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Moisseinen N, Ahveninen L, Martínez‐Molina N, Sairanen V, Melkas S, Kleber B, Sihvonen AJ, Särkämö T. Choir singing is associated with enhanced structural connectivity across the adult lifespan. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26705. [PMID: 38716698 PMCID: PMC11077432 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26705] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 03/06/2024] [Accepted: 04/21/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The global ageing of populations calls for effective, ecologically valid methods to support brain health across adult life. Previous evidence suggests that music can promote white matter (WM) microstructure and grey matter (GM) volume while supporting auditory and cognitive functioning and emotional well-being as well as counteracting age-related cognitive decline. Adding a social component to music training, choir singing is a popular leisure activity among older adults, but a systematic account of its potential to support healthy brain structure, especially with regard to ageing, is currently missing. The present study used quantitative anisotropy (QA)-based diffusion MRI connectometry and voxel-based morphometry to explore the relationship of lifetime choir singing experience and brain structure at the whole-brain level. Cross-sectional multiple regression analyses were carried out in a large, balanced sample (N = 95; age range 21-88) of healthy adults with varying levels of choir singing experience across the whole age range and within subgroups defined by age (young, middle-aged, and older adults). Independent of age, choir singing experience was associated with extensive increases in WM QA in commissural, association, and projection tracts across the brain. Corroborating previous work, these overlapped with language and limbic networks. Enhanced corpus callosum microstructure was associated with choir singing experience across all subgroups. In addition, choir singing experience was selectively associated with enhanced QA in the fornix in older participants. No associations between GM volume and choir singing were found. The present study offers the first systematic account of amateur-level choir singing on brain structure. While no evidence for counteracting GM atrophy was found, the present evidence of enhanced structural connectivity coheres well with age-typical structural changes. Corroborating previous behavioural studies, the present results suggest that regular choir singing holds great promise for supporting brain health across the adult life span.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nella Moisseinen
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of MedicineUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
| | - Lotta Ahveninen
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of MedicineUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
| | - Noelia Martínez‐Molina
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of MedicineUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
- Center for Brain and Cognition, Department of Information and Communication TechnologiesUniversity Pompeu FabraBarcelonaSpain
| | - Viljami Sairanen
- Department of RadiologyKanta‐Häme Central HospitalHämeenlinnaFinland
- Baby Brain Activity Center, Children's HospitalHelsinki University Hospital and University of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
| | - Susanna Melkas
- Clinical Neurosciences, NeurologyUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
| | - Boris Kleber
- Center for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical MedicineAarhus University and The Royal Academy of Music Aarhus/AalborgAarhusDenmark
| | - Aleksi J. Sihvonen
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of MedicineUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
- Centre for Clinical Research, School of Health and Rehabilitation SciencesUniversity of QueenslandBrisbaneAustralia
- Department of NeurologyHelsinki University HospitalHelsinkiFinland
| | - Teppo Särkämö
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of MedicineUniversity of HelsinkiHelsinkiFinland
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Moisseinen N, Särkämö T, Kauramäki J, Kleber B, Sihvonen AJ, Martínez-Molina N. Differential effects of ageing on the neural processing of speech and singing production. Front Aging Neurosci 2023; 15:1236971. [PMID: 37731954 PMCID: PMC10507273 DOI: 10.3389/fnagi.2023.1236971] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2023] [Accepted: 08/21/2023] [Indexed: 09/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Understanding healthy brain ageing has become vital as populations are ageing rapidly and age-related brain diseases are becoming more common. In normal brain ageing, speech processing undergoes functional reorganisation involving reductions of hemispheric asymmetry and overactivation in the prefrontal regions. However, little is known about how these changes generalise to other vocal production, such as singing, and how they are affected by associated cognitive demands. Methods The present cross-sectional fMRI study systematically maps the neural correlates of vocal production across adulthood (N=100, age 21-88 years) using a balanced 2x3 design where tasks varied in modality (speech: proverbs / singing: song phrases) and cognitive demand (repetition / completion from memory / improvisation). Results In speech production, ageing was associated with decreased left pre- and postcentral activation across tasks and increased bilateral angular and right inferior temporal and fusiform activation in the improvisation task. In singing production, ageing was associated with increased activation in medial and bilateral prefrontal and parietal regions in the completion task, whereas other tasks showed no ageing effects. Direct comparisons between the modalities showed larger age-related activation changes in speech than singing across tasks, including a larger left-to-right shift in lateral prefrontal regions in the improvisation task. Conclusion The present results suggest that the brains' singing network undergoes differential functional reorganisation in normal ageing compared to the speech network, particularly during a task with high executive demand. These findings are relevant for understanding the effects of ageing on vocal production as well as how singing can support communication in healthy ageing and neurological rehabilitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nella Moisseinen
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Teppo Särkämö
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Jaakko Kauramäki
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Boris Kleber
- Centre for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Aleksi J. Sihvonen
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Centre for Clinical Research, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
- Department of Neurology, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Noelia Martínez-Molina
- Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, Centre of Excellence in Music, Mind, Body and the Brain, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Department of Information and Communication Technologies, Centre for Brain and Cognition, University Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
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Martínez-Molina N, Siponkoski ST, Pitkäniemi A, Moisseinen N, Kuusela L, Pekkola J, Laitinen S, Särkämö ER, Melkas S, Kleber B, Schlaug G, Sihvonen A, Särkämö T. Neuroanatomical correlates of speech and singing production in chronic post-stroke aphasia. Brain Commun 2022; 4:fcac001. [PMID: 35174327 PMCID: PMC8842683 DOI: 10.1093/braincomms/fcac001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2021] [Revised: 10/26/2021] [Accepted: 01/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
A classical observation in neurology is that aphasic stroke patients with impairments in speech production can nonetheless sing the same utterances. This preserved ability suggests a distinctive neural architecture for singing that could contribute to speech recovery. However, to date, these structural correlates remain unknown. Here, we combined a multivariate lesion-symptom mapping and voxel-based morphometry approach to analyse the relationship between lesion patterns and grey matter volume and production rate in speech and singing tasks. Lesion patterns for spontaneous speech and cued repetition extended into frontal, temporal and parietal areas typically reported within the speech production network. Impairment in spontaneous singing was associated with damage to left anterior-posterior superior and middle temporal gyri. Preservation of grey matter volume in the same regions where damage led to poor speech and singing production supported better performance in these tasks. When dividing the patients into fluent and dysfluent singers based on singing performance from demographically matched controls, we found that preservation of left middle temporal gyrus was related to better spontaneous singing. These findings provide insights into the structural correlates of singing in chronic aphasia and may serve as biomarkers to predict treatment response in clinical trials using singing-based interventions for speech rehabilitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noelia Martínez-Molina
- Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Correspondence to: Noelia Martínez Molina Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team Cognitive Brain Research Unit Department of Psychology and Logopedics University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland E-mail:
| | - Sini-Tuuli Siponkoski
- Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Anni Pitkäniemi
- Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Nella Moisseinen
- Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Linda Kuusela
- Department of Physics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- HUS Medical Imaging Center, Department of Radiology, Helsinki Central University Hospital and University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Johanna Pekkola
- HUS Medical Imaging Center, Department of Radiology, Helsinki Central University Hospital and University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Sari Laitinen
- Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Espoo Hospital, Espoo, Finland
| | - Essi-Reetta Särkämö
- Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Private Choir Conductor, Vantaa, Finland
| | - Susanna Melkas
- Department of Neurology, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Boris Kleber
- Center for Music in the Brain, Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University and The Royal Academy of Music, Aarhus/Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Gottfried Schlaug
- Department of Neurology, UMass Medical School—Baystate and Institute of Applied Life Sciences, UMass Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA
| | - Aleksi Sihvonen
- Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
- Centre for Clinical Research, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Teppo Särkämö
- Music, Ageing and Rehabilitation Team, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, Department of Psychology and Logopedics, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
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Paavilainen P, Illi J, Moisseinen N, Niinisalo M, Ojala K, Reinikainen J, Vainio L. Attention-shift vs. response-priming explanations for the spatial cueing effect in cross-modal tasks. Scand J Psychol 2016; 57:185-92. [PMID: 26926651 DOI: 10.1111/sjop.12279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2015] [Accepted: 01/13/2016] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The task-irrelevant spatial location of a cue stimulus affects the processing of a subsequent target. This "Posner effect" has been explained by an exogenous attention shift to the spatial location of the cue, improving perceptual processing of the target. We studied whether the left/right location of task-irrelevant and uninformative tones produces cueing effects on the processing of visual targets. Tones were presented randomly from left or right. In the first condition, the subsequent visual target, requiring response either with the left or right hand, was presented peripherally to left or right. In the second condition, the target was a centrally presented left/right-pointing arrow, indicating the response hand. In the third condition, the tone and the central arrow were presented simultaneously. Data were recorded on compatible (the tone location and the response hand were the same) and incompatible trials. Reaction times were longer on incompatible than on compatible trials. The results of the second and third conditions are difficult to explain with the attention-shift model emphasizing improved perceptual processing in the cued location, as the central target did not require any location-based processing. Consequently, as an alternative explanation they suggest response priming in the hand corresponding to the spatial location of the tone. Simultaneous lateralized readiness potential (LRP) recordings were consistent with the behavioral data, the tone cues eliciting on incompatible trials a fast preparation for the incorrect response and on compatible trials preparation for the correct response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petri Paavilainen
- Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.,Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Division of Cognitive and Neuropsychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Janne Illi
- Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Division of Cognitive and Neuropsychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Nella Moisseinen
- Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Cognitive Brain Research Unit, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.,Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Division of Cognitive and Neuropsychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Maija Niinisalo
- Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Division of Cognitive and Neuropsychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Karita Ojala
- Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Division of Cognitive and Neuropsychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Johanna Reinikainen
- Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Division of Cognitive and Neuropsychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Lari Vainio
- Institute of Behavioural Sciences, Division of Cognitive and Neuropsychology, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
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Ellison D, Moisseinen N, Fachner J, Brattico E. Affective versus cognitive responses to musical chords: An ERP and behavioral study. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015. [DOI: 10.1037/pmu0000127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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