Biomedical subjects

Glenn R Wylie

Publications and source records attributed to Glenn R Wylie.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2006

Multisensory processing and oscillatory activity: analyzing non-linear electrophysiological measures in humans and simians.

Stimulus-related oscillations are known to be closely linked to integrative processing in the brain. One research domain within which there has been tremendous interest in oscillatory mechanisms is in the integration of inputs across the widely separated sensory systems. Under the standard approach of assessing multisensory interactions in electrophysiological datasets, the event-related response to a multisensory stimulus is directly compared with the sum of the responses to its unisensory constituents when presented alone. When using methods like wavelet transformation or fast Fourier transformation to derive induced oscillatory signals, however, such linear operations are not appropriate. Here we introduce a simple bootstrapping procedure wherein the linear summation of single unisensory trials forms a distribution against which multisensory trials may be statistically compared, an approach that circumvents the issue of non-linearity when combining unisensory oscillatory responses. To test this approach we applied it to datasets from intracranial recordings in non-human primates and human scalp-recorded EEG, both derived from a simple audio-visual integration paradigm. Significant multisensory interactions were revealed in oscillatory activity centered at 15 and 20 Hz (the so-called beta band). Simulations of different levels of background noise further validated the results obtained by this method. By demonstrating super- and sub-additive effects, our analyses showed that this approach is a valuable metric for studying multisensory interactions reflected in induced oscillatory responses.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

The brain uses single-trial multisensory memories to discriminate without awareness.

Multisensory experiences enhance perceptions and facilitate memory retrieval processes, even when only unisensory information is available for accessing such memories. Using fMRI, we identified human brain regions involved in discriminating visual stimuli according to past multisensory vs. unisensory experiences. Subjects performed a completely orthogonal task, discriminating repeated from initial image presentations intermixed within a continuous recognition task. Half of initial presentations were multisensory, and all repetitions were exclusively visual. Despite only single-trial exposures to initial image presentations, accuracy in indicating image repetitions was significantly improved by past auditory-visual multisensory experiences over images only encountered visually. Similarly, regions within the lateral-occipital complex-areas typically associated with visual object recognition processes-were more active to visual stimuli with multisensory than unisensory pasts. Additional differential responses were observed in the anterior cingulate and frontal cortices. Multisensory experiences are registered by the brain even when of no immediate behavioral relevance and can be used to categorize memories. These data reveal the functional efficacy of multisensory processing.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

PubMed2004

Don't think of a white bear: an fMRI investigation of the effects of sequential instructional sets on cortical activity in a task-switching paradigm.

Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we investigated processes involved in switching between two ongoing tasks, thought to be paradigmatic of executive control processes. Subjects were considerably slower and less accurate when switching between two tasks than when repeatedly carrying out one task, so-called "switch costs." Switch costs, however, generally occur only when more than one task is associated with each stimulus type. This has led to the surmise that switch costs may be due largely to ongoing interference from previously learned stimulus-response (S-R) associations, which are no longer relevant for the task at hand. We used a paradigm that specifically assessed this hypothesis and investigated three stages. In Stage 1, a single task was carried out with each stimulus type; in Stage 2, a second novel task was introduced for each stimulus type; and in Stage 3, subjects reverted to carrying out solely the original tasks (as in Stage 1). In Stage 1, only one task was associated with each stimulus type, whereas two tasks were associated with each stimulus type in Stages 2 and 3. We compared images obtained during Stage 3 to those obtained during Stage 1 and show that during Stage 3, there was robust activation in the network of areas associated with the Stage 2 tasks, even though these tasks were no longer relevant. Our data strongly suggest that switch costs may derive largely from continued activation of areas associated with carrying out the now-irrelevant task(s). We posit that a large component of executive control processes involves resolution of competition between potentially relevant tasks. Our data also revealed widespread activation of a frontoparietal network of areas, and we discuss how this network might be involved in mediating this competition.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

The spatiotemporal dynamics of illusory contour processing: combined high-density electrical mapping, source analysis, and functional magnetic resonance imaging.

Because environmental information is often suboptimal, visual perception must frequently rely on the brain's reconstruction of contours absent from retinal images. Illusory contour (IC) stimuli have been used to investigate these "filling-in" processes. Intracranial recordings and neuroimaging studies show IC sensitivity in lower-tier area V2, and to a lesser extent V1. Some interpret these data as evidence for feedforward processing of IC stimuli, beginning at lower-tier visual areas. On the basis of lesion, visual evoked potentials (VEP), and neuroimaging evidence, others contend that IC sensitivity is a later, higher-order process. Whether IC sensitivity seen in lower-tier areas indexes feedforward or feedback processing remains unresolved. In a series of experiments, we addressed the spatiotemporal dynamics of IC processing. Centrally presented IC stimuli resulted in early VEP modulation (88-100 msec) over lateral-occipital (LOC) scalp--the IC effect. The IC effect followed visual response onset by 40 msec. Scalp current density topographic mapping, source analysis, and functional magnetic resonance imaging results all localized the IC effect to bilateral LOC areas. We propose that IC sensitivity described in V2 and V1 may reflect predominantly feedback modulation from higher-tier LOC areas, where IC sensitivity first occurs. Two additional observations further support this proposal. The latency of the IC effect shifted dramatically later (approximately 120 msec) when stimuli were laterally presented, indicating that retinotopic position alters IC processing. Immediately preceding the IC effect, the VEP modulated with inducer eccentricity--the configuration effect. We interpret this to represent contributions from global stimulus parameters to scene analysis. In contrast to the IC effect, the topography of the configuration effect was restricted to central parieto-occipital scalp.

Adult↗

PubMed2002

Auditory-somatosensory multisensory processing in auditory association cortex: an fMRI study.

Using high-field (3 Tesla) functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we demonstrate that auditory and somatosensory inputs converge in a subregion of human auditory cortex along the superior temporal gyrus. Further, simultaneous stimulation in both sensory modalities resulted in activity exceeding that predicted by summing the responses to the unisensory inputs, thereby showing multisensory integration in this convergence region. Recently, intracranial recordings in macaque monkeys have shown similar auditory-somatosensory convergence in a subregion of auditory cortex directly caudomedial to primary auditory cortex (area CM). The multisensory region identified in the present investigation may be the human homologue of CM. Our finding of auditory-somatosensory convergence in early auditory cortices contributes to mounting evidence for multisensory integration early in the cortical processing hierarchy, in brain regions that were previously assumed to be unisensory.

Acoustic Stimulation↗