Bimanual coordination positively predicts episodic memory: A combined behavioral and MRI investigation.

Some people remember events more completely and accurately than other people, but the origins of individual differences in episodic memory are poorly understood. One way to advance understanding is by identifying characteristics of individuals that reliably covary with memory performance. Recent research suggests motor behavior is related to memory performance, with individuals who consistently use a single preferred hand for unimanual actions performing worse than individuals who make greater use of both hands.

Focal cortical dysplasias in autism spectrum disorders.

Background: Previous reports indicate the presence of histological abnormalities in the brains of individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) suggestive of a dysplastic process. In this study we identified areas of abnormal cortical thinning within the cerebral cortex of ASD individuals and examined the same for neuronal morphometric abnormalities by using computerized image analysis.

Results: The study analyzed celloidin-embedded and Nissl-stained serial full coronal brain sections of 7 autistic (ADI-R diagnosed) and 7 age/sex-matched neurotypicals.

Gyral window mapping of typical cortical folding using MRI.

Using the NIH Pediatric MRI Data Repository for normative developmental studies, white matter depth within the gyri of the frontal, temporal, parietal, and occipital lobes, and of the left and right hemisphere was identified for 312 typically developing children and young adults (168 male and 144 female) between 4 and 23 years of age. There was no significant age difference between male and female groups overall (F(1,867) = 0.0002; p = 0.