Sustained attention operates via dissociable neural mechanisms across different eccentric locations
Issued Date
2024-12-01
Resource Type
eISSN
20452322
Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85193395366
Journal Title
Scientific Reports
Volume
14
Issue
1
Rights Holder(s)
SCOPUS
Bibliographic Citation
Scientific Reports Vol.14 No.1 (2024)
Suggested Citation
Phangwiwat T., Phunchongharn P., Wongsawat Y., Chatnuntawech I., Wang S., Chunharas C., Sprague T.C., Woodman G.F., Itthipuripat S. Sustained attention operates via dissociable neural mechanisms across different eccentric locations. Scientific Reports Vol.14 No.1 (2024). doi:10.1038/s41598-024-61171-7 Retrieved from: https://repository.li.mahidol.ac.th/handle/20.500.14594/98452
Title
Sustained attention operates via dissociable neural mechanisms across different eccentric locations
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Abstract
In primates, foveal and peripheral vision have distinct neural architectures and functions. However, it has been debated if selective attention operates via the same or different neural mechanisms across eccentricities. We tested these alternative accounts by examining the effects of selective attention on the steady-state visually evoked potential (SSVEP) and the fronto-parietal signal measured via EEG from human subjects performing a sustained visuospatial attention task. With a negligible level of eye movements, both SSVEP and SND exhibited the heterogeneous patterns of attentional modulations across eccentricities. Specifically, the attentional modulations of these signals peaked at the parafoveal locations and such modulations wore off as visual stimuli appeared closer to the fovea or further away towards the periphery. However, with a relatively higher level of eye movements, the heterogeneous patterns of attentional modulations of these neural signals were less robust. These data demonstrate that the top-down influence of covert visuospatial attention on early sensory processing in human cortex depends on eccentricity and the level of saccadic responses. Taken together, the results suggest that sustained visuospatial attention operates differently across different eccentric locations, providing new understanding of how attention augments sensory representations regardless of where the attended stimulus appears.