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Anterior temporal cortex and semantic memory: Reconciling findings from neuropsychology and functional imaging

Anterior temporal cortex and semantic memory: Reconciling findings from neuropsychology and... Studies of semantic impairment arising from brain disease suggest that the anterior temporal lobes are critical for semantic abilities in humans; yet activation of these regions is rarely reported in functional imaging studies of healthy controls performing semantic tasks. Here, we combined neuropsychological and PE T functional imaging data to show that when healthy subjects identify concepts at a specific level, the regions activated correspond to the site of maximal atrophy in patients with relatively pure semantic impairment. The stimuli were color photographs of common animals or vehicles, and the task was category verification at specific (e.g., robin), intermediate (e.g., bird), or general (e.g., animal) levels. Specific, relative to general, categorization activated the antero-lateral temporal cortices bilaterally, despite matching of these experimental conditions for difficulty. Critically, in patients with atrophy in precisely these areas, the most pronounced deficit was in the retrieval of specific semantic information. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Cognitive, Affective, & Behaviorial Neuroscience Springer Journals

Anterior temporal cortex and semantic memory: Reconciling findings from neuropsychology and functional imaging

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References (91)

Publisher
Springer Journals
Copyright
Copyright © 2006 by Psychonomic Society, Inc.
Subject
Psychology; Cognitive Psychology; Neurosciences
ISSN
1530-7026
eISSN
1531-135X
DOI
10.3758/CABN.6.3.201
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Studies of semantic impairment arising from brain disease suggest that the anterior temporal lobes are critical for semantic abilities in humans; yet activation of these regions is rarely reported in functional imaging studies of healthy controls performing semantic tasks. Here, we combined neuropsychological and PE T functional imaging data to show that when healthy subjects identify concepts at a specific level, the regions activated correspond to the site of maximal atrophy in patients with relatively pure semantic impairment. The stimuli were color photographs of common animals or vehicles, and the task was category verification at specific (e.g., robin), intermediate (e.g., bird), or general (e.g., animal) levels. Specific, relative to general, categorization activated the antero-lateral temporal cortices bilaterally, despite matching of these experimental conditions for difficulty. Critically, in patients with atrophy in precisely these areas, the most pronounced deficit was in the retrieval of specific semantic information.

Journal

Cognitive, Affective, & Behaviorial Neuroscience – Springer Journals

Published: Nov 16, 2010

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