TY - JOUR
T1 - On-line attentional selection from competing stimuli in opposite visual fields: Effects on human visual cortex and control processes
AU - Geng, JJ
AU - Eger, E
AU - Ruff, CC
AU - Kristjansson, J
AU - Rotshtein, Pia
AU - Driver, J
PY - 2006/7/19
Y1 - 2006/7/19
N2 - We used fMRI to investigate competition and on-line attentional selection between targets and distractors in opposite visual hemifields. Displays comprised a high-contrast square-wave grating, defined as target by its orientation, presented alone (unilateral) or with a similar distractor of orthogonal orientation in the opposite hemifield (bilateral displays). The target appeared unpredictably on the left or right, precluding anticipatory attention to one side. We found greater activation in target-contralateral superior occipital gyrus for unilateral than for bilateral displays, indicating suppression of the target's visual representation by distractor presence despite the competing distractor projecting to a different occipital hemisphere. Several frontal and parietal regions showed greater activation for bilateral than unilateral trials, suggesting involvement in on-line attentional selection. This was particularly pronounced for regions in bilateral intraparietal sulcus (IPS), which also showed greater functional coupling with occipital cortex specifically on bilateral trials that required selection plus some repetition-suppression effects when target side was repeated, but again only on bilateral trials requiring selection. Our results indicate that competition between visual stimuli in opposite hemifields can influence occipital cortex, and implicate IPS in resolution of this competition by selection.
AB - We used fMRI to investigate competition and on-line attentional selection between targets and distractors in opposite visual hemifields. Displays comprised a high-contrast square-wave grating, defined as target by its orientation, presented alone (unilateral) or with a similar distractor of orthogonal orientation in the opposite hemifield (bilateral displays). The target appeared unpredictably on the left or right, precluding anticipatory attention to one side. We found greater activation in target-contralateral superior occipital gyrus for unilateral than for bilateral displays, indicating suppression of the target's visual representation by distractor presence despite the competing distractor projecting to a different occipital hemisphere. Several frontal and parietal regions showed greater activation for bilateral than unilateral trials, suggesting involvement in on-line attentional selection. This was particularly pronounced for regions in bilateral intraparietal sulcus (IPS), which also showed greater functional coupling with occipital cortex specifically on bilateral trials that required selection plus some repetition-suppression effects when target side was repeated, but again only on bilateral trials requiring selection. Our results indicate that competition between visual stimuli in opposite hemifields can influence occipital cortex, and implicate IPS in resolution of this competition by selection.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=33751246172&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1152/jn.01245.2005
DO - 10.1152/jn.01245.2005
M3 - Article
C2 - 16855105
SN - 1522-1598
VL - 19
SP - 2601
EP - 2612
JO - Journal of Neurophysiology
JF - Journal of Neurophysiology
ER -