Department of Psychology, University of Torino, 10123 Torino, Italy; Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Tilburg University, 5000LE Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Department of Psychology, University of Torino, 10123 Torino, Italy.
Neuropsychologia. 2019 May;128:109-118. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2018.06.007. Epub 2018 Jul 18.
Blindsight, the residual abilities of patients with cortical blindness to respond proficiently to stimuli they do not consciously acknowledge, offers a unique opportunity to study the functional and anatomical mechanisms sustaining visual awareness. Over decades, the phenomenon has been documented in a wide number of different patients, across independent laboratories, and for a variety of tasks and stimulus properties. Nevertheless, the functional neuroanatomy of blindsight remains elusive and alternative proposals have been put forth. To tackle this issue from a novel perspective, we performed a quantitative Activation Likelihood Estimation (ALE) meta-analysis on the neuroimaging literature available on blindsight. Significant activity was reported in subcortical structures, such as the superior colliculus, pulvinar and amygdala, as well as in cortical extrastriate areas along the dorsal and ventral visual stream. This data-driven functional network collectively defines the extant neural fingerprint of blindsight. To further characterize the unique combination of segregation and integration in brain networks engaged in blindsight, we measured the relationship between active areas and experimental features in the original studies, their clustering and hierarchical organization. Results support a network-based organization in the functional neuroanatomy of blindsight, which likely reflects the intersection of different stimulus properties and behavioural tasks examined. We suggest that the conceptualization of blindsight as a constellation of multiple nonconscious visual abilities is better apt as a summary of present-day wisdom, thereby mirroring the variety of existing V1-independent pathway and their different functional roles.
盲视，即皮质盲患者对其无法有意识感知的刺激能熟练做出反应的残留能力，为研究维持视觉意识的功能和解剖学机制提供了独特的机会。几十年来，这一现象在许多不同的患者、独立的实验室中，以及各种任务和刺激特性中都得到了记录。然而，盲视的功能神经解剖学仍然难以捉摸，人们提出了替代的建议。为了从一个新的角度解决这个问题，我们对盲视的神经影像学文献进行了定量激活似然估计（ALE）荟萃分析。研究报告了在下丘脑、上丘、丘脑枕和杏仁核等皮质下结构，以及沿着背侧和腹侧视觉流的皮质外纹状体区域，都有显著的活动。这些数据驱动的功能网络共同定义了盲视现有的神经特征。为了进一步描述参与盲视的大脑网络中分离和整合的独特组合，我们测量了原始研究中活跃区域与实验特征之间的关系、它们的聚类和层次组织。结果支持了盲视功能神经解剖学中的网络组织，这可能反映了不同刺激特性和行为任务的交叉。我们认为，将盲视概念化为多种非意识视觉能力的组合，更适合作为当今智慧的总结，从而反映了现有的多种 V1 独立途径及其不同的功能作用。
