Thickness-based correlations of cortical areas involved in senses, speech and cognitive processes

AIM: To explore the existence of potential correlations of cortical thickness between different functional brain areas.METHODS: Our material consisted of 38 formalinfixated human cerebral hemispheres from twenty males and three females, cadaver donors for students' education. We selected the following cortical areas at each hemisphere to examine: supramarginal gyrus(S), angular gyrus(A), area of colors recognition(F), area of names recognition(N), area of auditory attention(H), area of place memory(M), cortex of the superior wall of the calcarine sulcus(V1) and cortex of the inferior wall of the calcarine sulcus(V2). We measured the thickness of each cortical area and statistically analyzed our data.RESULTS: We found a significant difference of the mean value of the V1(P < 0.05) between right and left hemispheres, as well as very significant correlations(P < 0.001) between the following cortical areas: N and F, A and F, S and F, A and S, A and N, S and N. We also found significant correlations(P < 0.01) between the following areas: S and M, S and H, N and H, as well asbetween the following areas(P < 0.05): V1 and V2, M and F, M and N, A and H. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that there could be a potentially stronger impact for objects placed in the left inferior quarter of the visual field. Our study revealed several thickness-based correlations among different functional cortical areas. Most of them seem to have a more or less rational explanation.