Considering Hemispheric Specialization in Emotional Face Processing: An Eye Tracking Study in Left- and Right-Lateralised Semantic Dementia

Face processing relies on a network of occipito-temporal and frontal brain regions. Temporal regions are heavily involved in looking at and processing emotional faces; however, the contribution of each hemisphere to this process remains under debate. Semantic dementia (SD) is a rare neurodegenerative brain condition characterized by anterior temporal lobe atrophy, which is either predominantly left- (left-SD) or right-lateralised (right-SD). This syndrome therefore provides a unique lesion model to understand the role of laterality in emotional face processing. Here, we investigated facial scanning patterns in 10 left-SD and 6 right-SD patients, compared to 22 healthy controls. Eye tracking was recorded via a remote EyeLink 1000 system, while participants passively viewed fearful, happy, and neutral faces over 72 trials. Analyses revealed that right-SD patients had more fixations to the eyes than controls in the Fear (p = 0.04) condition only. Right-SD patients also showed more fixations to the eyes than left-SD patients in all conditions: Fear (p = 0.01), Happy (p = 0.008), and Neutral (p = 0.04). In contrast, no differences between controls and left-SD patients were observed for any emotion. No group differences were observed for fixations to the mouth, or the whole face. This study is the first to examine patterns of facial scanning in left- versus right- SD, demonstrating more of a focus on the eyes in right-SD. Neuroimaging analyses showed that degradation of the right superior temporal sulcus was associated with increased fixations to the eyes. Together these results suggest that right lateralised brain regions of the face processing network are involved in the ability to efficiently utilise changeable cues from the face.

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Eye-Tracking, Autonomic, and Electrophysiological Correlates of Emotional Face Processing in Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders ◽

10.1007/s10803-012-1565-1 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 43 (1) ◽

pp. 188-199 ◽

Cited By ~ 61

Author(s):

Jennifer B. Wagner ◽

Suzanna B. Hirsch ◽

Vanessa K. Vogel-Farley ◽

Elizabeth Redcay ◽

Charles A. Nelson

Keyword(s):

Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽

Eye Tracking ◽

Face Processing ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Spectrum Disorder ◽

Emotional Face Processing ◽

Adolescents With Autism ◽

Emotional Face

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Development of Emotional Face Processing in Premature and Full-Term Infants

Clinical EEG and Neuroscience ◽

10.1177/1550059416647904 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 48 (2) ◽

pp. 88-95 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Cintli Carolina Carbajal-Valenzuela ◽

Efraín Santiago-Rodríguez ◽

Gina L Quirarte ◽

Thalía Harmony

Keyword(s):

Face Processing ◽

Premature Birth ◽

Full Term ◽

White Matter Injury ◽

Occipital Region ◽

Term Infants ◽

Absolute Power ◽

Emotional Face Processing ◽

The Right ◽

Emotional Face

The rate of premature births has increased in the past 2 decades. Ten percent of premature birth survivors develop motor impairment, but almost half exhibit later sensorial, cognitive, and emotional disabilities attributed to white matter injury and decreased volume of neuronal structures. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that premature and full-term infants differ in their development of emotional face processing. A comparative longitudinal study was conducted in premature and full-term infants at 4 and 8 months of age. The absolute power of the electroencephalogram was analyzed in both groups during 5 conditions of an emotional face processing task: positive, negative, neutral faces, non-face, and rest. Differences between the conditions of the task at 4 months were limited to rest versus non-rest comparisons in both groups. Eight-month-old term infants had increases ( P ≤ .05) in absolute power in the left occipital region at the frequency of 10.1 Hz and in the right occipital region at 3.5, 12.8, and 16.0 Hz when shown a positive face in comparison with a neutral face. They also showed increases in absolute power in the left occipital region at 1.9 Hz and in the right occipital region at 2.3 and 3.5 Hz with positive compared to non-face stimuli. In contrast, positive, negative, and neutral faces elicited the same responses in premature infants. In conclusion, our study provides electrophysiological evidence that emotional face processing develops differently in premature than in full-term infants, suggesting that premature birth alters mechanisms of brain development, such as the myelination process, and consequently affects complex cognitive functions.

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