Banca de DEFESA: CARLOS EMMANUEL SOUSA DE ANDRADE CABRAL

Uma banca de DEFESA de MESTRADO foi cadastrada pelo programa.
STUDENT : CARLOS EMMANUEL SOUSA DE ANDRADE CABRAL
DATE: 19/03/2026
TIME: 09:00
LOCAL: https://meet.google.com/fpa-bdrf-frc
TITLE:

Psychophysical signatures of visual interhemispheric connections across adulthood

KEY WORDS:

Alzheimer; Asymmetries; Visual System; Ageing;

PAGES: 90
BIG AREA: Ciências Biológicas
AREA: Fisiologia
SUMMARY:

Aging affects cognitive functions, including sensory perception, which can be assessed through behavioral methods. This project aims to characterize age-related changes in visual perception, focusing on inter- and intra-hemispheric connectivity in the visual cortex. We explored asymmetries in human perception of forms and motion along the vertical midline of the visual field (VM), translating findings from neurophysiological studies in animals with high visual acuity. Evidence suggests that the corpus callosum, a structure that connects the cerebral hemispheres and ensures perceptual continuity, may undergo age-related degeneration, particularly along the anterior–posterior gradient, with the posterior portion and callosal visual connections being less affected. However, these regions are vulnerable in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), making it crucial to understand how interhemispheric visual processing is affected by normal aging. Preliminary studies in our laboratory confirm asymmetries in motion perception among healthy young adults, suggesting that these may serve as behavioral markers of the integrity of callosal visual circuits across the adult lifespan. The tested hypothesis was whether aging may alter visual perception by affecting neural circuits responsible for perceptual grouping and collinear facilitation at the VM, thereby impacting perceptual asymmetry. We developed stimuli that challenge perceptual grouping at the VM and applied them to young and older adults. The collected data may potentially contribute to new preclinical diagnostic methods aimed at detecting cognitive decline that deviates from normal aging and identifying early visual symptoms of conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
Externo à Instituição - GUSTAVO ROHENKOHL - USP
Presidente - 1871878 - KERSTIN ERIKA SCHMIDT
Interno - 1660044 - SIDARTA TOLLENDAL GOMES RIBEIRO