TY - JOUR
T1 - Subjective visual sensitivity in neurotypical adults
T2 - insights from a magnetic resonance spectroscopy study
AU - Jurkovičová, Lenka
AU - Páleník, Julie
AU - Kudlička, Petr
AU - Pezlar, Lenka
AU - Ružičková, Alexandra
AU - Juřík, Vojtěch
AU - Mareček, Radek
AU - Roman, Robert
AU - Braithwaite, Jason J.
AU - Sandberg, Kristian
AU - Near, Jamie
AU - Brázdil, Milan
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2024 Jurkovičová, Páleník, Kudlička, Pezlar, Ružičková, Juřík, Mareček, Roman, Braithwaite, Sandberg, Near and Brázdil.
PY - 2024
Y1 - 2024
N2 - Introduction: Altered subjective visual sensitivity manifests as feelings of discomfort or overload elicited by intense and irritative visual stimuli. This can result in a host of visual aberrations including visual distortions, elementary visual hallucinations and visceral responses like dizziness and nausea, collectively referred to as “pattern glare.” Current knowledge of the underlying neural mechanisms has focused on overall excitability of the visual cortex, but the individual contribution of excitatory and inhibitory systems has not yet been quantified. Methods: In this study, we focus on the role of glutamate and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) as potential mediators of individual differences in subjective visual sensitivity, measured by a computerized Pattern Glare Test—a series of monochromatic square-wave gratings with three different spatial frequencies, while controlling for psychological variables related to sensory sensitivity with multiple questionnaires. Resting neurotransmitter concentrations in primary visual cortex (V1) and right anterior insula were studied in 160 healthy participants using magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Results: Data showed significant differences in the perception of visual distortions (VD) and comfort scores between men and women, with women generally reporting more VD, and therefore the modulatory effect of sex was considered in a further examination. A general linear model analysis showed a negative effect of occipital glutamate on a number of reported visual distortions, but also a significant role of several background psychological traits. When assessing comfort scores in women, an important intervening variable was the menstrual cycle. Discussion: Our findings do not support that baseline neurotransmitter levels have a significant role in overreactivity to aversive stimuli in neurotypical population. However, we demonstrated that biological sex can have a significant impact on subjective responses. Based on this additional finding, we suggest that future studies investigate aversive visual stimuli while examining the role of biological sex.
AB - Introduction: Altered subjective visual sensitivity manifests as feelings of discomfort or overload elicited by intense and irritative visual stimuli. This can result in a host of visual aberrations including visual distortions, elementary visual hallucinations and visceral responses like dizziness and nausea, collectively referred to as “pattern glare.” Current knowledge of the underlying neural mechanisms has focused on overall excitability of the visual cortex, but the individual contribution of excitatory and inhibitory systems has not yet been quantified. Methods: In this study, we focus on the role of glutamate and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) as potential mediators of individual differences in subjective visual sensitivity, measured by a computerized Pattern Glare Test—a series of monochromatic square-wave gratings with three different spatial frequencies, while controlling for psychological variables related to sensory sensitivity with multiple questionnaires. Resting neurotransmitter concentrations in primary visual cortex (V1) and right anterior insula were studied in 160 healthy participants using magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Results: Data showed significant differences in the perception of visual distortions (VD) and comfort scores between men and women, with women generally reporting more VD, and therefore the modulatory effect of sex was considered in a further examination. A general linear model analysis showed a negative effect of occipital glutamate on a number of reported visual distortions, but also a significant role of several background psychological traits. When assessing comfort scores in women, an important intervening variable was the menstrual cycle. Discussion: Our findings do not support that baseline neurotransmitter levels have a significant role in overreactivity to aversive stimuli in neurotypical population. However, we demonstrated that biological sex can have a significant impact on subjective responses. Based on this additional finding, we suggest that future studies investigate aversive visual stimuli while examining the role of biological sex.
KW - cortical excitability
KW - GABA
KW - glutamate
KW - magnetic resonance spectroscopy
KW - Pattern Glare Test
KW - visual discomfort
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85206375819&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.3389/fnins.2024.1417996
DO - 10.3389/fnins.2024.1417996
M3 - Journal article
C2 - 39391756
AN - SCOPUS:85206375819
SN - 1662-4548
VL - 18
JO - Frontiers in Neuroscience
JF - Frontiers in Neuroscience
M1 - 1417996
ER -