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Like the fingerprint, anatomy of the brain differs from one person to the other. This could be shown by researchers from the University of Zurich in a study. The combination of genetic prerequisites and individual life experiences is decisive for the characteristic structure of the organ.
Zurich / Switzerland – The fingerprint is unique in any human being: it unambiguously identifies a manufacturer of criminals, immigration or smartphones exploit equally. But what about the control center in our head? Is it possible, based on certain anatomical features of the brain, to infer the person to whom the organ belongs? This issue was raised by the working group led by Lutz Jäncke, professor of neuropsychology at UZH. In previous studies, Jäncke was already able to show that individual experiences and living conditions influence the anatomy of the brain
Experiments leave traces in the brain
Professional musicians, golf players or Chess players have particularly heavy use. However, traces in cerebral anatomy also leave short-term events: for example, if the right arm is immobilized for two weeks, the thickness of the cerebral cortex in the areas responsible for the immobilized arm control is scaled down. "We hypothesized that these brain-related experiences interact with genetic predispositions, and over the years each individual develops an individualized brain anatomy," says Jäncke.
Magnetic resonance imaging provides the basis for calculations
Assuming the certainty, he and his group have studied the brain of nearly 200 elderly healthy people using imaging magnetic resonance three times over a period of two years. More than 450 neuroanatomical characteristics were calculated, including very general characteristics such as total brain volume, cerebral cortex thickness or gray matter volume and white. Finally, for each of the 191 subjects, scientists were able to identify an individual combination of neuroanatomical characteristics, with an identification accuracy of over 90%, even for very general neuroanatomical characteristics.
Combination of life and genetic circumstances
confirm that the human brain is very individual, "comments Lutz Jäncke. "Apparently, the combination of genetic and non-genetic influences not only affects the functioning of the brain, but also its anatomy." However, it is unlikely that MRIs can replace the fingerprint widely used in the detection of people in the future. In addition, MRI scans are too expensive and time consuming compared to the proven and easily measurable fingerprint.
Progress in Neuroscience
The results of the study also reflect Jäncke's great development in his field: it has been assumed that the human brain has few or no individual characteristics. The recognition of people due to neuroanatomical features was beyond what was imaginable. "However, magnetic resonance imaging has greatly improved, as has the software for evaluating digitized brain scans -" Progress that has informed us better today, "
Original Publication: Valizadeh, SA, Liem, F., Merillat, S., Hänggi, J., and Jäncke, L. (2018). Identification of individual subjects based on their anatomical features of the brain. Scientific reports, April 4, 2018. DOI: 10.1038 / s41598-018-23696-6
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