Dataset Information

Social cognition and the anterior temporal lobes.

ABSTRACT: Two distinct literatures have emerged on the functionality of the anterior temporal lobes (ATL): in one field, the ATLs are conceived of as a repository for semantic or conceptual knowledge. In another field, the ATLs are thought to play some undetermined role in social-emotional functions such as Theory of Mind. Here we attempted to reconcile these distinct functions by assessing whether social semantic processing can explain ATL activation in other social cognitive tasks. Social semantic functions refer to knowledge about social concepts and rules. In a first experiment we tested the idea that social semantic representations can account for activations in the ATL to social attribution stimuli such as Heider and Simmel animations. Left ATL activations to Heider and Simmel stimuli overlapped with activations to social words. In a second experiment we assessed the putative roles of the ATLs in the processing of narratives and theory of mind content and found evidence for a role of the ATLs in the processing of theory of mind but not narrative per se. These findings indicate that the ATLs are part of a neuronal network supporting social cognition and that they are engaged when tasks demand access to social conceptual knowledge.

SUBMITTER: Ross LA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2818559 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Social cognition and the anterior temporal lobes.

Ross Lars A LA Olson Ingrid R IR

NeuroImage 20091118 4

Two distinct literatures have emerged on the functionality of the anterior temporal lobes (ATL): in one field, the ATLs are conceived of as a repository for semantic or conceptual knowledge. In another field, the ATLs are thought to play some undetermined role in social-emotional functions such as Theory of Mind. Here we attempted to reconcile these distinct functions by assessing whether social semantic processing can explain ATL activation in other social cognitive tasks. Social semantic funct ...[more]

PMID: 19931397

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Project description:Even though the anterior temporal lobe (ATL) comprises several anatomical and functional subdivisions, it is often reduced to a homogeneous theoretical entity, such as a domain-general convergence zone, or "hub", for semantic information. Methodological limitations are largely to blame for the imprecise mapping of function to structure in the ATL. There are two major obstacles to using fMRI to identify the precise functional organization of the ATL: the difficult choice of stimuli and tasks to activate, and dissociate, specific regions within the ATL and poor signal quality due to magnetic field distortions near the sinuses. To circumvent these difficulties, we developed a data-driven parcellation routine using resting-state fMRI data (24 females, 64 males) acquired using a sequence that was optimized to enhance signal in the ATL. Focusing on patterns of functional connectivity between each ATL voxel and the rest of the brain, we found that the ATL comprises at least 34 distinct functional parcels that are arranged into bands along the lateral and ventral cortical surfaces, extending from the posterior temporal lobes into the temporal poles. In addition, the anterior region of the fusiform gyrus, most often cited as the location of the semantic hub, was found to be part of a domain-specific network associated with face and social processing, rather than a domain-general semantic hub. These findings offer a fine-grained functional map of the ATL and offer an initial step towards using more precise language to describe the locations of functional responses in this heterogeneous region of human cortex.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTThe functional role of the anterior aspects of the temporal lobes (ATL) is a contentious issue. While it is likely that different regions within the ATL subserve unique cognitive functions, most studies revert to vaguely referring to particular functional regions as "the ATL" and, thus, the mapping of function to anatomy remains unclear. We used resting-state fMRI connectivity patterns between the ATL and the rest of the brain to reveal that the ATL comprises at least 34 distinct functional parcels that are organized into a three-level functional hierarchy. These results provide a detailed functional map of the anterior temporal lobes that can guide future research on how distinct regions within the ATL support diverse cognitive functions.

Project description:Assessment of regional language lateralization is crucial in many scenarios, but not all populations are suited for its evaluation via task-functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). In this study, the utility of structural connectome features for the classification of language lateralization in the anterior temporal lobes (ATLs) was investigated. Laterality indices for semantic processing in the ATL were computed from task-fMRI in 1038 subjects from the Human Connectome Project who were labeled as stronger rightward lateralized (RL) or stronger leftward to bilaterally lateralized (LL) in a data-driven approach. Data of unrelated subjects (n = 432) were used for further analyses. Structural connectomes were generated from diffusion-MRI tractography, and graph theoretical metrics (node degree, betweenness centrality) were computed. A neural network (NN) and a random forest (RF) classifier were trained on these metrics to classify subjects as RL or LL. After classification, comparisons of network measures were conducted via permutation testing. Degree-based classifiers produced significant above-chance predictions both during cross-validation (NN: AUC-ROC[CI] = 0.68[0.64-0.73], accuracy[CI] = 68.34%[63-73.2%]; RF: AUC-ROC[CI] = 0.7[0.66-0.73], accuracy[CI] = 64.81%[60.9-68.5]) and testing (NN: AUC-ROC[CI] = 0.69[0.53-0.84], accuracy[CI] = 68.09[53.2-80.9]; RF: AUC-ROC[CI] = 0.68[0.53-0.84], accuracy[CI] = 68.09[55.3-80.9]). Comparison of network metrics revealed small effects of increased node degree within the right posterior middle temporal gyrus (pMTG) in subjects with RL, while degree was decreased in the right posterior cingulate cortex (PCC). Above-chance predictions of functional language lateralization in the ATL are possible based on diffusion-MRI connectomes alone. Increased degree within the right pMTG as a right-sided homologue of a known semantic hub, and decreased hubness of the right PCC may form a structural basis for rightward-lateralized semantic processing.

Dataset Information

Social cognition and the anterior temporal lobes.

Publications

Social cognition and the anterior temporal lobes.

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