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Updated: Dec 9, 2025
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Evaluation of Hemisphere Lateralization with Bilateral Local Field Potential Recording in Secondary Motor Cortex of Mice
Published on: July 31, 2019
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The neural basis of language development: Changes in lateralization over age
Olumide A Olulade1, Anna Seydell-Greenwald1, Catherine E Chambers1
1Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center and MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, DC 20057.
Summary
Language processing is left-lateralized but involves both hemispheres in early childhood. Right-hemisphere (RH) language activation decreases with age, suggesting a developmental role in recovery from early left-hemisphere (LH) injury.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Psychology
- Linguistics
Background:
- Language is typically left-lateralized in adults.
- Language lateralization in children is complex, with early symmetric distribution suggested by lesion studies.
- Previous research has focused on lateralization rather than age-related changes in hemispheric activation patterns.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate age-related changes in left-hemisphere (LH) and right-hemisphere (RH) language activation patterns.
- To resolve the apparent contradiction between adult LH language dominance and early symmetric language processing.
- To explore the developmental trajectory of RH involvement in language.
Main Methods:
- Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to measure language activation.
- Participants included children (ages 4-13) and adults (ages 18-29).
- Analysis focused on patterns of LH and RH activation across age groups, including correlation with age in RH homolog of Broca's area.
Main Results:
- Young children (4-6 years) showed significant language activation in both LH and RH homologs.
- The proportion of participants with significant RH activation decreased with age.
- An age-related decrease in RH language activation was observed, particularly in the RH homolog of Broca's area, independent of task difficulty.
Conclusions:
- While language remains left-lateralized throughout life, RH contribution is significant in early childhood and diminishes with age.
- Early RH language activation may serve as a developmental mechanism for functional recovery after early LH injury.
- This study highlights a dynamic shift in hemispheric language processing during development.
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