title: Structural Neural Substrates of Reading the Mind in the Eyes.
abstract: The ability to read the minds of others in their eyes plays an important role in human adaptation to social environments. Behavioral studies have resulted in the development of a test to measure this ability (Reading the Mind in the Eyes Test, revised version; Eyes Test), and have demonstrated that this ability is consistent over time. Although functional neuroimaging studies revealed brain activation while performing the Eyes Test, the structural neural substrates supporting consistent performance on the Eyes Test remain unclear. In this study, we assessed the Eyes Test and analyzed structural magnetic resonance images using voxel-based morphometry (VBM) in healthy participants. Test performance was positively associated with the gray matter volumes of the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex, inferior parietal lobule (temporoparietal junction), and precuneus in the left hemisphere. These results suggest that the fronto-temporoparietal network structures support the consistent ability to read the mind in the eyes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurodevelopmental Psychiatry, Habilitation and Rehabilitation, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Wataru
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sato
authors.affiliation: Brain Activity Imaging Center, Advanced Telecommunications Research Institute International Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Takanori
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kochiyama
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurodevelopmental Psychiatry, Habilitation and Rehabilitation, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Shota
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Uono
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurodevelopmental Psychiatry, Habilitation and Rehabilitation, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Reiko
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sawada
authors.affiliation: Health and Medical Services Center, Shiga University Hikone Shiga, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasutaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kubota
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurodevelopmental Psychiatry, Habilitation and Rehabilitation, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Sayaka
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yoshimura
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Human Health Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto UniversitySakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan; The Organization for Promoting Developmental Disorder ResearchSakyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Motomi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Toichi
keywords: dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC); reading the mind in the eyes test; structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI); temporoparietal junction (TPJ); theory of mind (TOM); voxel-based morphometry (VBM)