Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 12, 2025
Evaluation of Hemisphere Lateralization with Bilateral Local Field Potential Recording in Secondary Motor Cortex of Mice
Published on: July 31, 2019
Is speech function lateralised in the basal ganglia? Evidence from de novo Parkinson's disease
Jan Rusz1,2, Petr Dusek2, Tereza Tykalova3
1Department of Circuit Theory, Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Czech Technical University in Prague, Prague, Czech Republic rusz.mz@gmail.com.
Background:
Research on the possible influence of lateralised basal ganglia dysfunction on speech in Parkinson's disease is scarce. This study aimed to compare speech in de-novo, drug-naive patients with Parkinson's disease (PD) with asymmetric nigral dopaminergic dysfunction, predominantly in either the right or left hemisphere.
Methods:
Acoustic analyses of reading passages were performed. Asymmetry of nigral dysfunction was defined using dopamine transporter-single-photon emission CT (DAT-SPECT).
Results:
From a total of 135 de novo patients with PD assessed, 47 patients had a lower right and 36 lower left DAT availability in putamen based on DAT-SPECT. Patients with PD with lower left DAT availability had higher dysarthria severity via composite dysarthria index compared with patients with lower right DAT availability (p=0.01).
Conclusion:
Our data support the crucial role of DAT availability in the left putamen in speech. This finding might provide important clues for managing speech following deep brain stimulation.
Related Concept Videos
01:28Lateralization
01:15Parkinson's Disease: Overview
01:24Parkinson's Disease: Treatment
Parkinson's Disease is primarily a result of the loss of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. The cornerstone of...
01:37Neural Regulation
01:10Higher Mental Functions of the Brain: Language
Language formation and comprehension take place in the dominant hemisphere. The dominant hemisphere is responsible for understanding the meaning of spoken, written, or sign language, as well as the ability to communicate. For most people, the left hemisphere is the dominant one. The right hemisphere, then, gives tone and emotional context to the...