Beyond classic perceptual learning: coordinated attentional training to boost learning and generalization
Creators: name: Maniglia, Marcello
name: Denton DeLoss
name: Biles, Mandy
name: Visscher, Kristina M.
name: Seitz, Aaron R.
Publisher: name: F1000Research
Year: 2017

description: Visual Perceptual Learning (VPL) has significant potential to become an effective tool to improve vision. Translational approaches of VPL range from treatments for Amblyopia (Levi and Li, 2009), Presbyopia (Polat, 2009), as well as potential interventions for other conditions such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD; Maniglia <i>et al</i>. 2011; 2016; Kwon <i>et al.</i>, 2013). However, a large body of research found that VPL seem specific for the trained features (stimulus, retinal position, orientation, etc), making it difficult to use it as a tool for rehabilitation. Recent studies showed that this specificity can be overcome and transfer of learning can be successfully observed by manipulating classic VLP paradigms, for example by diversifying tasks and stimuli (Deveau, Lovcik and Seitz, 2014), avoiding sensory adaptation (Harris, Gliksberg, and Sagi, 2012), using multimodal stimulation (Seitz <i>et al.</i>, 2006) and manipulating attention (Szpiro and Carrasco, 2015), however it is still unclear what factor accounts for VPL generalization.<br><br>Moreover, these approaches rarely take into account how vision is used in the real world. Specifically, how active vision involves basic perceptual processes acting in concert with visual attentional processes.<br><br>Indeed, a large body of neuroimaging work (e.g. Yeo <i>et al.</i>, 2011) identified consistent and separable neural networks involved in different aspects of cognitive control, namely the Fronto-parietal network (FPN) involved in top-down attentional control, the Cingulo-opercular network (CON), involved in sustained attention, and the Default network, suppressed during demanding attentional tasks . Classic VPL paradigms do not explicitly take into account these networks. Consequently, a paradigm that requires integration of information from these three networks may show benefits.  We propose a new training paradigm, coordinated attentional training (CAT) that explicitly engages these networks by combining a classic orientation discrimination task with the use of visuoacoustic cues. The goal of CAT is to train coordination of cognitive control networks with lower level, perceptual mechanisms by combining visual search task, attentional modulation and multisensory stimulation with standard PL training. This type of training has the potential of being further beneficial for some severe visual  pathology, such as AMD: In fact, this clinical population is forced to use peripheral vision as a way to overcome central vision loss, often developing a Preferred Retinal Locus (PRL) that they use as a substitute of the fovea. Successful rehabilitation in AMD might require not just improvements in visual acuity in the PRL but plasticity in the connectivity between the PRL and these networks as well. By engaging CON, FPN and DMN, CAT will promote attentional re-referencing towards the PRL. Preliminary data on AMD patients show a transfer of learning from the trained task to motion direction discrimination, visual search and visual acuity, consistent with our hypothesis of a large generalization of VPL by engaging cognitive control networks during the training.