Cortical areas involved in grasping and reaching actions with and without visual information: an ALE meta-analysis of neuroimaging studies

Abstract

The functional specialization of the ventral stream in Perception and the dorsal stream in Action is the cornerstone of the leading model proposed by Goodale and Milner in 1982. This model is based on neuropsychological evidence and has been a matter of debate for almost three decades, during which the dual-visual stream hypothesis has received much attention, including support and criticisms. The advent of functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) has allowed investigating the brain areas involved in Perception and Action and provided useful data on the functional specialization of the two streams. Research on this topic has been quite prolific, yet very little attempt has been made so far to identify consistent neuroimaging results across the available literature. In particular, no meta-analysis has explored the spatial convergence in the involvement of the two streams in Action. The present meta-analysis (N=53) was designed to reveal the specific neural activations associated with Action (i.e., grasping and reaching movements), and the extent to which visual information affects the involvement of the two streams during motor control. Our results provide a comprehensive view of the consistent and spatially convergent neural correlates of Action based on neuroimaging studies conducted over the past two decades. We discuss our results in light of the well-established dual-visual stream model and frame these findings in the context of recent discoveries obtained with advanced fMRI methods, such as multivoxel pattern analysis.