Brain Regions Collaborate to Understand Language, Study Finds

UTHealth Houston researchers discover multiple brain areas work together to process concrete and abstract words.

Apr. 1, 2026 at 8:14am

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A new study led by researchers at UTHealth Houston has found that multiple regions of the brain engage in fast-moving conversations to understand language, dispelling a prior belief that only one region was responsible for language processing. The findings have important implications for patients with aphasia, dementia, and brain injuries.

Why it matters

This research provides critical insights into the neurobiology of language, revealing how the brain represents conceptual meaning beyond just physical features or subjective perceptions. Understanding these complex language processes could help improve treatment for conditions that impact speech and communication.

The details

The study, published in PLOS Biology, recorded brain activity directly using implanted electrodes in 19 epilepsy patients. Participants were asked to classify words as either concrete (representing physical objects) or abstract (representing intangible concepts). The researchers found that concrete words activated regions processing sensory experiences and language, while abstract words relied more on language-related areas. For words in between, brain responses were stable regardless of individual perceptions. Crucially, the team discovered that multiple brain regions communicated with each other to process both concrete and abstract words, rather than a single 'hub' region.

  • The research was published in PLOS Biology in April 2026.

The players

Nitin Tandon, MD

Professor of neurosurgery at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston and director of the Texas Institute for Restorative Neurotechnologies.

Elliot Murphy, PhD

Co-first author of the study and researcher at UTHealth Houston.

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What they’re saying

“An understanding of the neurobiology of language revealed by this study provides a critical framework to understand how humans produce words to represent our feelings and intangible concepts, such as 'justice,' relative to more concrete ideas that are linked to objects.”

— Nitin Tandon, MD, Professor of neurosurgery at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston and director of the Texas Institute for Restorative Neurotechnologies

“The way that the brain represents conceptual meaning is not as strictly tied to the physical features or the subjective way that you perceive the word as may have been thought previously. Even if a person thinks of the word 'magic' in purely physical terms, their brain seems to still activate some of the abstract features associated with the word 'magic'.”

— Elliot Murphy, PhD, Co-first author of the study

What’s next

The researchers plan to further investigate how the brain processes different types of language and how this knowledge could be applied to help patients with communication disorders.

The takeaway

This study challenges the traditional view of language processing in the brain, showing that multiple regions work together in a dynamic way to understand both concrete and abstract concepts. These findings could lead to improved treatments for conditions that impact speech and language.