Neurofunctional Asymmetries and Vocal Perception

描述（由申请人提供）：人们普遍认为，语言功能在人脑中是不对称处理的，左半球占主导地位。据信，这种偏侧化使得能够快速感知、组织和产生对人类口语至关重要的复杂声学信号。对于那些对人类语言的行为和神经基础的进化感兴趣的人来说，研究这种神经侧化的系统发育起源是必要的。解决这个问题的一种方法是研究参与非人类灵长类动物声音信号感知和处理的神经解剖结构。功能性神经成像技术的进步使得在体内检查这些系统成为可能。下面的项目被提出来确定黑猩猩，Pan troglodytes，是否通过左侧化机制感知和处理显著的发声。为了实现这一目标，正电子发射断层扫描（PET）将被用来可视化黑猩猩的神经元活动，同时感知同种发声。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): It is commonly accepted that language functions are processed asymmetrically in the human brain, with the left hemisphere dominant. It is believed that this lateralization enables the rapid perception, organization, and production of the complex acoustic signals that are essential for human spoken language. For those interested in the evolution of both the behavioral and neurological substrates of human speech, it is imperative to examine the phylogenetic origins of this neural lateralization. One way to approach this issue is to study the neuroanatomical structures involved in the perception and processing of nonhuman primate vocal signals. Advances in functional neural imaging techniques now make it possible to examine these systems in vivo. The following project is proposed to determine whether or not chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes, perceive and process communicatively salient vocalizations via a left- lateralized mechanism. To accomplish this aim, Positron Emission Tomography (PET) will be used to visualize neuronal activity in chimpanzees while perceiving conspecific vocalizations.