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Building by Syntax: The Neural Basis of Minimal Linguistic Structures
Emiliano Zaccarella1,2, Lars Meyer1, Michiru Makuuchi1,3
1Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig 04103, Germany.
Cerebral Cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)
|October 15, 2015
Summary
The brain’s language network utilizes syntactic computation (merge) to build phrases and sentences. This study reveals that the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), specifically Brodmann Area 44, is crucial for this structure-building process.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Linguistics
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Language production involves rule-based syntactic computation, termed 'merge', to construct hierarchical structures like phrases and sentences.
- Understanding the neural implementation of 'merge' is key to deciphering the brain basis of human language.
- Previous research suggests the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) plays a role in syntactic processing.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural correlates of syntactic structure-building ('merge') in the human brain.
- To differentiate brain activation patterns for syntactic processing in phrases versus sentences compared to word lists.
- To explore the distinct roles of different subregions within the IFG and associated areas in syntactic computation.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was employed to measure brain activity.
- Participants' brain responses were recorded while they processed prepositional phrases, sentences (both involving merge), and word lists (not involving merge).
- Analysis focused on identifying brain regions differentially activated by merge-dependent structures.
Main Results:
- The core syntactic computation ('merge') significantly activated the pars opercularis of the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG; Brodmann Area [BA] 44) and the posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS).
- Sentences, compared to phrases, showed additional activation in a more anterior part of the IFG (pars triangularis, BA 45), potentially related to verb-initiated propositional meaning.
- BA 44 activity appears linked to the general structure-building aspect of syntax, while pSTS collaborates with the IFG in thematic role assignment at both phrasal and sentential levels.
Conclusions:
- The findings strongly suggest that Brodmann Area 44 within the left IFG is a primary neural substrate for the fundamental syntactic process of 'merge'.
- Distinct subregions of the IFG (BA 44 vs. BA 45) may support different facets of syntactic and semantic processing.
- The pSTS acts in concert with the IFG, highlighting a distributed network for syntactic computation and meaning construction.
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