Biomedical subjects

Tino Zaehle

Publications and source records attributed to Tino Zaehle.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

Effects of long-term potentiation in the human visual cortex: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study.

Applying functional magnetic resonance imaging techniques, hemodynamic responses elicited by slowly flashing checkerboards (0.25 Hz) were measured both before and after a block of rapidly presented checkerboards (9 Hz -- a 'photic tetanus') was delivered. It has been shown previously, using electroencephalography, that this photic tetanus potentiates components of the visual-evoked potential. In the present study, hemodynamic responses in the extrastriate visual cortex were significantly increased to checkerboards presented at a low frequency after the administration of the photic tetanus. These results support the idea that long-term potentiation can be demonstrated non-invasively within the human visual cortex and provide evidence that the plastic changes are localized within the secondary visual cortex.

Brain Mapping↗

PubMed2005

Spectro-temporal processing during speech perception involves left posterior auditory cortex.

This functional magnetic resonance imaging study investigates the neural underpinnings of spectro-temporal integration during speech perception. Participants performed an auditory discrimination task on a set of sine-wave analogues that could be perceived as either nonspeech or speech. Behavioural results revealed a difference in the processing mode; spectro-temporal integration occurred during speech perception, but not when stimuli were perceived as nonspeech. In terms of neuroimaging, we observed an activation increase in the left posterior primary and secondary auditory cortex, namely Heschl's gyrus and planum temporale encroaching onto the superior temporal sulcus, reflecting a shift from auditory to speech perception. This finding demonstrates that the left posterior superior temporal lobe is essential for spectro-temporal processing during speech perception.

Acoustic Stimulation↗

PubMed2003

Functional anatomy of pitch memory--an fMRI study with sparse temporal sampling.

Auditory functional magnetic resonance imaging tasks are challenging since the MR scanner noise can interfere with the auditory stimulation. To avoid this interference a sparse temporal sampling method with a long repetition time (TR = 17 s) was used to explore the functional anatomy of pitch memory. Eighteen right-handed subjects listened to a sequence of sine-wave tones (4.6 s total duration) and were asked to make a decision (depending on a visual prompt) whether the last or second to last tone was the same or different as the first tone. An alternating button press condition served as a control. Sets of 24 axial slices were acquired with a variable delay time (between 0 and 6 s) between the end of the auditory stimulation and the MR acquisition. Individual imaging time points were combined into three clusters (0-2, 3-4, and 5-6 s after the end of the auditory stimulation) for the analysis. The analysis showed a dynamic activation pattern over time which involved the superior temporal gyrus, supramarginal gyrus, posterior dorsolateral frontal regions, superior parietal regions, and dorsolateral cerebellar regions bilaterally as well as the left inferior frontal gyrus. By regressing the performance score in the pitch memory task with task-related MR signal changes, the supramarginal gyrus (left>right) and the dorsolateral cerebellum (lobules V and VI, left>right) were significantly correlated with good task performance. The SMG and the dorsolateral cerebellum may play a critical role in short-term storage of pitch information and the continuous pitch discrimination necessary for performing this pitch memory task.

Adolescent↗