MC. Neuroplasticity in adult human visual cortex. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 112:542-552. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.02.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2019] [Revised: 12/30/2019] [Accepted: 02/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
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26
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van der Heijden K, Formisano E, Valente G, Zhan M, Kupers R, de Gelder B. Reorganization of Sound Location Processing in the Auditory Cortex of Blind Humans. Cereb Cortex 2020; 30:1103-1116. [PMID: 31504283 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhz151] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2018] [Revised: 05/27/2019] [Accepted: 06/16/2019] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Auditory spatial tasks induce functional activation in the occipital-visual-cortex of early blind humans. Less is known about the effects of blindness on auditory spatial processing in the temporal-auditory-cortex. Here, we investigated spatial (azimuth) processing in congenitally and early blind humans with a phase-encoding functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) paradigm. Our results show that functional activation in response to sounds in general-independent of sound location-was stronger in the occipital cortex but reduced in the medial temporal cortex of blind participants in comparison with sighted participants. Additionally, activation patterns for binaural spatial processing were different for sighted and blind participants in planum temporale. Finally, fMRI responses in the auditory cortex of blind individuals carried less information on sound azimuth position than those in sighted individuals, as assessed with a 2-channel, opponent coding model for the cortical representation of sound azimuth. These results indicate that early visual deprivation results in reorganization of binaural spatial processing in the auditory cortex and that blind individuals may rely on alternative mechanisms for processing azimuth position.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiki van der Heijden
- Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 MD Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Elia Formisano
- Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 MD Maastricht, the Netherlands.,Maastricht Center for Systems Biology, Maastricht University, 6200 MD Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Giancarlo Valente
- Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 MD Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Minye Zhan
- Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 MD Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Ron Kupers
- BRAINlab and Neuropsychiatry Laboratory, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology, University of Copenhagen, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.,Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale University, 300 Cedar Street, New Haven, CT 06520, USA
| | - Beatrice de Gelder
- Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 MD Maastricht, the Netherlands.,Department of Computer Science, University College London, Gower Street, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
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27
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Abstract
Background Several neuroimaging studies demonstrated that visual deprivation led to significant cross-modal plasticity in the brain’s functional and anatomical architecture. Purpose To investigate the pattern of the interhemispheric functional connectivity in individuals with late blindness using the voxel-mirrored homotopic connectivity (VMHC) and seed-based functional connectivity (FC) methods. Material and Methods Forty-four individuals with late blindness (22 men, 22 women; mean age = 39.88 ± 12.84 years) and 55 sighted control individuals (35 men, 20 women; mean age = 43.13 ± 13.98 years)—closely matched for age, sex, and education—underwent resting-state magnetic resonance imaging scans. The VMHC and seed-based FC methods were applied to assess interhemispheric coordination in a voxel-wise manner. Results Compared with the sighted control groups, the late blindness groups showed decreased VMHC values in the bilateral cuneus/calcarine/lingual gyrus (CUN/CAL/LING) (BA 17/18/19) (voxel level: P < 0.001, Gaussian random field [GRF] correction, cluster level: P < 0.005). Meanwhile, for seed-based FC analysis, compared with the sighted control group, the late blindness group showed a decreased FC between the right lower VMHC regions and the bilateral CUN/LING/CAL/precuneus (PreCUN)/left middle occipital gyrus (MOG) (BA 18/19/30/31) and left precentral gyrus (PreCG) and postcentral gyrus (PostCG) (BA 2/3/4/6). The late blindness group showed a decreased FC between the left lower VMHC regions and the bilateral CUN/LING/CAL/PreCUN (BA 18/19/31) and left PreCG and PostCG (BA 2/3/4/6) relative to the sighted control group (voxel level: P < 0.001, GRF correction, cluster level: P < 0.005). Moreover, a negative correlation was observed between the duration of blindness and VMHC values in the bilateral CUN/CAL/LING (r = −0.393, P = 0.008) in individuals with late blindness. Conclusion Our results indicated that late blindness induced substantial impairment of interhemispheric coordination in the visual cortex. This might reflect impaired visual fusion, visual recognition function, and top-down modulations in individuals with late blindness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Huang
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, PR China
| | - Fu-Qing Zhou
- Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Jiangxi Province Medical Imaging Research Institute, Nanchang, PR China
| | - Han-Dong Dan
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, PR China
| | - Yin Shen
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, PR China
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28
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Pant R, Kanjlia S, Bedny M. A sensitive period in the neural phenotype of language in blind individuals. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2020; 41:100744. [PMID: 31999565 PMCID: PMC6994632 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2019.100744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2019] [Revised: 11/15/2019] [Accepted: 11/29/2019] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Congenital blindness modifies the neural basis of language: "visual" cortices respond to linguistic information, and fronto-temporal language networks are less left-lateralized. We tested the hypothesis that this plasticity follows a sensitive period by comparing the neural basis of sentence processing between adult-onset blind (AB, n = 16), congenitally blind (CB, n = 22) and blindfolded sighted adults (n = 18). In Experiment 1, participants made semantic judgments for spoken sentences and, in a control condition, solved math equations. In Experiment 2, participants answered "who did what to whom" yes/no questions for grammatically complex (with syntactic movement) and simpler sentences. In a control condition, participants performed a memory task with non-words. In both experiments, visual cortices of CB and AB but not sighted participants responded more to sentences than control conditions, but the effect was much larger in the CB group. Only the "visual" cortex of CB participants responded to grammatical complexity. Unlike the CB group, the AB group showed no reduction in left-lateralization of fronto-temporal language network, relative to the sighted. These results suggest that congenital blindness modifies the neural basis of language differently from adult-onset blindness, consistent with a developmental sensitive period hypothesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rashi Pant
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, USA; Biological Psychology and Neuropsychology, University of Hamburg, Germany.
| | - Shipra Kanjlia
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, USA
| | - Marina Bedny
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Johns Hopkins University, USA
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29
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The Cross-Modal Effects of Sensory Deprivation on Spatial and Temporal Processes in Vision and Audition: A Systematic Review on Behavioral and Neuroimaging Research since 2000. Neural Plast 2019; 2019:9603469. [PMID: 31885540 PMCID: PMC6914961 DOI: 10.1155/2019/9603469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2019] [Revised: 07/06/2019] [Accepted: 10/31/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
One of the most significant effects of neural plasticity manifests in the case of sensory deprivation when cortical areas that were originally specialized for the functions of the deprived sense take over the processing of another modality. Vision and audition represent two important senses needed to navigate through space and time. Therefore, the current systematic review discusses the cross-modal behavioral and neural consequences of deafness and blindness by focusing on spatial and temporal processing abilities, respectively. In addition, movement processing is evaluated as compiling both spatial and temporal information. We examine whether the sense that is not primarily affected changes in its own properties or in the properties of the deprived modality (i.e., temporal processing as the main specialization of audition and spatial processing as the main specialization of vision). References to the metamodal organization, supramodal functioning, and the revised neural recycling theory are made to address global brain organization and plasticity principles. Generally, according to the reviewed studies, behavioral performance is enhanced in those aspects for which both the deprived and the overtaking senses provide adequate processing resources. Furthermore, the behavioral enhancements observed in the overtaking sense (i.e., vision in the case of deafness and audition in the case of blindness) are clearly limited by the processing resources of the overtaking modality. Thus, the brain regions that were previously recruited during the behavioral performance of the deprived sense now support a similar behavioral performance for the overtaking sense. This finding suggests a more input-unspecific and processing principle-based organization of the brain. Finally, we highlight the importance of controlling for and stating factors that might impact neural plasticity and the need for further research into visual temporal processing in deaf subjects.
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30
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Zuk NJ, Delgutte B. Neural coding and perception of auditory motion direction based on interaural time differences. J Neurophysiol 2019; 122:1821-1842. [PMID: 31461376 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00081.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
While motion is important for parsing a complex auditory scene into perceptual objects, how it is encoded in the auditory system is unclear. Perceptual studies suggest that the ability to identify the direction of motion is limited by the duration of the moving sound, yet we can detect changes in interaural differences at even shorter durations. To understand the source of these distinct temporal limits, we recorded from single units in the inferior colliculus (IC) of unanesthetized rabbits in response to noise stimuli containing a brief segment with linearly time-varying interaural time difference ("ITD sweep") temporally embedded in interaurally uncorrelated noise. We also tested the ability of human listeners to either detect the ITD sweeps or identify the motion direction. Using a point-process model to separate the contributions of stimulus dependence and spiking history to single-neuron responses, we found that the neurons respond primarily by following the instantaneous ITD rather than exhibiting true direction selectivity. Furthermore, using an optimal classifier to decode the single-neuron responses, we found that neural threshold durations of ITD sweeps for both direction identification and detection overlapped with human threshold durations even though the average response of the neurons could track the instantaneous ITD beyond psychophysical limits. Our results suggest that the IC does not explicitly encode motion direction, but internal neural noise may limit the speed at which we can identify the direction of motion.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Recognizing motion and identifying an object's trajectory are important for parsing a complex auditory scene, but how we do so is unclear. We show that neurons in the auditory midbrain do not exhibit direction selectivity as found in the visual system but instead follow the trajectory of the motion in their temporal firing patterns. Our results suggest that the inherent variability in neural firings may limit our ability to identify motion direction at short durations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathaniel J Zuk
- Eaton-Peabody Laboratories, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Bertrand Delgutte
- Eaton-Peabody Laboratories, Massachusetts Eye and Ear, Boston, Massachusetts.,Department of Otolaryngology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
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31
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Richards MD, Goltz HC, Wong AM. Audiovisual perception in amblyopia: A review and synthesis. Exp Eye Res 2019; 183:68-75. [DOI: 10.1016/j.exer.2018.04.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2018] [Revised: 04/27/2018] [Accepted: 04/28/2018] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
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32
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Dan HD, Zhou FQ, Huang X, Xing YQ, Shen Y. Altered intra- and inter-regional functional connectivity of the visual cortex in individuals with peripheral vision loss due to retinitis pigmentosa. Vision Res 2019; 159:68-75. [PMID: 30904614 DOI: 10.1016/j.visres.2019.02.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2018] [Revised: 02/04/2019] [Accepted: 02/27/2019] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
This study investigated changes in intra- and inter-regional functional connectivity (FC) in individuals with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) by using regional homogeneity (ReHo) and FC methods. Sixteen RP individuals and 14 healthy controls (HCs) underwent resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging scans (fMRI). A combined ReHo and FC method was conducted to evaluate synchronization of brain activity. Compared with HCs, RP individuals had significantly lower ReHo values in the bilateral lingual gyrus/cerebellum posterior lobe (LGG/CPL). In FC analysis, the RP group showed decreased positive FC relative to the HC group, from bilateral LGG/CPL to bilateral LGG/cuneus (CUN) and to left postcentral gyrus (PosCG). In contrast, the RP group showed increased negative FC relative to the HC group, from bilateral LGG/CPL to bilateral thalamus, and decreased negative FC from bilateral LGG/CPL to right middle frontal gyrus (MFG), and to left inferior parietal lobule (IPL). Moreover, ReHo values of the bilateral LGG/CPL showed negative correlations with the duration of RP. FC values of the bilateral LGG/CPL-left IPL showed negative correlations with best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of the right eye and left eye in RP individuals. Our results reveal reduced synchronicity of neural activity changes in the primary visual area in RP individuals. Moreover, RP individuals showed intrinsic visual network disconnection and reorganization of the retino-thalamocortical pathway and dorsal visual stream, suggesting impaired visuospatial and stereoscopic vision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Han-Dong Dan
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, Hubei, China
| | - Fu-Qing Zhou
- Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanchang University, Jiangxi Province Medical Imaging Research Institute, Nanchang 330006, Jiangxi, China
| | - Xin Huang
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, Hubei, China
| | - Yi-Qiao Xing
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, Hubei, China
| | - Yin Shen
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430060, Hubei, China.
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33
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Recruitment of the occipital cortex by arithmetic processing follows computational bias in the congenitally blind. Neuroimage 2019; 186:549-556. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2018.11.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2018] [Revised: 11/20/2018] [Accepted: 11/21/2018] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
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34
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Silva PR, Farias T, Cascio F, Dos Santos L, Peixoto V, Crespo E, Ayres C, Ayres M, Marinho V, Bastos VH, Ribeiro P, Velasques B, Orsini M, Fiorelli R, de Freitas MRG, Teixeira S. Neuroplasticity in visual impairments. Neurol Int 2018; 10:7326. [PMID: 30687464 PMCID: PMC6322049 DOI: 10.4081/ni.2018.7326] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2017] [Accepted: 12/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The visual acuity loss enables the brain to access new pathways in the quest to overcome the visual limitation and this is wellknown as neuroplasticity which have mechanisms to cortical reorganization. In this review, we related the evidences about the neuroplasticity as well as cortical anatomical differences and functional repercussions in visual impairments. We performed a systematic review of PUBMED database, without date or status publication restrictions. The findings demonstrate that the visual impairment produce a compensatory sensorial effect, in which non-visual areas are related to both cross (visual congenital) and multimodal (late blind) neuroplasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paulo Ramiler Silva
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba
| | - Tiago Farias
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba
| | - Fernando Cascio
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba
| | - Levi Dos Santos
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba
| | - Vinícius Peixoto
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba
| | - Eric Crespo
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba
| | - Carla Ayres
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba
| | - Marcos Ayres
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba.,The Northeast Biotechnology Network, Federal University of Piauí, Teresina
| | - Victor Marinho
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba.,The Northeast Biotechnology Network, Federal University of Piauí, Teresina
| | - Victor Hugo Bastos
- The Northeast Biotechnology Network, Federal University of Piauí, Teresina.,Brain Mapping and Functionality Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba
| | - Pedro Ribeiro
- Brain Mapping and Sensory- Motor Integration Laboratory, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro
| | - Bruna Velasques
- Brain Mapping and Sensory- Motor Integration Laboratory, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro
| | - Marco Orsini
- Master's Program in Local Development Program, University Center Augusto Motta - UNISUAM, Rio de Janeiro.,Master's Program in Health Sciences Applied - Vassouras University, Rio de Janeiro.,CASF- Ramon Pereira de Freitas - Department of Neurology
| | - Rossano Fiorelli
- Master's Program in Health Sciences Applied - Vassouras University, Rio de Janeiro
| | - Marcos R G de Freitas
- Department of Neurology, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Silmar Teixeira
- Neuro-innovation Technology & Brain Mapping Laboratory, Federal University of Piauí, Parnaíba.,The Northeast Biotechnology Network, Federal University of Piauí, Teresina
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35
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Abstract
Early blindness causes fundamental alterations of neural function across more than 25% of cortex-changes that span the gamut from metabolism to behavior and collectively represent one of the most dramatic examples of plasticity in the human brain. The goal of this review is to describe how the remarkable behavioral and neuroanatomical compensations demonstrated by blind individuals provide insights into the extent, mechanisms, and limits of human brain plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ione Fine
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA;
| | - Ji-Min Park
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, USA;
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36
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Altered regional homogeneity in patients with late monocular blindness: a resting-state functional MRI study. Neuroreport 2018; 28:1085-1091. [PMID: 28858036 PMCID: PMC5916480 DOI: 10.1097/wnr.0000000000000855] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Many previous studies have demonstrated that the blindness patients have has functional and anatomical abnormalities in the visual and other vision-related cortex. However, changes in the brain function in late monocular blindness (MB) at rest are largely unknown. In this study, we investigated the underlying regional homogeneity (ReHo) of brain-activity abnormalities in patients with late MB and their relationship with clinical features. A total of 32 patients with MB (25 male and seven female) and 32 healthy controls (HCs) (25 male and seven female) closely matched in age, sex, and education underwent resting-state functional MRI scans. The ReHo method was used to assess local features of spontaneous brain activities. Patients with MB were distinguishable from HCs using the receiver operating characteristic curve. The relationship between the mean ReHo in brain regions and the behavioral performance was calculated using correlation analysis. Compared with HCs, patients with MB showed significantly decreased ReHo values in the right rectal gyrus, right cuneus, right anterior cingulate, and right lateral occipital cortex and increased ReHo values in the right inferior temporal gyrus, right frontal middle orbital, left posterior cingulate/precuneus, and left middle frontal gyrus. However, there was no significant relationship between the different mean ReHo values in the brain regions and the clinical features. Late MB involves abnormalities of the visual cortex and other vision-related brain regions, which may reflect brain dysfunction in these regions.
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37
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Van Ackeren MJ, Barbero FM, Mattioni S, Bottini R, Collignon O. Neuronal populations in the occipital cortex of the blind synchronize to the temporal dynamics of speech. eLife 2018; 7:e31640. [PMID: 29338838 PMCID: PMC5790372 DOI: 10.7554/elife.31640] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2017] [Accepted: 01/16/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The occipital cortex of early blind individuals (EB) activates during speech processing, challenging the notion of a hard-wired neurobiology of language. But, at what stage of speech processing do occipital regions participate in EB? Here we demonstrate that parieto-occipital regions in EB enhance their synchronization to acoustic fluctuations in human speech in the theta-range (corresponding to syllabic rate), irrespective of speech intelligibility. Crucially, enhanced synchronization to the intelligibility of speech was selectively observed in primary visual cortex in EB, suggesting that this region is at the interface between speech perception and comprehension. Moreover, EB showed overall enhanced functional connectivity between temporal and occipital cortices that are sensitive to speech intelligibility and altered directionality when compared to the sighted group. These findings suggest that the occipital cortex of the blind adopts an architecture that allows the tracking of speech material, and therefore does not fully abstract from the reorganized sensory inputs it receives.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Francesca M Barbero
- Institute of research in PsychologyUniversity of LouvainLouvainBelgium
- Institute of NeuroscienceUniversity of LouvainLouvainBelgium
| | | | - Roberto Bottini
- Center for Mind/Brain StudiesUniversity of TrentoTrentoItaly
| | - Olivier Collignon
- Center for Mind/Brain StudiesUniversity of TrentoTrentoItaly
- Institute of research in PsychologyUniversity of LouvainLouvainBelgium
- Institute of NeuroscienceUniversity of LouvainLouvainBelgium
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38
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Gori M, Cappagli G, Baud-Bovy G, Finocchietti S. Shape Perception and Navigation in Blind Adults. Front Psychol 2017; 8:10. [PMID: 28144226 PMCID: PMC5240028 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2017.00010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2016] [Accepted: 01/03/2017] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Different sensory systems interact to generate a representation of space and to navigate. Vision plays a critical role in the representation of space development. During navigation, vision is integrated with auditory and mobility cues. In blind individuals, visual experience is not available and navigation therefore lacks this important sensory signal. In blind individuals, compensatory mechanisms can be adopted to improve spatial and navigation skills. On the other hand, the limitations of these compensatory mechanisms are not completely clear. Both enhanced and impaired reliance on auditory cues in blind individuals have been reported. Here, we develop a new paradigm to test both auditory perception and navigation skills in blind and sighted individuals and to investigate the effect that visual experience has on the ability to reproduce simple and complex paths. During the navigation task, early blind, late blind and sighted individuals were required first to listen to an audio shape and then to recognize and reproduce it by walking. After each audio shape was presented, a static sound was played and the participants were asked to reach it. Movements were recorded with a motion tracking system. Our results show three main impairments specific to early blind individuals. The first is the tendency to compress the shapes reproduced during navigation. The second is the difficulty to recognize complex audio stimuli, and finally, the third is the difficulty in reproducing the desired shape: early blind participants occasionally reported perceiving a square but they actually reproduced a circle during the navigation task. We discuss these results in terms of compromised spatial reference frames due to lack of visual input during the early period of development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monica Gori
- Unit for Visually Impaired People, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia Genoa, Italy
| | - Giulia Cappagli
- Unit for Visually Impaired People, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia Genoa, Italy
| | - Gabriel Baud-Bovy
- Robotics, Brain and Cognitive Science Department, Istituto Italiano di TecnologiaGenoa, Italy; The Unit of Experimental Psychology, Division of Neuroscience, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Vita-Salute San Raffaele UniversityMilan, Italy
| | - Sara Finocchietti
- Unit for Visually Impaired People, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia Genoa, Italy
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39
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Guerreiro MJ, Putzar L, Röder B. Persisting Cross-Modal Changes in Sight-Recovery Individuals Modulate Visual Perception. Curr Biol 2016; 26:3096-3100. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2016.08.069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2016] [Revised: 08/19/2016] [Accepted: 08/31/2016] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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40
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Castaldi E, Cicchini GM, Cinelli L, Biagi L, Rizzo S, Morrone MC. Visual BOLD Response in Late Blind Subjects with Argus II Retinal Prosthesis. PLoS Biol 2016; 14:e1002569. [PMID: 27780207 PMCID: PMC5079588 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1002569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2016] [Accepted: 09/19/2016] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Retinal prosthesis technologies require that the visual system downstream of the retinal circuitry be capable of transmitting and elaborating visual signals. We studied the capability of plastic remodeling in late blind subjects implanted with the Argus II Retinal Prosthesis with psychophysics and functional MRI (fMRI). After surgery, six out of seven retinitis pigmentosa (RP) blind subjects were able to detect high-contrast stimuli using the prosthetic implant. However, direction discrimination to contrast modulated stimuli remained at chance level in all of them. No subject showed any improvement of contrast sensitivity in either eye when not using the Argus II. Before the implant, the Blood Oxygenation Level Dependent (BOLD) activity in V1 and the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) was very weak or absent. Surprisingly, after prolonged use of Argus II, BOLD responses to visual input were enhanced. This is, to our knowledge, the first study tracking the neural changes of visual areas in patients after retinal implant, revealing a capacity to respond to restored visual input even after years of deprivation.
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Affiliation(s)
- E. Castaldi
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
| | | | - L. Cinelli
- Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Careggi, SOD Oculistica, Florence, Italy
| | - L. Biagi
- Stella Maris Scientific Institute, Pisa, Italy
| | - S. Rizzo
- Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria Careggi, SOD Oculistica, Florence, Italy
| | - M. C. Morrone
- Department of Translational Research on New Technologies in Medicine and Surgery, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy
- Stella Maris Scientific Institute, Pisa, Italy
- * E-mail:
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