Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41507325›Full record

ArticleCommunications biology2026

Cortical hierarchy and aphasia severity: the sensorimotor-association gradient modulates lesion effects within language-specific networks.

Ida Rangus, Natalie Busby, Nicholas Riccardi, Sigfus Kristinsson, Janina Wilmskoetter, Dirk B den Ouden, Chris Rorden, Roger Newman-Norlund, Julius Fridriksson, Leonardo Bonilha

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Communications biology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. The nonlinear trajectory of post-stroke aphasia recovery.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2026
    Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Ida RangusDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA. ida.rangus@charite.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9189-8941
Natalie BusbyDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7117-7899
Nicholas RiccardiDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7243-6100
Sigfus KristinssonDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
Janina WilmskoetterDepartment of Rehabilitation Sciences, College of Health Professions, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1083-7301
Dirk B den OudenDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6971-7606
Chris RordenDepartment of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
Roger Newman-NorlundDepartment of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
Julius FridrikssonDepartment of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.
Leonardo BonilhaSchool of Medicine Columbia, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA.

Funding

Telerehab for Aphasia (TERRA)P50DC014664 · NIDCD · UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH CAROLINA AT COLUMBIA · PI BONILHA, LEONARDO F · 2016 to 2025
$25.0M
NIDCD NIH HHS P50 DC014664U.S. Department of Health & Human Services | NIH | National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) DC014664
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Aphasia severity after stroke varies widely and is not fully explained by lesion size or location. We propose that incorporating the brain's sensorimotor-association (S-A) gradient, reflecting cortical hierarchy, offers a biologically grounded framework for predicting language outcomes. In 236 individuals with chronic left-hemisphere stroke, we examine whether the hierarchical position of lesions in language-specific (LS) and domain-general (DG) areas modulates aphasia severity. We parcellate lesions using a cortical atlas and weigh them by each region's S-A rank. We apply hierarchical linear regression to test whether S-A ranking and its interaction with lesion volume improves prediction of Western Aphasia Battery-Revised Aphasia Quotient (WAB-R-AQ) scores. Across models, lesion volume in lower S-A regions is more detrimental than in higher-order areas. The LS-only model yields the highest explanatory power (adjusted R

Indexed as

AphasiaCerebral CortexLanguageStrokeAgedBrain MappingFemaleHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleMiddle AgedSeverity of Illness Index

Identifiers

PMID41507325
PMCPMC12852797

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.