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The Journal of Neuroscience, November 21, 2007, 27(47):13028-13032; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.3039-07.2007

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Brief Communications
Cortical Thickness in Congenital Amusia: When Less Is Better Than More

Krista L. Hyde,^1,2 Jason P. Lerch,³ Robert J. Zatorre,¹ Timothy D. Griffiths,⁴ Alan C. Evans,¹ and Isabelle Peretz²

¹Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 2B4, ²Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3C 3J7, ³Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 1X8, and ⁴Newcastle University Medical School, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4HH, United Kingdom

Correspondence should be addressed to Krista L. Hyde, McConnell Brain Imaging Center, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 2B4. Email: krista.hyde{at}mail.mcgill.ca

Congenital amusia (or tone deafness) is a lifelong disorder characterized by impairments in the perception and production of music. A previous voxel-based morphometry (VBM) study revealed that amusic individuals had reduced white matter in the right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) relative to musically intact controls (Hyde et al., 2006). However, this VBM study also revealed associated increases in gray matter in the same right IFG region of amusics. The objective of the present study was to better understand this morphological brain anomaly by way of cortical thickness measures that provide a more specific measure of cortical morphology relative to VBM. We found that amusic subjects (n = 21) have thicker cortex in the right IFG and the right auditory cortex relative to musically intact controls (n = 26). These cortical thickness differences suggest the presence of cortical malformations in the amusic brain, such as abnormal neuronal migration, that may have compromised the normal development of a right frontotemporal pathway.

Key words: congenital amusia; tone deafness; music; brain; cortical thickness; MRI

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Received March 27, 2007; revised Sept. 13, 2007; accepted Oct. 22, 2007.

Correspondence should be addressed to Krista L. Hyde, McConnell Brain Imaging Center, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, 3801 University Street, Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3A 2B4. Email: krista.hyde{at}mail.mcgill.ca

This article has been cited by other articles:

				P. Loui, D. Alsop, and G. Schlaug Tone Deafness: A New Disconnection Syndrome? J. Neurosci., August 19, 2009; 29(33): 10215 - 10220. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				P. Bermudez, J. P. Lerch, A. C. Evans, and R. J. Zatorre Neuroanatomical Correlates of Musicianship as Revealed by Cortical Thickness and Voxel-Based Morphometry Cereb Cortex, July 1, 2009; 19(7): 1583 - 1596. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				I. Peretz, E. Brattico, M. Jarvenpaa, and M. Tervaniemi The amusic brain: in tune, out of key, and unaware Brain, May 1, 2009; 132(5): 1277 - 1286. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. M. Leaver, J. Van Lare, B. Zielinski, A. R. Halpern, and J. P. Rauschecker Brain Activation during Anticipation of Sound Sequences J. Neurosci., February 25, 2009; 29(8): 2477 - 2485. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

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