Oxyopia Abstract

February 29, 2008
Friday, 4:00 PM
489 Minor Hall

Faculty Search Candidate

Title

Is the Visual Cortex Really Visual?

Abstract

Conventional wisdom has always held that the occipital cortex processes visual information exclusively. More recent evidence suggests that this view may be an oversimplification. In fact, studies from our group (as well as others) have shown that the occipital visual cortex participates in the processing of other sensory modalities such as hearing and touch. This form of crossmodal neuroplasticity is most striking when one considers the situation following vision loss. Individuals who become blind have to make remarkable adjustments in order to interact with their environment. It appears that these compensations not only implicate changes in remaining sensory modalities but also involve those parts of the brain once dedicated to the processing of vision itself. We use functional neuroimaging (fMRI), transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), to investigate the causal relationship between brain function and behavior. Specifically, neuroimaging can identify the areas of the brain that are potentially implicated in carrying out a given task. Transiently disrupting a given area of the brain in a focal, reversible, and non-invasive manner can uncover its functional role by observing the behavioral consequences of its inactivation. Finally, direct stimulation of the brain can be used to augment neuronal activity and potentially enhance the therapeutic potential of certain rehabilitative strategies. Examples will be discussed in this presentation. Studying the compensatory behavior of blind individuals not only affords the opportunity to investigate how functional and compensatory behaviors occur, but also provides insight into the potential and the critical determinants that define how the brain reorganizes itself following sensory deprivation. Any hopes of developing novel rehabilitative strategies such as sensory substitution and neuroprosthetic devices will necessitate an understanding of these neuroplastic mechanisms.

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