title: Untangling perceptual memory: hysteresis and adaptation map into separate cortical networks.
abstract: Perception is an active inferential process in which prior knowledge is combined with sensory input, the result of which determines the contents of awareness. Accordingly, previous experience is known to help the brain "decide" what to perceive. However, a critical aspect that has not been addressed is that previous experience can exert 2 opposing effects on perception: An attractive effect, sensitizing the brain to perceive the same again (hysteresis), or a repulsive effect, making it more likely to perceive something else (adaptation). We used functional magnetic resonance imaging and modeling to elucidate how the brain entertains these 2 opposing processes, and what determines the direction of such experience-dependent perceptual effects. We found that although affecting our perception concurrently, hysteresis and adaptation map into distinct cortical networks: a widespread network of higher-order visual and fronto-parietal areas was involved in perceptual stabilization, while adaptation was confined to early visual areas. This areal and hierarchical segregation may explain how the brain maintains the balance between exploiting redundancies and staying sensitive to new information. We provide a Bayesian model that accounts for the coexistence of hysteresis and adaptation by separating their causes into 2 distinct terms: Hysteresis alters the prior, whereas adaptation changes the sensory evidence (the likelihood function).
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurophysiology, Max Planck Institute for Brain Research, 60528 Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
authors.forename: Caspar M
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Schwiedrzik
authors.forename: Christian C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Ruff
authors.forename: Andreea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lazar
authors.forename: Frauke C
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Leitner
authors.forename: Wolf
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Singer
authors.forename: Lucia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Melloni
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000502:physiology*; D000328:Adult; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000098:blood supply / Q000502:physiology*; D005133:Eye Movements; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D016015:Logistic Models; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology*; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000502:physiology*; D010100:Oxygen / Q000097:blood; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011601:Psychophysics; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D010100:Oxygen