Callosal morphology concurs with neurobehavioral and neuropathological findings in two neurodevelopmental disorders

P. P. Wang, S. Doherty, J. R. Hesselink and U. Bellugi
Laboratory for Cognitive Neuroscience, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA 92037.

To integrate neuroimaging, neuropathologic, and neuropsychological findings, computer-assisted morphometry was applied to magnetic resonance images of the corpus callosum in adolescents with Down and Williams syndromes and in control subjects. Callosa of subjects with Down syndrome were distinctively rounded in form, consistent with Down syndrome brachycephaly. These callosa also showed decreased widths throughout their rostral fifth, which serves frontal lobe projections. This finding correlates with the hypocellularity and hypofrontality of neocortex in subjects with Down syndrome and with their neuropsychological profile of frontal lobe dysfunction. Callosa of subjects with Williams syndrome generally resembled control specimens, in congruence with their frontal lobe structure and better preserved frontal lobe function. These results represent a convergence of findings across levels of neuroscientific investigation.

THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES

An Experiment of Nature: Brain Anatomy Parallels Cognition and Behavior in Williams Syndrome
Reiss et al.
J. Neurosci. 2004;24:5009-5015.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Relation of Corpus Callosum and Hippocampal Size to Age in Nondemented Adults With Down's Syndrome
Teipel et al.
Am. J. Psychiatry 2003;160:1870-1878.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Midline Developmental Anomalies in Down Syndrome
Kieslich et al.
J Child Neurol 2002;17:460-462.
ABSTRACT  

Mapping callosal morphology and cognitive correlates: Effects of heavy prenatal alcohol exposure
Sowell et al.
Neurology 2001;57:235-244.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Williams (Williams Beuren) Syndrome: A Distinct Neurobehavioral Disorder
Kaplan et al.
J Child Neurol 2001;16:177-190.
 

Analysis of Cerebral Shape in Williams Syndrome
Schmitt et al.
Arch Neurol 2001;58:283-287.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Multi-Level Analysis of Cortical Neuroanatomy in Williams Syndrome
Galaburda and Bellugi
J. Cogn. Neurosci. 2000;12:74S-88.
ABSTRACT | FULL TEXT  

Topical Review: Functional Brain Imaging in Neuropsychiatric Disorders of Childhood
O'Tuama et al.
J Child Neurol 1999;14:207-221.
ABSTRACT