Linking Signal Relevancy and Intensity in Predictive Tactile Suppression.

Autor:	Beyvers MC; Department of Psychology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Germany., Fraser LE; Center for Vision Research, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada.; Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada., Fiehler K; Department of Psychology, Justus Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Germany.; Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior, University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Germany.
Jazyk:	angličtina
Zdroj:	Frontiers in human neuroscience [Front Hum Neurosci] 2022 Feb 24; Vol. 16, pp. 795886. Date of Electronic Publication: 2022 Feb 24 (Print Publication: 2022).
DOI:	10.3389/fnhum.2022.795886
Abstrakt:	Predictable somatosensory feedback leads to a reduction in tactile sensitivity. This phenomenon, called tactile suppression , relies on a mechanism that uses an efference copy of motor commands to help select relevant aspects of incoming sensory signals. We investigated whether tactile suppression is modulated by (a) the task-relevancy of the predicted consequences of movement and (b) the intensity of related somatosensory feedback signals. Participants reached to a target region in the air in front of a screen; visual or tactile feedback indicated the reach was successful. Furthermore, tactile feedback intensity (strong vs. weak) varied across two groups of participants. We measured tactile suppression by comparing detection thresholds for a probing vibration applied to the finger either early or late during reach and at rest. As expected, we found an overall decrease in late-reach suppression, as no touch was involved at the end of the reach. We observed an increase in the degree of tactile suppression when strong tactile feedback was given at the end of the reach, compared to when weak tactile feedback or visual feedback was given. Our results suggest that the extent of tactile suppression can be adapted to different demands of somatosensory processing. Downregulation of this mechanism is invoked only when the consequences of missing a weak movement sequence are severe for the task. The decisive factor for the presence of tactile suppression seems not to be the predicted action effect as such, but the need to detect and process anticipated feedback signals occurring during movement. Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. (Copyright © 2022 Beyvers, Fraser and Fiehler.)
Databáze:	MEDLINE
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