Adaptation studies suggest interactive feedback shapes responses in occipitotemporal regions

Abstract

Downing and Peelen portray the EBA and FBA as a largely impenetrable system, passing on visual signals to other cortical areas where high-level information is extracted. They suggest that the influence of other regions on EBA and FBA is primarily limited to changes in attentional modulation. In the following commentary, this proposal is evaluated within the context of a predictive coding framework. Recent evidence is discussed indicating that fMRI-adaptation effects in occipitotemporal cortex, including EBA and FBA, are consistent with the influence of higher-level modulation, suggesting that responses in these regions are shaped through the interactive feedback of a hierarchical network.