The relevance of heterotopic callosal fibers to interhemispheric connectivity of the mammalian brain

Abstract

The corpus callosum (CC) is the largest white matter structure and the primary pathway for interhemispheric brain communication. Investigating callosal connectivity is crucial to unraveling the brain's anatomical and functional organization in health and disease. Classical anatomical studies have characterized the bulk of callosal axonal fibers as connecting primarily homotopic cortical areas. Whenever detected, heterotopic callosal fibers were ascribed to altered sprouting and pruning mechanisms in neurodevelopmental diseases such as CC dysgenesis (CCD). We hypothesized that these heterotopic connections had been grossly underestimated due to their complex nature and methodological limitations. We used the Allen Mouse Brain Connectivity Atlas and high-resolution diffusion-weighted imaging to identify and quantify homotopic and heterotopic callosal connections in mice, marmosets, and humans. In all 3 species, we show that ~75% of interhemispheric callosal connections are heterotopic and comprise the central core of the CC, whereas the homotopic fibers lay along its periphery. We also demonstrate that heterotopic connections have an essential role in determining the global properties of brain networks. These findings reshape our view of the corpus callosum's role as the primary hub for interhemispheric brain communication, directly impacting multiple neuroscience fields investigating cortical connectivity, neurodevelopment, and neurodevelopmental disorders.

Keywords: axonal tracing; corpus callosum; diffusion-weighted imaging; structural brain connectivity; tractography.