Binding Mechanisms in Visual Perception and Their Link With Neural Oscillations: A Review of Evidence From tACS

Frontiers in Psychology

article

Andrea Ghiani¹  Marcello Maniglia²  Luca Battaglini¹  David Melcher⁶  Luca Ronconi⁸ 

[1] Department of General Psychology, University of Padua;Department of Psychology, University of California, United States;Department of Neurobiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, United States;Neuro Vis.U.S. Laboratory, University of Padua;Department of Physics and Astronomy “Galileo Galilei”, University of Padua;Center for Mind/Brain Sciences and Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science, University of Trento;Psychology Program, Division of Science, New York University Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates;School of Psychology, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University;Division of Neuroscience, Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico, San Raffaele Hospital

关键词: tACS;    brain oscillations;    temporal binding;    spatial binding;    feature binding;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpsyg.2021.643677

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

Neurophysiological studies in humans employing magneto- (MEG) and electro- (EEG) encephalography increasingly suggest that oscillatory rhythmic activity of the brain may be a core mechanism for binding sensory information across space, time, and object features to generate a unified perceptual representation. To distinguish whether oscillatory activity is causally related to binding processes or whether, on the contrary, it is a mere epiphenomenon, one possibility is to employ neuromodulatory techniques such as transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS). tACS has seen a rising interest due to its ability to modulate brain oscillations in a frequency-dependent manner. In the present review, we critically summarize current tACS evidence for a causal role of oscillatory activity in spatial, temporal, and feature binding in the context of visual perception. For temporal binding, the emerging picture supports a causal link with the power and the frequency of occipital alpha rhythms (8–12 Hz); however, there is no consistent evidence on the causal role of the phase of occipital tACS. For feature binding, the only study available showed a modulation by occipital alpha tACS. The majority of studies that successfully modulated oscillatory activity and behavioral performance in spatial binding targeted parietal areas, with the main rhythms causally linked being the theta (~7 Hz) and beta (~18 Hz) frequency bands. On the other hand, spatio-temporal binding has been directly modulated by parieto-occipital gamma (~40–60 Hz) and alpha (10 Hz) tACS, suggesting a potential role of cross-frequency coupling when binding across space and time. Nonetheless, negative or partial results have also been observed, suggesting methodological limitations that should be addressed in future research. Overall, the emerging picture seems to support a causal role of brain oscillations in binding processes and, consequently, a certain degree of plasticity for shaping binding mechanisms in visual perception, which, if proved to have long lasting effects, can find applications in different clinical populations.

【 授权许可】

CC BY