The role of the anterior temporal lobes (ATLs) in semantic representation remains still much debated. Long thought to support domain-general semantic processing, recent accounts have alternatively suggested that they may be preferentially involved in the processing of person-related semantic knowledge. Several studies have supported such a distinction, but few have either examined both types of semantic processing together, or considered the role of potentially important confounding variables. Here, we address these issues by investigating both domain-general and person-specific semantic processing in a patient with focal ATL damage. The patient presents with dense anterograde and retrograde amnesia. Performance was impaired on tests of general semantic knowledge, but most striking deficits were for person-related semantics, including recognition and identification, knowledge of emotions and social conceptual knowledge. This unique case provides compelling evidence that, in addition to the role in general semantic knowledge, the ATLs are critical for person-related semantics.

中文翻译：

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一个案例研究，调查前颞叶在一般语义和特定于人、情绪和社会概念知识的语义中的作用

前颞叶 (ATL) 在语义表示中的作用仍然存在很大争议。长期以来被认为支持域通用语义处理，最近的报道交替表明它们可能优先参与与人相关的语义知识的处理。几项研究支持这种区别，但很少有人同时研究这两种类型的语义处理，或考虑潜在重要混杂变量的作用。在这里，我们通过调查患有局灶性 ATL 损伤的患者的域一般和个人语义处理来解决这些问题。患者表现为密集的顺行性和逆行性遗忘。在一般语义知识测试中表现受损，但最显着的缺陷是与人相关的语义，包括识别和识别、情感知识和社会概念知识。这个独特的案例提供了令人信服的证据，表明除了在一般语义知识中的作用之外，ATL 对于与人相关的语义也至关重要。