Microstructural asymmetry in the human cortex
The human cerebral cortex shows hemispheric asymmetry, yet the microstructural basis of this asymmetry remains incompletely understood. Here, we probe layer-specific microstructural asymmetry using one post-mortem male brain. Overall, anterior and posterior regions show leftward and rightward asymmetry respectively, but this pattern varies across cortical layers. A similar anterior-posterior pattern is observed using in vivo Human Connectome Project (N = 1101) T1w/T2w microstructural data, with average cortical asymmetry showing the strongest similarity with post-mortem-based asymmetry of layer III. Moreover, microstructural asymmetry is found to be heritable, varies as a function of age and sex, and corresponds to intrinsic functional asymmetry. We also observe a differential association of language and markers of mental health with microstructural asymmetry patterns at the individual level, illustrating a functional divergence between inferior-superior and anterior-posterior microstructural axes, possibly anchored in development. Last, we could show concordant evidence with alternative in vivo microstructural measures: magnetization transfer (N = 286) and quantitative T1 (N = 50). Together, our study highlights microstructural asymmetry in the human cortex and its functional and behavioral relevance.
Authors
- Amin Saberi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7043-0722)
- Boris C. Bernhardt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9256-6041)
- Simon Bodo Eickhoff (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6363-2759)
- H. Lina Schaare (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4259-0793)
- Richard A. I. Bethlehem (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0714-0685)
- Sofie Louise Valk (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2998-6849)
- Casey Paquola (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0190-4103)
- Bin Wan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9077-3354)
- Jessica Royer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4448-8998)
- Şeyma Bayrak (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9108-323X)
- Alexandra John (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-1380-420X)
- Meike D. Hettwer (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7973-6752)
- Lena Dorfschmidt (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0447-1104)
Institutions
- Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital (CA)
- Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (US)
- Forschungszentrum Jülich (DE)
- University of Cambridge (GB)
- Düsseldorf University Hospital (DE)
- University Hospital Leipzig (DE)
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences (DE)
- Jülich Aachen Research Alliance (DE)
- Lifespan (US)
- Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (DE)
- McGill University (CA)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Communications
- Published
- 2024-11-22
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54243-9
- Citations
- 9
- Primary Topic
- Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 3.08
Funders
- McGill University
- International Max Planck Research School for Environmental, Cellular and Molecular Microbiology
- Canada Research Chairs
- Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung
- Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
- Mitacs
- Hospital for Sick Children
- International Max Planck Research School for Advanced Methods in Process and Systems Engineering
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research
- Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada
- Graduiertenakademie, Technische Universität Dresden