Comparison of histological delineations of medial temporal lobe cortices by four independent neuroanatomy laboratories

The medial temporal lobe (MTL) cortex, located adjacent to the hippocampus, is crucial for memory and prone to the accumulation of certain neuropathologies such as Alzheimer's disease neurofibrillary tau tangles. The MTL cortex is composed of several subregions which differ in their functional and cytoarchitectonic features. As neuroanatomical schools rely on different cytoarchitectonic definitions of these subregions, it is unclear to what extent their delineations of MTL cortex subregions overlap. Here, we provide an overview of cytoarchitectonic definitions of the entorhinal and parahippocampal cortices as well as Brodmann areas (BA) 35 and 36, as provided by four neuroanatomists from different laboratories, aiming to identify the rationale for overlapping and diverging delineations. Nissl-stained series were acquired from the temporal lobes of three human specimens (two right and one left hemisphere). Slices (50 μm thick) were prepared perpendicular to the long axis of the hippocampus spanning the entire longitudinal extent of the MTL cortex. Four neuroanatomists annotated MTL cortex subregions on digitized slices spaced 5 mm apart (pixel size 0.4 μm at 20× magnification). Parcellations, terminology, and border placement were compared among neuroanatomists. Cytoarchitectonic features of each subregion are described in detail. Qualitative analysis of the annotations showed higher agreement in the definitions of the entorhinal cortex and BA35, while the definitions of BA36 and the parahippocampal cortex exhibited less overlap among neuroanatomists. The degree of overlap of cytoarchitectonic definitions was partially reflected in the neuroanatomists' agreement on the respective delineations. Lower agreement in annotations was observed in transitional zones between structures where seminal cytoarchitectonic features are expressed less saliently. The results highlight that definitions and parcellations of the MTL cortex differ among neuroanatomical schools and thereby increase understanding of why these differences may arise. This work sets a crucial foundation to further advance anatomically-informed neuroimaging research on the human MTL cortex.

Authors

Institutions

Publication Details

Journal
UNC Libraries
Published
2024-11-06
DOI
https://doi.org/10.17615/b74k-1q18
Primary Topic
Glioma Diagnosis and Treatment
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
0.00

Funders

Controls
|||
ALL TIME
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
MAY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
article

Comparison of histological delineations of medial temporal lobe cortices by four independent neuroanatomy laboratories

Ana M. Daugherty, Carl J. Hodgetts, Emilio Artacho‐Pérula, Amanda E Denning et al.
UNC Libraries
Glioma Diagnosis and Treatment
article

Comparison of histological delineations of medial temporal lobe cortices by four independent neuroanatomy laboratories

Ana M. Daugherty, Carl J. Hodgetts, Emilio Artacho‐Pérula, Amanda E Denning, Katrin Amunts, Ricardo Insausti, Ranjit Ittyerah, Renaud La Joie, Theresa Schuck, Carlos de la Rosa‐Prieto, Eunice Chung, David Berron, Kelsey L. Canada, Negar Mazloum‐Farzaghi, Sydney Lim, María del Mar Arroyo Jiménez, Olga Kedo, Winifred Trotman, Robin de Florès, Vyash Puliyadi, Hannah Baumeister, Madigan L. Bedard, Jenna N. Adams, Laura E.M. Wisse, Anika Wuestefeld, Paul A. Yushkevich, Edward B. Lee, Tammy Tran, Rosanna K. Olsen, Marshall A. Dalton, Jean C. Augustinack, David J. Irwin, Mónica Muñoz, Song‐Lin Ding, Esther Buendia, María del Pilar Marcos‐Rabal, Lei Wang, Arnold Bakker, María M. Martín, Alicia Vela
article en

Abstract

The medial temporal lobe (MTL) cortex, located adjacent to the hippocampus, is crucial for memory and prone to the accumulation of certain neuropathologies such as Alzheimer's disease neurofibrillary tau tangles. The MTL cortex is composed of several subregions which differ in their functional and cytoarchitectonic features. As neuroanatomical schools rely on different cytoarchitectonic definitions of these subregions, it is unclear to what extent their delineations of MTL cortex subregions overlap. Here, we provide an overview of cytoarchitectonic definitions of the entorhinal and parahippocampal cortices as well as Brodmann areas (BA) 35 and 36, as provided by four neuroanatomists from different laboratories, aiming to identify the rationale for overlapping and diverging delineations. Nissl-stained series were acquired from the temporal lobes of three human specimens (two right and one left hemisphere). Slices (50 μm thick) were prepared perpendicular to the long axis of the hippocampus spanning the entire longitudinal extent of the MTL cortex. Four neuroanatomists annotated MTL cortex subregions on digitized slices spaced 5 mm apart (pixel size 0.4 μm at 20× magnification). Parcellations, terminology, and border placement were compared among neuroanatomists. Cytoarchitectonic features of each subregion are described in detail. Qualitative analysis of the annotations showed higher agreement in the definitions of the entorhinal cortex and BA35, while the definitions of BA36 and the parahippocampal cortex exhibited less overlap among neuroanatomists. The degree of overlap of cytoarchitectonic definitions was partially reflected in the neuroanatomists' agreement on the respective delineations. Lower agreement in annotations was observed in transitional zones between structures where seminal cytoarchitectonic features are expressed less saliently. The results highlight that definitions and parcellations of the MTL cortex differ among neuroanatomical schools and thereby increase understanding of why these differences may arise. This work sets a crucial foundation to further advance anatomically-informed neuroimaging research on the human MTL cortex.

UNC Libraries
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (US)
Alzheimer's Association, Alzheimer Society, European Commission, Lunds Universitet, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, National Institutes of Health, Directorate for Biological Sciences, Horizon 2020 Framework Programme, Canadian Institutes of Health Research
Openalex Percentile: Top 65%
Glioma Diagnosis and Treatment
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
AI Navigator

Ask Laika to Summarize, Analyze, and Connect papers live on the map.

Summarize Papers & Methodologies

Extract key findings, datasets, and comparative methods across publications.

Benchmark Rankings & Visual Analytics

Rank top research institutions, authors, funders, topics, and journals by Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) and paper volume with instant charts.

Connect Distant Disciplines

Bridge topological clusters on the map to find hidden collaborative intersections.