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Ocklenburg S, Mundorf A, Gerrits R, Karlsson EM, Papadatou-Pastou M, Vingerhoets G. Clinical implications of brain asymmetries. Nat Rev Neurol 2024:10.1038/s41582-024-00974-8. [PMID: 38783057 DOI: 10.1038/s41582-024-00974-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
No two human brains are alike, and with the rise of precision medicine in neurology, we are seeing an increased emphasis on understanding the individual variability in brain structure and function that renders every brain unique. Functional and structural brain asymmetries are a fundamental principle of brain organization, and recent research suggests substantial individual variability in these asymmetries that needs to be considered in clinical practice. In this Review, we provide an overview of brain asymmetries, variations in such asymmetries and their relevance in the clinical context. We review recent findings on brain asymmetries in neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders, as well as in specific learning disabilities, with an emphasis on large-scale database studies and meta-analyses. We also highlight the relevance of asymmetries for disease symptom onset in neurodegenerative diseases and their implications for lateralized treatments, including brain stimulation. We conclude that alterations in brain asymmetry are not sufficiently specific to act as diagnostic biomarkers but can serve as meaningful symptom or treatment response biomarkers in certain contexts. On the basis of these insights, we provide several recommendations for neurological clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Department of Psychology, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
- ICAN Institute for Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany.
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany.
| | - Annakarina Mundorf
- ISM Institute for Systems Medicine and Department of Human Medicine, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
- Division of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Robin Gerrits
- Department of Experimental-Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Ghent Institute for Functional and Metabolic Imaging (GIfMI), Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Emma M Karlsson
- Department of Experimental-Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Ghent Institute for Functional and Metabolic Imaging (GIfMI), Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Marietta Papadatou-Pastou
- National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
- Biomedical Research Foundation, Academy of Athens, Athens, Greece
| | - Guy Vingerhoets
- Department of Experimental-Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Ghent Institute for Functional and Metabolic Imaging (GIfMI), Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
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2
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Karlsson EM, Carey DP. Hemispheric asymmetry of hand and tool perception in left- and right-handers with known language dominance. Neuropsychologia 2024; 196:108837. [PMID: 38428518 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2024.108837] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/03/2024]
Abstract
Regions in the brain that are selective for images of hands and tools have been suggested to be lateralised to the left hemisphere of right-handed individuals. In left-handers, many functions related to tool use or tool pantomime may also depend more on the left hemisphere. This result seems surprising, given that the dominant hand of these individuals is controlled by the right hemisphere. One explanation is that the left hemisphere is dominant for speech and language in the majority of left-handers, suggesting a supraordinate control system for complex motor sequencing that is required for skilled tool use, as well as for speech. In the present study, we examine if this left-hemispheric specialisation extends to perception of hands and tools in left- and right-handed individuals. We, crucially, also include a group of left-handers with right-hemispheric language dominance to examine their asymmetry biases. The results suggest that tools lateralise to the left hemisphere in most right-handed individuals with left-hemispheric language dominance. Tools also lateralise to the language dominant hemisphere in right-hemispheric language dominant left-handers, but the result for left-hemispheric language dominant left-handers are more varied, and no clear bias towards one hemisphere is found. Hands did not show a group-level asymmetry pattern in any of the groups. These results suggest a more complex picture regarding hemispheric overlap of hand and tool representations, and that visual appearance of tools may be driven in part by both language dominance and the hemisphere which controls the motor-dominant hand.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma M Karlsson
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK; Department of Experimental Clinical and Health Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
| | - David P Carey
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, School of Psychology and Sport Science, Bangor University, Bangor, UK
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3
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Røsvoll Å, Rusten EH, Westerhausen R. Left-hand preference in visual artists: A pre-registered observational study on Instagram. Laterality 2024; 29:184-198. [PMID: 38415348 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2024.2315856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024]
Abstract
The notion of an increased incidence of left handers among architects and visual artists has inspired both scientific theory building and popular discussion. However, a systematic exploration of the available publications provides, at best, modest evidence for this claim. The present preregistered observational study was designed to reinvestigate the postulated association by examining hand preference of visual artists who share their artistic activities as short video clips ("reels") on the social media platform Instagram. Determining individual hand preference based on five reels for each of N = 468 artists, we identified 42 (8.97%) left handers, suggesting an incidence which is below but statistical comparable to the 10.6% expected for the general population (χ2 = 1.30; p = .25; Cohen's w = 0.05). Also, we did not find any support for the notion that the art created by left-handed artists is of higher quality than art of right handers, as no difference in public endorsement or interest were observed (reflected by the number of likes per post or account followers). Taken together, we do not find any support for difference in artistic engagement or quality between left and right handers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Åsne Røsvoll
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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4
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Gerrits R. Variability in Hemispheric Functional Segregation Phenotypes: A Review and General Mechanistic Model. Neuropsychol Rev 2024; 34:27-40. [PMID: 36576683 DOI: 10.1007/s11065-022-09575-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2021] [Revised: 07/15/2022] [Accepted: 11/16/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Many functions of the human brain are organized asymmetrically and are subject to strong population biases. Some tasks, like speaking and making complex hand movements, exhibit left hemispheric dominance, whereas others, such as spatial processing and recognizing faces, favor the right hemisphere. While pattern of preference implies the existence of a stereotypical way of distributing functions between the hemispheres, an ever-increasing body of evidence indicates that not everyone follows this pattern of hemispheric functional segregation. On the contrary, the review conducted in this article shows that departures from the standard hemispheric division of labor are routinely observed and assume many distinct forms, each having a different prevalence rate. One of the key challenges in human neuroscience is to model this variability. By integrating well-established and recently emerged ideas about the mechanisms that underlie functional lateralization, the current article proposes a general mechanistic model that explains the observed distribution of segregation phenotypes and generates new testable hypotheses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robin Gerrits
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
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5
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Peterson M, Floris DL, Nielsen JA. Parsing Brain Network Specialization: A Replication and Expansion of Wang et al. (2014). BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.02.13.580153. [PMID: 38405819 PMCID: PMC10888742 DOI: 10.1101/2024.02.13.580153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
One organizing principle of the human brain is hemispheric specialization, or the dominance of a specific function or cognitive process in one hemisphere or the other. Previously, Wang et al. (2014) identified networks putatively associated with language and attention as being specialized to the left and right hemispheres, respectively; and a dual-specialization of the executive control network. However, it remains unknown which networks are specialized when specialization is examined within individuals using a higher resolution parcellation, as well as which connections are contributing the most to a given network's specialization. In the present study, we estimated network specialization across three datasets using the autonomy index and a novel method of deconstructing network specialization. After examining the reliability of these methods as implemented on an individual level, we addressed two hypotheses. First, we hypothesized that the most specialized networks would include those associated with language, visuospatial attention, and executive control. Second, we hypothesized that within-network contributions to specialization would follow a within-between network gradient or a specialization gradient. We found that the majority of networks exhibited greater within-hemisphere connectivity than between-hemisphere connectivity. Among the most specialized networks were networks associated with language, attention, and executive control. Additionally, we found that the greatest network contributions were within-network, followed by those from specialized networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madeline Peterson
- Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, 84602, USA
| | - Dorothea L Floris
- Methods of Plasticity Research, Department of Psychology, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Jared A Nielsen
- Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, 84602, USA
- Neuroscience Center, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT, 84604, USA
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6
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Villar-Rodríguez E, Cano-Melle C, Marin-Marin L, Parcet MA, Avila C. What happens to the inhibitory control functions of the right inferior frontal cortex when this area is dominant for language? eLife 2024; 12:RP86797. [PMID: 38236206 PMCID: PMC10945575 DOI: 10.7554/elife.86797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2024] Open
Abstract
A low number of individuals show an atypical brain control of language functions that differs from the typical lateralization in the left cerebral hemisphere. In these cases, the neural distribution of other cognitive functions is not fully understood. Although there is a bias towards a mirrored brain organization consistent with the Causal hypothesis, some individuals are found to be exceptions to this rule. However, no study has focused on what happens to the homologous language areas in the right frontal inferior cortex. Using an fMRI-adapted stop-signal task in a healthy non right-handed sample (50 typically lateralized and 36 atypically lateralized for language production), our results show that atypical lateralization is associated with a mirrored brain organization of the inhibitory control network in the left hemisphere: inferior frontal cortex, presupplementary motor area, and subthalamic nucleus. However, the individual analyses revealed a large number of cases with a noteworthy overlap in the inferior frontal gyrus, which shared both inhibitory and language functions. Further analyses showed that atypical lateralization was associated with stronger functional interhemispheric connectivity and larger corpus callosum. Importantly, we did not find task performance differences as a function of lateralization, but there was an association between atypical dominance in the inferior frontal cortex and higher scores on schizotypy and autistic spectrum traits, as well as worse performance on a reading accuracy test. Together, these results partially support the Causal hypothesis of hemispheric specialization and provide further evidence of the link between atypical hemispheric lateralization and increased interhemispheric transfer through the corpus callosum.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Cristina Cano-Melle
- Neuropsychology and Functional Neuroimaging; Jaume I UniversityCastellón de la PlanaSpain
| | - Lidón Marin-Marin
- Neuropsychology and Functional Neuroimaging; Jaume I UniversityCastellón de la PlanaSpain
| | - Maria Antònia Parcet
- Neuropsychology and Functional Neuroimaging; Jaume I UniversityCastellón de la PlanaSpain
| | - César Avila
- Neuropsychology and Functional Neuroimaging; Jaume I UniversityCastellón de la PlanaSpain
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7
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Quin-Conroy JE, Bayliss DM, Daniell SG, Badcock NA. Patterns of language and visuospatial functional lateralization and cognitive ability: a systematic review. Laterality 2024; 29:63-96. [PMID: 37771079 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2023.2263199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2023] [Accepted: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 09/30/2023]
Abstract
For most individuals, language is predominately localized to the left hemisphere of the brain and visuospatial processing to the right. This is the typical pattern of functional lateralization. Evolutionary theories of lateralization suggest that the typical pattern is most common as it delivers a cognitive advantage. In contrast, deviations from the typical pattern may lead to poorer cognitive abilities. The aim of this systematic review was to assess the evidence for an association between patterns of language and visuospatial lateralization and measures of cognitive ability. We screened 9,122 studies, retrieved from PsycINFO, EMBASE, MEDLINE, PubMed, and Web of Science. The 17 studies that met our selection criteria revealed little evidence for an advantage of typical compared to atypical patterns of lateralization, although atypical lateralization patterns were related to worse language comprehension, spatial ability, and reading, but further research is needed to confirm this. We conclude with recommendations that future researchers recruit larger samples of atypical participants, and consider strength of lateraliation and bilaterality when analysing functional lateralization patterns.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Donna M Bayliss
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia
| | - Sabrina G Daniell
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia
| | - Nicholas A Badcock
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Australia
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8
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Gerrits R, Vingerhoets G. Brain functional segregation, handedness and cognition in situs inversus totalis: A replication study. Neuropsychologia 2023; 191:108731. [PMID: 37949213 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Revised: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 11/06/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
Situs inversus totalis (SIT) is a rare congenital anomaly in which the arrangement of the visceral organs is completely left-right mirrored. A previous study by our lab suggests that SIT (N = 15) correlated with more heterogeneous asymmetrical brain organization and increased left-handedness. In addition, visceral reversal correlated with poorer cognitive performance, especially when hemisphere organization was atypical. The current study sought to replicate these findings in a larger sample. We scanned 23 volunteers with SIT as well as an equal number of controls with usual organ arrangement, and used fMRI to determine their hemisphere dominance for two left hemisphere functions (language and manual praxis) and two right hemisphere functions (spatial attention and face recognition). Effects of SIT etiology were explored by pooling data from the original cohort with the replication sample. Our results reveal that each of those four cognitive functions demonstrated the expected population dominance in SIT, albeit they were less pronounced - but not significantly so - compared to controls. Unusual patterns of hemispheric crowding and mirror-reversal of functional brain organization was observed more often in SIT (48%) than in the controls (30%), but this difference also did not reach statistical significance. However, left-handedness was found to be significantly more common in SIT (26%) than in the overall population (10.6%). Finally, cognitive ability, as assessed by a neuropsychological test battery, was not associated with organ situs or hemisphere organization. Taken together, our data adds to the growing evidence that the determinants of visceral and neural asymmetries are largely independent from one another and that complete situs inversus does not co-occur with an obligatory transposition of the brain's functional architecture. There nevertheless might be instances in which (genetic) mechanisms could simultaneously cause complete visceral reversal and atypical brain laterality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robin Gerrits
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Guy Vingerhoets
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
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9
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Przybylski L, Kroliczak G. The functional organization of skilled actions in the adextral and atypical brain. Neuropsychologia 2023; 191:108735. [PMID: 37984793 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Revised: 10/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
When planning functional grasps of tools, right-handed individuals (dextrals) show mostly left-lateralized neural activity in the praxis representation network (PRN), regardless of the used hand. Here we studied whether or not similar cerebral asymmetries are evident in non-righthanded individuals (adextrals). Sixty two participants, 28 righthanders and 34 non-righthanders (21 lefthanders, 13 mixedhanders), planned functional grasps of tools vs. grasps of control objects, and subsequently performed their pantomimed executions, in an event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) project. Both hands were tested, separately in two different sessions, counterbalanced across participants. After accounting for non-functional components of the prospective grasp, planning functional grasps of tools was associated with greater engagement of the same, left-hemisphere occipito-temporal, parietal and frontal areas of PRN, regardless of hand and handedness. Only when the analyses involved signal changes referenced to resting baseline intervals, differences between adextrals and dextrals emerged. Whereas in the left hemisphere the neural activity was equivalent in both groups (except for the occipito-temporo-parietal junction), its increases in the right occipito-temporal cortex, medial intraparietal sulcus (area MIP), the supramarginal gyrus (area PFt/PF), and middle frontal gyrus (area p9-46v) were significantly greater in adextrals. The inverse contrast was empty. Notably, when individuals with atypical and typical hemispheric phenotypes were directly compared, planning functional (vs. control) grasps invoked, instead, significant clusters located nearly exclusively in the left hemisphere of the typical phenotype. Previous studies interpret similar right-sided vs. left-sided increases in neural activity for skilled actions as handedness dependent, i.e., located in the hemisphere dominant for manual skills. Yet, none of the effects observed here can be purely handedness dependent because there were mixed-handed individuals among adextrals, and numerous mixed-handed and left-handed individuals possess the typical phenotype. Thus, our results clearly show that hand dominance has limited power in driving the cerebral organization of motor cognitive functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukasz Przybylski
- Action & Cognition Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Cognitive Science, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland
| | - Gregory Kroliczak
- Action & Cognition Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Cognitive Science, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland; Cognitive Neuroscience Center, Adam Mickiewicz University, Poznan, Poland.
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10
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Martin KC, Seydell-Greenwald A, Turkeltaub PE, Chambers CE, Giannetti M, Dromerick AW, Carpenter JL, Berl MM, Gaillard WD, Newport EL. One right can make a left: sentence processing in the right hemisphere after perinatal stroke. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:11257-11268. [PMID: 37859521 PMCID: PMC10690853 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2023] [Revised: 09/08/2023] [Indexed: 10/21/2023] Open
Abstract
When brain regions that are critical for a cognitive function in adulthood are irreversibly damaged at birth, what patterns of plasticity support the successful development of that function in an alternative location? Here we investigate the consistency of language organization in the right hemisphere (RH) after a left hemisphere (LH) perinatal stroke. We analyzed fMRI data collected during an auditory sentence comprehension task on 14 people with large cortical LH perinatal arterial ischemic strokes (left hemisphere perinatal stroke (LHPS) participants) and 11 healthy sibling controls using a "top voxel" approach that allowed us to compare the same number of active voxels across each participant and in each hemisphere for controls. We found (1) LHPS participants consistently recruited the same RH areas that were a mirror-image of typical LH areas, and (2) the RH areas recruited in LHPS participants aligned better with the strongly activated LH areas of the typically developed brains of control participants (when flipped images were compared) than the weakly activated RH areas. Our findings suggest that the successful development of language processing in the RH after a LH perinatal stroke may in part depend on recruiting an arrangement of frontotemporal areas reflective of the typical dominant LH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelly C Martin
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, United States
| | - Anna Seydell-Greenwald
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, United States
- MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, DC 20010, United States
| | - Peter E Turkeltaub
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, United States
- MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, DC 20010, United States
| | - Catherine E Chambers
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, United States
- MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, DC 20010, United States
| | - Margot Giannetti
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, United States
- MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, DC 20010, United States
| | - Alexander W Dromerick
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, United States
- MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, DC 20010, United States
| | - Jessica L Carpenter
- Division of Pediatric Neurology, Departments of Pediatrics and Neurology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore MD 21201, United States
| | - Madison M Berl
- Children’s National Hospital and Center for Neuroscience, Washington, DC 20010, United States
| | - William D Gaillard
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, United States
- Children’s National Hospital and Center for Neuroscience, Washington, DC 20010, United States
| | - Elissa L Newport
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University Medical Center, Georgetown University, Washington, DC 20057, United States
- MedStar National Rehabilitation Hospital, Washington, DC 20010, United States
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11
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Molnar-Szakacs I, Uddin LQ. Laterality and hemispheric specialization of self-face recognition. Neuropsychologia 2023; 186:108586. [PMID: 37236528 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2022] [Revised: 03/21/2023] [Accepted: 05/14/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
Inspired by the pioneering work of Eran Zaidel beginning in the early 1970's on the role of the two cerebral hemispheres of the human brain in self-related cognition, we review research on self-face recognition from a laterality perspective. The self-face is an important proxy of the self, and self-face recognition has been used as an indicator of self-awareness more broadly. Over the last half century, behavioral and neurological data, along with over two decades of neuroimaging research evidence have accumulated on this topic, generally concluding a right-hemisphere dominance for self-face recognition. In this review, we briefly revisit the pioneering roots of this work by Sperry, Zaidel & Zaidel, and focus on the important body of neuroimaging literature on self-face recognition it has inspired. We conclude with a brief discussion of current models of self-related processing and future directions for research in this area.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lucina Q Uddin
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California Los Angeles, CA, USA; Department of Psychology, University of California Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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12
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Calhoun G, Chen CT, Kanold PO. Bilateral widefield calcium imaging reveals circuit asymmetries and lateralized functional activation of the mouse auditory cortex. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2219340120. [PMID: 37459544 PMCID: PMC10372568 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2219340120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Accepted: 05/29/2023] [Indexed: 07/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Coordinated functioning of the two cortical hemispheres is crucial for perception. The human auditory cortex (ACx) shows functional lateralization with the left hemisphere specialized for processing speech, whereas the right analyzes spectral content. In mice, virgin females demonstrate a left-hemisphere response bias to pup vocalizations that strengthens with motherhood. However, how this lateralized function is established is unclear. We developed a widefield imaging microscope to simultaneously image both hemispheres of mice to bilaterally monitor functional responses. We found that global ACx topography is symmetrical and stereotyped. In both male and virgin female mice, the secondary auditory cortex (A2) in the left hemisphere shows larger responses than right to high-frequency tones and adult vocalizations; however, only virgin female mice show a left-hemisphere bias in A2 in response to adult pain calls. These results indicate hemispheric bias with both sex-independent and -dependent aspects. Analyzing cross-hemispheric functional correlations showed that asymmetries exist in the strength of correlations between DM-AAF and A2-AAF, while other ACx areas showed smaller differences. We found that A2 showed lower cross-hemisphere correlation than other cortical areas, consistent with the lateralized functional activation of A2. Cross-hemispheric activity correlations are lower in deaf, otoferlin knockout (OTOF-/-) mice, indicating that the development of functional cross-hemispheric connections is experience dependent. Together, our results reveal that ACx is topographically symmetric at the macroscopic scale but that higher-order A2 shows sex-dependent and independent lateralized responses due to asymmetric intercortical functional connections. Moreover, our results suggest that sensory experience is required to establish functional cross-hemispheric connectivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Georgia Calhoun
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21205
- Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21205
| | - Chih-Ting Chen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21205
- Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21205
| | - Patrick O. Kanold
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21205
- Kavli Neuroscience Discovery Institute, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD21205
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13
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Kernbach JM, Hartwigsen G, Lim JS, Bae HJ, Yu KH, Schlaug G, Bonkhoff A, Rost NS, Bzdok D. Bayesian stroke modeling details sex biases in the white matter substrates of aphasia. Commun Biol 2023; 6:354. [PMID: 37002267 PMCID: PMC10066402 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-04733-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2022] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 04/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Ischemic cerebrovascular events often lead to aphasia. Previous work provided hints that such strokes may affect women and men in distinct ways. Women tend to suffer strokes with more disabling language impairment, even if the lesion size is comparable to men. In 1401 patients, we isolate data-led representations of anatomical lesion patterns and hand-tailor a Bayesian analytical solution to carefully model the degree of sex divergence in predicting language outcomes ~3 months after stroke. We locate lesion-outcome effects in the left-dominant language network that highlight the ventral pathway as a core lesion focus across different tests of language performance. We provide detailed evidence for sex-specific brain-behavior associations in the domain-general networks associated with cortico-subcortical pathways, with unique contributions of the fornix in women and cingular fiber bundles in men. Our collective findings suggest diverging white matter substrates in how stroke causes language deficits in women and men. Clinically acknowledging such sex disparities has the potential to improve personalized treatment for stroke patients worldwide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julius M Kernbach
- Neurosurgical Artificial Intelligence Laboratory Aachen (NAILA), RWTH Aachen University Hospital, Aachen, Germany
- Department of Neurosurgery, Faculty of Medicine, RWTH Aachen University, Aachen, Germany
- Music, Neuroimaging, and Stroke Recovery Laboratory, Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Gesa Hartwigsen
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Lise Meitner Research Group Cognition and Plasticity, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Jae-Sung Lim
- Department of Neurology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Hee-Joon Bae
- Department of Neurology, Cerebrovascular Center, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seongnam, Republic of Korea
| | - Kyung-Ho Yu
- Department of Neurology, Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University College of Medicine, Anyang, Republic of Korea
| | - Gottfried Schlaug
- Music, Neuroimaging, and Stroke Recovery Laboratory, Department of Neurology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | - Anna Bonkhoff
- J. Philip Kistler Stroke Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Natalia S Rost
- J. Philip Kistler Stroke Research Center, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Danilo Bzdok
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, McConnell Brain Imaging Centre, Montreal Neurological Institute, Faculty of Medicine, School of Computer Science, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
- Mila - Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute, Montreal, QC, Canada.
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14
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Raaf N, Westerhausen R. Hand preference and the corpus callosum: Is there really no association? NEUROIMAGE: REPORTS 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ynirp.2023.100160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/08/2023]
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15
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Parker AJ, Woodhead ZV, Carey DP, Groen MA, Gutierrez-Sigut E, Hodgson J, Hudson J, Karlsson EM, MacSweeney M, Payne H, Simpson N, Thompson PA, Watkins KE, Egan C, Grant JH, Harte S, Hudson BT, Sablik M, Badcock NA, Bishop DV. Inconsistent language lateralisation – Testing the dissociable language laterality hypothesis using behaviour and lateralised cerebral blood flow. Cortex 2022; 154:105-134. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2022.05.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2022] [Revised: 05/24/2022] [Accepted: 05/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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16
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Thome I, García Alanis JC, Volk J, Vogelbacher C, Steinsträter O, Jansen A. Let's face it: The lateralization of the face perception network as measured with fMRI is not clearly right dominant. Neuroimage 2022; 263:119587. [PMID: 36031183 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119587] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2022] [Revised: 08/17/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The neural face perception network is distributed across both hemispheres. However, the dominant role in humans is virtually unanimously attributed to the right hemisphere. Interestingly, there are, to our knowledge, no imaging studies that systematically describe the distribution of hemispheric lateralization in the core system of face perception across subjects in large cohorts so far. To address this, we determined the hemispheric lateralization of all core system regions (i.e., occipital face area (OFA), fusiform face area (FFA), posterior superior temporal sulcus (pSTS)) in 108 healthy subjects using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). We were particularly interested in the variability of hemispheric lateralization across subjects and explored how many subjects can be classified as right-dominant based on the fMRI activation pattern. We further assessed lateralization differences between different regions of the core system and analyzed the influence of handedness and sex on the lateralization with a generalized mixed effects regression model. As expected, brain activity was on average stronger in right-hemispheric brain regions than in their left-hemispheric homologues. This asymmetry was, however, only weakly pronounced in comparison to other lateralized brain functions (such as language and spatial attention) and strongly varied between individuals. Only half of the subjects in the present study could be classified as right-hemispheric dominant. Additionally, we did not detect significant lateralization differences between core system regions. Our data did also not support a general leftward shift of hemispheric lateralization in left-handers. Only the interaction of handedness and sex in the FFA revealed that specifically left-handed men were significantly more left-lateralized compared to right-handed males. In essence, our fMRI data did not support a clear right-hemispheric dominance of the face perception network. Our findings thus ultimately question the dogma that the face perception network - as measured with fMRI - can be characterized as "typically right lateralized".
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Affiliation(s)
- Ina Thome
- Laboratory for Multimodal Neuroimaging, Department of Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany; Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Marburg, Germany.
| | - José C García Alanis
- Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Marburg, Germany; Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany; Analysis and Modeling of Complex Data Lab, Institute of Psychology, University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany
| | - Jannika Volk
- Laboratory for Multimodal Neuroimaging, Department of Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany; Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Marburg, Germany
| | - Christoph Vogelbacher
- Laboratory for Multimodal Neuroimaging, Department of Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany; Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Marburg, Germany
| | - Olaf Steinsträter
- Core-Facility BrainImaging, Faculty of Medicine, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| | - Andreas Jansen
- Laboratory for Multimodal Neuroimaging, Department of Psychiatry, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany; Center for Mind, Brain and Behavior (CMBB), University of Marburg and Justus Liebig University Giessen, Marburg, Germany; Core-Facility BrainImaging, Faculty of Medicine, University of Marburg, Marburg, Germany.
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17
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Zhang X, Qiu Y, Li J, Jia C, Liao J, Chen K, Qiu L, Yuan Z, Huang R. Neural correlates of transitive inference: An SDM meta-analysis on 32 fMRI studies. Neuroimage 2022; 258:119354. [PMID: 35659997 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Revised: 05/02/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Transitive inference (TI) is a critical capacity involving the integration of relevant information into prior knowledge structure for drawing novel inferences on unobserved relationships. To date, the neural correlates of TI remain unclear due to the small sample size and heterogeneity of various experimental tasks from individual studies. Here, the meta-analysis on 32 fMRI studies was performed to detect brain activation patterns of TI and its three paradigms (spatial inference, hierarchical inference, and associative inference). We found the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex (PFC), putamen, posterior parietal cortex (PPC), retrosplenial cortex (RSC), supplementary motor area (SMA), precentral gyrus (PreCG), and median cingulate cortex (MCC) were engaged in TI. Specifically, the RSC was implicated in the associative inference, whereas PPC, SMA, PreCG, and MCC were implicated in the hierarchical inference. In addition, the hierarchical inference and associative inference both evoked activation in the hippocampus, medial PFC, and PCC. Although the meta-analysis on spatial inference did not generate a reliable result due to insufficient amount of investigations, the present work still offers a new insight for better understanding the neural basis underlying TI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoying Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education; School of Psychology; Center for Studies of Psychological Application; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, 510631 Guangzhou, China
| | - Yidan Qiu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education; School of Psychology; Center for Studies of Psychological Application; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, 510631 Guangzhou, China
| | - Jinhui Li
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education; School of Psychology; Center for Studies of Psychological Application; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, 510631 Guangzhou, China
| | - Chuchu Jia
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education; School of Psychology; Center for Studies of Psychological Application; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, 510631 Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiajun Liao
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education; School of Psychology; Center for Studies of Psychological Application; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, 510631 Guangzhou, China
| | - Kemeng Chen
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education; School of Psychology; Center for Studies of Psychological Application; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, 510631 Guangzhou, China
| | - Lixin Qiu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education; School of Psychology; Center for Studies of Psychological Application; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, 510631 Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhen Yuan
- Centre for Cognitive and Brain Sciences, University of Macau, Macau SAR, China.
| | - Ruiwang Huang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education; School of Psychology; Center for Studies of Psychological Application; Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, 510631 Guangzhou, China.
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18
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Cerebral Polymorphisms for Lateralisation: Modelling the Genetic and Phenotypic Architectures of Multiple Functional Modules. Symmetry (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/sym14040814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent fMRI and fTCD studies have found that functional modules for aspects of language, praxis, and visuo-spatial functioning, while typically left, left and right hemispheric respectively, frequently show atypical lateralisation. Studies with increasing numbers of modules and participants are finding increasing numbers of module combinations, which here are termed cerebral polymorphisms—qualitatively different lateral organisations of cognitive functions. Polymorphisms are more frequent in left-handers than right-handers, but it is far from the case that right-handers all show the lateral organisation of modules described in introductory textbooks. In computational terms, this paper extends the original, monogenic McManus DC (dextral-chance) model of handedness and language dominance to multiple functional modules, and to a polygenic DC model compatible with the molecular genetics of handedness, and with the biology of visceral asymmetries found in primary ciliary dyskinesia. Distributions of cerebral polymorphisms are calculated for families and twins, and consequences and implications of cerebral polymorphisms are explored for explaining aphasia due to cerebral damage, as well as possible talents and deficits arising from atypical inter- and intra-hemispheric modular connections. The model is set in the broader context of the testing of psychological theories, of issues of laterality measurement, of mutation-selection balance, and the evolution of brain and visceral asymmetries.
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19
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Quin-Conroy JE, Chen Y, Bayliss DM, Badcock NA. Magic Hats and Teddy Bear picnics: Language and visuospatial lateralisation tasks for children. Laterality 2022; 27:232-256. [DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2021.2020808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Josephine E. Quin-Conroy
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Yanyu Chen
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Donna M. Bayliss
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Nicholas A. Badcock
- School of Psychological Science, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
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20
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Serrien DJ, O'Regan L. The interactive functional biases of manual, language and attention systems. Cogn Res Princ Implic 2022; 7:20. [PMID: 35235075 PMCID: PMC8891409 DOI: 10.1186/s41235-022-00365-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2021] [Accepted: 01/26/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
Hemispheric lateralisation is a fundamental principle of functional brain organisation. We studied two core cognitive functions—language and visuospatial attention—that typically lateralise in opposite cerebral hemispheres. In this work, we tested both left- and right-handed participants on lexical decision-making as well as on symmetry detection by means of a visual half-field paradigm with various target–distractor combinations simultaneously presented to opposite visual fields. Laterality indexes were analysed using a behavioural metrics in single individuals as well as between individuals. We observed that lateralisation of language and visuospatial attention as well as their relationship generally followed a left–right profile, albeit with differences as a function of handedness and target–distractor combination. In particular, right-handed individuals tended towards a typical pattern whereas left-handed individuals demonstrated increased individual variation and atypical organisation. That the atypical variants varied as a function of target–distractor combination and thus interhemispheric communication underlines its dynamic role in characterising lateralisation properties. The data further revealed distinctive relationships between right-handedness and left-hemispheric dominance for language together with right-hemispheric dominance for visuospatial processing. Overall, these findings illustrate the role of broader mechanisms in supporting hemispheric lateralisation of cognition and behaviour, relying on common principles but controlled by internal and external factors.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Louise O'Regan
- School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK
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21
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Wu X, Kong X, Vatansever D, Liu Z, Zhang K, Sahakian BJ, Robbins TW, Feng J, Thompson P, Zhang J. Dynamic changes in brain lateralization correlate with human cognitive performance. PLoS Biol 2022; 20:e3001560. [PMID: 35298460 PMCID: PMC8929635 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/31/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Hemispheric lateralization constitutes a core architectural principle of human brain organization underlying cognition, often argued to represent a stable, trait-like feature. However, emerging evidence underlines the inherently dynamic nature of brain networks, in which time-resolved alterations in functional lateralization remain uncharted. Integrating dynamic network approaches with the concept of hemispheric laterality, we map the spatiotemporal architecture of whole-brain lateralization in a large sample of high-quality resting-state fMRI data (N = 991, Human Connectome Project). We reveal distinct laterality dynamics across lower-order sensorimotor systems and higher-order associative networks. Specifically, we expose 2 aspects of the laterality dynamics: laterality fluctuations (LF), defined as the standard deviation of laterality time series, and laterality reversal (LR), referring to the number of zero crossings in laterality time series. These 2 measures are associated with moderate and extreme changes in laterality over time, respectively. While LF depict positive association with language function and cognitive flexibility, LR shows a negative association with the same cognitive abilities. These opposing interactions indicate a dynamic balance between intra and interhemispheric communication, i.e., segregation and integration of information across hemispheres. Furthermore, in their time-resolved laterality index, the default mode and language networks correlate negatively with visual/sensorimotor and attention networks, which are linked to better cognitive abilities. Finally, the laterality dynamics are associated with functional connectivity changes of higher-order brain networks and correlate with regional metabolism and structural connectivity. Our results provide insights into the adaptive nature of the lateralized brain and new perspectives for future studies of human cognition, genetics, and brain disorders. Hemispheric lateralization constitutes a core architectural principle of human brain organization, often argued to represent a stable, trait-like feature, but how does this fit with our increasing appreciation of the inherently dynamic nature of brain networks? This neuroimaging study reveals the dynamic nature of functional brain lateralization at resting-state and its relationship with language function and cognitive flexibility.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinran Wu
- Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiangzhen Kong
- Department of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences, Zhejiang University, Zhejiang, China
| | - Deniz Vatansever
- Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhaowen Liu
- Psychiatric & Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, Center for Genomic Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Kai Zhang
- School of Computer Science and Technology, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Barbara J. Sahakian
- Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Department of the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Trevor W. Robbins
- Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Department of the Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Jianfeng Feng
- Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Department of Computer Science, University of Warwick, Coventry, United Kingdom
- Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Center for Mathematical Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Paul Thompson
- Imaging Genetics Center, Mark & Mary Stevens Institute for Neuroimaging & Informatics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, United States of America
| | - Jie Zhang
- Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-Inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- * E-mail:
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22
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Fu X, Ding Y, Chen J, Liu F, Li H, Zhao J, Guo W. Altered Brain Functional Asymmetry in Patients With Major Depressive Disorder Related to Gastrointestinal Symptoms. Front Neurosci 2022; 15:797598. [PMID: 35250436 PMCID: PMC8891942 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.797598] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2021] [Accepted: 12/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
ObjectiveDisrupted brain functional asymmetry has been reported in major depressive disorder (MDD). The comorbidity may be a crucial factor to this functional asymmetry. It is quite common that gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms are comorbid with MDD, but limited evidence focuses on the effect of GI comorbidity on the neuropathology of MDD from a functional lateralization perspective.MethodsResting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging was obtained in 28 healthy controls (HCs), 35 MDD patients with GI symptoms (GI-MDD patients), and 17 patients with MDD without GI symptoms (nGI-MDD patients). The parameter of asymmetry (PAS) was used to analyze the imaging data and evaluate the changes of functional asymmetry.ResultsThe GI-MDD patients showed increased PAS scores in the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and superior medial prefrontal cortex (MPFC) and decreased PAS scores in the right postcentral gyrus in comparison with nGI-MDD patients. The PAS scores of the left IFG and left superior MPFC were correlated with the severity of GI problems and could be applied to distinguish GI-MDD patients from nGI-MDD patients with an accuracy, a sensitivity, and a specificity of 92.31, 100, and 76.47%, respectively. Furthermore, GI-MDD and nGI-MDD patients both displayed increased PAS scores in the PCC/precuneus.ConclusionsThis study revealed the influence of concomitant GI symptoms on functional asymmetry in MDD patients. Increased PAS scores of the left IFG and superior MPFC might represent an unbalanced regulation of brain over GI function and had the potential to be regarded as distinctive features related to functional GI symptoms in MDD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoya Fu
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Yudan Ding
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Jindong Chen
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Feng Liu
- Department of Radiology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, China
| | - Huabing Li
- Department of Radiology, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Jingping Zhao
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Wenbin Guo
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, China
- Department of Psychiatry, The Third People’s Hospital of Foshan, Foshan, China
- *Correspondence: Wenbin Guo,
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23
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Jia G, Liu G, Niu H. Hemispheric Lateralization of Visuospatial Attention Is Independent of Language Production on Right-Handers: Evidence From Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy. Front Neurol 2022; 12:784821. [PMID: 35095729 PMCID: PMC8795708 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2021.784821] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2021] [Accepted: 12/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
It is well-established that visuospatial attention is mainly lateralized to the right hemisphere, whereas language production is mainly left-lateralized. However, there is a significant controversy regarding how these two kinds of lateralization interact with each other. The present research used functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to examine whether visuospatial attention is indeed right-lateralized, whereas language production is left-lateralized, and more importantly, whether the extent of lateralization in the visuospatial task is correlated with that in the task involving language. Specifically, fifty-two healthy right-handed participants participated in this study. Multiple-channel fNIRS technique was utilized to record the cerebral hemodynamic changes when participants were engaged in naming objects depicted in pictures (the picture naming task) or judging whether a presented line was bisected correctly (the landmark task). The degree of hemispheric lateralization was quantified according to the activation difference between the left and right hemispheres. We found that the picture-naming task predominantly activated the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) of the left hemisphere. In contrast, the landmark task predominantly activated the inferior parietal sulcus (IPS) and superior parietal lobule (SPL) of the right hemisphere. The quantitative calculation of the laterality index also showed a left-lateralized distribution for the picture-naming task and a right-lateralized distribution for the landmark task. Intriguingly, the correlation analysis revealed no significant correlation between the laterality indices of these two tasks. Our findings support the independent hypothesis, suggesting that different cognitive tasks may engender lateralized processing in the brain, but these lateralized activities may be independent of each other. Meanwhile, we stress the importance of handedness in understanding the relationship between functional asymmetries. Methodologically, we demonstrated the effectiveness of using the multichannel fNIRS technique to investigate the hemispheric specialization of different cognitive tasks and their lateralization relations between different tasks. Our findings and methods may have important implications for future research to explore lateralization-related issues in individuals with neural pathologies.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Haijing Niu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
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24
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Ferrara K, Seydell-Greenwald A, Chambers CE, Newport EL, Landau B. Developmental changes in neural lateralization for visual-spatial function: Evidence from a line-bisection task. Dev Sci 2021; 25:e13217. [PMID: 34913543 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2021] [Revised: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 12/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Studies of hemispheric specialization have traditionally cast the left hemisphere as specialized for language and the right hemisphere for spatial function. Much of the supporting evidence for this separation of function comes from studies of healthy adults and those who have sustained lesions to the right or left hemisphere. However, we know little about the developmental origins of lateralization. Recent evidence suggests that the young brain represents language bilaterally, with 4-6-year-olds activating the left-hemisphere regions known to support language in adults as well as homotopic regions in the right hemisphere. This bilateral pattern changes over development, converging on left-hemispheric activation in late childhood. In the present study, we ask whether this same developmental trajectory is observed in a spatial task that is strongly right-lateralized in adults-the line bisection (or "Landmark") task. We examined fMRI activation among children ages 5-11 years as they were asked to judge which end of a bisected vertical line was longer. We found that young children showed bilateral activation, with activation in the same areas of the right hemisphere as has been shown among adults, as well as in the left hemisphere homotopic regions. By age 10, activation was right-lateralized. This strongly resembles the developmental trajectory for language, moving from bilateral to lateralized activation. We discuss potential underlying mechanisms and suggest that understanding the development of lateralization for a range of cognitive functions can play a crucial role in understanding general principles of how and why the brain comes to lateralize certain functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katrina Ferrara
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.,Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center, Children's National Health System, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
| | - Anna Seydell-Greenwald
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
| | - Catherine E Chambers
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
| | - Elissa L Newport
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University, Washington, District of Columbia, USA
| | - Barbara Landau
- Center for Brain Plasticity and Recovery, Georgetown University, Washington, District of Columbia, USA.,Department of Cognitive Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA
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25
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Mundorf A, Peterburs J, Ocklenburg S. Asymmetry in the Central Nervous System: A Clinical Neuroscience Perspective. Front Syst Neurosci 2021; 15:733898. [PMID: 34970125 PMCID: PMC8712556 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2021.733898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2021] [Accepted: 11/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent large-scale neuroimaging studies suggest that most parts of the human brain show structural differences between the left and the right hemisphere. Such structural hemispheric asymmetries have been reported for both cortical and subcortical structures. Interestingly, many neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders have been associated with altered functional hemispheric asymmetries. However, findings concerning the relation between structural hemispheric asymmetries and disorders have largely been inconsistent, both within specific disorders as well as between disorders. In the present review, we compare structural asymmetries from a clinical neuroscience perspective across different disorders. We focus especially on recent large-scale neuroimaging studies, to concentrate on replicable effects. With the notable exception of major depressive disorder, all reviewed disorders were associated with distinct patterns of alterations in structural hemispheric asymmetries. While autism spectrum disorder was associated with altered structural hemispheric asymmetries in a broader range of brain areas, most other disorders were linked to more specific alterations in brain areas related to cognitive functions that have been associated with the symptomology of these disorders. The implications of these findings are highlighted in the context of transdiagnostic approaches to psychopathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annakarina Mundorf
- Institute for Systems Medicine and Department of Human Medicine, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Jutta Peterburs
- Institute for Systems Medicine and Department of Human Medicine, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Sebastian Ocklenburg
- Biopsychology, Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology, Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
- Department of Psychology, MSH Medical School Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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26
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Veréb D, Kovács MA, Kocsis K, Tóth E, Bozsik B, Király A, Kincses B, Faragó P, Fricska-Nagy Z, Bencsik K, Klivényi P, Kincses ZT, Szabó N. Functional Connectivity Lateralisation Shift of Resting State Networks is Linked to Visuospatial Memory and White Matter Microstructure in Relapsing-Remitting Multiple Sclerosis. Brain Topogr 2021; 35:268-275. [PMID: 34807323 PMCID: PMC8860794 DOI: 10.1007/s10548-021-00881-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2021] [Accepted: 11/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Laterality patterns of resting state networks (RSN) change in various neuropsychiatric conditions. Multiple sclerosis (MS) causes neuro-cognitive symptoms involving dysfunctional large-scale brain networks. Yet, whether healthy laterality patterns of RSNs are maintained in MS and whether altered laterality patterns explain disease symptoms has not been explicitly investigated. We analysed functional MRI and diffusion tensor imaging data from 24 relapsing–remitting MS patients and 25 healthy participants. We performed group-level independent component analysis and used dual regression to estimate individual versions of well-established RSNs. Voxelwise laterality indices were calculated for each RSN. Group differences were assessed via a general linear model-based approach. The relationship between functional laterality and white matter microstructural asymmetry was assessed using Tract-Based Spatial Statistics. Spearman’s correlation was calculated between laterality indices and Brief International Cognitive Assessment for Multiple Sclerosis scores. Functional laterality of the dorsal attention network showed a significant leftward shift in the MS group in the posterior intraparietal sulcus (p < 0.033). Default-mode network laterality showed a significant leftward shift in the MS group in the angular gyrus (p < 0.005). Diminished dorsal attention network laterality was associated with increased fractional anisotropy asymmetry in the superior longitudinal fasciculus (p < 0.02). In the default-mode network, leftward laterality of the angular gyrus was associated with higher BVMT-R scores (R = − 0.52, p < 0.023). Our results confirm previous descriptions of RSN dysfunction in relapsing–remitting MS and show that altered functional connectivity lateralisation patterns of RSNs might contibute to cognitive performance and structural remodellation even in patients with mild clinical symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dániel Veréb
- Department of Radiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary.,Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Márton Attila Kovács
- Department of Radiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Krisztián Kocsis
- Department of Radiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Eszter Tóth
- Department of Radiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Bence Bozsik
- Department of Radiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - András Király
- Department of Radiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Bálint Kincses
- Department of Psychiatry, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary.,Institute of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Hospital Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Péter Faragó
- Department of Neurology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Zsanett Fricska-Nagy
- Department of Neurology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Krisztina Bencsik
- Department of Neurology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Péter Klivényi
- Department of Neurology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Zsigmond Tamás Kincses
- Neuroimaging Research Group, Department of Radiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Semmelweis u. 6, 6725, Hungary.
| | - Nikoletta Szabó
- Department of Neurology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Clinical Center, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
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27
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Zickert N, Geuze RH, Beking T, Groothuis TGG. Testing the Darwinian function of lateralization. Does separation of workload between brain hemispheres increase cognitive performance? Neuropsychologia 2021; 159:107884. [PMID: 34090868 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2021.107884] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Revised: 04/19/2021] [Accepted: 05/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Brain lateralization is a fundamental aspect of the organization of brain and behavior in the animal kingdom, begging the question about its Darwinian function. We tested the possibility that lateralization enhances cognitive performance in single- and dual-tasks. Previous studies reported mixed results on this topic and only a handful of studies have measured functional brain lateralization and performance independently and simultaneously. We therefore examined a possible positive effect of the strength and direction of lateralization on two demanding cognitive tasks: A visuospatial task (mental rotation MR), and a language task (word generation WG), executed either as a singletask or as dual-task. Participants (n = 72) performed these tasks while their single-task brain lateralization was assessed with functional Transcranial Doppler for both tasks. From these measurements we determined strength and direction of lateralization for both tasks and the individual pattern of lateralization (contralateral or ipsilateral) was derived. These factors, along with sex, were used in a GLM analysis to determine if they predicted the respective performance measure of the tasks. We found that for MR there was a significant medium effect of direction of lateralization on performance with better performance in left-lateralized (atypical) participants (partial eta squared 0.061; p = .039). After correction for outliers, there was a significant effect for strength (p = .049). For the dual-task, there was a significant positive medium effect of strength of lateralization on performance (partial eta squared 0.062; p = .038, respectively) No other association between direction or strength in either tests were found. We conclude that there is no evidence for hemispheric crowding, and that strength of lateralization may be a factor that contributes to the evolutionary selection of functional brain lateralization. Pattern of lateralization does not, explaining the large inter-individual variation in these traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nele Zickert
- University of Groningen, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, GELIFES - Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, Groningen, the Netherlands.
| | - Reint H Geuze
- University of Groningen, Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, Department Clinical & Developmental Neuropsychology, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Tess Beking
- University of Groningen, Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, Department Clinical & Developmental Neuropsychology, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Ton G G Groothuis
- University of Groningen, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, GELIFES - Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, Groningen, the Netherlands
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28
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Abstract
The alignment of visceral and brain asymmetry observed in some vertebrate species raises the question of whether this association also exists in humans. While the visceral and brain systems may have developed asymmetry for different reasons, basic visceral left–right differentiation mechanisms could have been duplicated to establish brain asymmetry. We describe the main phenotypical anomalies and the general mechanism of left–right differentiation of vertebrate visceral and brain laterality. Next, we systematically review the available human studies that explored the prevalence of atypical behavioral and brain asymmetry in visceral situs anomalies, which almost exclusively involved participants with the mirrored visceral organization (situs inversus). The data show no direct link between human visceral and brain functional laterality as most participants with situs inversus show the typical population bias for handedness and brain functional asymmetry, although an increased prevalence of functional crowding may be present. At the same time, several independent studies present evidence for a possible relation between situs inversus and the gross morphological asymmetry of the brain torque with potential differences between subtypes of situs inversus with ciliary and non-ciliary etiologies.
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29
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Verhelst H, Dhollander T, Gerrits R, Vingerhoets G. Fibre-specific laterality of white matter in left and right language dominant people. Neuroimage 2021; 230:117812. [PMID: 33524578 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.117812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Revised: 12/23/2020] [Accepted: 01/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Language is the most commonly described lateralised cognitive function, relying more on the left hemisphere compared to the right hemisphere in over 90% of the population. Most research examining the structure-function relationship of language lateralisation only included people showing a left language hemisphere dominance. In this work, we applied a state-of-the-art "fixel-based" analysis approach, allowing statistical analysis of white matter micro- and macrostructure on a fibre-specific level in a sample of participants with left and right language dominance (LLD and RLD). Both groups showed a similar extensive pattern of white matter lateralisation including a comparable leftwards lateralisation of the arcuate fasciculus, regardless of their functional language lateralisation. These results suggest that lateralisation of language functioning and the arcuate fasciculus are driven by independent biases. Finally, a significant group difference of lateralisation was detected in the forceps minor, with a leftwards lateralisation in LLD and rightwards lateralisation for the RLD group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helena Verhelst
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Belgium.
| | - Thijs Dhollander
- Developmental Imaging, Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Robin Gerrits
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Belgium
| | - Guy Vingerhoets
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Ghent University, Belgium
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30
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Parker AJ, Woodhead ZVJ, Thompson PA, Bishop DVM. Assessing the reliability of an online behavioural laterality battery: A pre-registered study. Laterality 2020; 26:359-397. [PMID: 33323065 DOI: 10.1080/1357650x.2020.1859526] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Studies of cerebral lateralization often involve participants completing a series of perceptual tasks under laboratory conditions. This has constrained the number of participants recruited in such studies. Online testing can allow for much larger sample sizes but limits the amount of experimental control that is feasible. Here we considered whether online testing could give valid and reliable results on four tasks: a rhyme decision visual half-field task, a dichotic listening task, a chimeric faces task, and a finger tapping task. We recruited 392 participants, oversampling left-handers, who completed the battery twice. Three of the tasks showed evidence of both validity and reliability, insofar as they showed hemispheric advantages in the expected direction and test-retest reliability of at least r = .75. The reliability of the rhyme decision task was less satisfactory (r = .62). We also confirmed a prediction that extreme left-handers were more likely to depart from typical lateralization. Lateralization across the two language tasks (dichotic listening and rhyme judgement) was weakly correlated, but unrelated to lateralization on the chimeric faces task. We conclude that three of the tasks, dichotic listening, chimeric faces and finger tapping, show considerable promise for online evaluation of cerebral lateralization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam J Parker
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Zoe V J Woodhead
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Paul A Thompson
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
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31
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The Brain’s Asymmetric Frequency Tuning: Asymmetric Behavior Originates from Asymmetric Perception. Symmetry (Basel) 2020. [DOI: 10.3390/sym12122083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
To construct a coherent multi-modal percept, vertebrate brains extract low-level features (such as spatial and temporal frequencies) from incoming sensory signals. However, because frequency processing is lateralized with the right hemisphere favouring low frequencies while the left favours higher frequencies, this introduces asymmetries between the hemispheres. Here, we describe how this lateralization shapes the development of several cognitive domains, ranging from visuo-spatial and numerical cognition to language, social cognition, and even aesthetic appreciation, and leads to the emergence of asymmetries in behaviour. We discuss the neuropsychological and educational implications of these emergent asymmetries and suggest future research approaches.
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32
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Evolutionary motor biases and cognition in children with and without autism. Sci Rep 2020; 10:17385. [PMID: 33060674 PMCID: PMC7566622 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-74224-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2020] [Accepted: 09/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Evolution has endowed vertebrates with a divided brain that allows for processing of critical survival behaviours in parallel. Most humans possess a standard functional brain organisation for these ancient sensory-motor behaviours, favouring the right hemisphere for fight-or-flight processes and the left hemisphere for performing structured motor sequences. However, a significant minority of the population possess an organisational phenotype that represents crowding of function in one hemisphere, or a reversal of the standard functional organisation. Using behavioural biases as a proxy for brain organisation, results indicate that reversed brain organisation phenotype increases in populations with autism and is associated with weaker cognitive abilities. Moreover, this study revealed that left-handedness, alone, is not associated with decreased cognitive ability or autism. Rather, left-handedness acts as a marker for decreased cognitive performance when paired with the reversed brain phenotype. The results contribute to comparative research suggesting that modern human abilities are supported by evolutionarily old, lateralised sensory-motor processes. Systematic, longitudinal investigations, capturing genetic measures and brain correlates, are essential to reveal how cognition emerges from these foundational processes. Importantly, strength and direction of biases can act as early markers of brain organisation and cognitive development, leading to promising, novel practices for diagnoses and interventions.
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