title: Reasoning by analogy requires the left frontal pole: lesion-deficit mapping and clinical implications.
abstract: SEE BURGESS DOI101093/BRAIN/AWW092 FOR A SCIENTIFIC COMMENTARY ON THIS ARTICLE  : Analogical reasoning is at the core of the generalization and abstraction processes that enable concept formation and creativity. The impact of neurological diseases on analogical reasoning is poorly known, despite its importance in everyday life and in society. Neuroimaging studies of healthy subjects and the few studies that have been performed on patients have highlighted the importance of the prefrontal cortex in analogical reasoning. However, the critical cerebral bases for analogical reasoning deficits remain elusive. In the current study, we examined analogical reasoning abilities in 27 patients with focal damage in the frontal lobes and performed voxel-based lesion-behaviour mapping and tractography analyses to investigate the structures critical for analogical reasoning. The findings revealed that damage to the left rostrolateral prefrontal region (or some of its long-range connections) specifically impaired the ability to reason by analogies. A short version of the analogy task predicted the existence of a left rostrolateral prefrontal lesion with good accuracy. Experimental manipulations of the analogy tasks suggested that this region plays a role in relational matching or integration. The current lesion approach demonstrated that the left rostrolateral prefrontal region is a critical node in the analogy network. Our results also suggested that analogy tasks should be translated to clinical practice to refine the neuropsychological assessment of patients with frontal lobe lesions.
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 4 ICM, FrontLab, 75013 Paris, France 5 Hôpitaux de Saint-Maurice, Medicine and Rehabilitation Department, 94410 Saint-Maurice, France.
authors.forename: Marika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Urbanski
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 4 ICM, FrontLab, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Marie-Laure
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Bréchemier
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 4 ICM, FrontLab, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Béatrice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Garcin
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 4 ICM, FrontLab, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Bendetowicz
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 4 ICM, FrontLab, 75013 Paris, France 6 ICM, Brain Connectivity and Behaviour, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Michel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Thiebaut de Schotten
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 4 ICM, FrontLab, 75013 Paris, France 6 ICM, Brain Connectivity and Behaviour, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Chris
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Foulon
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 7 AP-HP, Hôpital de la Salpêtrière, Stroke Centre, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Charlotte
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Rosso
authors.affiliation: 8 AP-HP, Hôpital de la Salpêtrière, Neuroradiology Department, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Frédéric
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Clarençon
authors.affiliation: 9 AP-HP, Hôpital de la Salpêtrière, Epileptology Department, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Sophie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Dupont
authors.affiliation: 10 AP-HP, Hôpital de la Salpêtrière, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Department, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Pascale
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pradat-Diehl
authors.affiliation: 11 AP-HP, Hôpital Lariboisière, Neuroradiology Department, 75010 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Marc-Antoine
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Labeyrie
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 12 AP-HP, Hôpital de la Salpêtrière, Behavioural Neuropsychiatry Unit, 75013 Paris, France.
authors.forename: Richard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.affiliation: 1 Inserm, U 1127, 75013 Paris, France 2 CNRS, UMR 7225, 75013 Paris, France 3 Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UMR S 1127, 75013 Paris, France 4 ICM, FrontLab, 75013 Paris, France 6 ICM, Brain Connectivity and Behaviour, 75013 Paris, France 13 CENIR, ICM, 75013 Paris, France emmavolle@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Emmanuelle
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Volle
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001931:Brain Mapping; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D056324:Diffusion Tensor Imaging; D004292:Dominance, Cerebral / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology*; D013850:Thinking / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: abstraction; analogy; reasoning; relational integration; rostral prefrontal