# Visual cortex plasticity in blindness: a window into flexibility of human cortex

> **NIH NIH R01** · JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $452,148

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
How functionally flexible is human cortex? The current proposal approaches this question by studying visual cortex
plasticity in blindness. In individuals who are blind from birth, so-called “visual” cortices respond to touch and sound.
How similar are these new functions to the original visual computations? A longstanding view is that functional
reorganization is limited, even in cases of plasticity. Our recent published work and preliminary data, however, suggest
that functional reorganization in the visual cortices of blind individuals may be more radical than previously thought. We
find that regions within retinotopic visual cortices are active during language and math tasks, and that this activity is
sensitive to the grammatical structure of sentences and the difficulty of math equations. Such functional repurposing is
striking, in light of the cognitive and evolutionary differences between vision, language and mathematics. These new
findings offer an unprecedented opportunity to test the limits of human cortical flexibility. In this proposal we test the
hypothesis that human cortex is functionally pluripotent: capable of assuming a wide range of cognitive functions
depending on input, where input is determined by experience and connectivity. We hypothesize that language-related
plasticity in visual cortices is part of a broader phenomenon whereby, in blindness, visual cortices are colonized by
multiple distinct higher-cognitive functions as a result of strong connectivity between visual cortex and higher-cognitive
networks, and fronto-parietal networks in particular. Up until now there has been little evidence for specialization within
visual cortices of blind individuals. Aim 1 tests the prediction that in individuals who are blind from birth different
regions within visual cortices are specialized for: language, number, and cognitive control and that specialization is related
to connectivity with different fronto-parietal networks. In the first part of Aim 2, we use multi-voxel pattern analysis and
fMRI adaptation to test the prediction that visual cortices of blind individuals represent higher-cognitive information,
such as the meanings of words and numerical quantity. Next we test the prediction that visual cortices are functionally
relevant to higher-cognitive behavior using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Aim 3 examines the time-course of
visual cortex plasticity during the lifespan. By working with individuals who lost their sight at different ages we test the
hypothesis that cortex assumes higher-cognitive functions only during a sensitive period of development. This work is
highly relevant to understanding the pathophysiology of visual impairments and uncovering the timing and mechanisms
by which blindness affects the human brain. The insights about plasticity to be gained from the proposed project have
far-reaching relevance for optimizing cortical function in the context of neurological and cognitive disa...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10016300
- **Project number:** 5R01EY027352-04
- **Recipient organization:** JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Marina Bedny
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $452,148
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-09-30 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10016300

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10016300, Visual cortex plasticity in blindness: a window into flexibility of human cortex (5R01EY027352-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10016300. Licensed CC0.

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