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Cnudde K, van Hees S, Brown S, van der Wijk G, Pexman PM, Protzner AB. Increased Neural Efficiency in Visual Word Recognition: Evidence from Alterations in Event-Related Potentials and Multiscale Entropy. ENTROPY (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2021; 23:304. [PMID: 33806539 PMCID: PMC8002031 DOI: 10.3390/e23030304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2021] [Revised: 02/26/2021] [Accepted: 02/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Visual word recognition is a relatively effortless process, but recent research suggests the system involved is malleable, with evidence of increases in behavioural efficiency after prolonged lexical decision task (LDT) performance. However, the extent of neural changes has yet to be characterized in this context. The neural changes that occur could be related to a shift from initially effortful performance that is supported by control-related processing, to efficient task performance that is supported by domain-specific processing. To investigate this, we replicated the British Lexicon Project, and had participants complete 16 h of LDT over several days. We recorded electroencephalography (EEG) at three intervals to track neural change during LDT performance and assessed event-related potentials and brain signal complexity. We found that response times decreased during LDT performance, and there was evidence of neural change through N170, P200, N400, and late positive component (LPC) amplitudes across the EEG sessions, which suggested a shift from control-related to domain-specific processing. We also found widespread complexity decreases alongside localized increases, suggesting that processing became more efficient with specific increases in processing flexibility. Together, these findings suggest that neural processing becomes more efficient and optimized to support prolonged LDT performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kelsey Cnudde
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada; (S.v.H.); (S.B.); (G.v.d.W.); (P.M.P.); (A.B.P.)
| | - Sophia van Hees
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada; (S.v.H.); (S.B.); (G.v.d.W.); (P.M.P.); (A.B.P.)
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Sage Brown
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada; (S.v.H.); (S.B.); (G.v.d.W.); (P.M.P.); (A.B.P.)
| | - Gwen van der Wijk
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada; (S.v.H.); (S.B.); (G.v.d.W.); (P.M.P.); (A.B.P.)
| | - Penny M. Pexman
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada; (S.v.H.); (S.B.); (G.v.d.W.); (P.M.P.); (A.B.P.)
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Andrea B. Protzner
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 1N4, Canada; (S.v.H.); (S.B.); (G.v.d.W.); (P.M.P.); (A.B.P.)
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
- The Mathison Centre for Mental Health Research & Education, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4Z6, Canada
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Jouravlev O, Mineroff Z, Blank IA, Fedorenko E. The Small and Efficient Language Network of Polyglots and Hyper-polyglots. Cereb Cortex 2021; 31:62-76. [PMID: 32820332 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhaa205] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2019] [Revised: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Acquiring a foreign language is challenging for many adults. Yet certain individuals choose to acquire sometimes dozens of languages and often just for fun. Is there something special about the minds and brains of such polyglots? Using robust individual-level markers of language activity, measured with fMRI, we compared native language processing in polyglots versus matched controls. Polyglots (n = 17, including nine "hyper-polyglots" with proficiency in 10-55 languages) used fewer neural resources to process language: Their activations were smaller in both magnitude and extent. This difference was spatially and functionally selective: The groups were similar in their activation of two other brain networks-the multiple demand network and the default mode network. We hypothesize that the activation reduction in the language network is experientially driven, such that the acquisition and use of multiple languages makes language processing generally more efficient. However, genetic and longitudinal studies will be critical to distinguish this hypothesis from the one whereby polyglots' brains already differ at birth or early in development. This initial characterization of polyglots' language network opens the door to future investigations of the cognitive and neural architecture of individuals who gain mastery of multiple languages, including changes in this architecture with linguistic experiences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olessia Jouravlev
- Brain & Cognitive Sciences Department, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.,Department of Cognitive Science, Carleton University, Ottawa, ON K1S5B6, Canada
| | - Zachary Mineroff
- Brain & Cognitive Sciences Department, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
| | - Idan A Blank
- Brain & Cognitive Sciences Department, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.,Department of Psychology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Evelina Fedorenko
- Brain & Cognitive Sciences Department, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.,McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA
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Wang H, Pexman PM, Turner G, Cortese F, Protzner AB. The relation between Scrabble expertise and brain aging as measured with EEG brain signal variability. Neurobiol Aging 2018; 69:249-260. [PMID: 29920434 DOI: 10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2018.05.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2017] [Revised: 04/06/2018] [Accepted: 05/11/2018] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Recent empirical work suggests that the dynamics of brain function, as measured by brain signal variability, differs between younger and older adults. We extended this work by examining how the relationship between brain signal variability and age is altered in the context of expertise. We recorded electroencephalography from Scrabble experts and controls during a visual word recognition task. To measure variability, we used multiscale entropy, which emphasizes the way brain signals behave over a range of timescales and can differentiate the variability of a complex system (the brain) from a purely random system. We replicated previously identified shifts from long-range interactions among neural populations to more local processing in late adulthood. In addition, we demonstrated an age-related increase in midrange neural interactions for experts, suggesting greater maintenance of network integration into late adulthood. Our results indicate that expertise-related differences in the context of age and brain dynamics occur across different timescales and that these differences are linked to task performance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hongye Wang
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
| | - Penny M Pexman
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Gary Turner
- Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Filomeno Cortese
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Seaman Family MR Centre, Foothills Medical Centre, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Andrea B Protzner
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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Krakauer K, Ebdrup BH, Glenthøj BY, Raghava JM, Nordholm D, Randers L, Rostrup E, Nordentoft M. Patterns of white matter microstructure in individuals at ultra-high-risk for psychosis: associations to level of functioning and clinical symptoms. Psychol Med 2017; 47:2689-2707. [PMID: 28464976 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291717001210] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Individuals at ultra-high-risk (UHR) for psychosis present with emerging symptoms and decline in functioning. Previous univariate analyses have indicated widespread white matter (WM) aberrations in multiple brain regions in UHR individuals and patients with schizophrenia. Using multivariate statistics, we investigated whole brain WM microstructure and associations between WM, clinical symptoms, and level of functioning in UHR individuals. METHODS Forty-five UHR individuals and 45 matched healthy controls (HCs) underwent magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) at 3 Tesla. UHR individuals were assessed with the Comprehensive Assessment of At-Risk Mental States, Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms, and Social and Occupational Functioning Assessment Scale. Partial least-squares correlation analysis (PLSC) was used as statistical method. RESULTS PLSC group comparisons revealed one significant latent variable (LV) accounting for 52% of the cross-block covariance. This LV indicated a pattern of lower fractional anisotropy (FA), axial diffusivity (AD), and mode of anisotropy (MO) concomitant with higher radial diffusivity (RD) in widespread brain regions in UHR individuals compared with HCs. Within UHR individuals, PLSC revealed five significant LVs associated with symptoms and level of functioning. The first LV accounted for 31% of the cross-block covariance and indicated a pattern where higher symptom score and lower level of functioning correlated to lower FA, AD, MO, and higher RD. CONCLUSIONS UHR individuals demonstrate complex brain patterns of WM abnormalities. Despite the subtle psychopathology of UHR individuals, aberrations in WM appear associated with positive and negative symptoms as well as level of functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Krakauer
- Mental Health Centre Copenhagen,Copenhagen University Hospital,DK-2900 Hellerup,Denmark
| | - B H Ebdrup
- Centre for Clinical Intervention and Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research, CINS,DK-2600 Glostrup,Denmark
| | - B Y Glenthøj
- Centre for Clinical Intervention and Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research, CINS,DK-2600 Glostrup,Denmark
| | - J M Raghava
- Centre for Clinical Intervention and Neuropsychiatric Schizophrenia Research, CINS,DK-2600 Glostrup,Denmark
| | - D Nordholm
- Mental Health Centre Copenhagen,Copenhagen University Hospital,DK-2900 Hellerup,Denmark
| | - L Randers
- Mental Health Centre Copenhagen,Copenhagen University Hospital,DK-2900 Hellerup,Denmark
| | - E Rostrup
- Functional Imaging Unit,Clinical Physiology,Nuclear Medicine and PET,Copenhagen University Hospital Rigshospitalet,DK-2600 Glostrup,Denmark
| | - M Nordentoft
- Mental Health Centre Copenhagen,Copenhagen University Hospital,DK-2900 Hellerup,Denmark
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van Hees S, Seyffarth S, Pexman PM, Cortese F, Protzner AB. An ERP investigation of vertical reading fluency in Scrabble® experts. Brain Res 2017; 1667:1-10. [PMID: 28438529 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2017.04.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2016] [Revised: 04/12/2017] [Accepted: 04/13/2017] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Previous studies have found that competitive Scrabble expertise is associated with enhanced performance on visual lexical decision tasks (LDT), particularly for vertically presented stimuli. In the current study, we investigated the underlying mechanisms responsible for this vertical fluency. We examined behaviour and neural activity during LDT in 19 competitive Scrabble players and 18 matched controls. Using event related potentials (ERP), we investigated whether Scrabble expertise modulates the N170, P300, and late positive component (LPC), associated with visual-orthographic processing, working memory, and stimulus classification, respectively. Behavioural results replicated those from previous studies: Scrabble experts were significantly faster than controls to respond to vertical stimuli in LDT. ERP results showed Scrabble experts had larger P300 amplitudes in right parietal electrodes compared to controls, as well as greater differentiation in LPC amplitudes between vertical words and nonwords. These findings suggest that the mechanism underlying vertical fluency in Scrabble experts involves enhanced domain-specific working memory and stimulus classification processes. The results have implications for understanding the flexibility of the adult visual word recognition system, as well as the behavioural and neural consequences of training within this system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophia van Hees
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Canada.
| | | | - Penny M Pexman
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Canada
| | - Filomeno Cortese
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Canada; Neuroimaging Research Unit, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Canada
| | - Andrea B Protzner
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Canada
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van Hees S, Pexman PM, Hargreaves IS, Zdrazilova L, Hart JM, Myers-Stewart K, Cortese F, Protzner AB. Testing the Limits of Skill Transfer for Scrabble Experts in Behavior and Brain. Front Hum Neurosci 2016; 10:564. [PMID: 27881960 PMCID: PMC5101412 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00564] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2016] [Accepted: 10/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
We investigated transfer of the skills developed by competitive Scrabble players. Previous studies reported superior performance for Scrabble experts on the lexical decision task (LDT), suggesting near transfer of Scrabble skills. Here we investigated the potential for far transfer to a symbol decision task (SDT); in particular, transfer of enhanced long-term working memory for vertically presented stimuli. Our behavioral results showed no evidence for far transfer. Despite years of intensive practice, Scrabble experts were no faster and no more accurate than controls in the SDT. However, our fMRI and EEG data from the SDT suggest that the neural repertoire that Scrabble experts develop supports task performance even outside of the practiced domain, in a non-linguistic context. The regions engaged during the SDT were different across groups: controls engaged temporal-frontal regions, whereas Scrabble experts engaged posterior visual and temporal-parietal regions. In Scrabble experts, activity related to Scrabble skill (anagramming scores) included regions associated with visual-spatial processing and long-term working memory, and overlapped with regions previously shown to be associated with Scrabble expertise in the near transfer task (LDT). Analysis of source waveforms within these regions showed that participants with higher anagramming scores had larger P300 amplitudes, potentially reflecting greater working memory capacity, or less variability in the participants who performed the task more efficiently. Thus, the neuroimaging results provide evidence of brain transfer in the absence of behavioral transfer, providing new clues about the consequences of long-term training associated with competitive Scrabble expertise.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophia van Hees
- Department of Psychology, University of CalgaryCalgary, AB, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of CalgaryCalgary, AB, Canada
| | - Penny M Pexman
- Department of Psychology, University of CalgaryCalgary, AB, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of CalgaryCalgary, AB, Canada
| | - Ian S Hargreaves
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Lenka Zdrazilova
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary Calgary, AB, Canada
| | - Jessie M Hart
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary Calgary, AB, Canada
| | | | - Filomeno Cortese
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of CalgaryCalgary, AB, Canada; Seaman Family Magnetic Resonance Research Centre, University of CalgaryCalgary, AB, Canada
| | - Andrea B Protzner
- Department of Psychology, University of CalgaryCalgary, AB, Canada; Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of CalgaryCalgary, AB, Canada
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