Neural Regeneration Research ›› 2017, Vol. 12 ›› Issue (1): 109-117.doi: 10.4103/1673-5374.198996

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Evidence of cortical reorganization of language networks after stroke with subacute Broca’s aphasia: a blood oxygenation level dependent-functional magnetic resonance imaging study

Wei-hong Qiu1, Hui-xiang Wu1, Qing-lu Yang1, Zhuang Kang2, Zhao-cong Chen1, Kui Li1, Guo-rong Qiu1, Chun-qing Xie1, Gui-fang Wan1, Shao-qiong Chen2   

  1. 1 Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China; 
    2 Department of Radiology, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
  • Received:2016-11-10 Online:2017-01-15 Published:2017-01-15
  • Contact: Wei-hong Qiu, M.D. or Kui Li, q-weihong@163.com or likui3@126.com.
  • Supported by:

    This study was supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province of China, No. 2016A030313327; the Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangzhou City of China, No. 201607010185; the Science and Technology Planning Project of Guangdong Province of China, No. 2016A020215226.

Abstract:

 

Aphasia is an acquired language disorder that is a common consequence of stroke. The pathogenesis of the disease is not fully understood, and as a result, current treatment options are not satisfactory. Here, we used blood oxygenation level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging to evaluate the activation of bilateral cortices in patients with Broca’s aphasia 1 to 3 months after stroke. Our results showed that language expression was associated with multiple brain regions in which the right hemisphere participated in the generation of language. The activation areas in the left hemisphere of aphasia patients were significantly smaller compared with those in healthy adults. The activation frequency, volumes, and intensity in the regions related to language, such as the left inferior frontal gyrus (Broca’s area), the left superior temporal gyrus, and the right inferior frontal gyrus (the mirror region of Broca’s area), were lower in patients compared with healthy adults. In contrast, activation in the right superior temporal gyrus, the bilateral superior parietal lobule, and the left inferior temporal gyrus was stronger in patients compared with healthy controls. These results suggest that the right inferior frontal gyrus plays a role in the recovery of language function in the subacute stage of stroke-related aphasia by increasing the engagement of related brain areas.

Key words: nerve regeneration, functional magnetic resonance imaging, cortical functional connectivity, language regions, neuroplasticity, Perisylvian language regions, brain activation, right hemisphere, picture-naming task, neural regeneration