Illusory contours and specific regions of human extrastriate cortex: evidence from rTMS.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging studies showed that perception of illusory contours is associated with extrastriate cortex activation prevailing on the right side. 1 Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) is able to induce lasting inhibition of cortical activity. The objective of the study was to investigate the role of extrastriate cortex in illusory contour perception inducing 1 Hz rTMS interference in healthy subjects. Eight healthy subjects underwent 1 Hz rTMS (600 pulses) through a figure-of-eight coil over right and left occipital cortex (O1 and O2 of 10/20 EEG system); sham magnetic stimulation on the same sites and right motor cortex rTMS (in three subjects) we…