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J Neurophysiol 100: 516-519, 2008. First published May 21, 2008; doi:10.1152/jn.01287.2007
0022-3077/08 $8.00

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Perceptual Load Modulates Visual Cortex Excitability to Magnetic Stimulation

¹Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, ²Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, and ³Department of Cognitive Perceptual and Brain Sciences, University College London, London, United Kingdom

Submitted 26 November 2007; accepted in final form 19 May 2008

Much recent research has shown that the level of perceptual load in a task determines the perception of task-irrelevant stimuli and associated neural activity, but the mediating neural mechanisms remain unclear. Here we show that increasing the level of perceptual load in a static letter search task results in an increase in the intensity of transcranial magnetic stimulation over V5/MT required to elicit the perception of a moving phosphene. These findings suggest that the neural mechanisms mediating the effects of perceptual load involve reduced visual cortex excitability in task-unrelated areas.