The contribution of interoceptive signals to spatial orientation: A mini-review

Abstract

Humans' sensory systems work synergistically to allow us to determine where our head and body are relative to the environment. To date, most research on this topic has focused on the visual and vestibular systems. There has been much less research on the contributions of interoceptive signals to spatial orientation, so the overall picture of how spatial orientation works is incomplete. This gap in the literature is especially problematic for aviation and spaceflight, where spatial disorientation is more likely to occur due to less common gravity conditions (i.e. microgravity and hypergravity) and can lead to fatal errors. In the present manuscript we review and summarize the current literature on this topic. Based upon the available evidence it would seem that interoceptive signals, particularly patterns of fluid/organ displacement, may play a role in sensing where our body is relative to the environment. More research utilizing experimentally induced perturbations to interoceptive receptors is needed before quantitative conclusions regarding the role of these interoceptive receptors can be drawn.

Keywords: Interoceptive signals; Somatic graviceptor; Spatial orientation; Viscera.