Asynchronies in the development of electrophysiological responses to motion and color

Recent reports have documented greater plasticity in the dorsal visual stream as compared with the ventral visual stream. This study sought to test the hypothesis that this greater plasticity may be related to a more protracted period of development in the dorsal as compared with the ventral stream. Age-related effects on event-related potentials (ERPs) elicited by motion and color stimuli, designed to activate the two visual streams, were assessed in healthy individuals aged 6 years through adulthood. Although significant developmental effects were observed in amplitudes of ERPs to both color and motion stimuli, marked latency effects were observed only in response to motion. These results provide support for the hypothesis that the dorsal stream displays a longer developmental time course across the early school years than the ventral stream. Implications for neural and behavioral plasticity are discussed.