title: The relationship between visual word and face processing lateralization in the fusiform gyri: A cross-sectional study.
abstract: Visual words and faces activate similar networks but with complementary hemispheric asymmetries, faces being lateralized to the right and words to the left. A recent theory proposes that this reflects developmental competition between visual word and face processing. We investigated whether this results in an inverse correlation between the degree of lateralization of visual word and face activation in the fusiform gyri. 26 literate right-handed healthy adults underwent functional MRI with face and word localizers. We derived lateralization indices for cluster size and peak responses for word and face activity in left and right fusiform gyri, and correlated these across subjects. A secondary analysis examined all face- and word-selective voxels in the inferior occipitotemporal cortex. No negative correlations were found. There were positive correlations for the peak MR response between word and face activity within the left hemisphere, and between word activity in the left visual word form area and face activity in the right fusiform face area. The face lateralization index was positively rather than negatively correlated with the word index. In summary, we do not find a complementary relationship between visual word and face lateralization across subjects. The significance of the positive correlations is unclear: some may reflect the influences of general factors such as attention, but others may point to other factors that influence lateralization of function.
authors.affiliation: Human Vision and Eye Movement Laboratory, Departments of Medicine (Neurology), Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada; Crossmodal Perception and Plasticity Laboratory, Center of Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Italy.
authors.forename: Jodie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Davies-Thompson
authors.affiliation: Human Vision and Eye Movement Laboratory, Departments of Medicine (Neurology), Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
authors.forename: Samantha
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Johnston
authors.affiliation: Human Vision and Eye Movement Laboratory, Departments of Medicine (Neurology), Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
authors.forename: Yashar
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tashakkor
authors.affiliation: Human Vision and Eye Movement Laboratory, Departments of Medicine (Neurology), Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada.
authors.forename: Raika
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pancaroglu
authors.affiliation: Human Vision and Eye Movement Laboratory, Departments of Medicine (Neurology), Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada. Electronic address: jasonbarton@shaw.ca.
authors.forename: Jason J S
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Barton
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001931:Brain Mapping; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D000066499:Facial Recognition / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual / Q000502:physiology*; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D011932:Reading; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Fusiform face area; Hemispheric specialization; Visual word form area; fMRI