Defining a left-lateralized response specific to intelligible speech using fMRI
Abstract
Functional imaging studies of language have shown bilateral superior temporal activations in response to 'passive' perception of speech when the baseline condition did not control for the acoustic complexity of speech. Controlling for this complexity demonstrates speech-specific processing lateralized to the left temporal lobe, and our recent positron emission tomography study has emphasized a role for left anterolateral temporal cortex in speech comprehension. This contrasts with the more usual view that relates speech comprehension to left temporal-parietal cortex, the ill-defined area of Wernicke. This study attempted to reconcile these differences, using a more sensitive 3 T functional magnetic resonance imaging system, and a sparse sampling paradigm. We found left lateralized activations for intelligible speech with two distinct foci, one in the anterior superior temporal sulcus and the other on the posterior temporal lobe. Therefore, the results demonstrate that there are neural responses to intelligible speech along the length of the left lateral temporal neocortex, although the precise processing roles of the anterior and posterior regions cannot be determined from this study.
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The speech selective auditory response in the left posterior superior temporal sulcus was repeatedly demonstrated even when acoustic complexity was controlled.
“The speech selective auditory response in the left posterior superior temporal sulcus was repeatedly demonstrated even when acoustic complexity was controlled (Narain et al., 2003; Giraud et al., 2004; Hugdahl et al., 2003; Benson et al., 2006; Rimol et al., 2006).”
From A review and synthesis of the first 20years of PET and fMRI studies of heard speech, spoken language and reading (2012) · cites this paper as Narain et al., 2003
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- Authors
- Narain, C.
- Affiliations
- John Radcliffe Hospital (GB)
- Corresponding author
- Narain, C.
- Venue
- Cerebral Cortex
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2003-12-01
- Volume
- 13
- Issue
- 12
- Pages
- 1362-1368
- ISSN
- 1047-3211 (ISSN-L)
- 1460-2199
- OpenAlex
- W2118593493
- Cited by
- 246
- References
- 43
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 5 · 2021: 11 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 8 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 13 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 18 · 2012: 22
- FWCI
- 6.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Cerebral Cortex (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- UCL Discovery (University College London) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Wellcome Trust (090961)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neuroscience and Music Perception
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Phonetics and Phonology Research
- Keywords
- speech understanding, left lateralization, left temporal lobe, posterior temporal lobe, intelligible speech, acoustic complexity, Wernicke's area, auditory cortex
- MeSH terms
- Acoustic Stimulation, Adult, Brain Mapping, Dominance, Cerebral, Female, Humans, Language, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Male, Neurons, Speech Intelligibility, Speech Perception, Temporal Lobe
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