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A surface-based analysis of language lateralization and cortical asymmetry
Douglas N Greve1, Lise Van der Haegen, Qing Cai
1The Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Room 2301, 149 13th Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA. greve@nmr.mgh.harvard.edu
Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience
|May 25, 2013
Summary
Brain anatomy is subtly linked to language function laterality. Researchers found minimal gray matter volume differences between left and right hemisphere language dominance in left-handed individuals.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Neuroimaging
Background:
- Language is a highly lateralized brain function, with cortical language areas exhibiting significant asymmetry.
- The relationship between anatomical asymmetry and functional language lateralization remains an open question in neuroscience.
- Understanding this link is crucial for comprehending brain organization and individual differences in language processing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between anatomical gray matter (GM) asymmetry and functional language dominance.
- To compare GM asymmetry in specific cortical regions and across the entire cortex between individuals with left and right hemisphere language dominance.
- To determine whether surface area or cortical thickness primarily drives observed GM volume asymmetries.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to determine language dominance in 55 healthy, left-handed participants (34 with left-dominance, 21 with right-dominance).
- Automated surface-based techniques measured gray matter volume asymmetry in predefined regions of interest (ROIs) and through exploratory analyses.
- Analyses differentiated contributions of surface area and cortical thickness to gray matter volume asymmetry.
Main Results:
- A significant difference in insula gray matter volume asymmetry was found between left and right language dominant groups.
- No significant differences in gray matter volume asymmetry were observed in the planum temporale, pars opercularis, pars triangularis, or Heschl's gyrus.
- Exploratory analyses revealed asymmetry differences in the superior temporal gyrus and ventral occipitotemporal cortex, primarily driven by surface area rather than cortical thickness.
Conclusions:
- Gross morphometric asymmetry shows only a subtle relationship with functional language laterality.
- Specific regions like the insula exhibit differential asymmetry related to language dominance, while others do not.
- The findings suggest that surface area, not cortical thickness, is the main contributor to observed gray matter volume asymmetries related to language dominance.
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