Neural Mechanism of Mammalian Vocalization

Comment on Newman et al. concerning "growing into a deficit"

If memory serves be correctly, Patricia Goldman reported many years ago that early lesions of dorsolateral prefrontal cortex led to later dysfunctions in the delayed memory paradigm, and that this effect was due especially (or perhaps solely) in males. This effect seems to be parallel to yours - that early cortical lesions causing little or no symptoms at the time of the surgery can nevertheless produce a later functional deficit - an effect known as "growing into the deficit" primarily in males. That delayed deficits should appear is no longer surprising, but that it should happen in males more than females (in both her original study and your current one) is more of a mystery. Do you know of other evidence supporting this sexual difference in cortical functional plasticity, supporting it as a general principle in primates? Do you know of other maturational or hormonal correlates?

Wed Dec 9