Optical intrinsic signal imaging for elucidating functional structures in higher visual area

Abstract

To understand neural mechanisms of object recognition, representation of visual object images has been studied in inferior temporal (IT) cortex, which is located at the final stage of the ventral object recognition pathway. Optical intrinsic signal imaging (OISI) is a powerful imaging technique to visualize spatial patterns of object representation in IT cortex. In this chapter, we will describe technical procedures of OISI particularly required when applying to IT cortex, and also recent advancement with OISI in understanding object representation and functional organization of IT cortex.