Tactile representation of the head and shoulders assessed by fMRI in the non-human primate.

J Neurophysiol. 2015 Oct 14;:jn.00633.2015

Authors: Wardak C, Guipponi O, Pinède S, Ben Hamed S

Abstract
In non-human primates, the tactile representation at the cortical level has mostly been studied using single cell recordings targeted to specific cortical areas. In this study, we explored the representation of tactile information delivered to the face or the shoulders at the whole-brain level, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in the non-human primate. We used air-puffs delivered either to the center of the face, the periphery of the face or the shoulders. These stimulations elicited activations in numerous cortical areas, encompassing the primary and secondary somatosensory areas, prefrontal and premotor areas, parietal, temporal and cingulate areas, as well as low-level visual cortex. Importantly, a specific parieto-temporo-prefrontal network responded to the three stimulations but presented a marked preference for air-puffs directed to the center of the face. This network corresponds to areas that are also involved in near space representation as well as in the multisensory integration of information at the interface between this near space and the skin of the face, and is probably involved in the construction of a peripersonal space representation around the head.

PMID: 26467517 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]