Functional Organization of Human Sensorimotor Cortex for Speech Articulation

Speaking is one of the most complex actions we perform, yet nearly all of us learn to do it effortlessly. Production of fluent speech requires the precise, coordinated movement of multiple articulators (e.g., lips, jaw, tongue, larynx) over rapid time scales. Here, we used high-resolution, multi-electrode cortical recordings during the production of consonant-vowel syllables to determine the organization of speech sensorimotor cortex in humans. We found speech articulator representations that were somatotopically arranged on ventral pre- and post-central gyri and partially overlapping at individual electrodes. These representations were temporally coordinated as sequences during syllable production. Spatial patterns of cortical activity revealed an emergent, population-level representation, which was organized by phonetic features. Over tens of milliseconds, the spatial patterns transitioned between distinct representations for different consonants and vowels. These results reveal the dynamic organization of speech sensorimotor cortex during the generation of multi-articulator movements underlying our ability to speak.