Shared brain areas underlying simulated and perceived self-motion

• DOI: 10.7892/boris.122847
• Publication Date: 2018-07-06
• Authors: Gianluca Macauda; Fred Mast
• Keywords: Mental Rotation; Galvanic vestibular stimulation; Sensory Processing

Mental imagery is an essential ability to infer the future state of one's body. Neuroimaging studies have shown that mental simulations activate sensory or motor structures in brain are associated with overt action a perception generated by external stimuli. It suggested projection one’s own body different spatial location (egocentric rotation) based on areas also involved processing actual self-motion. Evidence for involvement vestibular information simulated changes self-location stems mainly from behavioural experiments, where healthy participants showed altered capacity egocentric rotation during stimulation, and patients showing reduced perform rotations. However, those findings challenged conflicting nature stimulation used studies, cognitive tasks imply individual strategies. In current study we addressed issues fMRI investigate underlie both, self space within same individuals. Participants performed task simultaneous Galvanic Vestibular Stimulation (GVS) sham stimulation. line previous literature, hypothesized GVS negatively affects participants’ ability. More importantly, at neural level expected overlap between activated independently parieto-insular cortex (PIVC), which core area processing. As predicted, data activity PIVC both contrast our expectations, did not influence rotation. Our results provide first evidence shared mechanisms underlying perceived They suggest was effective enough impair rotation. We conclude rotations rely PIVC, but might be protected interference.