Neuropsychology Abstract of the Day: The Wernicke Conundrum and Primary Progressive Aphasia
M-Marsel Mesulam, Cynthia K. Thompson, Sandra Weintraub, and Emily J. Rogalski (2015). The Wernicke conundrum and the anatomy of language comprehension in primary progressive aphasia. Brain. [Published online June 25 2015 doi:10.1093/brain/awv154]
Wernicke’s aphasia is characterized by severe word and sentence comprehension impairments. The location of the underlying lesion site, known as Wernicke’s area, remains controversial. Questions related to this controversy were addressed in 72 patients with primary progressive aphasia who collectively displayed a wide spectrum of cortical atrophy sites and language impairment patterns. Clinico-anatomical correlations were explored at the individual and group levels. These analyses showed that neuronal loss in temporoparietal areas, traditionally included within Wernicke’s area, leave single word comprehension intact and cause inconsistent impairments of sentence comprehension. The most severe sentence comprehension impairments were associated with a heterogeneous set of cortical atrophy sites variably encompassing temporoparietal components of Wernicke’s area, Broca’s area, and dorsal premotor cortex. Severe comprehension impairments for single words, on the other hand, were invariably associated with peak atrophy sites in the left temporal pole and adjacent anterior temporal cortex, a pattern of atrophy that left sentence comprehension intact. These results show that the neural substrates of word and sentence comprehension are dissociable and that a circumscribed cortical area equally critical for word and sentence comprehension is unlikely to exist anywhere in the cerebral cortex. Reports of combined word and sentence comprehension impairments in Wernicke’s aphasia come almost exclusively from patients with cerebrovascular accidents where brain damage extends into subcortical white matter. The syndrome of Wernicke’s aphasia is thus likely to reflect damage not only to the cerebral cortex but also to underlying axonal pathways, leading to strategic cortico-cortical disconnections within the language network. The results of this investigation further reinforce the conclusion that the left anterior temporal lobe, a region ignored by classic aphasiology, needs to be inserted into the language network with a critical role in the multisynaptic hierarchy underlying word comprehension and object naming.
- Wise-guy On The Superiority Of Pet
And why all other methods in cognitive neuroscience (with the parenthetical exception of intracranial EEG) are rubbish. From Tuesday's talk at the 15th annual meeting of the Cognitive Neuroscience Society. In his presentation, Professor Richard J....
- Neuropsychology Abstract Of The Day: Donepezil And Aphasia
Chen Y, Li YS, Wang ZY, Xu Q, Shi GW, & Lin Y. [The efficacy of donepezil for post-stroke aphasia: a pilot case control study.] Zhonghua Nei Ke Za Zhi. 2010 Feb, 49(2), 115-118. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of donepezil for post-stroke aphasia....
- Abstract Of The Day: Fmri And Auditory Attention
Nakai T, Kato C, & Matsuo K. An FMRI study to investigate auditory attention: A model of the cocktail party phenomenon. Magnetic Resonance Medical Science. 2005; 4(2): 75-82. Functional Brain Imaging Laboratory, Department of Gerontechnology, National...
- Abstract Of The Day: Primary Progressive Aphasia (ppa)
Clark DG, Charuvastra A, Miller BL, Shapira JS, Mendez MF. Fluent versus nonfluent primary progressive aphasia: A comparison of clinical and functional neuroimaging features. Brain and Language 2005 Jul; 94(1): 54-60. David Geffen School of Medicine,...
- Abstract Of The Day: Aphasia
Saygin AP, Wilson SM, Dronkers NF, Bates E. Action comprehension in aphasia: Linguistic and non-linguistic deficits and their lesion correlates. Neuropsychologia. 2004; 42(13): 1788-804. Department of Cognitive Science, University of California,...