Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 27, 2026
07:04
Virtual Reality Tools for Assessing Unilateral Spatial Neglect: A Novel Opportunity for Data Collection
Published on: March 10, 2021
Ipsilesional 'where' with contralesional 'what' neglect
Jay Cheol Kwon1, Sunyoung Ahn, Sunghee Kim
1Department of Neurology, Changwon Fatima Hospital, Changwon, South Korea. chkwonj@gmail.com
Neurocase
|December 6, 2011
Summary
A right parietal lesion caused unusual spatial neglect. The patient showed ipsilesional neglect on "where" tasks and contralesional neglect on "what" tasks, suggesting distinct attentional networks.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Psychology
- Neurology
Background:
- Spatial neglect, typically caused by right temporo-parietal lesions (contralesional) or right frontal lesions (ipsilesional), affects attention to space.
- Understanding the neural basis of spatial neglect subtypes is crucial for diagnosing and treating attention deficits.
Observation:
- A 73-year-old woman with a right inferior parietal lesion presented with a unique pattern of spatial neglect.
- She exhibited ipsilesional neglect on 'where' tasks (e.g., line bisection) but contralesional neglect on 'what' tasks (e.g., object detection).
Findings:
- This dissociation suggests independent 'what' and 'where' attentional networks.
- The findings challenge traditional models of spatial neglect lateralization.
Implications:
- The study provides evidence for distinct neural substrates supporting 'what' and 'where' processing in attention.
- Further research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms underlying this parietal lesion-induced attentional dichotomy.
Related Concept Videos
01:28Lateralization
Brain lateralization refers to the division of mental processes and functions between the two hemispheres of the brain, a phenomenon that optimizes neural efficiency and underpins complex abilities in humans. This specialization allows each hemisphere to perform tasks where it has a comparative advantage, facilitating more refined cognitive capabilities across different domains.
01:14Directional Terms
Directional terms are essential for describing the relative locations of different body structures. For instance, an anatomist might describe one band of tissue as "inferior to" another, or a physician might describe a tumor as "superficial to" a deeper body structure. These terms often use comparative terms in pairs to trace out the relative locations of one body part to another or descriptions of body tissues like the deeper ones from superficially present with reference to the body's upright...
01:28Major Somatic Sensory Pathways
Sensory impulses related to touch, pressure, vibration, and proprioception from various body parts, such as the limbs, trunk, neck, and posterior head, travel to the cerebral cortex through the posterior column-medial lemniscus pathway. The pathway’s name derives from the two white-matter tracts that convey the impulses: the spinal cord's posterior column and the brainstem's medial lemniscus. First-order sensory neurons extend their axons into the spinal cord, forming the posterior columns...
01:12Visual Agnosia
Visual agnosia is a condition characterized by the inability to recognize visually presented objects despite having normal vision. For instance, a person with visual agnosia can describe the shape and color of an object but cannot identify or name it. This impairment does not affect their visual field, acuity, color vision, brightness discrimination, language, or memory. An example of this condition in a social setting is someone at a dinner party asking for "that silver thing with a round end"...
01:10Higher Mental Functions of the Brain: Language
Language is a system of communication that allows the expression of thoughts, ideas, and feelings. The brain processes language in both hemispheres.
Language formation and comprehension take place in the dominant hemisphere. The dominant hemisphere is responsible for understanding the meaning of spoken, written, or sign language, as well as the ability to communicate. For most people, the left hemisphere is the dominant one. The right hemisphere, then, gives tone and emotional context to the...
Language formation and comprehension take place in the dominant hemisphere. The dominant hemisphere is responsible for understanding the meaning of spoken, written, or sign language, as well as the ability to communicate. For most people, the left hemisphere is the dominant one. The right hemisphere, then, gives tone and emotional context to the...
01:21Nondisjunction
Nondisjunction is the failure of homologous chromosomes or sister chromatids to separate correctly and move to the opposite poles of the cells. This produces daughter cells with abnormal chromosome numbers. Nondisjunction is common during anaphase I or anaphase II of meiosis. Mutations in synaptonemal complex proteins that attach homologous chromosomes increase the chances of nondisjunction in anaphase I of meiosis I. In contrast, mutations in topoisomerases and condensins that hold sister...