A fMRI study of the face-processing regions in Dog’s brain

Motivation: Functional magnetic resonance imaging is increasingly used to study brain function and cognition in domestic dogs. Goal(s): The objective of this study was to acquire the high-quality fMRI data which dogs can be trained to remain awake and still inside MRI scanners and detect the pathway for dog’s face processing. Approach: We use a combination of simulated and real MRI environments to train awake dogs. A visual stimulation paradigm with block design was used to compare activity elicited by human faces against objects. Results: We successfully detect the activation of human faces against scramble objects in occipitalis, ectomarginalis, and ectosylvius medius. Impact: This study provides a process for training dogs for fMRI acquisition while awake and introduces the temporal cortex as candidate to process human faces and dog faces.