Cortical networks for face perception in two-month-old infants
Cortical networks for face perception in two-month-old infants
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DOI：
10.1098/rspb.2014.1468
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发表时间：
2014-10-22
影响因子：
4.7
通讯作者：
Nakatani, Kazuko
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Nakano, Tamami;Nakatani, Kazuko
新生儿有一种与生俱来的系统，优先看一张直立的人脸。这种面孔偏好行为在大约一个月大的时候就会消失，几个月后又会出现。然而，这种U型行为变化背后的神经机制仍不清楚。在这里，我们使用S视锥隔离刺激分离皮层视觉通路的功能发育，从而使皮层下视觉通路失明。使用由皮质下和皮质视觉通路传递的亮度刺激，两个月大的婴儿没有观察到偏爱直立的脸，但在四个月和六个月大的婴儿中观察到了这种偏爱，证实了U形发育的恢复阶段。相比之下，使用S视锥刺激，两个月大的婴儿已经表现出对直立面孔的偏好，四个月和六个月大的婴儿也是如此，这表明两个月大的时候，处理面部的皮质视觉通路已经在U形的底部发挥作用。目前的结果表明，短暂的功能恶化源于皮质下和皮质功能通路之间的冲突，此后的恢复涉及建立两条通路之间的协调水平。
Newborns have an innate system for preferentially looking at an upright human face. This face preference behaviour disappears at approximately one month of age and reappears a few months later. However, the neural mechanisms underlying this U-shaped behavioural change remain unclear. Here, we isolate the functional development of the cortical visual pathway for face processing using S-cone-isolating stimulation, which blinds the subcortical visual pathway. Using luminance stimuli, which are conveyed by both the subcortical and cortical visual pathways, the preference for upright faces was not observed in two-month-old infants, but it was observed in four-and six-month-old infants, confirming the recovery phase of the U-shaped development. By contrast, using S-cone stimuli, two-month-old infants already showed a preference for upright faces, as did four-and six-month-old infants, demonstrating that the cortical visual pathway for face processing is already functioning at the bottom of the U-shape at two months of age. The present results suggest that the transient functional deterioration stems from a conflict between the subcortical and cortical functional pathways, and that the recovery thereafter involves establishing a level of coordination between the two pathways.