Seminar Details
2007-04-24 (14.00) : Representations of reach space in parietal damaged patients.
At Auditoire Euler
Organized by Mathematical Engineering
Speaker :
Khan, Aarlenne Z.
Abstract :
Reaching a viewed object with the hand requires a
transformation between the object's location (represented
relative to gaze the line of sight) and the motor command
(represented relative to the shoulder). This representation
has to be updated whenever gaze moves. In addition, the
hand position must be compared to the objects location to
produce an accurate movement. I studied visually-guided
reaching in patients with damage to the posterior parietal
cortex and in intact subjects to gain insight into the role
of the parietal cortex in the above processes. I will show
that the parietal cortex is essential in the visuomotor
transformation particularly with rapid movements and in
the comparison between hand and target location, but is not
necessary for updating target locations due to changes in
gaze.