Human medial pulvinar is involved in face and tactile processing and dynamically adjusts its cortical connectivity based on ongoing stimulation

Optimal processing of our surrounding environment relies on our ability to detect and integrate external information through multiple sensory modalities to build a coherent representation of the world. Interactions between cortical and subcortical structures contribute to this process. In this context, there is growing evidence that the pulvinar plays a crucial role in visual and face processing. In contrast, its role in auditory, voice and tactile processing has been poorly investigated. Here, we use fMRI localizer tasks to describe pulvinar functional organization and functional connectivity with the brain during face, voice and tactile processing. We reproduce the activation of the ventral part of the medial pulvinar in face perception and we describe an increased pulvinar connectivity with face processing areas and a decreased connectivity with low level visual areas during face processing. In addition, we describe activations of the medial pulvinar during air-puff face, hands and feet tactile stimulations and changes in pulvino-cortical connectivity as a function of which body part is being stimulated. No activations are observed during either voice or non-voice stimulations. Overall, this supports a role of medial pulvinar in multisensory processing and the modulation of cortical areas as a function of the sensory context.