Article

The extreme capsule in humans and rethinking of the language circuitry.

Departments of Psychiatry and Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02129, USA.
Brain Structure and Function (impact factor: 5.63). 01/2009; 213(3):343-58. DOI:10.1007/s00429-008-0199-8 pp.343-58
Source: PubMed

ABSTRACT Experimental and imaging studies in monkeys have outlined various long association fiber pathways within the fronto-temporo-parietal region. In the present study, the trajectory of the extreme capsule (EmC) fibers has been delineated in five human subjects using DT-MRI tractography. The EmC seems to be a long association fiber pathway, which courses between the inferior frontal region and the superior temporal gyrus extending into the inferior parietal lobule. Comparison of EmC fibers with the adjacent association fiber pathway, the middle longitudinal fascicle (MdLF), in the same subjects reveals that EmC is located in a medial and rostral position relative to MdLF flanking in part the medial wall of the insula. The EmC can also be differentiated from other neighboring fiber pathways such as the external capsule, uncinate fascicle, arcuate fascicle, superior longitudinal fascicles II and III, and the inferior longitudinal fascicle. Given the location of EmC within the language zone, specifically Broca's area in the frontal lobe, and Wernicke's area in the temporal lobe and inferior parietal lobule, it is suggested that the extreme capsule could have a role in language function.

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    Article: The involvement of audio-motor coupling in the music-supported therapy applied to stroke patients.
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    Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 04/2012; 1252:282-93. · 3.15 Impact Factor
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Keywords

adjacent association fiber pathway
 
association fiber pathway
 
Broca's area
 
EmC fibers
 
external capsule
 
extreme capsule
 
fronto-temporo-parietal region
 
imaging studies
 
inferior frontal region
 
inferior longitudinal fascicle
 
language function
 
language zone
 
MdLF flanking
 
medial wall
 
middle longitudinal fascicle
 
neighboring fiber pathways
 
rostral position
 
superior longitudinal fascicles II
 
superior temporal gyrus
 
uncinate fascicle
 

Nikos Makris