Brain Activation During Visual (Subliminal) Stimulation of Ultra-Short Duration

Author: Tashiro Manabu 1//Ishizaki Hiroyuki 1//Okamura Nobuyuki 1//Miyazaki Hiroshi 2//Ishii Keizo 3//Itoh Masatoshi 1
Affiliation: Div. of Nuclear Medicine, Cyclotron Radioisotope Center, Tohoku Univ., Sendai, Japan [1]//Laboratory of Neuroinfomation Science, Tohoku-Gakuin Univ., Sendai, Japan [2]//Div. of Nuclear Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Tohoku Univ., Sendai, Japan [3]
Conference/Journal: J Intl Soc Life Info Science
Date published: 1997
Other: Volume ID: 15 , Issue ID: 1 , Pages: 18-26 , Special Notes: Also in Japanese. , Word Count: 125


A new generation 3D-PET device, which is characterized by high sensitivity and high resolution, allows a series of eight to ten scans in a single subject within a short period of time. We applied this device for the study of cognitive processes of the human brain during subliminal stimulation, or visual exposures of ultra-short duration. The results revealed areas of positive or negative correlations between the length of the exposure time and cerebral blood flow changes in the subjects. Regions of activation found common across subjects may include foci which are actually involved in subliminal perceptions. Common areas of the positive correlation across two subjects were as follows: right visual association, the primary visual, primary motor, left motor association and left temporal area (Brodmann 22 area).