Inferior Parietal Lobe Activity in Visuo-Motor Integration during the Robot Hand Illusion

Physiological recordings along the length of the upper bank of the superior temporal sulcus (STS) revealed cells each of which was selectively responsive to a particular view of the head and body. Such cells were grouped in large patches 3-4 mm across. The patches were separated by regions of cortex containing cells responsive to other stimuli. The distribution of cells projecting from temporal cortex to the posterior regions of the inferior parietal lobe was studied with retrogradely transported fluorescent dyes. A strong temporoparietal projection was found originating from the upper bank of the STS. Cells projecting to the parietal cortex occurred in large patches or bands. The size and periodicity of modules defined through anatomical connections matched the functional subdivisions of the STS cortex involved in face processing evident in physiological recordings. It is speculated that the temporoparietal projections could provide a route through which temporal lobe analysis of facial signals about the direction of others' attention can be passed to parietal systems concerned with spatial awareness.

Download Full-text

Involvement of the Left Supramarginal Gyrus in Manipulation Judgment Tasks: Contributions to Theories of Tool Use

Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society ◽

10.1017/s1355617717000455 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 23 (8) ◽

pp. 685-691 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Mathieu Lesourd ◽

François Osiurak ◽

Jordan Navarro ◽

Emanuelle Reynaud

Keyword(s):

Tool Use ◽

Parietal Lobe ◽

Cortical Network ◽

Functional Area ◽

Supramarginal Gyrus ◽

Inferior Parietal Lobe ◽

Per Se ◽

Technical Reasoning

AbstractObjectives: Two theories of tool use, namely the gesture engram and the technical reasoning theories, make distinct predictions about the involvement of the left inferior parietal lobe (IPL) in manipulation judgement tasks. The objective here is to test these alternative predictions based on previous studies on manipulation judgment tasks using transcranial magnetic stimulations (TMS) targeting the left supramarginal gyrus (SMG). Methods: We review recent TMS studies on manipulation judgement tasks and confront these data with predictions made by both tool use theories. Results: The left SMG is a highly intertwined region, organized following several functionally distinct areas and TMS may have disrupted a cortical network involved in the ability to use tools rather than only one functional area supporting manipulation knowledge. Moreover, manipulation judgement tasks may be impaired following virtual lesions outside the IPL. Conclusions: These data are more in line with the technical reasoning hypothesis, which assumes that the left IPL does not store manipulation knowledge per se. (JINS, 2017, 23, 685–691)

Download Full-text

“No Pain No Gain”: Evidence from a Parcel-Wise Brain Morphometry Study on the Volitional Quality of Elite Athletes

Brain Sciences ◽

10.3390/brainsci10070459 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (7) ◽

pp. 459 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Gaoxia Wei ◽

Ruoguang Si ◽

Youfa Li ◽

Ying Yao ◽

Lizhen Chen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cortical Thickness ◽

Parietal Lobe ◽

Elite Athletes ◽

National Level ◽

Brain Regions ◽

Sense Of Agency ◽

Healthy Controls ◽

Inferior Parietal Lobe ◽

Brain Morphometry ◽

Volitional Behavior

Volition is described as a psychological construct with great emphasis on the sense of agency. During volitional behavior, an individual always presents a volitional quality, an intrapersonal trait for dealing with adverse circumstances, which determines the individual’s persistence of action toward their intentions or goals. Elite athletes are a group of experts with superior volitional quality and, thereby, could be regarded as the natural subject pool to investigate this mental trait. The purpose of this study was to examine brain morphometric characteristics associated with volitional quality by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the Scale of Volitional Quality. We recruited 16 national-level athletes engaged in short track speed skating and 18 healthy controls matched with age and gender. A comparison of a parcel-wise brain anatomical characteristics of the healthy controls with those of the elite athletes revealed three regions with significantly increased cortical thickness in the athlete group. These regions included the left precuneus, the left inferior parietal lobe, and the right superior frontal lobe, which are the core brain regions involved in the sense of agency. The mean cortical thickness of the left inferior parietal lobe was significantly correlated with the independence of volitional quality (a mental trait that characterizes one’s intendency to control his/her own behavior and make decisions by applying internal standards and/or objective criteria). These findings suggest that sports training is an ideal model for better understanding the neural mechanisms of volitional behavior in the human brain.

Download Full-text

Vestibular Stimulation Modulates Neural Correlates of Own-body Mental Imagery

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/jocn_a_01496 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 32 (3) ◽

pp. 484-496 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Manuel P. Klaus ◽

Gerda C. Wyssen ◽

Sebastian M. Frank ◽

Wilhelm M. Malloni ◽

Mark W. Greenlee ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Cognitive Processes ◽

Parietal Lobe ◽

Cognitive Task ◽

Vestibular Stimulation ◽

Neural Correlates ◽

Inferior Parietal Lobe ◽

Caloric Vestibular Stimulation ◽

Neural Integration ◽

Vestibular Information ◽

Main Effects

There is growing evidence that vestibular information is not only involved in reflexive eye movements and the control of posture but it also plays an important role in higher order cognitive processes. Previous behavioral research has shown that concomitant vestibular stimuli influence performance in tasks that involve imagined self-rotations. These results suggest that imagined and perceived body rotations share common mechanisms. However, the nature and specificity of these effects remain largely unknown. Here, we investigated the neural mechanisms underlying this vestibulocognitive interaction. Participants ( n = 20) solved an imagined self-rotation task during caloric vestibular stimulation. We found robust main effects of caloric vestibular stimulation in the core region of the vestibular network, including the rolandic operculum and insula bilaterally, and of the cognitive task in parietal and frontal regions. Interestingly, we found an interaction of stimulation and task in the left inferior parietal lobe, suggesting that this region represents the modulation of imagined body rotations by vestibular input. This result provides evidence that the inferior parietal lobe plays a crucial role in the neural integration of mental and physical body rotation.

Download Full-text

Motion standstill leads to activation of inferior parietal lobe

Human Brain Mapping ◽

10.1002/hbm.20189 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 27 (4) ◽

pp. 340-349 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Andrea Federspiel ◽

Umberto Volpe ◽

Helge Horn ◽

Thomas Dierks ◽

Anders Franck ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Parietal Lobe ◽

Inferior Parietal Lobe

Download Full-text

Early event-related cortical activity originating in the frontal eye fields and inferior parietal lobe predicts the occurrence of correct and error saccades

Human Brain Mapping ◽

10.1002/hbm.21025 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 32 (3) ◽

pp. 358-369 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Radek Ptak ◽

Christian Camen ◽

Stéphanie Morand ◽

Armin Schnider

Keyword(s):

Parietal Lobe ◽

Cortical Activity ◽

Early Event ◽

Frontal Eye Fields ◽

Inferior Parietal Lobe

Download Full-text

Brain Areas Consistently Linked to Individual Differences in Perceptual Decision-making in Younger as well as Older Adults before and after Training

Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience ◽

10.1162/jocn.2010.21564 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 23 (9) ◽

pp. 2147-2158 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

Simone Kühn ◽

Florian Schmiedek ◽

Björn Schott ◽

Roger Ratcliff ◽

Hans-Jochen Heinze ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Decision Making ◽

Individual Differences ◽

Drift Rate ◽

Parietal Lobe ◽

Perceptual Decision Making ◽

Inferior Parietal Lobe ◽

Perceptual Decision ◽

Boundary Separation ◽

Before And After

Perceptual decision-making performance depends on several cognitive and neural processes. Here, we fit Ratcliff's diffusion model to accuracy data and reaction-time distributions from one numerical and one verbal two-choice perceptual-decision task to deconstruct these performance measures into the rate of evidence accumulation (i.e., drift rate), response criterion setting (i.e., boundary separation), and peripheral aspects of performance (i.e., nondecision time). These theoretical processes are then related to individual differences in brain activation by means of multiple regression. The sample consisted of 24 younger and 15 older adults performing the task in fMRI before and after 100 daily 1-hr behavioral training sessions in a multitude of cognitive tasks. Results showed that individual differences in boundary separation were related to striatal activity, whereas differences in drift rate were related to activity in the inferior parietal lobe. These associations were not significantly modified by adult age or perceptual expertise. We conclude that the striatum is involved in regulating response thresholds, whereas the inferior parietal lobe might represent decision-making evidence related to letters and numbers.

Download Full-text