Talwar, S.; Barbero, F. M.; van Ackeren, M. J.; Weisz, N.; Collignon, O.

How does the brain integrate or segregate multiple sensory inputs? In our study, we used magnetoencephalography to comprehensively investigate local and network dynamics before and after the presentation of sequences of beeps and flashes that are sometimes perceived as synchronous or asynchronous. Frequency-tagging and spectral analysis revealed that under identical physical conditions, subjective perceptual fusion of multisensory signals elicits stronger evoked sensory responses in both visual and auditory cortices. Crucially, perceptual fusion is preceded by locally reduced pre-stimulus alpha activity, as well as enhanced functional connectivity between auditory and visual cortices within the pre-stimulus gamma activity. We also show that pre-stimulus neuronal states in the occipital cortex predict post-stimulus sensory responses to auditory sequences in the temporal cortex, but not the opposite. The current findings provide evidence that the perceptual fusion of multisensory events relate to a complex interplay between local and inter-sensory neuronal states before and after stimulus presentation.