Li Min Chen1,
Alex V. Maier2, Arabinda Mishra1, Feng Wang1,
Daniel Colvin1, Allen T. Newton1, M. Young2,
John C. Gore1, Jeffrey D. Schall2
1Vanderbilt
University Institute of Imaging Science, Vanderbilt University, Nashville,
TN, United States; 2Department of Psychological Sciences,
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, United States
Being off-limits to the invasive anatomical techniques, knowledge of human brain connectivity lags behind nonhuman primate. The proposed study is intended to investigate the homology of the primate frontal lobe using a novel imaging approach that bridges the evolutionary division between new world monkeys (Ceboidea) and old world primates (Cercopithecidae). We implemented an unsupervised self-organization mapping1,2 (SOM) technique to study the functional connectivity network of the frontal eye field (FEF) of macaques and squirrel monkeys. Comparison of these connectivity maps across monkey species is a promising initial step to establish the degree of homology of cortical sub-regions in primates.