Do injuries to the developing human brain alter corticospinal projections?

Abstract

Experimental lesions of the mammalian brain involving the developing corticospinal pathways may cause these pathways to become redirected. In humans, injury to the developing brain results in disorders of movement known collectively as 'cerebral palsy'. These motor disorders differ from those produced by similar lesions in adults. We present evidence that abnormal corticospinal projections exist in subjects who have had an injury to the brain in the perinatal period. These aberrant connections, which may represent misdirected corticospinal fibers, help to explain the impairment of voluntary movements experienced by these subjects.