Slowly, more tool are being developed to analyze the premature infant's nervous system - JR

Left Hand – Right Hand, Premature Babies Make the Link

Preterm baby holding a cylinder. (Credit: © Frédérique Berne-Audéoud, CHU de Grenoble)

ScienceDaily (Apr. 12, 2012) — From the 31^st week of pregnancy, preterm babies are capable of recognizing with one hand an object they have already explored with the other. This ability, known as "intermanual transfer," has been demonstrated in premature infants [1]. These results show that the corpus callosum, also known as the colossal commissure, i.e. the brain structure involved in information transfer, is functional from this early age.

This work has been published online, on the journal Child Development's website.
Recognizing that an object already manipulated with one hand is the same as that held in the other hand is an important ability of the brain known as "intermanual transfer." This activity reflects the brain's capacity to memorize information on an object, store it as memory and compare it with information taken in by the opposite hand. Medical imaging has shown that the transfer of information relies on the integrity of the posterior part of the corpus callosum. Composed of a series of neural fibers, this bundle connects the two hemispheres of the brain and thus ensures the coordination of information. Due to its very slow maturation, it is the final brain structure to develop in fetuses. The question is therefore to determine at what point it becomes functional....

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