Category and perceptual learning in subjects with treated Wilson's disease

To explore the relationship between category and perceptual learning, we examined both category and perceptual learning in patients with treated Wilson's disease (WD), whose basal ganglia, known to be important in category learning, were damaged by the disease. We measured their learning rate and accuracy in rule-based and information-integration category learning, and magnitudes of perceptual learning in a wide range of external noise conditions, and compared the results with those of normal controls. The WD subjects exhibited deficits in both forms of category learning and in perceptual learning in high external noise. However, their perceptual learning in low external noise was relatively spared. There was no significant correlation between the two forms of category learning, nor between perceptual learning in low external noise and either form of category learning. Perceptual learning in high external noise was, however, significantly correlated with information-integration but not with rule-based category learning. The results suggest that there may be a strong link between information-integration category learning and perceptual learning in high external noise. Damage to brain structures that are important for information-integration category learning may lead to poor perceptual learning in high external noise, yet spare perceptual learning in low external noise. Perceptual learning in high and low external noise conditions may involve separate neural substrates.