The Laboratory for Investigative Neurophysiology (The LINE), Department of Radiology, University Hospital Center, University of Lausanne, Rue Centrale 7, Lausanne, 1003, Switzerland.
Department of Neurosurgery and Neurology, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Medical Center Utrecht, Heidelberglaan 100, 3584 CX, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Brain Topogr. 2020 Sep;33(5):559-570. doi: 10.1007/s10548-020-00783-4. Epub 2020 Jul 13.
There is ongoing debate regarding the extent to which human cortices are specialized for processing a given sensory input versus a given type of information, independently of the sensory source. Many neuroimaging and electrophysiological studies have reported that primary and extrastriate visual cortices respond to tactile and auditory stimulation, in addition to visual inputs, suggesting these cortices are intrinsically multisensory. In particular for tactile responses, few studies have proven neuronal processes in visual cortex in humans. Here, we assessed tactile responses in both low-level and extrastriate visual cortices using electrocorticography recordings in a human participant. Specifically, we observed significant spectral power increases in the high frequency band (30-100 Hz) in response to tactile stimuli, reportedly associated with spiking neuronal activity, in both low-level visual cortex (i.e. V2) and in the anterior part of the lateral occipital-temporal cortex. These sites were both involved in processing tactile information and responsive to visual stimulation. More generally, the present results add to a mounting literature in support of task-sensitive and sensory-independent mechanisms underlying functions like spatial, motion, and self-processing in the brain and extending from higher-level as well as to low-level cortices.
关于人类大脑皮质在多大程度上专门用于处理特定的感觉输入或特定类型的信息，而与感觉来源无关，一直存在争议。许多神经影像学和电生理学研究报告称，初级和外纹状视觉皮层除了视觉输入外，还对触觉和听觉刺激有反应，这表明这些皮层具有内在的多感官特性。特别是对于触觉反应，很少有研究证明人类视觉皮层中的神经元过程。在这里，我们使用人类参与者的皮层电图记录评估了低水平和外纹状视觉皮层中的触觉反应。具体来说，我们观察到在低频带（30-100 Hz）中，在低水平视觉皮层（即 V2）和外侧枕颞叶前部，与尖峰神经元活动有关的显著频谱功率增加，对触觉刺激有反应。这些部位都参与处理触觉信息，并对视觉刺激有反应。更一般地说，目前的结果增加了越来越多的文献支持大脑中空间、运动和自我处理等功能的任务敏感和感觉独立的机制，这些机制不仅存在于高级皮层，也存在于低级皮层。
