Two distinct forms of functional lateralization in the human brain

The hemispheric lateralization of certain faculties in the human brain has long been held to be beneficial for functioning. However, quantitative relationships between the degree of lateralization in particular brain regions and the level of functioning have yet to be established. Here we demonstrat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 2013-09, Vol.110 (36), p.E3435-E3444
Main Authors: Gotts, Stephen J, Jo, Hang Joon, Wallace, Gregory L, Saad, Ziad S, Cox, Robert W, Martin, Alex
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Attention - physiology
Biological Sciences
Brain
Brain - anatomy & histology
Brain - physiology
Cognitive psychology
Functional Laterality - physiology
Humans
Information processing
Language
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Neuropsychology
Neurosciences
PNAS Plus
Space Perception - physiology
Verbal Behavior - physiology
Visual Perception - physiology
Young Adult
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Summary:The hemispheric lateralization of certain faculties in the human brain has long been held to be beneficial for functioning. However, quantitative relationships between the degree of lateralization in particular brain regions and the level of functioning have yet to be established. Here we demonstrate that two distinct forms of functional lateralization are present in the left vs. the right cerebral hemisphere, with the left hemisphere showing a preference to interact more exclusively with itself, particularly for cortical regions involved in language and fine motor coordination. In contrast, right-hemisphere cortical regions involved in visuospatial and attentional processing interact in a more integrative fashion with both hemispheres. The degree of lateralization present in these distinct systems selectively predicted behavioral measures of verbal and visuospatial ability, providing direct evidence that lateralization is associated with enhanced cognitive ability.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.1302581110