14 October 2004 | Andrea Mechelli*, Jenny T. Crinion*, Uta Noppeney*, John O'Doherty*, John Ashburner*, Richard S. Frackowiak*, Cathy J. Price*
The study investigates the structural plasticity in the bilingual brain, focusing on the impact of second language proficiency and age at acquisition on grey-matter density in the left inferior parietal cortex. Using voxel-based morphometry (VBM), the researchers compared healthy right-handed English and Italian bilinguals with monolinguals. They found that bilinguals had greater grey-matter density in this region compared to monolinguals, with a more pronounced effect in early bilinguals (learned before age 5) than in late bilinguals (learned between ages 10 and 15). Additionally, second-language proficiency was negatively correlated with age at acquisition, and grey-matter density in the left inferior parietal region decreased with increasing age of acquisition. These findings suggest that the human brain undergoes structural changes in response to learning a second language, potentially mediated by functional rather than structural plasticity. The study also highlights a potential general principle of brain organization where grey-matter density is related to performance.The study investigates the structural plasticity in the bilingual brain, focusing on the impact of second language proficiency and age at acquisition on grey-matter density in the left inferior parietal cortex. Using voxel-based morphometry (VBM), the researchers compared healthy right-handed English and Italian bilinguals with monolinguals. They found that bilinguals had greater grey-matter density in this region compared to monolinguals, with a more pronounced effect in early bilinguals (learned before age 5) than in late bilinguals (learned between ages 10 and 15). Additionally, second-language proficiency was negatively correlated with age at acquisition, and grey-matter density in the left inferior parietal region decreased with increasing age of acquisition. These findings suggest that the human brain undergoes structural changes in response to learning a second language, potentially mediated by functional rather than structural plasticity. The study also highlights a potential general principle of brain organization where grey-matter density is related to performance.