Cortical vestibular-visual interactions and cross-modal plasticity-adaptive neural processes for stable perception

The integration of vestibular and visual signals is essential for spatial orientation, self-motion perception, and postural stability. However, sensory conflicts and environmental changes demand adaptive neural mechanisms to maintain perceptual reliability. Cross-modal plasticity provides a key mechanism for this adaptation by dynamically recalibrating sensory representations in response to discordant or altered inputs. In this review, we summarize the cortical pathways underlying vestibular and visual processing, discuss how multisensory integration and segregation are implemented through distinct neuronal populations and computational principles. We further emphasize recalibration as a core adaptive mechanism that operates across multiple timescales-from gradual adjustments to persistent cue discrepancies to rapid updates shaped by recent sensory history and prior decisions. By synthesizing behavioral and neural evidence, we reveal differential adaptive responses across multisensory cortical areas and propose visual-vestibular recalibration as a fundamental principle of multisensory plasticity, with broad implications for understanding brain function and developing translation approaches for sensory and balance disorders.