Heritability of Structural Patterning in the Human Cerebral Cortex

Genetic influences that govern the spatial patterning of the human cortex and its structural variability are still incompletely known. We analyzed structural MR images in twins, siblings, and pairs of unrelated subjects. A comprehensive set of methods was employed to quantify properties of cortical features at different spatial scales. Measures were used to assess the influence of genetic similarity on structural patterning. Results indicated that: (1) Genetic effects significantly influence all structural features assessed here at all spatial resolutions, albeit at different strengths. (2) While strong genetic effects were found at the whole-brain and hemisphere level, effects were weaker at the regional and vertex level, depending on the measure under study. (3) Besides cortical thickness, sulcal (geodesic) depth was found to be under strong genetic control. The local pattern indicated that two axes along (a) the anterior-posterior direction (insula to parieto-occipital sulcus), and (b) superior-inferior direction (central sulcus to callosal sulcus) presumably determine the segregation of four quadrants in each hemisphere early in development. (4) While strong structural asymmetries were found at the regional level, genetic influences on laterality were relatively minor.