The bilateral Right Cerebrum.Temporal Lobe.Middle Temporal Gyrus.White Matter corresponds to the subcortical myelinated fiber tracts underlying the middle temporal gyrus in the right hemisphere, as defined in the Talairach 2 mm Atlas. This white matter region contains association fibers interconnecting temporal cortical areas with each other and with distant regions such as the occipital, parietal, and frontal lobes, contributing to networks involved in language processing, semantic memory, auditory perception, and aspects of social cognition. It encompasses portions of major temporal lobe pathways (including segments of the inferior longitudinal and arcuate fasciculi) that relay information between lateral temporal cortex and higher-order multimodal association areas. Functionally, integrity of this white matter is important for efficient communication within temporal lobe circuits and between the temporal lobe and broader cortico-cortical systems. There is no direct link for this exact white matter subdivision; see the related cortical structure: Middle temporal gyrus.
The bilateral right middle temporal gyrus white matter (Talairach 2 mm atlas: Right Cerebrum.Temporal Lobe.Middle Temporal Gyrus.White Matter) has been implicated indirectly in genetic studies that combine neuroimaging with genomics, particularly through diffusion MRI and structural connectivity GWAS. Variants in genes involved in axonal guidance, myelination, and synaptic function—such as CNTNAP2, NRG1, DISC1, and genes within the neuregulin and ERBB signaling pathways—have been associated with microstructural properties (e.g., fractional anisotropy) and connectivity involving temporal lobe white matter, including the middle temporal gyrus. Imaging-genetics studies and large consortia (e.g., ENIGMA) have linked temporal lobe white matter measures to polygenic risk for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, and autism spectrum disorder, as well as to cognitive traits like language ability, verbal memory, and general intelligence, although most findings are not specific to the right middle temporal gyrus alone but to broader temporal and association fiber systems (such as segments of the inferior longitudinal and arcuate fasciculi). GWAS of white matter integrity often identify loci in genes regulating oligodendrocyte function and neuronal development (e.g., AKT3, MAG, BDNF), which show spatial effects in temporal regions and may contribute to vulnerability to psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders through altered connectivity of middle temporal gyrus networks involved in semantic processing, social cognition, and auditory–language integration.
Overview generated by GPT-4o (2026).
Region ID: 28
Hemisphere: bilateral
Atlas: Talairach labels 2mm
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
This resource is licensed under CC0 1.0 Universal (Public Domain).