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Jia K, Goebel R, Kourtzi Z. Ultra-High Field Imaging of Human Visual Cognition. Annu Rev Vis Sci 2023; 9:479-500. [PMID: 37137282 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-vision-111022-123830] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), the key methodology for mapping the functions of the human brain in a noninvasive manner, is limited by low temporal and spatial resolution. Recent advances in ultra-high field (UHF) fMRI provide a mesoscopic (i.e., submillimeter resolution) tool that allows us to probe laminar and columnar circuits, distinguish bottom-up versus top-down pathways, and map small subcortical areas. We review recent work demonstrating that UHF fMRI provides a robust methodology for imaging the brain across cortical depths and columns that provides insights into the brain's organization and functions at unprecedented spatial resolution, advancing our understanding of the fine-scale computations and interareal communication that support visual cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ke Jia
- Department of Neurobiology, Affiliated Mental Health Center & Hangzhou Seventh People's Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
- Liangzhu Laboratory, MOE Frontier Science Center for Brain Science and Brain-machine Integration, State Key Laboratory of Brain-machine Intelligence, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
- NHC and CAMS Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom;
| | - Rainer Goebel
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Zoe Kourtzi
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom;
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2
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Kim JH, Taylor AJ, Himmelbach M, Hagberg GE, Scheffler K, Ress D. Characterization of the blood oxygen level dependent hemodynamic response function in human subcortical regions with high spatiotemporal resolution. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:1009295. [PMID: 36303946 PMCID: PMC9592726 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.1009295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Accepted: 08/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Subcortical brain regions are absolutely essential for normal human function. These phylogenetically early brain regions play critical roles in human behaviors such as the orientation of attention, arousal, and the modulation of sensory signals to cerebral cortex. Despite the critical health importance of subcortical brain regions, there has been a dearth of research on their neurovascular responses. Blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) functional MRI (fMRI) experiments can help fill this gap in our understanding. The BOLD hemodynamic response function (HRF) evoked by brief (<4 s) neural activation is crucial for the interpretation of fMRI results because linear analysis between neural activity and the BOLD response relies on the HRF. Moreover, the HRF is a consequence of underlying local blood flow and oxygen metabolism, so characterization of the HRF enables understanding of neurovascular and neurometabolic coupling. We measured the subcortical HRF at 9.4T and 3T with high spatiotemporal resolution using protocols that enabled reliable delineation of HRFs in individual subjects. These results were compared with the HRF in visual cortex. The HRF was faster in subcortical regions than cortical regions at both field strengths. There was no significant undershoot in subcortical areas while there was a significant post-stimulus undershoot that was tightly coupled with its peak amplitude in cortex. The different BOLD temporal dynamics indicate different vascular dynamics and neurometabolic responses between cortex and subcortical nuclei.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jung Hwan Kim
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Amanda J. Taylor
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Marc Himmelbach
- Division of Neuropsychology, Center of Neurology, Hertie-Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Gisela E. Hagberg
- High Field Magnetic Resonance, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Biomedical Magnetic Resonance, Eberhard Karl’s University of Tübingen and University Hospital, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Klaus Scheffler
- High Field Magnetic Resonance, Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics, Tübingen, Germany
- Department of Biomedical Magnetic Resonance, Eberhard Karl’s University of Tübingen and University Hospital, Tübingen, Germany
| | - David Ress
- Department of Neuroscience, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, United States
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Khalife S, Francis ST, Schluppeck D, Sánchez-Panchuelo RM, Besle J. Fast Event-Related Mapping of Population Fingertip Tuning Properties in Human Sensorimotor Cortex at 7T. eNeuro 2022; 9:ENEURO.0069-22.2022. [PMID: 36194620 PMCID: PMC9480917 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0069-22.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2022] [Revised: 07/11/2022] [Accepted: 07/31/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
fMRI studies that investigate somatotopic tactile representations in the human cortex typically use either block or phase-encoded stimulation designs. Event-related (ER) designs allow for more flexible and unpredictable stimulation sequences than the other methods, but they are less efficient. Here, we compared an efficiency-optimized fast ER design (2.8-s average intertrial interval; ITI) to a conventional slow ER design (8-s average ITI) for mapping voxelwise fingertip tactile tuning properties in the sensorimotor cortex of six participants at 7 Tesla. The fast ER design yielded more reliable responses compared with the slow ER design, but with otherwise similar tuning properties. Concatenating the fast and slow ER data, we demonstrate in each individual brain the existence of two separate somatotopically-organized tactile representations of the fingertips, one in the primary somatosensory cortex (S1) on the postcentral gyrus, and the other shared across the motor and premotor cortices on the precentral gyrus. In both S1 and motor representations, fingertip selectivity decreased progressively, from narrowly-tuned Brodmann area (BA) 3b and BA4a, respectively, toward associative parietal and frontal regions that responded equally to all fingertips, suggesting increasing information integration along these two pathways. In addition, fingertip selectivity in S1 decreased from the cortical representation of the thumb to that of the pinky.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Khalife
- Department of Psychology, American University of Beirut, Beirut, 11072020, Lebanon
| | - Susan T Francis
- Sir Peter Mansfield Imaging Centre, School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG72RD, United Kingdom
- National Institute for Health and Care Research Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, Nottingham University Hospitals National Health Service Trust, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG72RD, United Kingdom
| | - Denis Schluppeck
- Visual Neuroscience Group, School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG72RD, United Kingdom
| | - Rosa-Maria Sánchez-Panchuelo
- National Institute for Health and Care Research Nottingham Biomedical Research Centre, Nottingham University Hospitals National Health Service Trust, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG72RD, United Kingdom
| | - Julien Besle
- Department of Psychology, American University of Beirut, Beirut, 11072020, Lebanon
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Wilkey ED, Conrad BN, Yeo DJ, Price GR. Shared Numerosity Representations Across Formats and Tasks Revealed with 7 Tesla fMRI: Decoding, Generalization, and Individual Differences in Behavior. Cereb Cortex Commun 2020; 1:tgaa038. [PMID: 34296107 PMCID: PMC8153058 DOI: 10.1093/texcom/tgaa038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Revised: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 07/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Debate continues on whether encoding of symbolic number is grounded in nonsymbolic numerical magnitudes. Nevertheless, fluency of perceiving both number formats, and translating between them, predicts math skills across the life span. Therefore, this study asked if numbers share cortical activation patterns across formats and tasks, and whether neural response to number predicts math-related behaviors. We analyzed patterns of neural activation using 7 Tesla functional magnetic resonance imaging in a sample of 39 healthy adults. Discrimination was successful between numerosities 2, 4, 6, and 8 dots and generalized to activation patterns of the same numerosities represented as Arabic digits in the bilateral parietal lobes and left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) (and vice versa). This indicates that numerosity-specific neural resources are shared between formats. Generalization was also successful across tasks where participants either identified or compared numerosities in bilateral parietal lobes and IFG. Individual differences in decoding did not relate to performance on a number comparison task completed outside of the scanner, but generalization between formats and across tasks negatively related to math achievement in the parietal lobes. Together, these findings suggest that individual differences in representational specificity within format and task contexts relate to mathematical expertise.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric D Wilkey
- Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, Ontario N6A5B7, Canada
| | - Benjamin N Conrad
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Peabody College, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37203, USA
| | - Darren J Yeo
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Peabody College, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37203, USA
- Division of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, 639818, Singapore
| | - Gavin R Price
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Peabody College, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37203, USA
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Moerel M, De Martino F, Uğurbil K, Formisano E, Yacoub E. Evaluating the Columnar Stability of Acoustic Processing in the Human Auditory Cortex. J Neurosci 2018; 38:7822-7832. [PMID: 30185539 PMCID: PMC6125808 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.3576-17.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2017] [Revised: 07/10/2018] [Accepted: 07/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Using ultra-high field fMRI, we explored the cortical depth-dependent stability of acoustic feature preference in human auditory cortex. We collected responses from human auditory cortex (subjects from either sex) to a large number of natural sounds at submillimeter spatial resolution, and observed that these responses were well explained by a model that assumes neuronal population tuning to frequency-specific spectrotemporal modulations. We observed a relatively stable (columnar) tuning to frequency and temporal modulations. However, spectral modulation tuning was variable throughout the cortical depth. This difference in columnar stability between feature maps could not be explained by a difference in map smoothness, as the preference along the cortical sheet varied in a similar manner for the different feature maps. Furthermore, tuning to all three features was more columnar in primary than nonprimary auditory cortex. The observed overall lack of overlapping columnar regions across acoustic feature maps suggests, especially for primary auditory cortex, a coding strategy in which across cortical depths tuning to some features is kept stable, whereas tuning to other features systematically varies.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT In the human auditory cortex, sound aspects are processed in large-scale maps. Invasive animal studies show that an additional processing organization may be implemented orthogonal to the cortical sheet (i.e., in the columnar direction), but it is unknown whether observed organizational principles apply to the human auditory cortex. Combining ultra-high field fMRI with natural sounds, we explore the columnar organization of various sound aspects. Our results suggest that the human auditory cortex contains a modular coding strategy, where, for each module, several sound aspects act as an anchor along which computations are performed while the processing of another sound aspect undergoes a transformation. This strategy may serve to optimally represent the content of our complex acoustic natural environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Moerel
- Maastricht Centre for Systems Biology and
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, 6200 MD Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands, and
| | - Federico De Martino
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, 6200 MD Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands, and
- Center for Magnetic Resonance Research, Department of Radiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455
| | - Kâmil Uğurbil
- Center for Magnetic Resonance Research, Department of Radiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455
| | - Elia Formisano
- Maastricht Centre for Systems Biology and
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, 6200 MD Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands, and
| | - Essa Yacoub
- Center for Magnetic Resonance Research, Department of Radiology, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55455
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Gentile F, van Atteveldt N, De Martino F, Goebel R. Approaching the Ground Truth: Revealing the Functional Organization of Human Multisensory STC Using Ultra-High Field fMRI. J Neurosci 2017; 37:10104-13. [PMID: 28912157 DOI: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0146-17.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2017] [Revised: 06/22/2017] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Integrating inputs across sensory systems is a property of the brain that is vitally important in everyday life. More than two decades of fMRI research have revealed crucial insights on multisensory processing, yet the multisensory operations at the neuronal level in humans have remained largely unknown. Understanding the fine-scale spatial organization of multisensory brain regions is fundamental to shed light on their neuronal operations. Monkey electrophysiology revealed that the bimodal superior temporal cortex (bSTC) is topographically organized according to the modality preference (visual, auditory, and bimodal) of its neurons. In line with invasive studies, a previous 3 Tesla fMRI study suggests that the human bSTC is also topographically organized according to modality preference (visual, auditory, and bimodal) when analyzed at 1.6 × 1.6 × 1.6 mm3 voxel resolution. However, it is still unclear whether this resolution is able to unveil an accurate spatial organization of the human bSTC. This issue was addressed in the present study by investigating the spatial organization of functional responses of the bSTC in 10 participants (from both sexes) at 1.5 × 1.5 × 1.5 mm3 and 1.1 × 1.1 × 1.1 mm3 using ultra-high field fMRI (at 7 Tesla). Relative to 1.5 × 1.5 × 1.5 mm3, the bSTC at 1.1 × 1.1 × 1.1 mm3 resolution was characterized by a larger selectivity for visual and auditory modalities, stronger integrative responses in bimodal voxels, and it was organized in more distinct functional clusters indicating a more precise separation of underlying neuronal clusters. Our findings indicate that increasing the spatial resolution may be necessary and sufficient to achieve a more accurate functional topography of human multisensory integration.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The bimodal superior temporal cortex (bSTC) is a brain region that plays a crucial role in the integration of visual and auditory inputs. The aim of the present study was to investigate the fine-scale spatial organization of the bSTC by using ultra-high magnetic field fMRI at 7 Tesla. Mapping the functional topography of bSTC at a resolution of 1.1 × 1.1 × 1.1 mm3 revealed more accurate representations than at lower resolutions. This result indicates that standard-resolution fMRI may lead to wrong conclusions about the functional organization of the bSTC, whereas high spatial resolution is essential to more accurately approach neuronal operations of human multisensory integration.
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Abstract
While advances in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) throughout the last decades have enabled the detailed anatomical and functional inspection of the human brain non-invasively, to date there is no consensus regarding the precise subdivision and topography of the areas forming the human auditory cortex. Here, we propose a topography of the human auditory areas based on insights on the anatomical and functional properties of human auditory areas as revealed by studies of cyto- and myelo-architecture and fMRI investigations at ultra-high magnetic field (7 Tesla). Importantly, we illustrate that—whereas a group-based approach to analyze functional (tonotopic) maps is appropriate to highlight the main tonotopic axis—the examination of tonotopic maps at single subject level is required to detail the topography of primary and non-primary areas that may be more variable across subjects. Furthermore, we show that considering multiple maps indicative of anatomical (i.e., myelination) as well as of functional properties (e.g., broadness of frequency tuning) is helpful in identifying auditory cortical areas in individual human brains. We propose and discuss a topography of areas that is consistent with old and recent anatomical post-mortem characterizations of the human auditory cortex and that may serve as a working model for neuroscience studies of auditory functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michelle Moerel
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University Maastricht, Netherlands ; Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, Maastricht University Maastricht, Netherlands ; Department of Radiology, Center for Magnetic Resonance Research, University of Minnesota Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Federico De Martino
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University Maastricht, Netherlands ; Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, Maastricht University Maastricht, Netherlands
| | - Elia Formisano
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University Maastricht, Netherlands ; Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, Maastricht University Maastricht, Netherlands
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Robinson SD, Schöpf V, Cardoso P, Geissler A, Fischmeister FPS, Wurnig M, Trattnig S, Beisteiner R. Applying independent component analysis to clinical FMRI at 7 t. Front Hum Neurosci 2013; 7:496. [PMID: 24032007 PMCID: PMC3759034 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2013] [Accepted: 08/05/2013] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Increased BOLD sensitivity at 7 T offers the possibility to increase the reliability of fMRI, but ultra-high field is also associated with an increase in artifacts related to head motion, Nyquist ghosting, and parallel imaging reconstruction errors. In this study, the ability of independent component analysis (ICA) to separate activation from these artifacts was assessed in a 7 T study of neurological patients performing chin and hand motor tasks. ICA was able to isolate primary motor activation with negligible contamination by motion effects. The results of General Linear Model (GLM) analysis of these data were, in contrast, heavily contaminated by motion. Secondary motor areas, basal ganglia, and thalamus involvement were apparent in ICA results, but there was low capability to isolate activation in the same brain regions in the GLM analysis, indicating that ICA was more sensitive as well as more specific. A method was developed to simplify the assessment of the large number of independent components. Task-related activation components could be automatically identified via these intuitive and effective features. These findings demonstrate that ICA is a practical and sensitive analysis approach in high field fMRI studies, particularly where motion is evoked. Promising applications of ICA in clinical fMRI include presurgical planning and the study of pathologies affecting subcortical brain areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simon Daniel Robinson
- High Field Magnetic Resonance Imaging Centre of Excellence, Medical University of Vienna , Vienna , Austria ; Department of Radiology, Medical University of Vienna , Vienna , Austria
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