Structural and Functional MRI Differences in Master Sommeliers: A pilot study on expertise in the brain
Our experiences, even as adults, shape our brains. Regional differences have been found in experts, with the regions associated with their particular skill-set. Functional differences have also been noted in brain activation patterns in some experts. This study uses multimodal techniques to assess s...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Frontiers Media S.A.
2016-08-01
|
| Series: | Frontiers in Human Neuroscience |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnhum.2016.00414/full |
| _version_ | 1818127471149580288 |
|---|---|
| author | Sarah Jane Banks Karthik Sreenivasan David Weintraub Deanna Baldock Michael Noback Meghan Pierce Johannes Frasnelli Jay James Erik Beall Xiaowei Zhuang Dietmar Cordes Gabriel Charles Leger |
| author_facet | Sarah Jane Banks Karthik Sreenivasan David Weintraub Deanna Baldock Michael Noback Meghan Pierce Johannes Frasnelli Jay James Erik Beall Xiaowei Zhuang Dietmar Cordes Gabriel Charles Leger |
| author_sort | Sarah Jane Banks |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Our experiences, even as adults, shape our brains. Regional differences have been found in experts, with the regions associated with their particular skill-set. Functional differences have also been noted in brain activation patterns in some experts. This study uses multimodal techniques to assess structural and functional patterns that differ between experts and nonexperts. Sommeliers are experts in wine and thus in olfaction. We assessed differences in Master Sommeliers’ brains, compared with controls, in structure and also in functional response to olfactory and visual judgment tasks. MRI data were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry as well as automated parcellation to assess structural properties, and group differences between tasks were calculated. Results indicate enhanced volume in the right insula and entorhinal cortex, with the cortical thickness of the entorhinal correlating with experience. There were regional activation differences in a large area involving the right olfactory and memory regions, with heightened activation specifically for sommeliers during an olfactory task. Our results indicate that sommeliers’ brains show specialization in the expected regions of the olfactory and memory networks, and also in regions important in integration of internal sensory stimuli and external cues. Overall, these differences suggest that specialized expertise and training might result in enhancements in the brain well into adulthood. This is particularly important given the regions involved, which are the first to be impacted by many neurodegenerative diseases. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T07:17:53Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-53c8d78651744250855ef6c8353f328b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1662-5161 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T07:17:53Z |
| publishDate | 2016-08-01 |
| publisher | Frontiers Media S.A. |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Frontiers in Human Neuroscience |
| spelling | doaj.art-53c8d78651744250855ef6c8353f328b2022-12-22T01:16:10ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Human Neuroscience1662-51612016-08-011010.3389/fnhum.2016.00414170135Structural and Functional MRI Differences in Master Sommeliers: A pilot study on expertise in the brainSarah Jane Banks0Karthik Sreenivasan1David Weintraub2Deanna Baldock3Michael Noback4Meghan Pierce5Johannes Frasnelli6Jay James7Erik Beall8Xiaowei Zhuang9Dietmar Cordes10Gabriel Charles Leger11Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthUniversite du Quebec a Trois RivieresChappellet WinesCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthCleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain HealthOur experiences, even as adults, shape our brains. Regional differences have been found in experts, with the regions associated with their particular skill-set. Functional differences have also been noted in brain activation patterns in some experts. This study uses multimodal techniques to assess structural and functional patterns that differ between experts and nonexperts. Sommeliers are experts in wine and thus in olfaction. We assessed differences in Master Sommeliers’ brains, compared with controls, in structure and also in functional response to olfactory and visual judgment tasks. MRI data were analyzed using voxel-based morphometry as well as automated parcellation to assess structural properties, and group differences between tasks were calculated. Results indicate enhanced volume in the right insula and entorhinal cortex, with the cortical thickness of the entorhinal correlating with experience. There were regional activation differences in a large area involving the right olfactory and memory regions, with heightened activation specifically for sommeliers during an olfactory task. Our results indicate that sommeliers’ brains show specialization in the expected regions of the olfactory and memory networks, and also in regions important in integration of internal sensory stimuli and external cues. Overall, these differences suggest that specialized expertise and training might result in enhancements in the brain well into adulthood. This is particularly important given the regions involved, which are the first to be impacted by many neurodegenerative diseases.http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnhum.2016.00414/fullEntorhinal CortexMRIExpertiseOlfactioninsular cortex |
| spellingShingle | Sarah Jane Banks Karthik Sreenivasan David Weintraub Deanna Baldock Michael Noback Meghan Pierce Johannes Frasnelli Jay James Erik Beall Xiaowei Zhuang Dietmar Cordes Gabriel Charles Leger Structural and Functional MRI Differences in Master Sommeliers: A pilot study on expertise in the brain Frontiers in Human Neuroscience Entorhinal Cortex MRI Expertise Olfaction insular cortex |
| title | Structural and Functional MRI Differences in Master Sommeliers: A pilot study on expertise in the brain |
| title_full | Structural and Functional MRI Differences in Master Sommeliers: A pilot study on expertise in the brain |
| title_fullStr | Structural and Functional MRI Differences in Master Sommeliers: A pilot study on expertise in the brain |
| title_full_unstemmed | Structural and Functional MRI Differences in Master Sommeliers: A pilot study on expertise in the brain |
| title_short | Structural and Functional MRI Differences in Master Sommeliers: A pilot study on expertise in the brain |
| title_sort | structural and functional mri differences in master sommeliers a pilot study on expertise in the brain |
| topic | Entorhinal Cortex MRI Expertise Olfaction insular cortex |
| url | http://journal.frontiersin.org/Journal/10.3389/fnhum.2016.00414/full |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT sarahjanebanks structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT karthiksreenivasan structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT davidweintraub structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT deannabaldock structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT michaelnoback structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT meghanpierce structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT johannesfrasnelli structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT jayjames structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT erikbeall structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT xiaoweizhuang structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT dietmarcordes structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain AT gabrielcharlesleger structuralandfunctionalmridifferencesinmastersommeliersapilotstudyonexpertiseinthebrain |