Comparatively Exploring the Neural Navigation Network when Neuroimaging Groups with Different Levels of Vision while Navigating Virtual Mazes with the Virtual-EyeCane Sensory Substitution Device

The neural navigation network has been extensively explored in recent years, highlighted by the 2014 Nobel for the field's foundations. While navigation tasks are not considered sensory-based, as clearly one can navigate without vision, many behavioral differences were reported when comparing navigation with/without vision. To explore the basis of these differences groups of congenitally-blind, sighted-blindfolded and sighted participants navigated virtual versions of Hebb-Williams mazes during fMRI neuroimaging. To enable non-visual navigation participants used the virtual-EyeCane Sensory-Substitution-Device. Before neuroimaging participants successfully completed these mazes both real-world and virtually. We found that the core of the recruited network, chiefly parietal nodes and especially the precuneus, were recruited in all groups. Other nodes, including early-visual areas, were recruited by sighted and congenitally-blind, but not by the sighted-blindfolded.