BINOCULAR INTERACTION IN HUMAN VISUAL CORTEX

早期发现和矫正双眼视觉障碍是至关重要的 在敏感期， 发展时期。 一种双眼交互作用的评价技术 在人类的视觉皮层中，被称为双目跳动技术（BBT）的技术， 显示出作为皮质双眼整合标记物的巨大前景。 这涉及到均匀场的二歧表示， 以不同的时间频率正弦调制亮度 两眼之间 它唤起了一种独特的反应，称为“双眼跳动” 其是反映非线性的视觉诱发电位（VEP）分量 神经行为，这只能产生于整合性双眼 单位 这种搏动也可以在正常成年人的感知中观察到。 斜视或弱视的个人，伴随中断 视觉皮层的双眼功能表现出严重的减少， 非线性，表明双眼皮层过程异常 因为这种均匀场刺激并不 需要准确的调节、固定、聚散或高空间 分辨率，该技术具有作为工具的巨大潜力， 婴儿双眼的评估。 在本提案中， 神经生理学和临床感兴趣的问题将得到解决：1） 搏动作为双眼功能指标的临床实用性， 2)婴儿双眼搏动的发展过程; 受试者内比较VEP搏动反应和VEP引起的 随机点立体图作为皮质双眼畸形的指标，4） 睡眠/清醒状态对VEP搏动反应的不同影响，5） 双眼搏动的时空方面，6） 产生拍频非线性的机制和7）其他 非线性系统分析方法（包括白噪声刺激） 探索非线性机制的本质， 双眼搏动

Early detection and correction of binocular visual disorders are crucial for the proper maturation of the young visual system during the sensitive period of development. A technique for assessment of binocular interaction in the human visual cortex known as the Binocular Beat Technique (BBT) has shown great promise for use as a marker for cortical binocular integration. This involves the dichoptic presentation of uniform fields which are sinusoidally modulated in luminance with differing temporal frequencies between the eyes. It evokes a unique response termed the "binocular beat" which is a visual evoked potential (VEP) component reflecting nonlinear neural behavior and which could only arise from integrative binocular units. This beat can also be observed perceptually in normal adults. Individuals with strabismus or amblyopia, which accompany disrupted binocular function in the visual cortex manifest severe reductions in this nonlinearity, suggesting an abnormality in the binocular cortical processes underlying this response Because this uniform-field stimulus doe snot require accurate accommodation, fixation, vergence or high spatial resolution, this technique has significant potential as a tool for assessment of infant binocularity. In this proposal, the following problems of neurophysiological and clinical interest will be addressed: 1) the clinical usefulness of the beat as an indicant of binocular function, 2) the developmental course of the binocular beat in infants, 3) intrasubject comparison between the VEP beat response and VEP elicited by random-dot stereograms as an indicant of cortical binocularity, 4) the differential effects of sleep/awake states on the VEP beat responses, 5) spatiotemporal aspects of the binocular beat, 6) cortical topology of the mechanisms generating the beat nonlinearity and 7) application of other nonlinear systems analysis approaches (including white-noise stimulation) for exploring the nature of the nonlinear mechanism(s) producing the binocular beat.