Data di Pubblicazione:
2011
Abstract:
The human insula is hidden in the depth of the cerebral hemisphere by the
overlying frontal and temporal opercula, and consists of three
cytoarchitectonically distinct regions: the anterior agranular area, posterior
granular area, and the transitional dysgranular zone; each has distinct
histochemical staining patterns and specific connectivity. Even though there are
several studies reporting the functional connectivity of the insula with the
cingulated cortex, its relationships with other brain areas remain elusive in
humans. Therefore, we decided to use resting state functional connectivity to
elucidate in details its connectivity, in terms of cortical and subcortical
areas, and also of lateralization. We investigated correlations in BOLD
fluctuations between specific regions of interest of the insula and other brain
areas of right-handed healthy volunteers, on both sides of the brain. Our
findings document two major complementary networks involving the ventral-anterior
and dorsal-posterior insula: one network links the anterior insula to the middle
and inferior temporal cortex and anterior cingulate cortex, and is primarily
related to limbic regions which play a role in emotional aspects; the second
links the middle-posterior insula to premotor, sensorimotor, supplementary motor
and middle-posterior cingulate cortices, indicating a role for the insula in
sensorimotor integration. The clear bipartition of the insula was confirmed by
negative correlation analysis. Correlation maps are partially lateralized: the
salience network, related to the ventral anterior insula, displays stronger
connections with the anterior cingulate cortex on the right side, and with the
frontal cortex on the left side; the posterior network has stronger connections
with the superior temporal cortex and the occipital cortex on the right side.
These results are in agreement with connectivity studies in primates, and support
the use of resting state functional analysis to investigate connectivity in the
living human brain.
Tipologia CRIS:
03A-Articolo su Rivista
Keywords:
Default networks; Cingulate cortex; Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI); Resting State; Seed voxel correlation; K-means clustering
Elenco autori:
Cauda F; D'Agata F; Sacco K; Duca S; Geminiani G; Vercelli A.
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