Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 30, 2026
09:57
Electromagnetic Source Imaging in Presurgical Evaluation of Children with Drug-Resistant Epilepsy
Published on: September 20, 2024
Characterizing the normal developmental trajectory of expressive language lateralization using
Darren S Kadis1, Elizabeth W Pang, Travis Mills
1Division of Neurology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Summary
As children mature, their brains develop language processing from a bilateral network to a left-dominant system. This developmental shift in brain lateralization may explain why children are more adaptable to language changes.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Linguistics
Background:
- Language processing in the brain shows significant lateralization, typically in the left hemisphere for most adults.
- The developmental trajectory of this lateralization and its relationship to brain plasticity in children remain areas of active research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To map the developmental changes in expressive language representation in the brain.
- To investigate the neuroplasticity of language during childhood and adolescence.
Main Methods:
- Magnetoencephalography (MEG) was used to record brain activity in 28 healthy participants aged 5-19 years.
- Participants performed a covert verb generation task.
- Left hemisphere lateralization of neuromagnetic responses in the frontal lobe was quantified using differential beamformer analyses with bootstrap statistical thresholding.
Main Results:
- A significant positive correlation was found between age and left hemisphere language lateralization.
- This indicates a developmental shift towards left-dominant language processing with increasing age.
Conclusions:
- Adult-like left hemisphere language lateralization emerges during development from an initially bilateral network.
- This developmental process may underlie the enhanced interhemispheric plasticity observed in pediatric language acquisition and recovery.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
01:28Lateralization
Brain lateralization refers to the division of mental processes and functions between the two hemispheres of the brain, a phenomenon that optimizes neural efficiency and underpins complex abilities in humans. This specialization allows each hemisphere to perform tasks where it has a comparative advantage, facilitating more refined cognitive capabilities across different domains.
01:10Higher Mental Functions of the Brain: Language
Language is a system of communication that allows the expression of thoughts, ideas, and feelings. The brain processes language in both hemispheres.
Language formation and comprehension take place in the dominant hemisphere. The dominant hemisphere is responsible for understanding the meaning of spoken, written, or sign language, as well as the ability to communicate. For most people, the left hemisphere is the dominant one. The right hemisphere, then, gives tone and emotional context to the...
Language formation and comprehension take place in the dominant hemisphere. The dominant hemisphere is responsible for understanding the meaning of spoken, written, or sign language, as well as the ability to communicate. For most people, the left hemisphere is the dominant one. The right hemisphere, then, gives tone and emotional context to the...