The bilateral Middle Temporal Gyrus, posterior division, as defined in the Harvard–Oxford Cortical Structural Atlas (maxprob thr25, 1 mm), corresponds to the caudal portion of the middle temporal gyrus in both cerebral hemispheres. This region lies on the lateral surface of the temporal lobe, inferior to the superior temporal gyrus and superior to the inferior temporal gyrus, extending posteriorly toward the temporo-parietal junction. Functionally, the posterior middle temporal gyrus is implicated in language processing (particularly semantic integration), auditory and visual association functions, and aspects of social cognition, including the interpretation of biological motion and action-related information. It participates in large-scale networks such as the language network and the default mode network, showing strong connectivity with frontal, parietal, and other temporal association cortices. There is no direct Wikipedia article for the “posterior division” as defined in this atlas; a closely related entry describing the broader gyrus is Middle temporal gyrus.
The bilateral posterior division of the Middle Temporal Gyrus (MTG) is a key node in language, semantic processing, and social cognition networks, and genetic associations involving this region arise largely from imaging genetics and GWAS of brain structure and function. Variants in genes affecting synaptic development and plasticity—such as BDNF, GRIN2B, CNTNAP2, and FOXP2—have been linked to MTG volume, cortical thickness, or activation patterns in language and semantic tasks, as well as to related traits including reading ability, verbal IQ, and language impairment. Large-scale GWAS of cortical morphology (e.g., ENIGMA and UK Biobank–based studies) have identified common variants near loci such as KIAA0586, HMGA2, and other neurodevelopmental genes that show associations with temporal cortex measures encompassing the MTG, although region-specific hits to the posterior MTG subdivision are less frequently resolved due to parcellation differences. Genetic risk for neurodevelopmental and psychiatric conditions—autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia, and major depressive disorder—has been associated with structural and functional alterations in the middle and superior temporal gyri, with polygenic risk scores for these disorders correlating with MTG connectivity and activation patterns in social and language networks. Additionally, GWAS of cognitive traits (educational attainment, general cognitive ability) and speech/language phenotypes have implicated common variants that modulate temporal lobe circuitry, including the MTG, suggesting that the posterior MTG acts as a convergence zone where distributed genetic influences on language, semantic cognition, social perception, and psychiatric vulnerability manifest at the level of brain structure and function.
Overview generated by GPT-4o (2026).
Region ID: 12
Hemisphere: bilateral
Atlas: HarvardOxford cort maxprob thr25 1mm
Full Quality Version: Download MP4
Full Quality Version: Download MP4
Wali Sidiqyar*, Gaurav Rudravaram*, Elyssa M. McMaster, Trent M. Schwartz, Adam M. Saunders, Kurt G. Schilling, Bennett A. Landman "Introducing SPINS: A Shared Public Visualization Library of Neuroanatomical Structures." Medical Imaging with Deep Learning- short paper
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