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Human middle longitudinal fascicle: variations in patterns of anatomical connections

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Abstract

Based on high-resolution diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DTI) tractographic analyses in 39 healthy adult subjects, we derived patterns of connections and measures of volume and biophysical parameters, such as fractional anisotropy (FA) for the human middle longitudinal fascicle (MdLF). Compared to previous studies, we found that the cortical connections of the MdLF in humans appear to go beyond the superior temporal (STG) and angular (AG) gyri, extending to the temporal pole (TP), superior parietal lobule (SPL), supramarginal gyrus, precuneus and the occipital lobe (including the cuneus and lateral occipital areas). Importantly, the MdLF showed a striking lateralized pattern with predominant connections between the TP, STG and AG on the left and TP, STG and SPL on the right hemisphere. In light of the results of the present study, and of the known functional role of the cortical areas interconnected by the MdLF, we suggested that this fiber pathway might be related to language, high order auditory association, visuospatial and attention functions.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported, in part, by grants from: NIDA 1R01DA027804-01, NIMH 1R21MH084041-01A1 (NM); the National Institute of Health (K05 MH070047 and R01 MH 50740 to MES, P50MH 080272-CIDAR award- to MES and MK, R01 M074794 to CFW and MK), the Department of Veterans Affairs Merit Award (MES), the VA Schizophrenia Center Grant (MES); the National Alliance for Medical Image Computing (NA-MIC), the latter a grant supported through the National Institutes of Health Roadmap for Medical Research, Grant U54 EB005149 (MK, MES, CFW); Progetto Roberto Rocca Foundation (MGP).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departments of Psychiatry, Neurology and Radiology Services, Center for Morphometric Analysis, A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02129, USA

    N. Makris, B. Campbell, G. M. Papadimitriou & J. Kaiser

  2. Psychiatry Neuroimaging Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA

    N. Makris, T. Asami, P. Pelavin, M. E. Shenton & M. Kubicki

  3. Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Boston University School of Medicine, Boston, MA, 02215, USA

    N. Makris

  4. Department of Bioengineering, Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy

    M. G. Preti & G. Baselli

  5. Magnetic Resonance Laboratory, Don Gnocchi Foundation, Milan, Italy

    M. G. Preti

  6. Laboratory of Neuroscience, Clinical Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychiatry, Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Brockton Division, Harvard Medical School, Brockton, MA, USA

    M. E. Shenton

  7. Laboratory of Mathematics in Imaging, Surgical Planning Laboratory, MRI Division, Department of Radiology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA

    C. F. Westin

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  1. N. Makris
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  6. G. M. Papadimitriou
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  10. M. E. Shenton
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  11. M. Kubicki
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Correspondence to N. Makris.

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Makris, N., Preti, M.G., Asami, T. et al. Human middle longitudinal fascicle: variations in patterns of anatomical connections. Brain Struct Funct 218, 951–968 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-012-0441-2

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