map of white matter tracts in a lesser ape, the lar gibbon.

Bryant KL., Manger PR., Bertelsen MF., Khrapitchev AA., Sallet J., Benn RA., Mars RB.

The recent development of methods for constructing directly comparable white matter atlases in primate brains from diffusion MRI allows us to probe specializations unique to humans, great apes, and other primate taxa. Here, we constructed the first white matter atlas of a lesser ape using an ex vivo diffusion-weighted scan of a brain from a young adult (5.5 years) male lar gibbon. We find that white matter architecture of the gibbon temporal lobe suggests specializations that are reminiscent of those previously reported for great apes, specifically, the expansion of the arcuate fasciculus and the inferior longitudinal fasciculus in the temporal lobe. Our findings suggest these white matter expansions into the temporal lobe were present in the last common ancestor to hominoids approximately 16 million years ago and were further modified in the great ape and human lineages. White matter atlases provide a useful resource for identifying neuroanatomical differences and similarities between humans and other primate species and provide insight into the evolutionary variation and stasis of brain organization.

DOI

10.1007/s00429-023-02709-9

Type

Journal article

Publication Date

2024-11-01T00:00:00+00:00

Volume

229

Pages

1839 - 1854

Total pages

15

Keywords

DWI, Evolution, Fasciculus, Hominoid, Tractography, Animals, White Matter, Hylobates, Male, Diffusion Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Brain, Neural Pathways, Temporal Lobe, Brain Mapping, Biological Evolution, Diffusion Tensor Imaging

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