Classical views hold that a few oculomotor structures such as frontal eye field (FEF), superior colliculus (SC), and lateral intraparietal area (LIP) guide visual attention by representing priority maps, a combination of object saliency and top-down relevance signals.
A series of very recent studies1–10 emphasized the role of a few specialized temporal cortex structures such as the gaze following patch (GFP), the dorsal part of the inferotemporal cortex (pITd), and the middle of the superior temporal sulcus (mid-STS), we collectively referred to them as the temporal cortex attention network (TAN), in guiding attention. The goal of this review11 is to advance the hypothesis that the TAN entails the necessary components to guide attention and flexible behavior. We also propose a framework for the temporal cortex control of attention based on visual field maps.
Furthermore, we discuss how the TAN contributes to action understanding during social interactions. Elucidating the interactions between temporal, parietal, and frontal cortical areas based on visual field maps and the corresponding computations that underlie attentional control of social cues in human and non-human primates would be a major step forward, not only for understanding visual attention but also for a general understanding of how complex interactions between different brain structures generate flexible behavior.
The TAN also exists in humans. Future studies are required to compare the functional properties of the TAN and its connectivity in humans and monkeys in more detail.
References
1. Stemmann, H. & Freiwald, W. A. Evidence for an attentional priority map in inferotemporal cortex. PNAS, 2019.
2. Sani, I., McPherson, B. C., Stemmann, H., Pestilli, F. & Freiwald, W. A. Functionally defined white matter of the macaque monkey brain reveals a dorso-ventral attention network. eLife, 2019.
3. Sani, I. et al. The human endogenous attentional control network includes a ventro-temporal cortical node. Nature Communications, 2021.
4. Bogadhi, A. R., Bollimunta, A., Leopold, D. A. & Krauzlis, R. J. Spatial attention deficits are causally linked to an area in macaque temporal cortex. Current Biology, 2019.
5. Bogadhi, A. R., Katz, L. N., Bollimunta, A., Leopold, D. A. & Krauzlis, R. J. Midbrain activity shapes high-level visual properties in the primate temporal cortex. Neuron, 2020.
6. Ramezanpour, H. & Thier, P. Decoding of the other’s focus of attention by a temporal cortex module. PNAS, 2020.
7. Bogadhi, A. R., Bollimunta, A., Leopold, D. A. & Krauzlis, R. J. Brain regions modulated during covert visual attention in the macaque. Scientific Reports, 2018.
8. Stemmann, H. & Freiwald, W. A. Attentive motion discrimination recruits an area in inferotemporal cortex. Journal of neuroscience , 2016.
9. Marciniak, K., Atabaki, A., Dicke, P. W. & Thier, P. Disparate substrates for head gaze following and face perception in the monkey superior temporal sulcus. eLife, 2014.
10. Marquardt, K.*, Ramezanpour, H.*, Dicke, P. W. & Thier, P. Following eye gaze activates a patch in the posterior temporal cortex that is not part of the human ‘face patch’ system. eNeuro, 2017.
11. Ramezanpour, H. & Fallah, M. The role of temporal cortex in the control of attention. Current Research in Neurobiology, 2022.
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