Retinotopic information interacts with category selectivity in human ventral cortex

Abstract

Until recently, the general consensus with respect to the organization of ventral visual cortex is that early, retinotopic regions are sensitive to the spatial position of the input stimuli whereas later, higher-order regions are sensitive to the category of the input stimuli. Growing recognition of the bidirectional connectivity of the visual system has challenged this view and recent empirical evidence suggests a more interactive and graded system. Here, based on findings from functional MRI in adult observers, in which meridians and category selective regions are localized and their activation sampled, we support this latter perspective by showing that category effects are present in retinotopic cortical areas and spatial position effects are present in higher-order regions. Furthermore, the results indicate that the retinotopic and later areas are functionally connected suggesting a possible mechanism by which these seemingly disparate effects come to be intermixed in both early and later regions of the visual system.