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Vandecruys F, Vandermosten M, De Smedt B. The role of formal schooling in the development of children's reading and arithmetic white matter networks. Dev Sci 2024:e13557. [PMID: 39129483 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2021] [Revised: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 07/18/2024] [Indexed: 08/13/2024]
Abstract
Children's white matter development is driven by experience, yet it remains poorly understood how it is shaped by attending formal education. A small number of studies compared children before and after the start of formal schooling to understand this, yet they do not allow to separate maturational effects from schooling-related effects. A clever way to (quasi-)experimentally address this issue is the longitudinal school cut-off design, which compares children who are similar in age but differ in schooling (because they are born right before or after the cut-off date for school entry). We used for the first time such a longitudinal school cut-off design to experimentally investigate the effect of schooling on children's white matter networks. We compared "young" first graders (schooling group, n = 34; Mage = 68 months; 20 girls) and "old" preschoolers (non-schooling group, n = 33; Mage = 66 months; 18 girls) that were similar in age but differed in the amount of formal instruction they received. Our study revealed that changes in fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity in five a priori selected white matter tracts during the transition from preschool to primary school were predominantly driven by age-related maturation. We did not find specific schooling effects on white matter, despite their strong presence for early reading and early arithmetic skills. The present study is the first to disentangle the effects of age-related maturation and schooling on white matter within a longitudinal cohort of 5-year-old preschoolers. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: White matter tracts that have been associated with reading and arithmetic may be susceptible to experience-dependent neuroplasticity when children learn to read and calculate. This longitudinal study used the school cut-off design to isolate schooling-induced from coinciding maturational influences on children's white matter development. White matter changes during the transition from preschool to primary school are predominantly driven by age-related maturation and not by schooling effects. Strong effects of schooling on behavior were shown for early reading and early arithmetic, but not for verbal ability and spatial ability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Floor Vandecruys
- Parenting and Special Education Research Unit, KU Leuven, Belgium
- Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, Belgium
| | - Maaike Vandermosten
- Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, Belgium
- Experimental ORL, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Belgium
| | - Bert De Smedt
- Parenting and Special Education Research Unit, KU Leuven, Belgium
- Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, Belgium
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2
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Matchin W, Mollasaraei ZK, Bonilha L, Rorden C, Hickok G, den Ouden D, Fridriksson J. Verbal working memory and syntactic comprehension segregate into the dorsal and ventral streams. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.05.05.592577. [PMID: 38746328 PMCID: PMC11092776 DOI: 10.1101/2024.05.05.592577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/16/2024]
Abstract
Syntactic processing and verbal working memory are both essential components to sentence comprehension. Nonetheless, the separability of these systems in the brain remains unclear. To address this issue, we performed causal-inference analyses based on lesion and connectome network mapping using MRI and behavioral testing in 103 individuals with chronic post-stroke aphasia. We employed a rhyme judgment task with heavy working memory load without articulatory confounds, controlling for the overall ability to match auditory words to pictures and to perform a metalinguistic rhyme judgment, isolating the effect of working memory load. We assessed noncanonical sentence comprehension, isolating syntactic processing by incorporating residual rhyme judgment performance as a covariate for working memory load. Voxel-based lesion analyses and structural connectome-based lesion symptom mapping controlling for total lesion volume were performed, with permutation testing to correct for multiple comparisons (4,000 permutations). We observed that effects of working memory load localized to dorsal stream damage: posterior temporal-parietal lesions and frontal-parietal white matter disconnections. These effects were differentiated from syntactic comprehension deficits, which were primarily associated with ventral stream damage: lesions to temporal lobe and temporal-parietal white matter disconnections, particularly when incorporating the residual measure of working memory load as a covariate. Our results support the conclusion that working memory and syntactic processing are associated with distinct brain networks, largely loading onto dorsal and ventral streams, respectively.
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3
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Vandecruys F, Vandermosten M, De Smedt B. The inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus correlates with early precursors of mathematics and reading before the start of formal schooling. Cortex 2024; 174:149-163. [PMID: 38547813 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2024.02.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2023] [Revised: 12/20/2023] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/21/2024]
Abstract
Diffusion-weighted imaging studies in preschoolers have almost exclusively been done in the field of reading. As a result, virtually nothing is known about white matter tracts associated with individual differences in mathematics at this age. Studying the preschoolers' brain is crucial because it allows us to identify individual differences in brain anatomy without influences of formal mathematics and reading instruction. To fill this gap, we investigated for the first time before the start of formal school entry the associations between white matter tracts and precursors of mathematics and reading simultaneously. We also investigated whether these associations were specific to mathematics and to reading, or not. We focused on four bilateral white matter tracts (arcuate fasciculus (direct, anterior), inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus, inferior longitudinal fasciculus), which have been previously correlated with mathematical performance in older children and with reading performance in children of a similar age as the current study. Participants were 56 5-year-old children (Mage = 67 months; SD = 1.8), none of which received formal instruction. Our results showed an association between the bilateral inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus and precursors of mathematics (numerical ordering, numeral knowledge) and reading (phonological awareness, letter knowledge). Follow-up regression analyses revealed that the associations found with the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus were neither specific to mathematics nor specific to reading. These findings suggest that, already before the start of formal schooling, the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus might be related to the neural overlap between mathematics and reading. This overlap potentially reflects one of their many shared mechanisms, such as the reliance on phonological codes or the processing of visual symbols, and these mechanisms should be exploited in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Floor Vandecruys
- Parenting and Special Education Research Unit, KU Leuven, Belgium; Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Maaike Vandermosten
- Experimental ORL, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Belgium; Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Bert De Smedt
- Parenting and Special Education Research Unit, KU Leuven, Belgium; Leuven Brain Institute, KU Leuven, Belgium.
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4
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Dipnall LM, Yang JYM, Chen J, Fuelscher I, Craig JM, Silk TJ. Childhood development of brain white matter myelin: a longitudinal T1w/T2w-ratio study. Brain Struct Funct 2024; 229:151-159. [PMID: 37982844 PMCID: PMC10827845 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-023-02718-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/21/2023]
Abstract
Myelination of human brain white matter (WM) continues into adulthood following birth, facilitating connection within and between brain networks. In vivo MRI studies using diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) suggest microstructural properties of brain WM increase over childhood and adolescence. Although DWI metrics, such as fractional anisotropy (FA), could reflect axonal myelination, they are not specific to myelin and could also represent other elements of WM microstructure, for example, fibre architecture, axon diameter and cell swelling. Little work exists specifically examining myelin development. The T1w/T2w ratio approach offers an alternative non-invasive method of estimating brain myelin. The approach uses MRI scans that are routinely part of clinical imaging and only require short acquisition times. Using T1w/T2w ratio maps from three waves of the Neuroimaging of the Children's Attention Project (NICAP) [N = 95 (208 scans); 44% female; ages 9.5-14.20 years] we aimed to investigate the developmental trajectories of brain white matter myelin in children as they enter adolescence. We also aimed to investigate whether longitudinal changes in myelination of brain WM differs between biological sex. Longitudinal regression modelling suggested non-linear increases in WM myelin brain wide. A positive parabolic, or U-shaped developmental trajectory was seen across 69 of 71 WM tracts modelled. At a corrected level, no significant effect for sex was found. These findings build on previous brain development research by suggesting that increases in brain WM microstructure from childhood to adolescence could be attributed to increases in myelin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lillian M Dipnall
- School of Psychology and Centre for Social and Early Emotional Development (SEED), Deakin University, Geelong, Australia.
| | - Joseph Y M Yang
- Neuroscience Advanced Clinical Imaging Service (NACIS), Department of Neurosurgery, Royal Children's Hospital, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Jian Chen
- Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Ian Fuelscher
- School of Psychology and Centre for Social and Early Emotional Development (SEED), Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
| | - Jeffrey M Craig
- School of Medicine and the Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation (IMPACT), Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
- Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Timothy J Silk
- School of Psychology and Centre for Social and Early Emotional Development (SEED), Deakin University, Geelong, Australia
- Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
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5
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De Benedictis A, Rossi-Espagnet MC, de Palma L, Sarubbo S, Marras CE. Structural networking of the developing brain: from maturation to neurosurgical implications. Front Neuroanat 2023; 17:1242757. [PMID: 38099209 PMCID: PMC10719860 DOI: 10.3389/fnana.2023.1242757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 12/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Modern neuroscience agrees that neurological processing emerges from the multimodal interaction among multiple cortical and subcortical neuronal hubs, connected at short and long distance by white matter, to form a largely integrated and dynamic network, called the brain "connectome." The final architecture of these circuits results from a complex, continuous, and highly protracted development process of several axonal pathways that constitute the anatomical substrate of neuronal interactions. Awareness of the network organization of the central nervous system is crucial not only to understand the basis of children's neurological development, but also it may be of special interest to improve the quality of neurosurgical treatments of many pediatric diseases. Although there are a flourishing number of neuroimaging studies of the connectome, a comprehensive vision linking this research to neurosurgical practice is still lacking in the current pediatric literature. The goal of this review is to contribute to bridging this gap. In the first part, we summarize the main current knowledge concerning brain network maturation and its involvement in different aspects of normal neurocognitive development as well as in the pathophysiology of specific diseases. The final section is devoted to identifying possible implications of this knowledge in the neurosurgical field, especially in epilepsy and tumor surgery, and to discuss promising perspectives for future investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Luca de Palma
- Clinical and Experimental Neurology, Bambino Gesù Children’s Hospital, Rome, Italy
| | - Silvio Sarubbo
- Department of Neurosurgery, Santa Chiara Hospital, Azienda Provinciale per i Servizi Sanitari (APSS), Trento, Italy
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Behboudi MH, Castro S, Chalamalasetty P, Maguire MJ. Development of Gamma Oscillation during Sentence Processing in Early Adolescence: Insights into the Maturation of Semantic Processing. Brain Sci 2023; 13:1639. [PMID: 38137087 PMCID: PMC10741943 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci13121639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2023] [Revised: 11/16/2023] [Accepted: 11/24/2023] [Indexed: 12/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Children's ability to retrieve word meanings and incorporate them into sentences, along with the neural structures that support these skills, continues to evolve throughout adolescence. Theta (4-8 Hz) activity that corresponds to word retrieval in children decreases in power and becomes more localized with age. This bottom-up word retrieval is often paired with changes in gamma (31-70 Hz), which are thought to reflect semantic unification in adults. Here, we studied gamma engagement during sentence processing using EEG time-frequency in children (ages 8-15) to unravel the developmental trajectory of the gamma network during sentence processing. Children heavily rely on semantic integration for sentence comprehension, but as they mature, semantic and syntactic processing units become distinct and localized. We observed a similar developmental shift in gamma oscillation around age 11, with younger groups (8-9 and 10-11) exhibiting broadly distributed gamma activity with higher amplitudes, while older groups (12-13 and 14-15) exhibited smaller and more localized gamma activity, especially over the left central and posterior regions. We interpret these findings as support for the argument that younger children rely more heavily on semantic processes for sentence comprehension than older children. And like adults, semantic processing in children is associated with gamma activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohammad Hossein Behboudi
- School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX 75080, USA; (M.H.B.)
- Callier Center for Communication Disorders, The University of Texas at Dallas, Dallas, TX 75235, USA
| | - Stephanie Castro
- Department of Human Development and Family Sciences, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78705, USA
| | - Prasanth Chalamalasetty
- School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX 75080, USA; (M.H.B.)
| | - Mandy J. Maguire
- School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, TX 75080, USA; (M.H.B.)
- Callier Center for Communication Disorders, The University of Texas at Dallas, Dallas, TX 75235, USA
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7
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Fitch WT. Cellular computation and cognition. Front Comput Neurosci 2023; 17:1107876. [PMID: 38077750 PMCID: PMC10702520 DOI: 10.3389/fncom.2023.1107876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2022] [Accepted: 10/09/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Contemporary neural network models often overlook a central biological fact about neural processing: that single neurons are themselves complex, semi-autonomous computing systems. Both the information processing and information storage abilities of actual biological neurons vastly exceed the simple weighted sum of synaptic inputs computed by the "units" in standard neural network models. Neurons are eukaryotic cells that store information not only in synapses, but also in their dendritic structure and connectivity, as well as genetic "marking" in the epigenome of each individual cell. Each neuron computes a complex nonlinear function of its inputs, roughly equivalent in processing capacity to an entire 1990s-era neural network model. Furthermore, individual cells provide the biological interface between gene expression, ongoing neural processing, and stored long-term memory traces. Neurons in all organisms have these properties, which are thus relevant to all of neuroscience and cognitive biology. Single-cell computation may also play a particular role in explaining some unusual features of human cognition. The recognition of the centrality of cellular computation to "natural computation" in brains, and of the constraints it imposes upon brain evolution, thus has important implications for the evolution of cognition, and how we study it.
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Affiliation(s)
- W. Tecumseh Fitch
- Faculty of Life Sciences and Vienna Cognitive Science Hub, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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8
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Ayyıldız N, Beyer F, Üstün S, Kale EH, Mançe Çalışır Ö, Uran P, Öner Ö, Olkun S, Anwander A, Witte AV, Villringer A, Çiçek M. Changes in the superior longitudinal fasciculus and anterior thalamic radiation in the left brain are associated with developmental dyscalculia. Front Hum Neurosci 2023; 17:1147352. [PMID: 37868699 PMCID: PMC10586317 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1147352] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Developmental dyscalculia is a neurodevelopmental disorder specific to arithmetic learning even with normal intelligence and age-appropriate education. Difficulties often persist from childhood through adulthood lowering the individual's quality of life. However, the neural correlates of developmental dyscalculia are poorly understood. This study aimed to identify brain structural connectivity alterations in developmental dyscalculia. All participants were recruited from a large scale, non-referred population sample in a longitudinal design. We studied 10 children with developmental dyscalculia (11.3 ± 0.7 years) and 16 typically developing peers (11.2 ± 0.6 years) using diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging. We assessed white matter microstructure with tract-based spatial statistics in regions-of-interest tracts that had previously been related to math ability in children. Then we used global probabilistic tractography for the first time to measure and compare tract length between developmental dyscalculia and typically developing groups. The high angular resolution diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging and crossing-fiber probabilistic tractography allowed us to evaluate the length of the pathways compared to previous studies. The major findings of our study were reduced white matter coherence and shorter tract length of the left superior longitudinal/arcuate fasciculus and left anterior thalamic radiation in the developmental dyscalculia group. Furthermore, the lower white matter coherence and shorter pathways tended to be associated with the lower math performance. These results from the regional analyses indicate that learning, memory and language-related pathways in the left hemisphere might be related to developmental dyscalculia in children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nazife Ayyıldız
- Department of Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
- Department of Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, Health Sciences Institute and Brain Research Center, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
| | - Frauke Beyer
- Department of Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
- Subproject A1, CRC 1052 “Obesity Mechanisms”, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Sertaç Üstün
- Department of Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, Health Sciences Institute and Brain Research Center, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
- Neuroscience and Neurotechnology Center of Excellence, Ankara, Türkiye
| | - Emre H. Kale
- Department of Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, Health Sciences Institute and Brain Research Center, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
| | - Öykü Mançe Çalışır
- Department of Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, Health Sciences Institute and Brain Research Center, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
- Program of Counseling and Guidance, Department of Educational Sciences, Faculty of Educational Sciences, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
| | - Pınar Uran
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Izmir Democracy University, Izmir, Türkiye
| | - Özgür Öner
- Department of Child and Adolescence Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Bahçeşehir University, Istanbul, Türkiye
| | - Sinan Olkun
- Department of Elementary Education, Faculty of Educational Sciences, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
| | - Alfred Anwander
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - A. Veronica Witte
- Department of Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Arno Villringer
- Department of Neurology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
- MindBrainBody Institute, Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Charité and Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
| | - Metehan Çiçek
- Department of Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, Health Sciences Institute and Brain Research Center, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
- Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye
- Neuroscience and Neurotechnology Center of Excellence, Ankara, Türkiye
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9
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Davison KE, Zuk J, Mullin LJ, Ozernov-Palchik O, Norton E, Gabrieli JDE, Yu X, Gaab N. Examining Shared Reading and White Matter Organization in Kindergarten in Relation to Subsequent Language and Reading Abilities: A Longitudinal Investigation. J Cogn Neurosci 2023; 35:259-275. [PMID: 36378907 PMCID: PMC9884137 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01944] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Parent-child language interaction in early childhood carries long-term implications for children's language and reading development. Conversational interaction, in particular, has been linked to white matter organization of neural pathways critical for language and reading. However, shared book reading serves an important role for language interaction as it exposes children to sophisticated vocabulary and syntax. Despite this, it remains unclear whether shared reading also relates to white matter characteristics subserving language and reading development. If so, to what extent do these environmentally associated changes in white matter organization relate to subsequent reading outcomes? This longitudinal study examined shared reading and white matter organization in kindergarten in relation to subsequent language and reading outcomes among 77 typically developing children. Findings reveal positive associations between the number of hours children are read to weekly (shared reading time) and the fractional anisotropy of the left arcuate fasciculus, as well as left lateralization of the superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF). Furthermore, left lateralization of the SLF in these kindergarteners is associated with subsequent reading abilities in second grade. Mediation analyses reveal that left lateralization of the SLF fully mediates the relationship between shared reading time and second-grade reading abilities. Results are significant when controlling for age and socioeconomic status. This is the first evidence demonstrating how white matter structure, in relation to shared reading in kindergarten, is associated with school-age reading outcomes. Results illuminate shared reading as a key proxy for the home language and literacy environment and further our understanding of how language interaction may support neurocognitive development.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Xi Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University
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10
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Zhang EQ, Shi ER, Barceló-Coblijn L. Categorical perception and language evolution: a comparative and neurological perspective. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1110730. [PMID: 37179894 PMCID: PMC10172646 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1110730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 04/07/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth Qing Zhang
- School of Linguistic Sciences and Arts, Jiangsu Normal University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu, China
- Center for Language Evolution Studies, University Centre of Excellence IMSErt, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Toruń, Poland
- *Correspondence: Elizabeth Qing Zhang
| | - Edward Ruoyang Shi
- Department of Translation and Language Sciences, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Lluís Barceló-Coblijn
- Laboratori d'Investigació en Complexitat i de Lingüística Experimental, Palma de Mallorca, Spain
- Laboratori d'Investigació en Complexitat i de Lingüística Experimental, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Illes Balears, Palma, Spain
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11
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Auditory dominance in processing Chinese semantic abnormalities in response to competing audio-visual stimuli. Neuroscience 2022; 502:1-9. [PMID: 36031089 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2022.08.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2022] [Revised: 08/17/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 10/15/2022]
Abstract
Language is a remarkable cognitive ability that can be expressed through visual (written language) or auditory (spoken language) modalities. When visual characters and auditory speech convey conflicting information, individuals may selectively attend to either one of them. However, the dominant modality in such a competing situation and the neural mechanism underlying it are still unclear. Here, we presented participants with Chinese sentences in which the visual characters and auditory speech convey conflicting information, while behavioral and electroencephalographic (EEG) responses were recorded. Results showed a prominent auditory dominance when audio-visual competition occurred. Specifically, higher accuracy (ACC), larger N400 amplitudes and more linkages in the posterior occipital-parietal areas were demonstrated in the auditory mismatch condition compared to that in the visual mismatch condition. O0ur research illustrates the superiority of the auditory speech over the visual characters, extending our understanding of the neural mechanisms of audio-visual competition in Chinese.
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12
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Weiller C, Reisert M, Glauche V, Musso M, Rijntjes M. The dual-loop model for combining external and internal worlds in our brain. Neuroimage 2022; 263:119583. [PMID: 36007823 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2022] [Revised: 08/03/2022] [Accepted: 08/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Intelligible communication with others as well as covert conscious thought requires us to combine a representation of the external world with inner abstract concepts. Interaction with the external world through sensory perception and motor execution is arranged as sequences in time and space, whereas abstract thought and invariant categories are independent of the moment. Using advanced MRI-based fibre tracking on high resolution data from 183 participants in the Human Connectome Project, we identified two large supramodal systems comprising specific cortical regions and their connecting fibre tracts; a dorsal one for processing of sequences in time and space, and a ventral one for concepts and categories. We found that two hub regions exist in the executive front and the perceptive back of the brain where these two cognitive processes converge, constituting a dual-loop model. The hubs are located in the onto- and phylogenetically youngest regions of the cortex. We propose that this hub feature serves as the neural substrate for the more abstract sense of syntax in humans, i.e. for the system populating sequences with content in all cognitive domains. The hubs bring together two separate systems (dorsal and ventral) at the front and the back of the brain and create a closed-loop. The closed-loop facilitates recursivity and forethought, which we use twice; namely, for communication with others about things that are not there and for covert thought.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cornelius Weiller
- Department of Neurology and Clinical Neuroscience, Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg; Breisacher Street 64, Freiburg D- 79104, Germany.
| | - Marco Reisert
- Department of Medical Physics, Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg; Breisacher Street 64, Freiburg D- 79104, Germany; Department of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery, Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg; Breisacher Street 64, Freiburg D- 79104, Germany
| | - Volkmar Glauche
- Department of Neurology and Clinical Neuroscience, Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg; Breisacher Street 64, Freiburg D- 79104, Germany
| | - Mariachristina Musso
- Department of Neurology and Clinical Neuroscience, Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg; Breisacher Street 64, Freiburg D- 79104, Germany
| | - Michel Rijntjes
- Department of Neurology and Clinical Neuroscience, Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg; Breisacher Street 64, Freiburg D- 79104, Germany
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13
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Liu X, He Y, Gao Y, Booth JR, Zhang L, Zhang S, Lu C, Liu L. Developmental differences of large-scale functional brain networks for spoken word processing. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2022; 231:105149. [PMID: 35777141 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2022.105149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2021] [Revised: 06/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
A dual-stream dissociation for separate phonological and semantic processing has been implicated in adults' language processing, but it is unclear how this dissociation emerges with development. By employing a graph-theory based brain network analysis, we compared functional interaction architecture during a rhyming and meaning judgment task of children (aged 8-12) with adults (aged 19-26). We found adults had stronger functional connectivity strength than children between bilateral inferior frontal gyri and left inferior parietal lobule in the rhyming task, between middle frontal gyrus and angular gyrus, and within occipital areas in the meaning task. Meanwhile, adults but not children manifested between-task differences in these properties. In contrast, children had stronger functional connectivity strength or nodal degree in Heschl's gyrus, superior temporal gyrus, and subcortical areas. Our findings indicated spoken word processing development is characterized by increased functional specialization, relying on the dorsal and ventral pathways for phonological and semantic processing respectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/ McGovern, Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
| | - Yin He
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/ McGovern, Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Yue Gao
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/ McGovern, Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - James R Booth
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37203, USA
| | - Lihuan Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/ McGovern, Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Shudong Zhang
- Faculty of Education, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Chunming Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/ McGovern, Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
| | - Li Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/ McGovern, Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China.
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14
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Comparing human and chimpanzee temporal lobe neuroanatomy reveals modifications to human language hubs beyond the frontotemporal arcuate fasciculus. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2022; 119:e2118295119. [PMID: 35787056 PMCID: PMC9282369 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2118295119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The biological foundation for the language-ready brain in the human lineage remains a debated subject. In humans, the arcuate fasciculus (AF) white matter and the posterior portions of the middle temporal gyrus are crucial for language. Compared with other primates, the human AF has been shown to dramatically extend into the posterior temporal lobe, which forms the basis of a number of models of the structural connectivity basis of language. Recent advances in both language research and comparative neuroimaging invite a reassessment of the anatomical differences in language streams between humans and our closest relatives. Here, we show that posterior temporal connectivity via the AF in humans compared with chimpanzees is expanded in terms of its connectivity not just to the ventral frontal cortex but also to the parietal cortex. At the same time, posterior temporal regions connect more strongly to the ventral white matter in chimpanzees as opposed to humans. This pattern is present in both brain hemispheres. Additionally, we show that the anterior temporal lobe harbors a combination of connections present in both species through the inferior fronto-occipital fascicle and human-unique expansions through the uncinate and middle and inferior longitudinal fascicles. These findings elucidate structural changes that are unique to humans and may underlie the anatomical foundations for full-fledged language capacity.
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15
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Menks WM, Ekerdt C, Janzen G, Kidd E, Lemhöfer K, Fernández G, McQueen JM. Study protocol: a comprehensive multi-method neuroimaging approach to disentangle developmental effects and individual differences in second language learning. BMC Psychol 2022; 10:169. [PMID: 35804430 PMCID: PMC9270835 DOI: 10.1186/s40359-022-00873-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2022] [Accepted: 06/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND While it is well established that second language (L2) learning success changes with age and across individuals, the underlying neural mechanisms responsible for this developmental shift and these individual differences are largely unknown. We will study the behavioral and neural factors that subserve new grammar and word learning in a large cross-sectional developmental sample. This study falls under the NWO (Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek [Dutch Research Council]) Language in Interaction consortium (website: https://www.languageininteraction.nl/ ). METHODS We will sample 360 healthy individuals across a broad age range between 8 and 25 years. In this paper, we describe the study design and protocol, which involves multiple study visits covering a comprehensive behavioral battery and extensive magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) protocols. On the basis of these measures, we will create behavioral and neural fingerprints that capture age-based and individual variability in new language learning. The behavioral fingerprint will be based on first and second language proficiency, memory systems, and executive functioning. We will map the neural fingerprint for each participant using the following MRI modalities: T1-weighted, diffusion-weighted, resting-state functional MRI, and multiple functional-MRI paradigms. With respect to the functional MRI measures, half of the sample will learn grammatical features and half will learn words of a new language. Combining all individual fingerprints allows us to explore the neural maturation effects on grammar and word learning. DISCUSSION This will be one of the largest neuroimaging studies to date that investigates the developmental shift in L2 learning covering preadolescence to adulthood. Our comprehensive approach of combining behavioral and neuroimaging data will contribute to the understanding of the mechanisms influencing this developmental shift and individual differences in new language learning. We aim to answer: (I) do these fingerprints differ according to age and can these explain the age-related differences observed in new language learning? And (II) which aspects of the behavioral and neural fingerprints explain individual differences (across and within ages) in grammar and word learning? The results of this study provide a unique opportunity to understand how the development of brain structure and function influence new language learning success.
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Affiliation(s)
- W M Menks
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, and Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
| | - C Ekerdt
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, and Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - G Janzen
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, and Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Behavioural Science Institute, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - E Kidd
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- ARC Centre of Excellence for the Dynamics of Language, Canberra, Australia
- Research School of Psychology, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia
| | - K Lemhöfer
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, and Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - G Fernández
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, and Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - J M McQueen
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, and Radboud University Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
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16
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Hwang YE, Kim YB, Son YD. Finding Cortical Subregions Regarding the Dorsal Language Pathway Based on the Structural Connectivity. Front Hum Neurosci 2022; 16:784340. [PMID: 35585994 PMCID: PMC9108242 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.784340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2021] [Accepted: 04/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Although the language-related fiber pathways in the human brain, such as the superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF) and arcuate fasciculus (AF), are already well-known, understanding more sophisticated cortical regions connected by the fiber tracts is essential to scrutinize the structural connectivity of language circuits. With the regions of interest that were selected based on the Brainnetome atlas, the fiber orientation distribution estimation method for tractography was used to produce further elaborate connectivity information. The results indicated that both fiber bundles had two distinct connections with the prefrontal cortex (PFC). The SLF-II and dorsal AF are mainly connected to the rostrodorsal part of the inferior parietal cortex (IPC) and lateral part of the fusiform gyrus with the inferior frontal junction (IFJ), respectively. In contrast, the SLF-III and ventral AF were primarily linked to the anterior part of the supramarginal gyrus and superior part of the temporal cortex with the inferior frontal cortex, including the Broca's area. Moreover, the IFJ in the PFC, which has rarely been emphasized as a language-related subregion, also had the strongest connectivity with the previously known language-related subregions among the PFC; consequently, we proposed that these specific regions are interconnected via the SLF and AF within the PFC, IPC, and temporal cortex as language-related circuitry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Young-Eun Hwang
- Neuroscience Convergence Center, Korea University, Seoul, South Korea
- Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Gachion Advanced Institute for Health Sciences & Technology (GAHIST), Gachon University, Incheon, South Korea
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Gachon University, Incheon, South Korea
| | - Young-Bo Kim
- Department of Neurosurgery, Gil Medical Center, College of Medicine, Gachon University, Incheon, South Korea
| | - Young-Don Son
- Department of Health Sciences and Technology, Gachion Advanced Institute for Health Sciences & Technology (GAHIST), Gachon University, Incheon, South Korea
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Gachon University, Incheon, South Korea
- *Correspondence: Young-Don Son
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17
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Raja R, Na X, Moore A, Otoo R, Glasier CM, Badger TM, Ou X. Associations Between White Matter Microstructures and Cognitive Functioning in 8-Year-Old Children: A Track-Weighted Imaging Study. J Child Neurol 2022; 37:471-490. [PMID: 35254148 PMCID: PMC9149064 DOI: 10.1177/08830738221083487] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Quantitative tractography using diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging data is widely used in characterizing white matter microstructure throughout childhood, but more studies are still needed to investigate comprehensive brain-behavior relationships between tract-specific white matter measures and multiple cognitive functions in children. METHODS In this study, we analyzed diffusion-weighted MRI data of 71 healthy 8-year-old children utilizing white matter tract-specific quantitative measures derived from diffusion-weighted MRI tractography based on a novel track-weighted imaging approach. Track density imaging, average path length map and 4 track-weighted diffusion tensor imaging measures including: mean diffusivity, fractional anisotropy, axial diffusivity, and radial diffusivity were computed for 63 white matter tracts. The track-weighted imaging measures were then correlated with a comprehensive set of neuropsychological test scores in different cognitive domains including intelligence, language, memory, academic skills, and executive functions to identify tract-specific brain-behavior relationships. RESULTS Significant correlations (P < .05, false discovery rate corrected; r = 0.27-0.57) were found in multiple white matter tracts, with a total of 40 correlations identified between various track-weighted imaging measures including average path length map, track-weighted imaging-fractional anisotropy, and neuropsychological test scores and subscales. Specifically, track-weighted imaging measures indicative of better white matter connectivity and/or microstructural development significantly correlated with higher IQ and better language abilities. CONCLUSION Our findings demonstrate the ability of track-weighted imaging measures in establishing associations between white matter and cognitive functioning in healthy children and can serve as a reference for normal brain/cognition relationships in young school-age children and further aid in identifying imaging biomarkers predictive of adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajikha Raja
- Department of Radiology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
| | - Xiaoxu Na
- Department of Radiology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
| | - Alexandra Moore
- College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
| | - Raymond Otoo
- College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
| | - Charles M. Glasier
- Department of Radiology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
| | - Thomas M. Badger
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
- Arkansas Children’s Nutrition Center
| | - Xiawei Ou
- Department of Radiology, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
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18
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Structural Brain Asymmetries for Language: A Comparative Approach across Primates. Symmetry (Basel) 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/sym14050876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Humans are the only species that can speak. Nonhuman primates, however, share some ‘domain-general’ cognitive properties that are essential to language processes. Whether these shared cognitive properties between humans and nonhuman primates are the results of a continuous evolution [homologies] or of a convergent evolution [analogies] remain difficult to demonstrate. However, comparing their respective underlying structure—the brain—to determinate their similarity or their divergence across species is critical to help increase the probability of either of the two hypotheses, respectively. Key areas associated with language processes are the Planum Temporale, Broca’s Area, the Arcuate Fasciculus, Cingulate Sulcus, The Insula, Superior Temporal Sulcus, the Inferior Parietal lobe, and the Central Sulcus. These structures share a fundamental feature: They are functionally and structurally specialised to one hemisphere. Interestingly, several nonhuman primate species, such as chimpanzees and baboons, show human-like structural brain asymmetries for areas homologous to key language regions. The question then arises: for what function did these asymmetries arise in non-linguistic primates, if not for language per se? In an attempt to provide some answers, we review the literature on the lateralisation of the gestural communication system, which may represent the missing behavioural link to brain asymmetries for language area’s homologues in our common ancestor.
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19
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Tuckute G, Paunov A, Kean H, Small H, Mineroff Z, Blank I, Fedorenko E. Frontal language areas do not emerge in the absence of temporal language areas: A case study of an individual born without a left temporal lobe. Neuropsychologia 2022; 169:108184. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 02/15/2022] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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20
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A methodological scoping review of the integration of fMRI to guide dMRI tractography. What has been done and what can be improved: A 20-year perspective. J Neurosci Methods 2022; 367:109435. [PMID: 34915047 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2021.109435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2021] [Revised: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Combining MRI modalities is a growing trend in neurosciences. It provides opportunities to investigate the brain architecture supporting cognitive functions. Integrating fMRI activation to guide dMRI tractography offers potential advantages over standard tractography methods. A quick glimpse of the literature on this topic reveals that this technique is challenging, and no consensus or "best practices" currently exist, at least not within a single document. We present the first attempt to systematically analyze and summarize the literature of 80 studies that integrated task-based fMRI results to guide tractography, over the last two decades. We report 19 findings that cover challenges related to sample size, microstructure modelling, seeding methods, multimodal space registration, false negatives/positives, specificity/validity, gray/white matter interface and more. These findings will help the scientific community (1) understand the strengths and limitations of the approaches, (2) design studies using this integrative framework, and (3) motivate researchers to fill the gaps identified. We provide references toward best practices, in order to improve the overall result's replicability, sensitivity, specificity, and validity.
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21
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Becker Y, Loh KK, Coulon O, Meguerditchian A. The Arcuate Fasciculus and language origins: Disentangling existing conceptions that influence evolutionary accounts. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 134:104490. [PMID: 34914937 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Revised: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The Arcuate Fasciculus (AF) is of considerable interdisciplinary interest, because of its major implication in language processing. Theories about language brain evolution are based on anatomical differences in the AF across primates. However, changing methodologies and nomenclatures have resulted in conflicting findings regarding interspecies AF differences: Historical knowledge about the AF originated from human blunt dissections and later from monkey tract-tracing studies. Contemporary tractography studies reinvestigate the fasciculus' morphology, but remain heavily bound to unclear anatomical priors and methodological limitations. First, we aim to disentangle the influences of these three epistemological steps on existing AF conceptions, and to propose a contemporary model to guide future work. Second, considering the influence of various AF conceptions, we discuss four key evolutionary changes that propagated current views about language evolution: 1) frontal terminations, 2) temporal terminations, 3) greater Dorsal- versus Ventral Pathway expansion, 4) lateralisation. We conclude that new data point towards a more shared AF anatomy across primates than previously described. Language evolution theories should incorporate this continuous AF evolution across primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yannick Becker
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7290, Marseille, France; Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7289, Marseille, France.
| | - Kep Kee Loh
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7290, Marseille, France; Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7289, Marseille, France; Institute for Language, Communication, and the Brain, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France
| | - Olivier Coulon
- Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7289, Marseille, France; Institute for Language, Communication, and the Brain, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France
| | - Adrien Meguerditchian
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7290, Marseille, France; Institute for Language, Communication, and the Brain, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France; Station de Primatologie CNRS, Rousset, France
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22
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Qi T, Schaadt G, Friederici AD. Associated functional network development and language abilities in children. Neuroimage 2021; 242:118452. [PMID: 34358655 PMCID: PMC8463838 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.118452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Revised: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 08/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
During childhood, the brain is gradually converging to the efficient functional architecture observed in adults. How the brain's functional architecture evolves with age, particularly in young children, is however, not well understood. We examined the functional connectivity of the core language regions, in association with cortical growth and language abilities, in 175 young children in the age range of 4 to 9 years. We analyzed the brain's developmental changes using resting-state functional and T1-weighted structural magnetic resonance imaging data. The results showed increased functional connectivity strength with age between the pars triangularis of the left inferior frontal gyrus and left temporoparietal regions (cohen's d = 0.54, CI: 0.24 - 0.84), associated with children's language abilities. Stronger functional connectivity between bilateral prefrontal and temporoparietal regions was associated with better language abilities regardless of age. In addition, the stronger functional connectivity between the left inferior frontal and temporoparietal regions was associated with larger surface area and thinner cortical thickness in these regions, which in turn was associated with superior language abilities. Thus, using functional and structural brain indices, coupled with behavioral measures, we elucidate the association of functional language network development, language ability, and cortical growth, thereby adding to our understanding of the neural basis of language acquisition in young children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ting Qi
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.
| | - Gesa Schaadt
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany; Department of Education and Psychology, Free University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Angela D Friederici
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
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23
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Yu Q, Peng Y, Kang H, Peng Q, Ouyang M, Slinger M, Hu D, Shou H, Fang F, Huang H. Differential White Matter Maturation from Birth to 8 Years of Age. Cereb Cortex 2021; 30:2673-2689. [PMID: 31819951 PMCID: PMC7175013 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhz268] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Revised: 08/23/2019] [Accepted: 09/17/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Comprehensive delineation of white matter (WM) microstructural maturation from birth to childhood is critical for understanding spatiotemporally differential circuit formation. Without a relatively large sample of datasets and coverage of critical developmental periods of both infancy and early childhood, differential maturational charts across WM tracts cannot be delineated. With diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) of 118 typically developing (TD) children aged 0–8 years and 31 children with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD) aged 2–7 years, the microstructure of every major WM tract and tract group was measured with DTI metrics to delineate differential WM maturation. The exponential model of microstructural maturation of all WM was identified. The WM developmental curves were separated into fast, intermediate, and slow phases in 0–8 years with distinctive time period of each phase across the tracts. Shorter periods of the fast and intermediate phases in certain tracts, such as the commissural tracts, indicated faster earlier development. With TD WM maturational curves as the reference, higher residual variance of WM microstructure was found in children with ASD. The presented comprehensive and differential charts of TD WM microstructural maturation of all major tracts and tract groups in 0–8 years provide reference standards for biomarker detection of neuropsychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qinlin Yu
- Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.,Department of Radiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Yun Peng
- Department of Radiology, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing 100045, China
| | - Huiying Kang
- Department of Radiology, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing 100045, China
| | - Qinmu Peng
- Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.,Department of Radiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Minhui Ouyang
- Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Michelle Slinger
- Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Di Hu
- Department of Radiology, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing 100045, China
| | - Haochang Shou
- Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, PA, USA
| | - Fang Fang
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.,Key Laboratory of Machine Perception, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.,Peking-Tsinghua Center for Life Sciences, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China.,PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Hao Huang
- Department of Radiology, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.,Department of Radiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
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24
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Zuk J, Yu X, Sanfilippo J, Figuccio MJ, Dunstan J, Carruthers C, Sideridis G, Turesky TK, Gagoski B, Grant PE, Gaab N. White matter in infancy is prospectively associated with language outcomes in kindergarten. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2021; 50:100973. [PMID: 34119849 PMCID: PMC8209179 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021.100973] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2020] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Language acquisition is of central importance to child development. Although this developmental trajectory is shaped by experience postnatally, the neural basis for language emerges prenatally. Thus, a fundamental question remains: do structural foundations for language in infancy predict long-term language abilities? Longitudinal investigation of 40 children from infancy to kindergarten reveals that white matter in infancy is prospectively associated with subsequent language abilities, specifically between: (i) left arcuate fasciculus and phonological awareness and vocabulary knowledge, (ii) left corticospinal tract and phonological awareness, and bilateral corticospinal tract with phonological memory; controlling for age, cognitive, and environmental factors. Findings link white matter in infancy with school-age language abilities, suggesting that white matter organization in infancy sets a foundation for long-term language development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Zuk
- Department of Speech, Language & Hearing Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, 02215, USA; Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA.
| | - Xi Yu
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA; State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Joseph Sanfilippo
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | | | - Jade Dunstan
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Clarisa Carruthers
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Georgios Sideridis
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Ted K Turesky
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Borjan Gagoski
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA; Fetal-Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Patricia Ellen Grant
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA; Fetal-Neonatal Neuroimaging and Developmental Science Center, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA
| | - Nadine Gaab
- Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience, Division of Developmental Medicine, Department of Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, 02115, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02115, USA; Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA, 02138, USA
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25
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Finkl T, Hahne A, Friederici AD, Gerber J, Mürbe D, Anwander A. Language Without Speech: Segregating Distinct Circuits in the Human Brain. Cereb Cortex 2021; 30:812-823. [PMID: 31373629 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhz128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2018] [Revised: 05/08/2019] [Accepted: 05/20/2019] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Language is a fundamental part of human cognition. The question of whether language is processed independently of speech, however, is still heavily discussed. The absence of speech in deaf signers offers the opportunity to disentangle language from speech in the human brain. Using probabilistic tractography, we compared brain structural connectivity of adult deaf signers who had learned sign language early in life to that of matched hearing controls. Quantitative comparison of the connectivity profiles revealed that the core language tracts did not differ between signers and controls, confirming that language is independent of speech. In contrast, pathways involved in the production and perception of speech displayed lower connectivity in deaf signers compared to hearing controls. These differences were located in tracts towards the left pre-supplementary motor area and the thalamus when seeding in Broca's area, and in ipsilateral parietal areas and the precuneus with seeds in left posterior temporal regions. Furthermore, the interhemispheric connectivity between the auditory cortices was lower in the deaf than in the hearing group, underlining the importance of the transcallosal connection for early auditory processes. The present results provide evidence for a functional segregation of the neural pathways for language and speech.
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Affiliation(s)
- Theresa Finkl
- Saxonian Cochlear Implant Centre, Phoniatrics and Audiology, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 74, Dresden, Germany
| | - Anja Hahne
- Saxonian Cochlear Implant Centre, Phoniatrics and Audiology, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstraße 74, Dresden, Germany
| | - Angela D Friederici
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Johannes Gerber
- Neuroradiology, Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Dirk Mürbe
- Department of Audiology and Phoniatrics, Charité-Universitätsmedizin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Alfred Anwander
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
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Wang P, Knösche TR, Chen L, Brauer J, Friederici AD, Maess B. Functional brain plasticity during L1 training on complex sentences: Changes in gamma-band oscillatory activity. Hum Brain Mapp 2021; 42:3858-3870. [PMID: 33942956 PMCID: PMC8288093 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25470] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2021] [Revised: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The adult human brain remains plastic even after puberty. However, whether first language (L1) training in adults can alter the language network is yet largely unknown. Thus, we conducted a longitudinal training experiment on syntactically complex German sentence comprehension. Sentence complexity was varied by the depth of the center embedded relative clauses (i.e., single or double embedded). Comprehension was tested after each sentence with a question on the thematic role assignment. Thirty adult, native German speakers were recruited for 4 days of training. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) data were recorded and subjected to spectral power analysis covering the classical frequency bands (i.e., theta, alpha, beta, low gamma, and gamma). Normalized spectral power, time‐locked to the final closure of the relative clause, was subjected to a two‐factor analysis (“sentence complexity” and “training days”). Results showed that for the more complex sentences, the interaction of sentence complexity and training days was observed in Brodmann area 44 (BA 44) as a decrease of gamma power with training. Moreover, in the gamma band (55–95 Hz) functional connectivity between BA 44 and other brain regions such as the inferior frontal sulcus and the inferior parietal cortex were correlated with behavioral performance increase due to training. These results show that even for native speakers, complex L1 sentence training improves language performance and alters neural activities of the left hemispheric language network. Training strengthens the use of the dorsal processing stream with working‐memory‐related brain regions for syntactically complex sentences, thereby demonstrating the brain's functional plasticity for L1 training.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Wang
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesBrain Networks GroupLeipzigGermany
| | - Thomas R. Knösche
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesBrain Networks GroupLeipzigGermany
| | - Luyao Chen
- Beijing Normal UniversityCollege of Chinese Language and CultureBeijing
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesDepartment of NeuropsychologyLeipzigGermany
| | - Jens Brauer
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesDepartment of NeuropsychologyLeipzigGermany
- Friedrich Schiller UniversityOffice of the Vice‐President for Young ResearchersJenaGermany
| | - Angela D. Friederici
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesDepartment of NeuropsychologyLeipzigGermany
| | - Burkhard Maess
- Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain SciencesBrain Networks GroupLeipzigGermany
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Shekari E, Goudarzi S, Shahriari E, Joghataei MT. Extreme capsule is a bottleneck for ventral pathway. IBRO Neurosci Rep 2021; 10:42-50. [PMID: 33861816 PMCID: PMC8019950 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibneur.2020.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Accepted: 11/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
As neuroscience literature suggests, extreme capsule is considered a whiter matter tract. Nevertheless, it is not clear whether extreme capsule itself is an association fiber pathway or only a bottleneck for other association fibers to pass. Via our review, investigating anatomical position, connectivity and cognitive role of the bundles in extreme capsule, and by analyzing data from the dissection, it can be argued that extreme capsule is probably a bottleneck for the passage of uncinated fasciculus (UF) and inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF), and these fasciculi are responsible for the respective roles in language processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ehsan Shekari
- Department of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Iran University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran
| | - Sepideh Goudarzi
- Department of pharmacology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
| | - Elahe Shahriari
- Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Iran University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mohammad Taghi Joghataei
- Department of Advanced Technologies in Medicine, Iran University of Medical Science, Tehran, Iran
- Corresponding author.
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28
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François C, Garcia-Alix A, Bosch L, Rodriguez-Fornells A. Signatures of brain plasticity supporting language recovery after perinatal arterial ischemic stroke. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2021; 212:104880. [PMID: 33220646 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2020.104880] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2018] [Revised: 09/11/2020] [Accepted: 10/11/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Brain imaging methods such as functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) and Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) have already been used to decipher the functional and structural brain changes occurring during normal language development. However, little is known about the differentiation of the language network after an early lesion. While in adults, stroke over the left hemisphere generally induces post-stroke aphasia, it is not always the case when a stroke occurs in the perinatal period, thus revealing a remarkable plastic power of the language network during early development. In particular, the role of perilesional tissues, as opposed to undamaged brain areas in the functional recovery of language functions after an early insult, remains unclear. In this review article, we provide an overview of the extant literature using functional and structural neuroimaging data revealing the signatures of brain plasticity underlying near-normal language development.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Alfredo Garcia-Alix
- Service of Genetic and Molecular Medicine, Hospital Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona, Spain; Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona, Spain; NeNe Foundation, Madrid, Spain
| | - Laura Bosch
- Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Barcelona, Spain; Department of Cognition, Development and Educational Psychology, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; Institute of Neurosciences (UBNeuro), University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Antoni Rodriguez-Fornells
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Group, IDIBELL, L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain; Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies, ICREA, Barcelona, Spain
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29
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Lee JC, Dick AS, Tomblin JB. Altered brain structures in the dorsal and ventral language pathways in individuals with and without developmental language disorder (DLD). Brain Imaging Behav 2020; 14:2569-2586. [PMID: 31933046 PMCID: PMC7354888 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-019-00209-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by difficulty learning and using language, and this difficulty cannot be attributed to other developmental conditions. The aim of the current study was to examine structural differences in dorsal and ventral language pathways between adolescents and young adults with and without DLD (age range: 14-27 years) using anatomical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). Results showed age-related structural brain differences in both dorsal and ventral pathways in individuals with DLD. These findings provide evidence for neuroanatomical correlates of persistent language deficits in adolescents/young adults with DLD, and further suggest that this brain-language relationship in DLD is better characterized by taking account the dynamic course of the disorder along development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna C Lee
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA.
| | | | - J Bruce Tomblin
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA
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30
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Reh R, Williams LJ, Todd RM, Ward LM. Warped rhythms: Epileptic activity during critical periods disrupts the development of neural networks for human communication. Behav Brain Res 2020; 399:113016. [PMID: 33212087 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2020.113016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2020] [Revised: 11/06/2020] [Accepted: 11/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
It is well established that temporal lobe epilepsy-the most common and well-studied form of epilepsy-can impair communication by disrupting social-emotional and language functions. In pediatric epilepsy, where seizures co-occur with the development of critical brain networks, age of onset matters: The earlier in life seizures begin, the worse the disruption in network establishment, resulting in academic hardship and social isolation. Yet, little is known about the processes by which epileptic activity disrupts developing human brain networks. Here we take a synthetic perspective-reviewing a range of research spanning studies on molecular and oscillatory processes to those on the development of large-scale functional networks-in support of a novel model of how such networks can be disrupted by epilepsy. We seek to bridge the gap between research on molecular processes, on the development of human brain circuitry, and on clinical outcomes to propose a model of how epileptic activity disrupts brain development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca Reh
- University of British Columbia, Department of Psychology, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada
| | - Lynne J Williams
- BC Children's Hospital MRI Research Facility, 4480 Oak Street, Vancouver, BC V6H 0B3, Canada
| | - Rebecca M Todd
- University of British Columbia, Department of Psychology, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada; University of British Columbia, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3, Canada.
| | - Lawrence M Ward
- University of British Columbia, Department of Psychology, 2136 West Mall, Vancouver BC V6T 1Z4, Canada; University of British Columbia, Djavad Mowafaghian Centre for Brain Health, 2215 Wesbrook Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z3, Canada
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31
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Barbeau EB, Klein D, Soulières I, Petrides M, Bernhardt B, Mottron L. Age of Speech Onset in Autism Relates to Structural Connectivity in the Language Network. Cereb Cortex Commun 2020; 1:tgaa077. [PMID: 34296136 PMCID: PMC8152885 DOI: 10.1093/texcom/tgaa077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2020] [Revised: 10/11/2020] [Accepted: 10/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Speech onset delays (SOD) and language atypicalities are central aspects of the autism spectrum (AS), despite not being included in the categorical diagnosis of AS. Previous studies separating participants according to speech onset history have shown distinct patterns of brain organization and activation in perceptual tasks. One major white matter tract, the arcuate fasciculus (AF), connects the posterior temporal and left frontal language regions. Here, we used anatomical brain imaging to investigate the properties of the AF in adolescent and adult autistic individuals with typical levels of intelligence who differed by age of speech onset. The left AF of the AS group showed a significantly smaller volume than that of the nonautistic group. Such a reduction in volume was only present in the younger group. This result was driven by the autistic group without SOD (SOD−), despite their typical age of speech onset. The autistic group with SOD (SOD+) showed a more typical AF as adults relative to matched controls. This suggests that, along with multiple studies in AS-SOD+ individuals, atypical brain reorganization is observable in the 2 major AS subgroups and that such reorganization applies mostly to the language regions in SOD− and perceptual regions in SOD+ individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elise B Barbeau
- Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Denise Klein
- Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Isabelle Soulières
- Department of Psychology, Université du Québec à Montreal, Montreal, QC H2X 3P2, Canada
| | - Michael Petrides
- Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Boris Bernhardt
- Neurology and Neurosurgery Department, McGill University, Montreal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Laurent Mottron
- Département de Psychiatrie et d'addictologie, de l'Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada
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32
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Teixeira JM, Santos ME, Oom P. Oral language in children with benign childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes. Epilepsy Behav 2020; 111:107328. [PMID: 33027869 DOI: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2020.107328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2020] [Revised: 07/05/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Benign childhood epilepsy with centrotemporal spikes is one of the most common childhood disorders. Despite the benignity usually attributed to this epileptic syndrome, several studies have demonstrated that these children have cognitive disabilities. Among these disturbances, language disorders have been the less studied in depth. We aimed to obtain accurate information about the language skills of children with this epileptic syndrome and to explore the correlation between demographic and clinical factors associated with epilepsy and the language skills. METHODS We assessed 30 children with this epileptic syndrome, followed in three hospitals in Lisbon, and 60 controls, aged between 6 and 12 years, attending the same schools and matched by age, gender, and parents' socioprofessional level. All the included children did not present cognitive impairment (reasoning ability, verbal memory), sensory, or motor limitations. The evaluation tests covered all language areas. RESULTS Overall, children with this epileptic syndrome had lower skills in the majority of the language areas, when compared with their peers. These children showed greater difficulties in semantics and syntax domains. The atypical evolution of the seizures and a longer duration of epilepsy were the clinical variables that most influence the language skills of our samples. CONCLUSION The early assessment of these capacities and the possible need for therapeutic intervention should be emphasized, in order to minimize the impact on their academic performance and quality of life.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Paulo Oom
- Departamento de Pediatria do Hospital Beatriz Ângelo, Portugal
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33
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Fedorenko E, Blank IA, Siegelman M, Mineroff Z. Lack of selectivity for syntax relative to word meanings throughout the language network. Cognition 2020; 203:104348. [PMID: 32569894 DOI: 10.1101/477851] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2018] [Revised: 05/14/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2020] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
To understand what you are reading now, your mind retrieves the meanings of words and constructions from a linguistic knowledge store (lexico-semantic processing) and identifies the relationships among them to construct a complex meaning (syntactic or combinatorial processing). Do these two sets of processes rely on distinct, specialized mechanisms or, rather, share a common pool of resources? Linguistic theorizing, empirical evidence from language acquisition and processing, and computational modeling have jointly painted a picture whereby lexico-semantic and syntactic processing are deeply inter-connected and perhaps not separable. In contrast, many current proposals of the neural architecture of language continue to endorse a view whereby certain brain regions selectively support syntactic/combinatorial processing, although the locus of such "syntactic hub", and its nature, vary across proposals. Here, we searched for selectivity for syntactic over lexico-semantic processing using a powerful individual-subjects fMRI approach across three sentence comprehension paradigms that have been used in prior work to argue for such selectivity: responses to lexico-semantic vs. morpho-syntactic violations (Experiment 1); recovery from neural suppression across pairs of sentences differing in only lexical items vs. only syntactic structure (Experiment 2); and same/different meaning judgments on such sentence pairs (Experiment 3). Across experiments, both lexico-semantic and syntactic conditions elicited robust responses throughout the left fronto-temporal language network. Critically, however, no regions were more strongly engaged by syntactic than lexico-semantic processing, although some regions showed the opposite pattern. Thus, contra many current proposals of the neural architecture of language, syntactic/combinatorial processing is not separable from lexico-semantic processing at the level of brain regions-or even voxel subsets-within the language network, in line with strong integration between these two processes that has been consistently observed in behavioral and computational language research. The results further suggest that the language network may be generally more strongly concerned with meaning than syntactic form, in line with the primary function of language-to share meanings across minds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evelina Fedorenko
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
| | - Idan Asher Blank
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Department of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Matthew Siegelman
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Department of Psychology, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Zachary Mineroff
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence & Educational Innovation, CMU, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
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34
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Fedorenko E, Blank IA, Siegelman M, Mineroff Z. Lack of selectivity for syntax relative to word meanings throughout the language network. Cognition 2020; 203:104348. [PMID: 32569894 PMCID: PMC7483589 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2020.104348] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2018] [Revised: 05/14/2020] [Accepted: 05/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
To understand what you are reading now, your mind retrieves the meanings of words and constructions from a linguistic knowledge store (lexico-semantic processing) and identifies the relationships among them to construct a complex meaning (syntactic or combinatorial processing). Do these two sets of processes rely on distinct, specialized mechanisms or, rather, share a common pool of resources? Linguistic theorizing, empirical evidence from language acquisition and processing, and computational modeling have jointly painted a picture whereby lexico-semantic and syntactic processing are deeply inter-connected and perhaps not separable. In contrast, many current proposals of the neural architecture of language continue to endorse a view whereby certain brain regions selectively support syntactic/combinatorial processing, although the locus of such "syntactic hub", and its nature, vary across proposals. Here, we searched for selectivity for syntactic over lexico-semantic processing using a powerful individual-subjects fMRI approach across three sentence comprehension paradigms that have been used in prior work to argue for such selectivity: responses to lexico-semantic vs. morpho-syntactic violations (Experiment 1); recovery from neural suppression across pairs of sentences differing in only lexical items vs. only syntactic structure (Experiment 2); and same/different meaning judgments on such sentence pairs (Experiment 3). Across experiments, both lexico-semantic and syntactic conditions elicited robust responses throughout the left fronto-temporal language network. Critically, however, no regions were more strongly engaged by syntactic than lexico-semantic processing, although some regions showed the opposite pattern. Thus, contra many current proposals of the neural architecture of language, syntactic/combinatorial processing is not separable from lexico-semantic processing at the level of brain regions-or even voxel subsets-within the language network, in line with strong integration between these two processes that has been consistently observed in behavioral and computational language research. The results further suggest that the language network may be generally more strongly concerned with meaning than syntactic form, in line with the primary function of language-to share meanings across minds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Evelina Fedorenko
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; McGovern Institute for Brain Research, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
| | - Idan Asher Blank
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Department of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Matthew Siegelman
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Department of Psychology, Columbia University, New York, NY 10027, USA
| | - Zachary Mineroff
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA; Eberly Center for Teaching Excellence & Educational Innovation, CMU, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
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35
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Dávila G, Moyano MP, Edelkraut L, Moreno-Campos L, Berthier ML, Torres-Prioris MJ, López-Barroso D. Pharmacotherapy of Traumatic Childhood Aphasia: Beneficial Effects of Donepezil Alone and Combined With Intensive Naming Therapy. Front Pharmacol 2020; 11:1144. [PMID: 32848757 PMCID: PMC7411310 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2020.01144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2019] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
At present, language therapy is the only available treatment for childhood aphasia (CA). Studying new interventions to augment and hasten the benefits provided by language therapy in children is strongly needed. CA frequently emerges as a consequence of traumatic brain injury and, as in the case of adults, it may be associated with dysfunctional activity of neurotransmitter systems. The use of cognitive-enhancing drugs, alone or combined with aphasia therapy, promotes improvement of language deficits in aphasic adults. In this study we report the case of a 9-year-old right-handed girl, subject P, who had chronic anomic aphasia associated with traumatic lesions in the left temporal-parietal cortex. We performed a single-subject, open-label study encompassing administration of the cholinergic agent donepezil (DP) alone during 12 weeks, followed by a combination of DP and intensive naming therapy (INT) for 2 weeks and thereafter by a continued treatment of DP alone during 12 weeks, a 4-week washout period, and another 2 weeks of INT. Four comprehensive language and neuropsychological evaluations were performed at different timepoints along the study, and multiple naming evaluations were performed after each INT in order to assess performance in treated and untreated words. Structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was performed at baseline. MRI revealed two focal lesions in the left hemisphere, one large involving the posterior inferior and middle temporal gyri and another comprising the angular gyrus. Overall, baseline evaluation disclosed marked impairment in naming with mild-to-moderate compromise of spontaneous speech, repetition, and auditory comprehension. Executive and attention functions were also affected, but memory, visuoconstructive, and visuoperceptive functions were preserved. Treatment with DP alone significantly improved spontaneous speech, auditory comprehension, repetition, and picture naming, in addition to processing speed, selective, and sustained attention. Combined DP-INT further improved naming. After washout of both interventions, most of these beneficial changes remained. Importantly, DP produced no side effects and subject P attained the necessary level of language competence to return to regular schooling. In conclusion, the use of DP alone and in combination with INT improved language function and related cognitive posttraumatic deficits in a child with acquired aphasia. Further studies in larger samples are warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guadalupe Dávila
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga - IBIMA, Málaga, Spain.,Department of Psychobiology and Methodology of Behavioural Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Language Neuroscience Research Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - María Pilar Moyano
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - Lisa Edelkraut
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga - IBIMA, Málaga, Spain.,Department of Psychobiology and Methodology of Behavioural Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Language Neuroscience Research Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - Lorena Moreno-Campos
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - Marcelo L Berthier
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga - IBIMA, Málaga, Spain.,Language Neuroscience Research Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - María José Torres-Prioris
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga - IBIMA, Málaga, Spain.,Department of Psychobiology and Methodology of Behavioural Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Language Neuroscience Research Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - Diana López-Barroso
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga - IBIMA, Málaga, Spain.,Department of Psychobiology and Methodology of Behavioural Sciences, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Language Neuroscience Research Laboratory, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
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Torres-Prioris MJ, López-Barroso D, Càmara E, Fittipaldi S, Sedeño L, Ibáñez A, Berthier ML, García AM. Neurocognitive signatures of phonemic sequencing in expert backward speakers. Sci Rep 2020; 10:10621. [PMID: 32606382 PMCID: PMC7326922 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-67551-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2019] [Accepted: 06/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite its prolific growth, neurolinguistic research on phonemic sequencing has largely neglected the study of individuals with highly developed skills in this domain. To bridge this gap, we report multidimensional signatures of two experts in backward speech, that is, the capacity to produce utterances by reversing the order of phonemes while retaining their identity. Our approach included behavioral assessments of backward and forward speech alongside neuroimaging measures of voxel-based morphometry, diffusion tensor imaging, and resting-state functional connectivity. Relative to controls, both backward speakers exhibited behavioral advantages for reversing words and sentences of varying complexity, irrespective of working memory skills. These patterns were accompanied by increased grey matter volume, higher mean diffusivity, and enhanced functional connectivity along dorsal and ventral stream regions mediating phonological and other linguistic operations, with complementary support of areas subserving associative-visual and domain-general processes. Still, the specific loci of these neural patterns differed between both subjects, suggesting individual variability in the correlates of expert backward speech. Taken together, our results offer new vistas on the domain of phonemic sequencing, while illuminating neuroplastic patterns underlying extraordinary language abilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- María José Torres-Prioris
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga (IBIMA), University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Area of Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - Diana López-Barroso
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga (IBIMA), University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain.,Area of Psychobiology, Faculty of Psychology and Speech Therapy, University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - Estela Càmara
- Cognition and Brain Plasticity Unit, Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL), L'Hospitalet de Llobregat, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sol Fittipaldi
- Universidad de San Andrés, Vito Dumas 284, B1644BID Victoria, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Lucas Sedeño
- National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Agustín Ibáñez
- Universidad de San Andrés, Vito Dumas 284, B1644BID Victoria, Buenos Aires, Argentina.,National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina.,Universidad Autónoma del Caribe, Barranquilla, Colombia.,Center for Social and Cognitive Neuroscience (CSCN), School of Psychology, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Santiago, Chile.,Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, United States
| | - Marcelo L Berthier
- Cognitive Neurology and Aphasia Unit, Centro de Investigaciones Médico-Sanitarias, Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga (IBIMA), University of Malaga, Malaga, Spain
| | - Adolfo M García
- Universidad de San Andrés, Vito Dumas 284, B1644BID Victoria, Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina. .,Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, United States. .,Faculty of Education, National University of Cuyo (UNCuyo), Mendoza, Argentina. .,Departamento de Lingüística Y Literatura, Facultad de Humanidades, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, Santiago, Chile.
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Enge A, Friederici AD, Skeide MA. A meta-analysis of fMRI studies of language comprehension in children. Neuroimage 2020; 215:116858. [PMID: 32304886 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.116858] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2020] [Revised: 04/10/2020] [Accepted: 04/11/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
The neural representation of language comprehension has been examined in several meta-analyses of fMRI studies with human adults. To complement this work from a developmental perspective, we conducted a meta-analysis of fMRI studies of auditory language comprehension in human children. Our analysis included 27 independent experiments involving n = 625 children (49% girls) with a mean age of 8.9 years. Activation likelihood estimation and seed-based effect size mapping revealed activation peaks in the pars triangularis of the left inferior frontal gyrus and bilateral superior and middle temporal gyri. In contrast to this distribution of activation in children, previous work in adults found activation peaks in the pars opercularis of the left inferior frontal gyrus and more left-lateralized temporal activation peaks. Accordingly, brain responses during language comprehension may shift from bilateral temporal and left pars triangularis peaks in childhood to left temporal and pars opercularis peaks in adulthood. This shift could be related to the gradually increasing sensitivity of the developing brain to syntactic information.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander Enge
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, 04103, Leipzig, Germany; Department of Psychology, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 12489, Berlin, Germany
| | - Angela D Friederici
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Michael A Skeide
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, 04103, Leipzig, Germany.
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Su M, Thiebaut de Schotten M, Zhao J, Song S, Zhou W, Gong G, McBride C, Tardif T, Ramus F, Shu H. Influences of the early family environment and long-term vocabulary development on the structure of white matter pathways: A longitudinal investigation. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2020; 42:100767. [PMID: 32072939 PMCID: PMC7031118 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2020.100767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Revised: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 01/29/2020] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
In the present longitudinal study, we investigated the joint effect of early family factors and long-term vocabulary development on the structure of reading-related white matter pathways in adolescents. Seventy-nine children participated in this study. Family environment was measured via parental questionnaire between age 1 and age 3. From age 4 to age 10, children's vocabulary skills were tested annually. At age 14, diffusion tensor imaging data of the children were collected. Using individual-based tractography, 10 reading-related tracts of the two hemispheres were delineated. Different family factors were found to be correlated with different pathways: Age of literacy exposure was correlated with fractional anisotropy of the direct segment of the left arcuate fasciculus, while an association trend was found between early family socioeconomic status and fractional anisotropy of the left inferior frontal occipital fasciculus. Further regression analyses showed that the age of literacy exposure modulated the relationships between vocabulary development and the structure of the left arcuate fasciculus. Specifically, in the earlier literacy exposure group, no association was found between vocabulary development and the strength of the arcuate fasciculus, whereas in the later literacy exposure group, significant associations were found between vocabulary development and the strength of the arcuate fasciculus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengmeng Su
- College of Elementary Education, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Michel Thiebaut de Schotten
- Brain Connectivity and Behaviour Group, Brain and Spine Institute (ICM), CNRS UMR 7225, INSERM-UPMC UMRS 1127, Paris, France
| | - Jingjing Zhao
- School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University and Key Laboratory for Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience of Shaanxi Province, Xi'an, China
| | - Shuang Song
- College of Teacher Education, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Wei Zhou
- Beijing Key Lab of Learning and Cognition, School of Psychology, Capital Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Gaolang Gong
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
| | - Catherine McBride
- Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - Twila Tardif
- Department of Psychology and Center for Human Growth and Development, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, USA
| | - Franck Ramus
- Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistique (ENS, CNRS, EHESS), Ecole Normale Supérieure, PSL Research University, Paris, France.
| | - Hua Shu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China.
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Nieto-Ruiz A, Diéguez E, Sepúlveda-Valbuena N, Catena E, Jiménez J, Rodríguez-Palmero M, Catena A, Miranda MT, García-Santos JA, G. Bermúdez M, Campoy C. Influence of a Functional Nutrients-Enriched Infant Formula on Language Development in Healthy Children at Four Years Old. Nutrients 2020; 12:nu12020535. [PMID: 32092927 PMCID: PMC7071497 DOI: 10.3390/nu12020535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2020] [Revised: 02/12/2020] [Accepted: 02/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Nutrition during early life is essential for brain development and establishes the basis for cognitive and language skills development. It is well established that breastfeeding, compared to formula feeding, has been traditionally associated with increased neurodevelopmental scores up to early adulthood. We analyzed the long-term effects of a new infant formula enriched with bioactive compounds on healthy children's language development at four years old. In a randomized double-blind COGNIS study, 122 children attended the follow-up call at four years. From them, 89 children were fed a standard infant formula (SF, n = 46) or an experimental infant formula enriched with functional nutrients (EF, n = 43) during their first 18 months of life. As a reference group, 33 exclusively breastfed (BF) were included. Language development was assessed using the Oral Language Task of Navarra-Revised (PLON-R). ANCOVA, chi-square test, and logistic regression models were performed. EF children seemed to show higher scores in use of language and oral spontaneous expression than SF children, and both SF and EF groups did not differ from the BF group. Moreover, it seems that SF children were more frequently categorized into "need to improve and delayed" in the use of language than EF children, and might more frequently present "need to improve and delayed" in the PLON-R total score than BF children. Finally, the results suggest that SF children presented a higher risk of suffering language development than BF children. Secondary analysis also showed a slight trend between low socioeconomic status and poorer language skills. The functional compound-enriched infant formula seems to be associated with beneficial long-term effects in the development of child's language at four years old in a similar way to breastfed infants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Nieto-Ruiz
- Department of Paediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Granada, Avda. Investigación 11, 18016 Granada, Spain; (A.N.-R.); (E.D.); (E.C.); (J.A.G.-S.); (M.G.B.)
- EURISTIKOS Excellence Centre for Paediatric Research, Biomedical Research Centre, University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain;
- Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs. GRANADA, Health Sciences Technological Park, 18012 Granada, Spain
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research Centre-CIMCYC, University of Granada, 18011 Granada, Spain;
| | - Estefanía Diéguez
- Department of Paediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Granada, Avda. Investigación 11, 18016 Granada, Spain; (A.N.-R.); (E.D.); (E.C.); (J.A.G.-S.); (M.G.B.)
- EURISTIKOS Excellence Centre for Paediatric Research, Biomedical Research Centre, University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain;
- Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs. GRANADA, Health Sciences Technological Park, 18012 Granada, Spain
| | - Natalia Sepúlveda-Valbuena
- EURISTIKOS Excellence Centre for Paediatric Research, Biomedical Research Centre, University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain;
- Nutrition and Biochemistry Department, Faculty of Sciences, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá 110231, Colombia
| | - Elvira Catena
- Department of Paediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Granada, Avda. Investigación 11, 18016 Granada, Spain; (A.N.-R.); (E.D.); (E.C.); (J.A.G.-S.); (M.G.B.)
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research Centre-CIMCYC, University of Granada, 18011 Granada, Spain;
| | - Jesús Jiménez
- Ordesa Laboratories, S.L., 08820 Barcelona, Spain; (J.J.); (M.R.-P.)
| | | | - Andrés Catena
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research Centre-CIMCYC, University of Granada, 18011 Granada, Spain;
| | - M. Teresa Miranda
- Department of Biostatistics, School of Medicine, University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain;
| | - José Antonio García-Santos
- Department of Paediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Granada, Avda. Investigación 11, 18016 Granada, Spain; (A.N.-R.); (E.D.); (E.C.); (J.A.G.-S.); (M.G.B.)
- EURISTIKOS Excellence Centre for Paediatric Research, Biomedical Research Centre, University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain;
- Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs. GRANADA, Health Sciences Technological Park, 18012 Granada, Spain
| | - Mercedes G. Bermúdez
- Department of Paediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Granada, Avda. Investigación 11, 18016 Granada, Spain; (A.N.-R.); (E.D.); (E.C.); (J.A.G.-S.); (M.G.B.)
- EURISTIKOS Excellence Centre for Paediatric Research, Biomedical Research Centre, University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain;
- Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs. GRANADA, Health Sciences Technological Park, 18012 Granada, Spain
| | - Cristina Campoy
- Department of Paediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Granada, Avda. Investigación 11, 18016 Granada, Spain; (A.N.-R.); (E.D.); (E.C.); (J.A.G.-S.); (M.G.B.)
- EURISTIKOS Excellence Centre for Paediatric Research, Biomedical Research Centre, University of Granada, 18016 Granada, Spain;
- Instituto de Investigación Biosanitaria ibs. GRANADA, Health Sciences Technological Park, 18012 Granada, Spain
- Spanish Network of Biomedical Research in Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Granada’s node, Institute of Health Carlos III, 28029 Madrid, Spain
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +34-629-308-695
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Verly M, Gerrits R, Sleurs C, Lagae L, Sunaert S, Zink I, Rommel N. The mis-wired language network in children with developmental language disorder: insights from DTI tractography. Brain Imaging Behav 2020; 13:973-984. [PMID: 29934818 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-018-9903-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
This study aims to detect the neural substrate underlying the language impairment in children with developmental language disorder (DLD) using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography. Deterministic DTI tractography was performed in a group of right-handed children with DLD (N = 17; mean age 10;07 ± 2;01 years) and a typically developing control group matched for age, gender and handedness (N = 22; mean age 11;00 ± 1;11 years) to bilaterally identify the superior longitudinal fascicle, arcuate fascicle, anterior lateral segment and posterior lateral segment (also called dorsal language network) and the middle and inferior longitudinal fascicle, extreme capsule fiber system and uncinate fascicle (also called ventral language network). Language skills were assessed using an extensive, standardized test battery. Differences in language performance, white matter organization and structural lateralization of the language network were statistically analyzed. Children with DLD showed a higher overall volume and higher ADC values for the left-hemispheric language related WM tracts. In addition, in children with DLD, the majority (88%; 7/8) of the studied language related WM tracts did not show a significant left or right lateralization pattern. These structural alterations might underlie the language impairment in children with DLD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marjolein Verly
- Department of Neurosciences, ExpORL, KU Leuven, Herestraat 49, bus 721, 3000, Leuven, Belgium.
| | - Robin Gerrits
- Department of Neurosciences, ExpORL, KU Leuven, Herestraat 49, bus 721, 3000, Leuven, Belgium
| | | | - Lieven Lagae
- Department of Pediatrics, UZ Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Stefan Sunaert
- Department of Radiology, Translational MRI, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.,Department of Radiology, UZ Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Inge Zink
- Department of Neurosciences, ExpORL, KU Leuven, Herestraat 49, bus 721, 3000, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Nathalie Rommel
- Department of Neurosciences, ExpORL, KU Leuven, Herestraat 49, bus 721, 3000, Leuven, Belgium
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41
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Wentura D, Bermeitinger C, Eder A, Giesen CG, Michalkiewicz M, Hartwigsen G, Röder B, Lischke A, Kübler A, Pauli P, Renner KH, Ziegler M, Spengler M, Christiansen H, Richter T, Souvignier E, Heyder A, Kunina-Habenicht O, Hertel S, Sparfeldt J, Bischof N, Glück J, Haun D, Liebal K, Amici F, Bender A, Bohn M, Bräuer J, Buttelmann D, Burkart J, Cacchione T, DeTroy S, Faßbender I, Fichtel C, Fischer J, Gampe A, Gray R, Horn L, Oña L, Kärtner J, Kaminski J, Kanngießer P, Keller H, Köster M, Kopp KS, Kornadt HJ, Rakoczy H, Schuppli C, Stengelin R, Trommsdorff G, Leeuwen EV, Schaik CV, Jüttemann G, Loh W, Paulus M. Kommentare zu Daum, M. M., Greve, W., Pauen, S., Schuhrke, B. und Schwarzer, G. (2020). Positionspapier der Fachgruppe Entwicklungspsychologie: Ein Versuch einer Standortbestimmung. PSYCHOLOGISCHE RUNDSCHAU 2020. [DOI: 10.1026/0033-3042/a000466] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dirk Wentura
- Fachrichtung Psychologie, Universität des Saarlandes
| | | | | | | | | | - Gesa Hartwigsen
- Max-Planck-Institut für Kognitions- und Neurowissenschaften, Leipzig
| | | | | | | | - Paul Pauli
- Lehrstuhl für Psychologie I, Universität Würzburg
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Judith Glück
- Institut für Psychologie der Universität Klagenfurt
| | - Daniel Haun
- Max-Planck-Institut für evolutionäre Anthropologie
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | - Russel Gray
- Max-Planck-Institut für Menschheitsgeschichte
| | | | - Linda Oña
- Max-Planck-Institut für Bildungsforschung
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Lytle MN, McNorgan C, Booth JR. A longitudinal neuroimaging dataset on multisensory lexical processing in school-aged children. Sci Data 2019; 6:329. [PMID: 31862878 PMCID: PMC6925263 DOI: 10.1038/s41597-019-0338-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2019] [Accepted: 11/26/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Here we describe the open access dataset entitled “Longitudinal Brain Correlates of Multisensory Lexical Processing in Children” hosted on OpenNeuro.org. This dataset examines reading development through a longitudinal multimodal neuroimaging and behavioral approach, including diffusion-weighted and T1-weighted structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), task based functional MRI, and a battery of psycho-educational assessments and parental questionnaires. Neuroimaging, psycho-educational testing, and functional task behavioral data were collected from 188 typically developing children when they were approximately 10.5 years old (session T1). Seventy children returned approximately 2.5 years later (session T2), of which all completed longitudinal follow-ups of psycho-educational testing, and 49 completed neuroimaging and functional tasks. At session T1 participants completed auditory, visual, and audio-visual word and pseudo-word rhyming judgment tasks in the scanner. At session T2 participants completed visual word and pseudo-word rhyming judgement tasks in the scanner. Measurement(s) | reading and spelling ability • intelligence • brain • brain physiology trait | Technology Type(s) | psychoeducational test administration • magnetic resonance imaging • functional magnetic resonance imaging • Diffusion Weighted Imaging | Factor Type(s) | age • reading disability • type of task • parental educational level | Sample Characteristic - Organism | Homo sapiens |
Machine-accessible metadata file describing the reported data: 10.6084/m9.figshare.11298188
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Affiliation(s)
- Marisa N Lytle
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
| | - Chris McNorgan
- Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, Buffalo, New York, USA
| | - James R Booth
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
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43
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Leminen M, Leminen A, Smolander S, Arkkila E, Shtyrov Y, Laasonen M, Kujala T. Quick reorganization of memory traces for morphologically complex words in young children. Neuropsychologia 2019; 138:107309. [PMID: 31857117 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.107309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2018] [Revised: 10/10/2019] [Accepted: 12/15/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Formation of neural mechanisms for morphosyntactic processing in young children is still poorly understood. Here, we addressed neural processing and rapid online acquisition of familiar and unfamiliar combinations of morphemes. Three different types of morphologically complex words - derived, inflected, and novel (pseudostem + real suffix) - were presented in a passive listening setting to 16 typically developing 3-4-year old children (as part of a longitudinal Helsinki SLI follow-up study). The mismatch negativity (MMN) component of event-related potentials (ERP), an established index of long-term linguistic memory traces in the brain, was analysed separately for the initial and final periods of the exposure to these items. We found MMN response enhancement for the inflected words towards the end of the recording session, whereas no response change was observed for the derived or novel complex forms. This enhancement indicates rapid build-up of a new memory trace for the combination of real morphemes, suggesting a capacity for online formation of whole-form lexicalized representations as one of the morphological mechanisms in the developing brain. Furthermore, this enhancement increased with age, suggesting the development of automatic morphological processing circuits in the age range of 3-4 years.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miika Leminen
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Phoniatrics, Helsinki University Hospital and University of Helsinki, PO Box 250, FIN-00029, HUS, Finland; Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, PO Box 21, FIN-00014, University of Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Alina Leminen
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, PO Box 21, FIN-00014, University of Helsinki, Finland; Cognitive Science, Department of Digital Humanitiers, Faculty of Arts, PO Box 9, FIN-00014, University of Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Sini Smolander
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Phoniatrics, Helsinki University Hospital and University of Helsinki, PO Box 250, FIN-00029, HUS, Finland; Research Unit of Logopedics, PO Box 8000, FIN-90014, University of Oulu, Finland.
| | - Eva Arkkila
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Phoniatrics, Helsinki University Hospital and University of Helsinki, PO Box 250, FIN-00029, HUS, Finland.
| | - Yury Shtyrov
- Center of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience (CFIN), Institute for Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, DK-8000, Aarhus C, Denmark; Laboratory of Behavioural Neurodynamics, St.Petersburg State University, Makarova emb, 6, St.Petersburg, 199034, Russian Federation.
| | - Marja Laasonen
- Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Phoniatrics, Helsinki University Hospital and University of Helsinki, PO Box 250, FIN-00029, HUS, Finland; Department of Psychology and Speech-Language Pathology, Faculty of Social Sciences, FIN-20014, University of Turku, Finland; Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Clinical Medicine, PO Box 63, FIN-00014 University of Helsinki, Finland.
| | - Teija Kujala
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, PO Box 21, FIN-00014, University of Helsinki, Finland.
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Cheng Q, Roth A, Halgren E, Mayberry RI. Effects of Early Language Deprivation on Brain Connectivity: Language Pathways in Deaf Native and Late First-Language Learners of American Sign Language. Front Hum Neurosci 2019; 13:320. [PMID: 31607879 PMCID: PMC6761297 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2019.00320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2019] [Accepted: 09/02/2019] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous research has identified ventral and dorsal white matter tracts as being crucial for language processing; their maturation correlates with increased language processing capacity. Unknown is whether the growth or maintenance of these language-relevant pathways is shaped by language experience in early life. To investigate the effects of early language deprivation and the sensory-motor modality of language on white matter tracts, we examined the white matter connectivity of language-relevant pathways in congenitally deaf people with or without early access to language. We acquired diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) data from two groups of individuals who experienced language from birth, twelve deaf native signers of American Sign Language, and twelve hearing L2 signers of ASL (native English speakers), and from three, well-studied individual cases who experienced minimal language during childhood. The results indicate that the sensory-motor modality of early language experience does not affect the white matter microstructure between crucial language regions. Both groups with early language experience, deaf and hearing, show leftward laterality in the two language-related tracts. However, all three cases with early language deprivation showed altered white matter microstructure, especially in the left dorsal arcuate fasciculus (AF) pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Cheng
- Department of Linguistics, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Austin Roth
- Department of Linguistics, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
- Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Eric Halgren
- Department of Radiology, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
| | - Rachel I. Mayberry
- Department of Linguistics, University of California, San Diego, San Diego, CA, United States
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45
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Northam GB, Adler S, Eschmann KCJ, Chong WK, Cowan FM, Baldeweg T. Developmental conduction aphasia after neonatal stroke. Ann Neurol 2019; 83:664-675. [PMID: 29572915 PMCID: PMC6681109 DOI: 10.1002/ana.25218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2017] [Revised: 01/15/2018] [Accepted: 01/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Objective Impairment of speech repetition following injury to the dorsal language stream is a feature of conduction aphasia, a well‐described “disconnection syndrome” in adults. The impact of similar lesions sustained in infancy has not been established. Methods We compared language outcomes in term‐born individuals with confirmed neonatal stroke (n = 30, age = 7–18 years, left‐sided lesions in 21 cases) to matched controls (n = 40). Injury to the dorsal and/or ventral language streams was assessed using T1‐ and T2‐weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and diffusion tractography. Language lateralization was determined using functional MRI. Results At the group level, left dorsal language stream injury was associated with selective speech repetition impairment for nonwords (p = 0.021) and sentences (p < 0.0001). The majority of children with significant repetition impairment had retained left hemisphere language representation, but right hemisphere dominance was correlated with minimal or absent repetition deficits. Post hoc analysis of the repetition‐impaired group revealed additional language‐associated deficits, but these were more subtle and variable. Interpretation We conclude that (1) despite the considerable plasticity of the infant brain, early dorsal language stream injury can result in specific and long‐lasting problems with speech repetition that are similar to the syndrome of conduction aphasia seen in adults; and (2) language reorganization to the contralateral hemisphere has a protective effect. Ann Neurol 2018;83:664–675 Ann Neurol 2018;83:664–675
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Affiliation(s)
- Gemma B Northam
- Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, Developmental Neurosciences Programme, University College London.,Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children National Health Service Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
| | - Sophie Adler
- Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, Developmental Neurosciences Programme, University College London.,Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children National Health Service Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
| | - Kathrin C J Eschmann
- Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, Developmental Neurosciences Programme, University College London
| | - Wui K Chong
- Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children National Health Service Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
| | - Frances M Cowan
- Imperial College London, London, United Kingdom.,Imperial College Health Care Trust, London, United Kingdom
| | - Torsten Baldeweg
- Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, Developmental Neurosciences Programme, University College London.,Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children National Health Service Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom
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Oechslin MS, Gschwind M, James CE. Tracking Training-Related Plasticity by Combining fMRI and DTI: The Right Hemisphere Ventral Stream Mediates Musical Syntax Processing. Cereb Cortex 2019; 28:1209-1218. [PMID: 28203797 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhx033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2015] [Accepted: 01/25/2017] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
As a functional homolog for left-hemispheric syntax processing in language, neuroimaging studies evidenced involvement of right prefrontal regions in musical syntax processing, of which underlying white matter connectivity remains unexplored so far. In the current experiment, we investigated the underlying pathway architecture in subjects with 3 levels of musical expertise. Employing diffusion tensor imaging tractography, departing from seeds from our previous functional magnetic resonance imaging study on music syntax processing in the same participants, we identified a pathway in the right ventral stream that connects the middle temporal lobe with the inferior frontal cortex via the extreme capsule, and corresponds to the left hemisphere ventral stream, classically attributed to syntax processing in language comprehension. Additional morphometric consistency analyses allowed dissociating tract core from more dispersed fiber portions. Musical expertise related to higher tract consistency of the right ventral stream pathway. Specifically, tract consistency in this pathway predicted the sensitivity for musical syntax violations. We conclude that enduring musical practice sculpts ventral stream architecture. Our results suggest that training-related pathway plasticity facilitates the right hemisphere ventral stream information transfer, supporting an improved sound-to-meaning mapping in music.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathias S Oechslin
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland.,Department of Education and Culture of the Canton of Thurgau, CH-8500, Frauenfeld, Switzerland
| | - Markus Gschwind
- Department of Neurology, Geneva University Hospitals, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland.,Department of Neuroscience, Campus Biotech, University of Geneva, CH-1202 Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Clara E James
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland.,Geneva Neuroscience Center, University of Geneva, CH-1211 Geneva, Switzerland.,HES-SO University of Applied Sciences and Arts Western Switzerland, School of Health Sciences, CH-1206 Geneva, Switzerland
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Carlson HL, Sugden C, Brooks BL, Kirton A. Functional connectivity of language networks after perinatal stroke. Neuroimage Clin 2019; 23:101861. [PMID: 31141787 PMCID: PMC6536856 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2019.101861] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2018] [Revised: 04/17/2019] [Accepted: 05/19/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Successful language acquisition during development is imperative for lifelong function. Complex language networks develop throughout childhood. Perinatal stroke may cause significant language disabilities but function can also be remarkably normal. Studying such very early brain injury populations may inform developmental plasticity models of language networks. We examined functional connectivity (FC) of language networks in children with arterial and venous perinatal stroke and typically developing controls (TDC) in a population-based, controlled, cohort study. Resting state functional MRI was performed at 3 T (TR/TE = 2000/30 ms, 150 volumes, 3.6mm3 voxels). Seed-based analyses used bilateral inferior frontal and superior temporal gyri. A subset of stroke participants completed clinical language testing. Sixty-six children participated (median age: 12.85±3.8y, range 6-19; arterial N = 17; venous N = 15; TDC N = 34]. Children with left hemisphere strokes had comparable FC in their right hemispheres compared to TDC. Inter- and intra-hemispheric connectivity strengths were similar between TDC and PVI but lower for AIS. Reduced FC was associated with poorer language comprehension. Language networks can be estimated using resting-state fMRI in children with perinatal stroke. Altered connectivity may occur in both hemispheres, is more pronounced with arterial lesions, and is associated with clinical function. Our results have implications for therapeutic language interventions after early stroke.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen L Carlson
- Calgary Pediatric Stroke Program, Alberta Children's Hospital, Calgary, AB, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI), Calgary, AB, Canada; Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
| | - Cole Sugden
- Calgary Pediatric Stroke Program, Alberta Children's Hospital, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Brian L Brooks
- Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI), Calgary, AB, Canada; Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada; Neuropsychology Service, Alberta Children's Hospital, Calgary, AB, Canada; Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Adam Kirton
- Calgary Pediatric Stroke Program, Alberta Children's Hospital, Calgary, AB, Canada; Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute (ACHRI), Calgary, AB, Canada; Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada; Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada; Department of Radiology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
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Jeon HA, Kuhl U, Friederici AD. Mathematical expertise modulates the architecture of dorsal and cortico-thalamic white matter tracts. Sci Rep 2019; 9:6825. [PMID: 31048754 PMCID: PMC6497695 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-43400-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2018] [Accepted: 04/23/2019] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
To what extent are levels of cognitive expertise reflected in differential structural connectivity of the brain? We addressed this question by analyzing the white matter brain structure of experts (mathematicians) versus non-experts (non-mathematicians) using probabilistic tractography. Having mathematicians and non-mathematicians as participant groups enabled us to directly compare profiles of structural connectivity arising from individual levels of expertise in mathematics. Tracking from functional seed regions activated during the processing of complex arithmetic formulas revealed an involvement of various fiber bundles such the inferior fronto-occipital fascicle, arcuate fasciculus/superior longitudinal fasciculus (AF/SLF), cross-hemispheric connections of frontal lobe areas through the corpus callosum and cortico-subcortical connectivity via the bilateral thalamic radiation. With the aim of investigating expertise-dependent structural connectivity, the streamline density was correlated with the level of expertise, defined by automaticity of processing complex mathematics. The results showed that structural integrity of the AF/SLF was higher in individuals with higher automaticity, while stronger cortico-thalamic connectivity was associated with lower levels of automaticity. Therefore, we suggest that expertise in the domain of mathematics is reflected in plastic changes of the brain's white matter structure, possibly reflecting a general principle of cognitive expertise.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hyeon-Ae Jeon
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), Daegu, 42988, Korea.
- Partner Group of the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences at the Department for Brain and Cognitive Sciences, DGIST, Daegu, 42988, Korea.
| | - Ulrike Kuhl
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, 04103, Germany
| | - Angela D Friederici
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, 04103, Germany
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Qi T, Schaadt G, Cafiero R, Brauer J, Skeide MA, Friederici AD. The emergence of long-range language network structural covariance and language abilities. Neuroimage 2019; 191:36-48. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.02.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2018] [Revised: 01/28/2019] [Accepted: 02/05/2019] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
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Liu J, Tsang T, Jackson L, Ponting C, Jeste SS, Bookheimer SY, Dapretto M. Altered lateralization of dorsal language tracts in 6-week-old infants at risk for autism. Dev Sci 2019; 22:e12768. [PMID: 30372577 PMCID: PMC6470045 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2018] [Revised: 10/11/2018] [Accepted: 10/22/2018] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Altered structural connectivity has been identified as a possible biomarker of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) risk in the developing brain. Core features of ASD include impaired social communication and early language delay. Thus, examining white matter tracts associated with language may lend further insight into early signs of ASD risk and the mechanisms that underlie language impairments associated with the disorder. Evidence of altered structural connectivity has previously been detected in 6-month-old infants at high familial risk for developing ASD. However, as language processing begins in utero, differences in structural connectivity between language regions may be present in the early infant brain shortly after birth. Here we investigated key white matter pathways of the dorsal language network in 6-week-old infants at high (HR) and low (LR) risk for ASD to identify atypicalities in structural connectivity that may predict altered developmental trajectories prior to overt language delays and the onset of ASD symptomatology. Compared to HR infants, LR infants showed higher fractional anisotropy (FA) in the left superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF); in contrast, in the right SLF, HR infants showed higher FA than LR infants. Additionally, HR infants showed more rightward lateralization of the SLF. Across both groups, measures of FA and lateralization of these pathways at 6 weeks of age were related to later language development at 18 months of age as well as ASD symptomatology at 36 months of age. These findings indicate that early differences in the structure of language pathways may provide an early predictor of future language development and ASD risk.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janelle Liu
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Tawny Tsang
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Lisa Jackson
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Carolyn Ponting
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Shafali S. Jeste
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Susan Y. Bookheimer
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Semel Institute of Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Center for Cognitive Neurosciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Mirella Dapretto
- Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
- Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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