RESUMEN

Binocular rivalry is the phenomenon that when two incompatible images are simultaneously presented, one to each eye, the two images compete with each other to be the dominant percept. Studying the underlying neural mechanisms of binocular rivalry is useful for understanding the mechanisms of interocular inhibition. Levelt's Propositions, a set of four propositions that were originally published over fifty years ago, are not only useful for characterizing the perceptual dynamics of binocular rivalry, but can also provide a metric for assessing the common or differential neural mechanisms of binocular rivalry when diverse stimulus types are used. In the present study, we conducted a series of psychophysics experiments, where we compared the rivalry dynamics of two quite different types of stimuli. Orthogonal gratings, a classic type of rivalry stimulus, were contrasted with luminance patches, a type of rivalry stimulus that is relatively less studied. Our results showed that, similar to the orthogonal gratings, the alternate percepts in luminance-only rivalry were described by the modified Levelt's Propositions, despite the clearly slower alternation rates for luminance patches. However, unlike the mixed percepts observed during transitions between oriented gratings, fusion percepts during luminance rivalry were common, could be lustrous, and obeyed the same Propositions, suggesting a regime of tri-stability. Overall, both types of rivalry are consistent with recent models that posit separate binocular and monocular channels embedded within neural circuits that also accomplish contrast normalization. Finally, luminance rivalry is discussed in the contexts of binocular summation and suppression, as well as Fechner's paradox.

Asunto(s)

Predominio Ocular , Visión Binocular , Humanos , Psicofísica , Disparidad Visual , Percepción Visual

RESUMEN

OBJECTIVES: Presenting conflicting images simultaneously, one to each eye, produces perceptual alternations known as binocular rivalry (BR). Slow BR rate has been proposed as an endophenotype for bipolar disorder (BD) for use in large-scale genome-wide association studies. However, the trait could conceivably reflect eye movement (EM) dysfunction in BD rather than anomalous perceptual processing per se. To address this question, we examined the relationship between EM profiles and BR rate for various stimulus types in BD and healthy subjects. We also examined differences in EM profiles between these groups. METHODS: Employing a repeated-measures within-subjects design, 20 BD outpatients and 20 age- and sex-matched healthy controls completed EM tasks and separate BR tasks involving a range of stimuli with different drift speeds. The association between each EM measure and BR rate was examined with correlational analyses for all stimulus conditions in both groups. Between-group comparisons were performed to determine any differences in those EM measures. Corresponding Bayesian analyses were also conducted. RESULTS: There were no EM measures that showed a significant relationship with BR rate in either the BD group or the healthy group (P≥7.87×10-3 ), where those EM measures were also significantly different between the BD and healthy groups (P≥1.32 × 10-2 ). These findings were verified with Bayes factors. CONCLUSIONS: The results provide evidence that EM profiles do not explain the slow BR endophenotype for BD, thus indicating that the trait reflects anomalous perceptual processing per se. This perceptual trait can be employed in clinical, genetic, mechanistic and pathophysiological studies.

Asunto(s)

Trastorno Bipolar , Medidas del Movimiento Ocular , Visión Binocular , Percepción Visual/fisiología , Adulto , Teorema de Bayes , Trastorno Bipolar/diagnóstico , Trastorno Bipolar/fisiopatología , Endofenotipos , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Estadística como Asunto

RESUMEN

Interindividual variation has been shown in the rates at which subjects alternate in perception during viewing of binocular rivalry and other ambiguous figures. A similar pattern of interindividual variation is evident in the rate of eye movements. The aim of this study was to determine whether individual differences in the rate of binocular rivalry predict individual differences in the rate of eye movements. First, participants reported changes in perception during contour rivalry. We found that the alternation rate during rivalry varied from 0.15 to 0.59/s between individuals. Next, participants viewed different visual displays while their eye movements were tracked. We found that the rate of saccadic eye movements varied by 1.9-4.4/s between individuals. Although the temporal characteristics of eye movements and binocular rivalry differed in their absolute rate, we found a significant positive correlation between these measures; that is, the frequency of saccadic eye movements can predict an individual's rate of perceptual alternation during rivalry. These findings suggest a potential link between the mechanisms involved in binocular rivalry and those processes involved in controlling eye movements.