The cingulate cortex is a mosaic of different anatomical fields, whose functional characterization is still a matter of debate. In humans, one method that may provide useful insights on the role of the different cingulate regions, and to tackle the issue of the functional differences between its anterior, middle and posterior subsectors, is intracortical electrical stimulation. While previous reports showed that a variety of integrated behaviours could be elicited by stimulating the midcingulate cortex, little is known about the effects of the electrical stimulation of anterior and posterior cingulate regions. Moreover, the internal arrangement of different behaviours within the midcingulate cortex is still unknown. In the present study, we extended previous stimulation studies by retrospectively analysing all the clinical manifestations induced by intracerebral high frequency electrical stimulation (50 Hz, pulse width: 1 ms, 5 s, current intensity: average intensity of 2.7 ± 0.7 mA, biphasic) of the entire cingulate cortex in a cohort of 329 drug-resistant epileptic patients (1789 stimulation sites) undergoing stereo-electroencephalography for a presurgical evaluation. The large number of patients, on one hand, and the accurate multimodal image-based localization of stereo-electroencephalography electrodes, on the other hand, allowed us to assign specific functional properties to modern anatomical subdivisions of the cingulate cortex. Behavioural or subjective responses were elicited from the 32.3% of all cingulate sites, mainly located in the pregenual and midcingulate regions. We found clear functional differences between the pregenual part of the cingulate cortex, hosting the majority of emotional, interoceptive and autonomic responses, and the anterior midcingulate sector, controlling the majority of all complex motor behaviours. Particularly interesting was the 'actotopic' organization of the anterior midcingulate sector, arranged along the ventro-dorsal axis: (i) whole-body behaviours directed to the extra-personal space, such as getting-up impulses, were elicited ventrally, close to the corpus callosum; (ii) hand actions in the peripersonal space were evoked by the stimulation of the intermediate position; and (iii) body-directed actions were induced by the stimulation of the dorsal branch of the cingulate sulcus. The caudal part of the midcingulate cortex and the posterior cingulate cortex were, in contrast, poorly excitable, and mainly devoted to sensory modalities. In particular, the caudal part of the midcingulate cortex hosted the majority of vestibular responses, while posterior cingulate cortex was the principal recipient of visual effects. We will discuss our data in the light of current controversies on the role of the cingulate cortex in cognition and emotion.

We generated probabilistic area maps and maximum probability maps (MPMs) for a set of 18 retinotopic areas previously mapped in individual subjects (Georgieva et al., 2009 and Kolster et al., 2010) using four different inter-subject registration methods. The best results were obtained using a recently developed multimodal surface matching method. The best set of MPMs had relatively smooth borders between visual areas and group average area sizes that matched the typical size in individual subjects. Comparisons between retinotopic areas and maps of estimated cortical myelin content revealed the following correspondences: (i) areas V1, V2, and V3 are heavily myelinated; (ii) the MT cluster is heavily myelinated, with a peak near the MT/pMSTv border; (iii) a dorsal myelin density peak corresponds to area V3D; (iv) the phPIT cluster is lightly myelinated; and (v) myelin density differs across the four areas of the V3A complex. Comparison of the retinotopic MPM with cytoarchitectonic areas, including those previously mapped to the fs_LR cortical surface atlas, revealed a correspondence between areas V1–3 and hOc1–3, respectively, but little correspondence beyond V3. These results indicate that architectonic and retinotopic areal boundaries are in agreement in some regions, and that retinotopy provides a finer-grained parcellation in other regions. The atlas datasets from this analysis are freely available as a resource for other studies that will benefit from retinotopic and myelin density map landmarks in human visual cortex.

A fine-grained description of the spatiotemporal dynamics of human brain activity is a major goal of neuroscientific research. Limitations in spatial and temporal resolution of available noninvasive recording and imaging techniques have hindered so far the acquisition of precise, comprehensive four-dimensional maps of human neural activity. The present study combines anatomical and functional data from intracerebral recordings of nearly 100 patients, to generate highly resolved four-dimensional maps of human cortical processing of nonpainful somatosensory stimuli. These maps indicate that the human somatosensory system devoted to the hand encompasses a widespread network covering more than 10% of the cortical surface of both hemispheres. This network includes phasic components, centered on primary somatosensory cortex and neighboring motor, premotor, and inferior parietal regions, and tonic components, centered on opercular and insular areas, and involving human parietal rostroventral area and ventral medial-superior-temporal area. The technique described opens new avenues for investigating the neural basis of all levels of cortical processing in humans.A detailed description of the spatiotemporal dynamics of human brain activity is a major goal of neuroscientific research. However, it has been impossible so far to attain both high spatial and temporal resolution using the available noninvasive recording and imaging techniques. Hence, a precise and comprehensive four-dimensional cartography of human neural activity has not yet been obtained. High spatial resolution, provided by neuroimaging techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), is crucial for highlighting the topographical organization of specific areas (e.g., somatotopy of sensorimotor areas) as well as identifying the nodes of brain networks endowed with specific functional properties (1). It is not sufficient, however, to know which nodes are active; information is also needed about the local dynamics of the nodes, as well as the relative timing of their activity, to fully understand human brain functions (2, 3). Even if the temporal resolution of electroencephalography (EEG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) allowed one to observe the intra-and interareal dynamics, to date such recordings remain too poor in localization power (1-2 cm) (3, 4). Combining EEG and fMRI has been suggested as a solution, using EEG to determine the temporal dynamics within and between the areas identified with fMRI (5). However, the disparate nature of the two signals recorded (hemodynamic for fMRI, electrical for EEG) creates discrepancies in the results that prevent precise matching of these methods (3).Invasive intracranial EEG offers a unique opportunity to observe human brain activity with an unparalleled combination of spatial and temporal resolution. Depending on the electrodes used, two kinds of recordings can be made: (i) intraparenchymal recordings, also called stereo-EEG (sEEG) (6), obtained using stereotactically inserted needle-like electrodes...

To clarify the functional organization of parietal cortex involved in action observation, we scanned subjects observing 3 widely different classes of actions: Manipulation with the hands, locomotion, and climbing. An effector-based organization predicts that parietal regions involved in the observation of climbing should not differ from those involved in observing manipulation and locomotion, opposite to the prediction of an organization based upon the action performed. Compared with individual controls, the observation of climbing evoked activity in dorsal superior parietal lobule (SPL), extending into precuneus and posterior cingulate sulcus. Observation of locomotion differentially activated similar regions less strongly. Observation of manipulation activated ventro-rostral SPL, including putative human AIP (phAIP). Using interaction testing and exclusive masking to directly compare the parietal regions involved in observing the 3 action classes, relative to the controls, revealed that the rostral part of dorsal SPL was specifically involved in observing climbing and phAIP in observing manipulation. Parietal regions common to observing all 3 action classes were restricted and likely reflected higher order visual processing of body posture and 3D structure from motion. These results support a functional organization of some parietal regions involved in action observation according to the type of action in the case of climbing and manipulation.