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. 2007 Aug 29;2(8):e792.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0000792.

Corpus callosum morphology in capuchin monkeys is influenced by sex and handedness

Kimberley A Phillips  1 , Chet C Sherwood, Alayna L Lilak
Affiliations

Corpus callosum morphology in capuchin monkeys is influenced by sex and handedness

Kimberley A Phillips et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Sex differences have been reported in both overall corpus callosum area and its regional subdivisions in humans. Some have suggested this reflects a unique adaptation in humans, as similar sex differences in corpus callosum morphology have not been reported in any other species of primate examined to date. Furthermore, an association between various measurements of corpus callosum morphology and handedness has been found in humans and chimpanzees. In the current study, we report measurements of corpus callosum cross-sectional area from midsagittal MR images collected in vivo from 14 adult capuchin monkeys, 9 of which were also characterized for hand preference on a coordinated bimanual task. Adult females were found to have a significantly larger corpus callosum: brain volume ratio, rostral body, posterior midbody, isthmus, and splenium than adult males. Left-handed individuals had a larger relative overall corpus callosum area than did right-handed individuals. Additionally, a significant sex and handedness interaction was found for anterior midbody, with right-handed males having a significantly smaller area than right-handed females. These results suggest that sex and handedness influences on corpus callosum morphology are not restricted to Homo sapiens.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Midsagittal view of capuchin corpus callosum, showing 7 regional subdivisions.
These subdivisions are: 1 = rostrum; 2 = genu; 3 = rostral body; 4 = anterior midbody; 5 = posterior midbody; 6 = isthmus; 7 = splenium.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Mean (±SD) midsagittal area measures of the CC and its subdivisions as a function of sex.
Figure 3
Figure 3. Mean (±SD) midsagittal area measures of the CC and its subdivisions as a function of hand preference.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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