Cited by 93Spatial Neglect and Hemispheric DysfunctionVisual perception and processing mechanismsVisual Attention and Saliency Detection

Abnormal Attentional Modulation of Retinotopic Cortex in Parietal Patients with Spatial Neglect

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Vuilleumier, Patrik, Schwartz, Sophie, Verdon, Vincent, Maravita, Angelo, Hutton, Chloe, Husain, Masud, Driver, Jon·2008·Current Biology

Abstract

Brain regions beyond visual cortex are thought to be responsible for attention-related modulation of visual processing [1, 2], but most evidence is indirect. Here, we applied functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), including retinotopic mapping of visual areas, to patients with focal right-parietal lesions and left spatial neglect [3, 4]. When attentional load at fixation was minimal, retinotopic areas in right visual cortex showed preserved responses to task-irrelevant checkerboards in the contralateral left hemifield, analogously to left visual cortex for right-hemifield checkerboards, indicating a "symmetric" pattern in both hemispheres with respect to contralateral stimulation under these conditions. But when attentional load at fixation was increased, a functional asymmetry emerged for visual cortex, with contralateral responses in right visual areas being pathologically reduced (even eliminated for right V4/TEO), whereas left visual areas showed no such reduction in their contralateral response. These results reveal attention-dependent abnormalities in visual cortex after lesions in distant (parietal) regions. This may explain otherwise puzzling aspects of neglect [5, 6], as confirmed here by additional behavioral testing.

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Authors
Vuilleumier, P., Schwartz, S., Verdon, V., Maravita, A., Hutton, C., Husain, M., & Driver, J.
Affiliations
  • University of Geneva (CH)
  • University of Milano-Bicocca (IT)
  • UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology (GB)
Corresponding author
Vuilleumier, Patrik
Venue
Current Biology
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2008-10
Volume
18
Issue
19
Pages
1525-1529
ISSN
0960-9822 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W1970643668
Cited by
93
References
32
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 3 · 2023: 1 · 2022: 4 · 2021: 5 · 2020: 5 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 20 · 2012: 13
FWCI
2.94
Type
journal article
Language
en
Update notices
erratum (2008-10-28)
Open access
Locations
  • Current Biology (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • Archive ouverte UNIGE (University of Geneva) (acceptedVersion)
  • UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
  • Archive ouverte UNIGE (University of Geneva) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
  • Wellcome Trust (061140, 066097)
  • Leverhulme Trust
  • Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung (114014)
  • Medical Research Council
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Spatial Neglect and Hemispheric Dysfunction
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Visual perception and processing mechanisms
  • Physical Sciences › Computer Science › Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition › Visual Attention and Saliency Detection
Keywords
hemispatial neglect, retinotopic visual cortex, attentional modulation, hemispheric lateralization, visual cortex, V4, attentional load
MeSH terms
Attention, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Parietal Lobe, Perceptual Disorders, Visual Cortex

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