Investigation of the stages of the mental rotation of complex figures with the intracortical interaction mapping technique.

The stages of the mental rotation of complex three-dimensional figures were investigated in nine healthy subjects using the intracortical interaction mapping technique. It was established that mental rotation is accomplished with the participation of both parietal regions; the prerotation setup is associated with the involvement of the frontal, central, and right temporal divisions of the brain; decision-making regarding the result of the rotation and the response is accomplished through the conjunction of both frontal and temporoparietooccipital regions of the left hemisphere. In the case of the unsuccessful solution of the problem the process seems to stop at the stage of the prerotation setup. With verbal control the configuration of the zone of high-level association during the first three stages is reminiscent of that observed in the baseline activity.