The cortical and subcortical circuitry underpinning motion sickness is poorly understood. However, certain regions - including the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS) and the parieto-insular vestibular cortex (PIVC) - are known to be involved in the generation of nausea. The PIVC, in particular, is believed to serve an important role in the processing of vestibular inputs....
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Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
No actionable change for current clinical audiology or vestibular practice; this is foundational neuroscience mapping brain responses to vestibular stimulation and motion sickness.
Identifying the cortical and subcortical brain circuitry underlying vestibular perception and motion sickness provides a neural foundation that could eventually inform treatments for dizziness and balance disorders.
- 01BOLD fMRI used to map brain activation during sinusoidal galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS).
- 02Key regions identified include the nucleus of the solitary tract and the parieto-insular vestibular cortex (PIVC).
- 03Both cortical and subcortical structures were activated, implicating a wide brain network.
- 04Motion sickness perceptual responses were correlated with brain activation patterns.
- 05Published in Experimental Brain Research (2026); foundational basic-science study.
Sinusoidal galvanic vestibular stimulation activates both the nucleus of the solitary tract and the parieto-insular vestibular cortex.
studysupportedBrain activation patterns during GVS correlate with motion sickness perceptual responses.
studypartially supported- PMID
- 42878889
- DOI
- 10.1007/s00221-026-07411-w.
- Journal
- Experimental Brain Research
- Publication type
- research_article
- Evidence level
- 4
- Population
- Human participants undergoing sinusoidal galvanic vestibular stimulation
- Intervention
- Sinusoidal galvanic vestibular stimulation (GVS) during BOLD fMRI
Primary outcomes
Cortical and subcortical BOLD activation patterns during GVS; Correlation between brain activation and motion sickness perceptual responses