Professors get grants to study specific part of brain

The National Institutes of Health have awarded two UCI neuroscientists a $2-million grant to study an area of the brain associated with language, university officials announced Tuesday.

Cognitive sciences professors Gregory Hickock and Kourish Saberi will use the five-year grant to study the overall function of the planum temporale, a part of the brain in the left and right hemispheres in the auditory cortex.

The scientists hope their study could lead to clinical research and treatment of developmental and psychiatric disorders such as autism and schizophrenia.

Studies have shown professional musicians with perfect pitch have an asymmetric left planum temporale, while schizophrenia patients have an enlarged right planum temporale.

A lack of normal asymmetry in both hemispheres have been found in people with autism, officials said.

The scientists will map the planum temporale’s functional organization using specialized MRI technology while they observe the brain activities of people performing auditory and motor skills.

— Joseph Serna