Interoceptive and multimodal functions of the operculo-insular cortex: Tactile, nociceptive and vestibular representations

The joint activation by all three stimuli located in the dorsal posterior insula argues for the presence of multisensory structures. The distinct activation of the anterior insula by aversive stimuli and the posterior insula by multisensory signals supports the concept of a partitioned insular cortex recently introduced based on connectivity studies and meta-analyses.