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A Large Lateral Craniotomy Procedure for Mesoscale Wide-field Optical Imaging of Brain Activity
Published on: May 7, 2017
Visual activation of frontal cortex: segregation from occipital activity
C D Saron1, C E Schroeder, J J Foxe
1Cognitive Neurophysiology Laboratory, Program in Cognitive Neuroscience & Schizophrenia, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Road, Bldg 35, Orangeburg, NY 10962, USA. saron@nki.rfmh.org
Brain Research. Cognitive Brain Research
|August 8, 2001
Summary
Visual stimuli activate frontal cortex in humans, separate from typical visual processing areas. This early frontal activation occurs independently of visual field or motor task demands.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Electrophysiology
Background:
- Primate studies reveal visual neurons beyond primary visual cortex, including frontal areas.
- Human studies typically show visual event-related potentials (ERPs) in occipital regions.
- Frontal lobe activation by simple visual stimuli in humans remains under-characterized.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate spatiotemporal dynamics of visually-evoked electrocortical responses.
- To emphasize stimulus-related activity distribution over human frontal cortex.
- To examine the influence of motor response preparation on frontal activation.
Main Methods:
- High-density electroencephalography (EEG) recordings.
- Scalp current density (SCD) measures derived from ERPs.
- Passive viewing and simple manual reaction time (RT) tasks with hemiretinal stimulation.
Main Results:
- Early frontocentral activation observed, predominantly in the right hemisphere (124-148 ms).
- This frontal activation is independent of visual field input.
- Frontal activity is temporally distinct from posterior visual responses and unaffected by motor task demands.
Conclusions:
- Visually-evoked electrocortical responses occur early in the human frontal cortex.
- Findings support extensive visual processing in frontal lobe areas.
- Frontal lobe engagement in visual tasks may involve functions beyond direct visual processing.
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