Dr Nicolás Gravel | Linking Structure-Function Relationships in Human Visual Cortex through Computational Neuroimaging and Electrophysiology

Guest Lecture

  • Date: Dec 12, 2023
  • Time: 03:15 PM - 04:15 PM (Local Time Germany)
  • Speaker: Dr Nicolás Gravel
  • Freie Universität Berlin, Neural Dynamics of Visual Cognition
  • Location: MPI for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences
  • Room: Charlotte Buehler Room (C402) + Zoom Meeting (hybrid mode)
  • Host: Department of Neurophysics
  • Contact: amuehlberg@cbs.mpg.de
Scrutiny of the cortical neuronal circuits underlying human visual perception typically involves the summarization of large-scale recordings of brain activity under different perceptual states, with the combination of various measurement modalities and modeling techniques being critical in revealing organizing principles. In this seminar, we'll delve into the relationship between anatomical structure and evolving patterns of neuronal functional connectivity across the early visual foveal cluster (V1-V2-V3). I will show how we can inform our understanding of visual perception through different recording modalities, combining high-resolution fMRI and laminar electrophysiology with computational modeling. I will present key findings on task-dependent modulation of directed interactions across visual cortical areas in humans and laminar distinctions in visual processing in Macaque, as well as touch on preliminary validation work. Finally, I look forward to discussing new advancements and techniques and to providing a clearer picture of neuronal circuit dynamics at the mesoscopic level.
Key points to be discussed are:

The utilization of high-resolution retinotopic mapping as a benchmark for fMRI; insights from spatial and temporal integration approaches within the early visual cortex using fMRI; preliminary results that authenticate these methods using the Human Connectome Project's (HCP) Retinotopy dataset; the intersection of connectivity models with electrophysiology, featuring laminar differences in naturalistic image responses in Macaque; linking retinotopic maps and models of network dynamics using ultra-high-resolution layer 7T fMRI; the possibility of constraining retinotopic effective connectivity models with high resolution tractography techniques.

Poster
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