MEG frequency tagging reveals a grid-like code during attentional movements

Grid-cells firing fields tile the environment with a 6-fold periodicity during both locomotion and visual exploration. Here, we tested, in humans, whether movements of covert attention elicit grid-like coding using frequency tagging. Participants observed visual trajectories presented sequentially a...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cell reports (Cambridge) 2023-10, Vol.42 (10), p.113209-113209, Article 113209
Main Authors: Giari, Giuliano, Vignali, Lorenzo, Xu, Yangwen, Bottini, Roberto
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
attention
frequency tagging
grid cells
magnetoencephalography
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Summary:Grid-cells firing fields tile the environment with a 6-fold periodicity during both locomotion and visual exploration. Here, we tested, in humans, whether movements of covert attention elicit grid-like coding using frequency tagging. Participants observed visual trajectories presented sequentially at fixed rate, allowing different spatial periodicities (e.g., 4-, 6-, and 8-fold) to have corresponding temporal periodicities (e.g., 1, 1.5, and 2 Hz), thus resulting in distinct spectral responses. We found a higher response for the (grid-like) 6-fold periodicity and localized this effect in medial-temporal sources. In a control experiment featuring the same temporal periodicity but lacking spatial structure, the 6-fold effect did not emerge, suggesting its dependency on spatial movements of attention. We report evidence that grid-like signals in the human medial-temporal lobe can be elicited by covert attentional movements and suggest that attentional coding may provide a suitable mechanism to support the activation of cognitive maps during conceptual navigation. [Display omitted] •In humans, a grid-like response emerges during covert visual exploration•Grid-like coding can be detected in MEG using a frequency-tagging paradigm•Novel non-invasive method to investigate grid-like response in humans Giari et al. used MEG and frequency tagging to non-invasively investigate correlates of covert visual-space exploration in humans. A grid-like response was observed in the medial-temporal lobe and does not depend on the temporal structure of the task. Attentional mechanisms can account for navigation of abstract spaces.
ISSN:2211-1247
2211-1247
DOI:10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113209