Quantitative analysis of sulci in the human cerebral cortex: Development, regional heterogeneity, gender difference, asymmetry, intersubject variability and cortical architecture

Abstract

The degree of cortical folding (GI) and the relation between sulci and borders of cyto-and receptorarchitectonically defined areas were analyzed in postmortem human brains. The GI reaches adult levels (with highest values in the association cortices) around birth and does not decrease during aging. It shows a sex-dependent left-over-right asymmetry. Sulci and borders of architectonical areas coincide only in a few examples; thus, sulci are not generally valid landmarks of the microstructural organization of the cortex.Individual sulci were studied in 3D-reconstructed MRI sequences of living brains. A considerable intersubject variability of the distances between the sulcal surfaces of individual brains and their mean sulcal surfaces is apparent. The depth of the central sulcus varies with manual skill and handedness. Hum.

Consequences of large interindividual variability for human brain atlases: converging macroscopical imaging and microscopical neuroanatomy

“…In addition, the Talairach's atlas has derived the Brodmann areas from an extrapolation of Brodmann's schematical figures from his 1909 publication in which the sulcal cortical walls are hidden. However, about two-thirds of the cortex is not visualized in his schematic figures, since two-thirds of the cortex is hidden in the sulci (Zilles et al 1988;Henery and Mayhew 1989;Zilles et al 1997). Furthermore, we review in this paper that even after 3-D transformation of brains to a reference brain, a high interindividual variability in the extent and position of microscopically defined Brodmann's areas remains both for primary and secondary sensory cortices and for associational cortices, e.g., the visual cortex, Broca's area and the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex.…”

Cortical gyrification and its relationships with cortical volume, cortical thickness, and cognitive performance in healthy mid-life adults

“…Earlier studies detected no differences in gyrification between males and females [5,21]. However, more recent investigations have found mixed results with one suggesting young females (mean age 25) have higher cortical folding [12,22], and another finding no such differences in a much larger sample [17].…”

Subclinical Abnormal Gyration Pattern, a Potential Anatomic Marker of Epileptogenic Zone in Patients With Magnetic Resonance Imaging–Negative Frontal Lobe Epilepsy

“…23 Beyond the main furrows (ie, central sulcus and sylvian fissure), the cortical surface gyrification patterns have high individual variability, thus rendering useless the use of sulci for any functional parcellation of the brain. 24 Therefore, the spatial relationship among these patterns and subsequent functional and architectonic maps is uncertain. 24,25 Absence of any clear homology among individuals or a robust generic model capable of describing the cerebral cortex hinders the establishment of any reliable and precise identification of subdivisions of gyri and sulci among different brains.…”