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Topographical Estimation of Visual Population Receptive Fields by fMRI
Published on: February 3, 2015
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Intersession reliability of population receptive field estimates
Jelle A van Dijk1, Benjamin de Haas1, Christina Moutsiana2
1Experimental Psychology, University College London, 26 Bedford Way, London, UK; UCL Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, 17-19 Queen Square, London, UK.
Neuroimage
|September 14, 2016
Summary
Population receptive field (pRF) analysis is reliable over time. This study shows consistent pRF estimates across sessions, confirming the stability of this visual cortex mapping technique.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Visual Neuroscience
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- Population receptive field (pRF) analysis is widely used to understand spatial selectivity in the visual cortex.
- The long-term stability of pRF estimates has not been extensively studied.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the intersession reliability of pRF parameter estimates.
- To determine the stability of visual field maps over time.
Main Methods:
- Used a combined wedge and ring stimulus with natural images.
- Collected data from 16 healthy participants across two scanning sessions (10-114 days apart).
- Analyzed reliability for eccentricity, polar angle, pRF size, and cortical magnification factor (CMF).
Main Results:
- High intersession reliability (r>.8) for eccentricity and polar angle in V1-V3.
- Strong, but lower, intersession reliability (r≈.4-.6) for pRF size and CMF.
- Consistent group-level results for pRF size and CMF across sessions.
- Reliability was independent of the carrier stimulus and high for same-day sessions (r>.6).
Conclusions:
- Population receptive field mapping demonstrates high reliability across sessions.
- pRF analysis is a stable method for mapping visual cortex organization over time.
