# Spatiotemporal organization of the inferior frontal gyrus during speech production  - Resubmission - 1

> **NIH NIH R01** · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · 2022 · $564,478

## Abstract

Project Summary
Speech is a uniquely human trait that is central to our everyday lives, but the mechanisms that enable retrieval
and formation of articulatory sequences remain elusive. Several lines of evidence suggest that the left inferior
frontal gyrus (IFG), or Broca’s region, is active prior to articulation per se and critically supports articulatory
planning. However, it remains unclear how different anatomical parcellations of IFG support retrieval of
semantic information and articulatory planning.
To investigate this issue, we will leverage resources at NYU, assembling clinicians and researchers with
complementary expertise to reexamine the role of the IFG in speech. We propose working in a cohort of
neurosurgical patients who provide a rare and unique opportunity to collect direct cortical recordings and
perturbations during speech production. Specifically, we will address the following questions: (1) what is the
time constant of neural responses across IFG in relation to speech production, (2) what is the functional
specificity of IFG regions, pars opercularis and pars triangularis, and (3) what are the functional boundaries
Broca’s territory across the left and right frontal cortices.
To gain traction on these issues, we have developed a battery of speech production tasks that is designed to
mirror clinical electrical stimulation mapping and provides a within subject functional and causal comparison.
We will use standard and high density electrocorticography (ECoG) to measure responses with high temporal
precision within IFG. To determine causality, we will manipulate cortical activity using direct cortical stimulation
and examine changes in behavior, timing of speech deficits and comparing with ECoG functional responses.
The outcome of this study will greatly advance our understanding of the neurophysiologic mechanisms
underlying speech production with a long-term goal of addressing a range of speech disorders and improving
current language mapping techniques.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10369007
- **Project number:** 5R01NS109367-04
- **Recipient organization:** NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Adeen Flinker
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $564,478
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-05-15 → 2024-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10369007

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10369007, Spatiotemporal organization of the inferior frontal gyrus during speech production  - Resubmission - 1 (5R01NS109367-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-11 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10369007. Licensed CC0.

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