Event-related potentials reveal neural signatures of cross-modal interaction between visual and tactile stimulation

유발전위신호(ERP)를 통한 시각과 촉각 통합작용의 신경생리적 특징 분석

INTRODUCTION Interaction between temporal events at the millisecond level is important for visual and tactile interaction. OBJECT The aim of the present study is to identify any neural signature, as reflected in event-related potentials (ERP), for the integrative processes when the two sensory modalities are stimulated in synchrony as opposed to when they are stimulated separately. METHOD The basic strategy was to compare ERP signals obtained with simultaneous visual and tactile stimulation with a linear summation of ERP patterns obtained with each modality stimulated separately. Condition were presented, paired with various stimulus-onset-asynchronies (SOA) ranging from - 300 ms (tactile-first) to 300 ms (visual-first), and in trials where only one modality was stimulated alone. RESULT A positive deviation was located in observed ERP at C4 electrode (contralateral to the stimulated hand) at 200-400 ms, in comparison to the predicted ERP. The deviation was present at all SOAs other than -300ms (tactile-first) and 300 ms (visual-first). There was also a positive deviation at occipital leads at the 50-ms SOA (visual-first) trials. DISCUSSION It suggested that neural signatures of cross-modal integration occur within a limited time-window. The deviations were specifically localized at the contralateral somatosensory and visual cortices, indicating that the integration happens at or before the level of the primary cortices.