Research
Research in the Burton laboratory explores possible reorganization in human cerebral cortex in the presence of sensory aberrations. Combined in these studies are functional brain imaging and behavioral assessments in individuals with some sensory deficit compared to age matched normal controls. Prior studies with people blind from birth showed reorganization in their visual cortex that included extensive cross-modal activation to auditory and tactile stimulation and during memory and language tasks. In the blind the lab further discovered increased resting state functional connectivity between visual cortex and cognitive control regions in frontal and parietal cortex that possibly reflect behavioral enhancement of working memory and attention in adaption to blindness. Technically comparable studies investigated reorganized cortex in two other patient groups. Individuals with bothersome tinnitus who showed deficient attention behavior also had altered functional connectivity between cortical networks for vision and attention. Patients with cerebral palsy who showed deficits in tactile and kinesthesia abilities also had reduced cortical responses to tactile stimulation of the fingertips and disrupted functional connectivity maps throughout somatosensory cortex.