Relationship between brain structure and antisaccadic eye movements in healthy humans

Ulrich Ettinger, Veena Kumari, Xavier A. Chitnis, Philip J. Corr, Alex L. Sumich, Sophia Rabe-Hesketh, Trevor J. Crawford, Tonmoy Sharma

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

18 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This study used structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to investigate associations between brain structure and saccadic eye movements. Seventeen healthy subjects underwent structural MRI and infra-red oculographic assessment of a reflexive saccade task. Volumes of prefrontal, premotor, and occipitoparietal cortex, caudate, thalamus, and cerebellar vermis were used as predictors in multiple regression with prosaccade gain as a dependent variable, controlling for whole-brain volume. Using voxel-based morphometry (VBM), gain was entered into correlational analysis with grey matter density. Regression analysis indicated that vermis volumes predicted prosaccade gain. VBM replicated this finding: gain was correlated with grey matter in the left cerebellar hemisphere and vermis. These findings agree with previous studies on the role of the cerebellar vermis in saccadic gain and support the validity of structural neuroimaging methods in elucidating the neural correlates of saccadic eye movements.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)225-228
Number of pages4
JournalNeuroscience Letters
Volume328
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 16 Aug 2002

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