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Brain, Vol. 119, No. 4, 1255-1262, 1996
© 1996 Guarantors of Brain

research-article

Collaboration between the hemispheres of a callosotomy patient

Emerging right hemisphere speech and the left hemisphere interpreter

Michael S. Gazzaniga, James C. Eliassen, Laura Nisenson, C. Mark Wessinger, Robert Fendrich and Kathleen Baynes

Center for Neuroscience, University of California Davis Davis, California, USA

Correspondence to: Correspondence to: M. S. Gazzaniga, Program in Cognitive Neuroscience, Silby Hall, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755–3549, USA

Split brain patients who are initially unable to produce speech in their right hemispheres sometimes develop the ability to do so. Patient J. W., the subject of this report, is such a patient. At the time of his callosotomy, J.W. had a language dominant left hemisphere; his right hemisphere could understand both spoken and written language, but he was unable to speak. Fourteen years after his surgery, we found that J. W. was capable of naming ~25% of the stimuli presented to his left visual field (LVF). Now, 1 year later, we find that he can name about 60% of such stimuli. This late-developing speech ability appears to be the consequence of long-term neural plasticity. However, the subject's extended verbal responses to LVF stimuli seem to result from a collaboration between the hemispheres and to involve the left hemisphere interpreter.

right hemisphere speech; split brain; interpreter

Received February 9, 1996. Accepted April 15, 1996.


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