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Updated: Apr 18, 2026

Fiber Connections of the Supplementary Motor Area Revisited: Methodology of Fiber Dissection, DTI, and Three Dimensional Documentation
Published on: May 23, 2017
Functionally defined white matter reveals segregated pathways in human ventral temporal cortex associated with
Jesse Gomez1, Franco Pestilli2, Nathan Witthoft3
1Neurosciences Program, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
Abstract:
It is unknown if the white-matter properties associated with specific visual networks selectively affect category-specific processing. In a novel protocol we combined measurements of white-matter structure, functional selectivity, and behavior in the same subjects. We find two parallel white-matter pathways along the ventral temporal lobe connecting to either face-selective or place-selective regions. Diffusion properties of portions of these tracts adjacent to face- and place-selective regions of ventral temporal cortex correlate with behavioral performance for face or place processing, respectively. Strikingly, adults with developmental prosopagnosia (face blindness) express an atypical structure-behavior relationship near face-selective cortex, suggesting that white-matter atypicalities in this region may have behavioral consequences. These data suggest that examining the interplay between cortical function, anatomical connectivity, and visual behavior is integral to understanding functional networks and their role in producing visual abilities and deficits.
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