Science, Space and Technology News 2024
Researchers at the University of Iowa have linked a brain region involved in motor control with attention management, revealing how deep brain stimulation for Parkinson’s can reduce motor symptoms but impair cognitive functions. The study suggests the need for further research to balance treatment benefits with potential side effects. Credit: SciTechDaily.comhas identified a specific brain region associated with the ability of humans to shift thoughts and focus when distracted.
Jan Wessel, at the University of Iowa, led a team that identified a brain region involved in how attention or thought is diverted. In addition to its biological significance, the finding could help people with Parkinson’s disease who struggle with impulsive thoughts or erratic attention. Credit: University of Iowa“The technique is truly miraculous, frankly,” says Jan Wessel, associate professor in the departments of Psychological and Brain Sciences and Neurology at Iowa.
In a 2021 study, Wessel’s group established that brain waves in participants’ visual cortex dropped when they heard a chirp, meaning their attention had been diverted by the sound. By interchanging instances when there was a chirp or no sound, the researchers could see when attention had been diverted, and when the focus of visual attention had been maintained.
“We found they no longer can break or suppress their focus of attention in the same way,” says Wessel, the study’s corresponding author. “The unexpected sound happens and they’re still full-on attending to their visual system. They haven’t diverted their attention from the visual.”The distinction confirmed the subthalamic nucleus’ role in how the brain and body communicate not only with movement—as previously known—but also with thoughts and attention.
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