We report here the use of positron emission tomography (PET) to reveal that the primary visual cortex is activated when subjects close their eyes and visualize objects. The size of the image is systematically related to the location of maximal activity, which is as expected because the earliest visual areas are spatially organized. These results were only evident, however, when imagery conditions were compared to a non-imagery baseline in which the same auditory cues were presented (and hence the stimuli were controlled); when a resting baseline was used (and hence brain activation was uncontrolled), imagery activation was obscured because of activation in visual cortex during the baseline condition. These findings resolve a debate in the literature about whether imagery activates early visual cortex and indicate that visual mental imagery involves 'depictive' representations, not solely language-like descriptions. Moreover, the fact that stored visual information can affect processing in even the earliest visual areas suggests that knowledge can fundamentally bias what one sees.
Amphotericin B (2.5 mg/kg, administered intravenously) increased vascular resistance (renal more than pulmonary more than systemic) and decreased glomerular filtration and urine flow 94% in 16 anesthetized female mongrel dogs. Dopamine decreased renal vascular resistance 31% in 14 dogs; when amphotericin B was given with dopamine, there was partial antagonism of amphotericin B-induced renal vasoconstriction. Saralasin partially antagonized amphotericin B-induced renal vasoconstriction in seven dogs. When amphotericin B was given during combined infusion of dopamine and saralasin in eight dogs, renal blood flow remained at initial control levels, urine flow increased above initial levels, and glomerular filtration decreased only 21% from initial values. Amphotericin B increased renal vascular resistance 296% when given alone but only 41% in dogs during injection of both dopamine and saralasin (P = 0.002). The antagonism of amphotericin B-induced renal effects by the combination of dopamine and saralasin was significant and specific for the renal vascular bed.
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