Functional architecture of cerebral cortex during naturalistic movie watching

Characterizing the functional organization of cerebral cortex is a fundamental step in understanding how different kinds of information are processed in the brain. However, it is still unclear how these areas are organized during naturalistic visual and auditory stimulation. Here, we used high-resolution functional MRI data from 176 human subjects to map the macro-architecture of the entire cerebral cortex based on responses to a 60-min audiovisual movie stimulus. A data-driven clustering approach revealed a map of 24 functional areas/networks, each explicitly linked to a specific aspect of sensory or cognitive processing. Novel features of this map included an extended scene-selective network in the lateral prefrontal cortex, separate clusters responsive to human-object and human-human interaction, and a push-pull interaction between three executive control (domain-general) networks and domain-specific regions of the visual, auditory, and language cortex. Our cortical parcellation provides a comprehensive and unified map of functionally defined areas in the human cerebral cortex. [Display omitted] •Cerebral cortex was parcellated into 24 functional networks using movie fMRI data•The topographic relationship between networks and known cortical areas was evaluated•Executive control networks showed a characteristic response during movie watching•A push-pull interaction was found between domain-general and domain-specific areas Using movie fMRI data, Rajimehr et al. parcellated the entire cerebral cortex into 24 functional networks. The topography of networks was precisely characterized, and each network was assigned to a specific sensory or cognitive processing. The study reported novel cortical features, including a push-pull interaction between domain-general and domain-specific areas.