TY - JOUR
T1 - Distinct Neural Plasticity Enhancing Visual Perception
AU - Kondat, Taly
AU - Tik, Niv
AU - Sharon, Haggai
AU - Tavor, Ido
AU - Censor, Nitzan
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2024 the authors.
PY - 2024/9/4
Y1 - 2024/9/4
N2 - The developed human brain shows remarkable plasticity following perceptual learning, resulting in improved visual sensitivity. However, such improvements commonly require extensive stimuli exposure. Here we show that efficiently enhancing visual perception with minimal stimuli exposure recruits distinct neural mechanisms relative to standard repetition-based learning. Participants (n = 20, 12 women, 8 men) encoded a visual discrimination task, followed by brief memory reactivations of only five trials each performed on separate days, demonstrating improvements comparable with standard repetition-based learning (n = 20, 12 women, 8 men). Reactivation-induced learning engaged increased bilateral intraparietal sulcus (IPS) activity relative to repetition-based learning. Complementary evidence for differential learning processes was further provided by temporal–parietal resting functional connectivity changes, which correlated with behavioral improvements. The results suggest that efficiently enhancing visual perception with minimal stimuli exposure recruits distinct neural processes, engaging higher-order control and attentional resources while leading to similar perceptual gains. These unique brain mechanisms underlying improved perceptual learning efficiency may have important implications for daily life and in clinical conditions requiring relearning following brain damage.
AB - The developed human brain shows remarkable plasticity following perceptual learning, resulting in improved visual sensitivity. However, such improvements commonly require extensive stimuli exposure. Here we show that efficiently enhancing visual perception with minimal stimuli exposure recruits distinct neural mechanisms relative to standard repetition-based learning. Participants (n = 20, 12 women, 8 men) encoded a visual discrimination task, followed by brief memory reactivations of only five trials each performed on separate days, demonstrating improvements comparable with standard repetition-based learning (n = 20, 12 women, 8 men). Reactivation-induced learning engaged increased bilateral intraparietal sulcus (IPS) activity relative to repetition-based learning. Complementary evidence for differential learning processes was further provided by temporal–parietal resting functional connectivity changes, which correlated with behavioral improvements. The results suggest that efficiently enhancing visual perception with minimal stimuli exposure recruits distinct neural processes, engaging higher-order control and attentional resources while leading to similar perceptual gains. These unique brain mechanisms underlying improved perceptual learning efficiency may have important implications for daily life and in clinical conditions requiring relearning following brain damage.
KW - fMRI
KW - learning and memory
KW - memory consolidation
KW - neural plasticity
KW - perceptual learning
KW - visual perception
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85203419742&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0301-24.2024
DO - 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0301-24.2024
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C2 - 39103221
AN - SCOPUS:85203419742
SN - 0270-6474
VL - 44
JO - Journal of Neuroscience
JF - Journal of Neuroscience
IS - 36
M1 - e0301242024
ER -