Sex-differences in grey-white matter structure in normal-reading and dyslexic adolescents

Neurosci Lett. 2008 Jun 13;438(1):80-4. doi: 10.1016/j.neulet.2008.04.022. Epub 2008 Apr 11.

Abstract

MR images were used to look for brain structure irregularities in adolescent children with dyslexia by use of combined grey and white matter volume measurements and fractal dimension (FD) of the grey-white matter border. The data were collected from 13 dyslexic adolescent (8 boys and 5 girls) that were compared with 18 control subjects (8 boys and 10 girls). The MR images were first segmented, and the volume as well as the FD of the grey/white matter border for the whole brain and for each hemisphere was computed. Changes were found in the measured volumes of both grey and white matter and were best reflected in the ratio of grey/white matter and in FD values, especially in the left hemisphere. The results showed that, although dyslexia is less frequent in women, the structural differences in the brain are more pronounced in their case, pointing to an increased vulnerability of the female brain to morphological changes associated with dyslexia.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Age Factors
  • Cerebral Cortex / abnormalities*
  • Cerebral Cortex / growth & development
  • Cerebral Cortex / physiopathology
  • Dominance, Cerebral / physiology
  • Dyslexia / etiology*
  • Dyslexia / physiopathology
  • Female
  • Functional Laterality / physiology
  • Genetic Predisposition to Disease / embryology
  • Humans
  • Intelligence / genetics
  • Magnetic Resonance Imaging
  • Male
  • Nerve Fibers, Myelinated / pathology
  • Nervous System Malformations / complications
  • Nervous System Malformations / diagnosis*
  • Nervous System Malformations / physiopathology
  • Neural Pathways / abnormalities
  • Neural Pathways / physiopathology
  • Predictive Value of Tests
  • Reading
  • Sex Characteristics*
  • Verbal Behavior / physiology