Dr. Zhiyan Wang

Research Focus

• Visual plasticity
• Reward
• Arousal
• Neurofeedback
• Sleep

Current Projects

Elucidating the neural mechanisms of reward and arousal underlying
visual plasticity (supported by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation)

Journal articles

• Wang, Z., Tamaki, M., Frank, S. M., Shibata, K., Worden, M. S., Yamada, T., ... & Watanabe, T. (2021). Visual perceptual learning of a primitive feature in human V1/V2 as a result of unconscious processing, revealed by decoded functional MRI neurofeedback (DecNef). Journal of Vision, 21(8), 24-24.
• Tamaki, M., Wang, Z., Barnes-Diana, T., Guo, D., Berard, A. V., Walsh, E., ... & Sasaki, Y. (2020). Complementary contributions of non-REM and REM sleep to visual learning. Nature Neuroscience, 23(9), 1150-1156.
• Tamaki, M., Wang, Z., Watanabe, T., & Sasaki, Y. (2019). Trained-feature–specific offline learning by sleep in an orientation detection task. Journal of vision, 19(12), 12-12.
• Tan Q*., Wang Z.*, Sasaki Y., Watanabe T. (2019). Category-induced transfer of visual perceptual learning. Current Biology. 29 (8): 1374-1378. (*equal contributions)
   

Book Chapters

• Wang, Z., Sasaki, Y., Watanabe, T. (2021). Chapter 4: fMRI neurofeedback for perception and attention. fMRI Neurofeedback. Elsevier. 

Conference Presentations

• Wang Z., Kim D., Sasaki Y., Watanabe T. (2017) Reward may explain how reward evokes visual perceptual learning. Poster presentation at 2017 Vision Science Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, Florida / Poster presentation at ‘Atoms, Axons, and Asteroids: Big Data in STEM’ – Young Scholar Conference 2017, Providence, Rhode Island
• Wang Z., Tamaki M., Shibata K., Worden M., Sasaki Y., Watanabe T. (2018) Feature-based plasticity revealed by decoded fMRI neural feedback (DecNef). Poster presentation at 2018 Vision Science Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, Florida. 
• Wang Z., Kim D., Hu C., Sasaki Y., Watanabe T. (2018) Reward may evoke visual perceptual learning following reinforcement learning rules. Poster presentation at 2018 Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting, San Diego, California. 
• Tamaki, M., Wang, Z., Barnes-Diana, T., Yamada, T., Walsh, E. G., Watanabe, T., & Sasaki, Y. (2019). Different but complementary roles of NREM and REM sleep in facilitation of visual perceptual learning associated with neurotransmitters changes revealed by magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Poster presentation at 2019 Vision Science Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, Florida. 
• Wang, Z., Kim, D., Pedroncelli, G., Sasaki, Y., & Watanabe, T. (2020). Alertness-induced transfer of visual perceptual learning to untrained orientations and eye, which is induced by neither reward nor attention. Poster presentation at 2020 Virtual Vision Science Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, Florida. 
• Yamada, T., Tamaki, M., Wang, Z., Watanabe, T., & Sasaki, Y. (2020). Interactions of reward and sleep can be harmful to presleep visual perceptual learning by rendering the learning more vulnerable to interference or catastrophic forgetting. Poster presentation at 2020 Virtual Vision Science Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, Florida. 
• Wang Z., Tan Q., Frank S., Sheinberg D., Philips K., Sasaki Y., Watanabe T. (2021). Substantial changes in global brain processing related to face perception in body dysmorphic disorder patients by training on low spatial frequency components in faces. Talk presentation at 2021 Virtual Vision Science Society Annual Meeting, Tampa, Florida.