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Updated: Jun 20, 2025
08:49
Visualization of Cortical Modules in Flattened Mammalian Cortices
Published on: January 22, 2018
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The connectivity-based architecture of the human piriform cortex.
F Zahnert1, U Kleinholdermann2, M Belke3
1Epilepsy Center Hesse, Department of Neurology, University Hospital Marburg, Philipps-University Marburg, Germany.
Neuroimage
|July 21, 2024
Summary
This study clarifies human piriform cortex (PC) anatomy using connectivity mapping. It distinguishes PC from the amygdala and identifies distinct PC subregions based on structural and functional connections.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Human Brain Anatomy
- Connectomics
Background:
- The detailed anatomical organization of the human piriform cortex (PC) remains largely uncharacterized.
- Understanding PC subregions and their differentiation from the adjacent amygdala is crucial for mapping olfactory and related pathways.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate subregions of the human piriform cortex (PC) and its connectional differentiation from the amygdala.
- To develop and validate a connectivity-based parcellation approach for the human PC.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a bimodal connectivity-based-parcellation approach on 100 Human Connectome Project subjects.
- Computed functional and structural connectivity for a region of interest encompassing the PC and amygdala.
- Applied spectral clustering to generate granular parcellations and assessed validity using individual-to-group similarity (Adjusted Rand Index).
Main Results:
- Structural connectivity clearly distinguished the amygdala from the piriform cortex.
- Olfactory amygdala showed greater connectional similarity to the amygdala than to the PC.
- Identified distinct anterior/ventrotemporal and posterior frontal clusters within the PC, along with a boundary temporal cluster, consistent across structural and functional modalities.
Conclusions:
- Human piriform cortex can be reliably distinguished from the amygdala using structural connectivity alone.
- The canonical fronto-temporal boundary within the PC is reproducible.
- Freely available parcellations provide a valuable resource for future neuroscience research.
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