Somatotopic mapping of the human breast using 7 T functional MRI
Jop Beugels,
Job van den Hurk,
Judith C. Peters,
Esther M. Heuts,
Stefania M.H. Tuinder,
Rainer Goebel,
René R.W.J. van der Hulst
Affiliations
Jop Beugels
Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Hand Surgery, Maastricht University Medical Center, 6229 HX, Maastricht, Netherlands; GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University Medical Center, 6229 ER, Maastricht, Netherlands; Corresponding author. Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Hand Surgery, Maastricht University Medical Centre, P.O. Box 5800, 6202 AZ, Maastricht, the Netherlands.
Job van den Hurk
Scannexus ultra high-field MRI center, 6229 EV, Maastricht, Netherlands; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 MD, Maastricht, Netherlands; Maastricht Brain Imaging Center (M-BIC), Maastricht University, 6229 EV, Maastricht, Netherlands
Judith C. Peters
Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 MD, Maastricht, Netherlands; Maastricht Brain Imaging Center (M-BIC), Maastricht University, 6229 EV, Maastricht, Netherlands; Department of Vision and Cognition, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, An Institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), 1105 BA, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
Esther M. Heuts
Department of Surgery, Maastricht University Medical Center, 622 HX, Maastricht, Netherlands
Stefania M.H. Tuinder
Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Hand Surgery, Maastricht University Medical Center, 6229 HX, Maastricht, Netherlands
Rainer Goebel
Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, 6200 MD, Maastricht, Netherlands; Maastricht Brain Imaging Center (M-BIC), Maastricht University, 6229 EV, Maastricht, Netherlands; Department of Vision and Cognition, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, An Institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), 1105 BA, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
René R.W.J. van der Hulst
Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Hand Surgery, Maastricht University Medical Center, 6229 HX, Maastricht, Netherlands; GROW – School for Oncology and Developmental Biology, Maastricht University Medical Center, 6229 ER, Maastricht, Netherlands
How are tactile sensations in the breast represented in the female and male brain? Using ultra high-field 7 T MRI in ten females and ten males, we demonstrate that the representation of tactile breast information shows a somatotopic organization, with cortical magnification of the nipple. Furthermore, we show that the core representation of the breast is organized according to the specific nerve architecture that underlies breast sensation, where the medial and lateral sides of one breast are asymmetrically represented in bilateral primary somatosensory cortex. Finally, gradual selectivity signatures allude to a somatotopic organization of the breast area with overlapping, but distinctive, cortical representations of breast segments. Our univariate and multivariate analyses consistently showed similar somatosensory breast representations in males and females. The findings can guide future research on neuroplastic reorganization of the breast area, across reproductive life stages, and after breast surgery.
