Publications by authors named "Matthew K Defenderfer"
Article Synopsis
- Human behavior and brain function can significantly adapt to the loss of sensory input, like vision, as seen in conditions such as macular degeneration.
- Research using resting-state fMRI in individuals with vision loss shows that the brain changes its connectivity to prioritize remaining sensory inputs, particularly in the peripheral retina.
- The study found that, after losing central vision, cortical areas linked to peripheral vision demonstrate increased connectivity, particularly with motion processing regions, indicating that the visual cortex maintains plasticity even long after vision loss.
Late-stage macular degeneration (MD) often causes retinal lesions depriving an individual of central vision, forcing them to learn to use peripheral vision for daily tasks. To compensate, many patients develop a preferred retinal locus (PRL), an area of peripheral vision used more often than equivalent regions of spared vision. Thus, associated portions of cortex experience increased use, while portions of cortex associated with the lesion are deprived of sensory input.
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