Cemal Koba, Alessandro Crimi, Olivier Collignon, Emiliano Ricciardi, Uri Hasson

Recent findings have indicated that during resting-state conditions, echo planar imaging (EPI) signals originating from the eye orbit often correlate with brain areas involved in eye movement control and early visual processing. In this study, we investigated whether individuals with congenital blindness (CB) exhibit similar connectivity patterns—potentially reflecting innate brain wiring. Our analysis revealed that, in CB participants, orbital EPI signals still show correlations with motor cortex activity, albeit with reduced association to the visual cortex. Interestingly, the temporal dynamics of these eye movement-related signals were markedly different in CB compared to sighted individuals. Some blind participants even displayed asynchronous orbital EPI signals between their two eyes, each linked to distinct neural networks. These results imply that while the motor–oculomotor pathways remain partially intact in the absence of vision, significant functional reorganization occurs. This reconfiguration likely stems from the lack of visual feedback and the reduced capacity of CB individuals to perceive or intentionally control their eye movements.

Autors: Cemal Koba, Alessandro Crimi, Olivier Collignon, Emiliano Ricciardi, Uri Hasson

DOI: 10.1111/ejn.16459

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