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Prolonged Sensory Loss Results in Altered Cortico‐cortical Connectivity Patterns
Author(s) -
Voss Patrice
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.31.1_supplement.389.1
Subject(s) - sensory system , sensory deprivation , neuroscience , visual cortex , auditory cortex , psychology , dorsum , perception , contrast (vision) , biology , anatomy , artificial intelligence , computer science
Congenital sensory deprivation results in significant functional and anatomical brain changes. I will discuss how both auditory and visual deprivation specifically lead to significant changes in corticocortical connectivity patterns between the deafferented primary sensory area and the rest of the brain. Using covariance analyses of cortical morphology in human individuals, I will show that early auditory deprivation significantly alters connectivity patterns between auditory and multisensory areas. In contrast, a somewhat different pattern emerges in the blind, where early visual deprivation results in a significant reduction of connectivity between primary visual cortex and areas of the dorsal visual stream responsible for oculomotor control. Furthermore, the strength of the connectivity between visual and multimodal parietal areas in the blind is predictive of auditory perceptual abilities. These findings constitute the first evidence linking altered anatomical covariance to early sensory deprivation.