Tracking the mind's image in the brain I: time-resolved fMRI during visuospatial mental imagery.
Mental imagery, the generation and manipulation of mental representations in the absence of sensory stimulation, is a core element of numerous cognitive processes. We investigate the cortical mechanisms underlying imagery and spatial analysis in the visual domain using event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging during the mental clock task. The time-resolved analysis of cortical activation from auditory perception to motor response reveals a sequential activation of the left and right posterior parietal cortex, suggesting that these regions perform distinct functions in this imagery task. This is confirmed by a trial-by-trial analysis of correlations between reaction time and onset, width, and amplitude of the hemodynamic response. These findings pose neurophysiological constraints on cognitive models of mental imagery.
Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Universiteit Maastricht, Postbus 616, The Netherlands.
Elia
E
Formisano
David E J
DE
Linden
Francesco
F
Di Salle
Luigi
L
Trojano
Fabrizio
F
Esposito
Alexander T
AT
Sack
Dario
D
Grossi
Friedhelm E
FE
Zanella
Rainer
R
Goebel
D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D000328:Adult; D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation / Q000502:physiology; D005071:Evoked Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology; D014644:Genetic Variation / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D007092:Imagination / Q000502:physiology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology*; D013028:Space Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*