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Zuanazzi A, Ripollés P, Lin WM, Gwilliams L, King JR, Poeppel D. Negation mitigates rather than inverts the neural representations of adjectives. PLoS Biol 2024; 22:e3002622. [PMID: 38814982 PMCID: PMC11139306 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002622] [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] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 04/11/2024] [Indexed: 06/01/2024] Open
Abstract
Combinatoric linguistic operations underpin human language processes, but how meaning is composed and refined in the mind of the reader is not well understood. We address this puzzle by exploiting the ubiquitous function of negation. We track the online effects of negation ("not") and intensifiers ("really") on the representation of scalar adjectives (e.g., "good") in parametrically designed behavioral and neurophysiological (MEG) experiments. The behavioral data show that participants first interpret negated adjectives as affirmative and later modify their interpretation towards, but never exactly as, the opposite meaning. Decoding analyses of neural activity further reveal significant above chance decoding accuracy for negated adjectives within 600 ms from adjective onset, suggesting that negation does not invert the representation of adjectives (i.e., "not bad" represented as "good"); furthermore, decoding accuracy for negated adjectives is found to be significantly lower than that for affirmative adjectives. Overall, these results suggest that negation mitigates rather than inverts the neural representations of adjectives. This putative suppression mechanism of negation is supported by increased synchronization of beta-band neural activity in sensorimotor areas. The analysis of negation provides a steppingstone to understand how the human brain represents changes of meaning over time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arianna Zuanazzi
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Pablo Ripollés
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York, United States of America
- Music and Audio Research Lab (MARL), New York University, New York, New York, United States of America
- Center for Language, Music and Emotion (ClaME), New York University, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Wy Ming Lin
- Hector Research Institute for Education Sciences and Psychology, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Laura Gwilliams
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, United States of America
| | - Jean-Rémi King
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York, United States of America
- Ecole Normale Supérieure, PSL University, Paris, France
| | - David Poeppel
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York, United States of America
- Center for Language, Music and Emotion (ClaME), New York University, New York, New York, United States of America
- Ernst Strüngmann Institute for Neuroscience, Frankfurt, Germany
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2
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Invernizzi S, Bodart A, Lefebvre L, Loureiro IS. The role of semantic assessment in the differential diagnosis between late-life depression and Alzheimer's disease or amnestic mild cognitive impairment: systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur J Ageing 2023; 20:34. [PMID: 37563432 PMCID: PMC10415247 DOI: 10.1007/s10433-023-00780-z] [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] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 08/12/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECT The cognitive complaints encountered in late-life depression (LLD) make it difficult to distinguish from amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) based on an analysis of neurocognitive disorders. The hypothesis of the early impairment of semantic memory in AD and aMCI is considered a potential differential cognitive clue, but the absence of this impairment has not yet been confirmed in LLD. METHOD Based on the PRISMA method, we systematically seek neuropsychological assessments of individuals with LLD, the present study included 31 studies representing 3291 controls and 2820 people with LLD. Wherever possible, studies that tested simultaneously groups with LLD, AD (or aMCI) were also included. The results of the group of neuropsychological tasks relying on semantic memory were analyzed in two groups of tasks with high- or low-executive demand. The mean average effect of LLD was calculated and compared to the incremental effect of aMCI or AD on the scores. Linear regressions including education, age, and severity and type of depression were run to seek their power of prediction for the mean average effects. RESULTS LLD has a medium effect on scores at semantic and phonemic fluency and naming and a small average effect on the low-executive demand tasks. Differences in education is a predictor of the effect of LLD on phonemic fluency and naming but not on semantic fluency or on low-executive demand tasks. Except for semantic fluency, aMCI did not demonstrate an incremental effect on the scores compared to LLD, while AD did, for all the tasks except phonemic fluency. CONCLUSION Assessment of semantic memory can be a discriminating clue for the distinction between depression and Alzheimer's disease but some methodological variables are highly influential to the scores, especially education. However, high-executive semantic tasks alone do not allow us to clearly distinguish LLD from AD or aMCI, as both pathologies seem to have a largely dialectical influential relationship, but low-executive semantic tasks appear as more sensible to this pathological distinction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Invernizzi
- Departement of Cognitive Psychology and Neuropsychology, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium.
- Fonds National de La Recherche Scientifique, Brussel, Belgium.
| | - Alice Bodart
- Departement of Cognitive Psychology and Neuropsychology, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
| | - Laurent Lefebvre
- Departement of Cognitive Psychology and Neuropsychology, University of Mons, Mons, Belgium
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3
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Seghier ML. Multiple functions of the angular gyrus at high temporal resolution. Brain Struct Funct 2023; 228:7-46. [PMID: 35674917 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-022-02512-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/22/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Here, the functions of the angular gyrus (AG) are evaluated in the light of current evidence from transcranial magnetic/electric stimulation (TMS/TES) and EEG/MEG studies. 65 TMS/TES and 52 EEG/MEG studies were examined in this review. TMS/TES literature points to a causal role in semantic processing, word and number processing, attention and visual search, self-guided movement, memory, and self-processing. EEG/MEG studies reported AG effects at latencies varying between 32 and 800 ms in a wide range of domains, with a high probability to detect an effect at 300-350 ms post-stimulus onset. A three-phase unifying model revolving around the process of sensemaking is then suggested: (1) early AG involvement in defining the current context, within the first 200 ms, with a bias toward the right hemisphere; (2) attention re-orientation and retrieval of relevant information within 200-500 ms; and (3) cross-modal integration at late latencies with a bias toward the left hemisphere. This sensemaking process can favour accuracy (e.g. for word and number processing) or plausibility (e.g. for comprehension and social cognition). Such functions of the AG depend on the status of other connected regions. The much-debated semantic role is also discussed as follows: (1) there is a strong TMS/TES evidence for a causal semantic role, (2) current EEG/MEG evidence is however weak, but (3) the existing arguments against a semantic role for the AG are not strong. Some outstanding questions for future research are proposed. This review recognizes that cracking the role(s) of the AG in cognition is possible only when its exact contributions within the default mode network are teased apart.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed L Seghier
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi, UAE. .,Healthcare Engineering Innovation Center (HEIC), Khalifa University of Science and Technology, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
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4
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Farahibozorg SR, Henson RN, Woollams AM, Hauk O. Distinct roles for the anterior temporal lobe and angular gyrus in the spatiotemporal cortical semantic network. Cereb Cortex 2022; 32:4549-4564. [PMID: 35094061 PMCID: PMC9574238 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab501] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2021] [Revised: 11/13/2021] [Accepted: 11/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Semantic knowledge is supported by numerous brain regions, but the spatiotemporal configuration of the network that links these areas remains an open question. The hub-and-spokes model posits that a central semantic hub coordinates this network. In this study, we explored distinct aspects that define a semantic hub, as reflected in the spatiotemporal modulation of neural activity and connectivity by semantic variables, from the earliest stages of semantic processing. We used source-reconstructed electro/magnetoencephalography, and investigated the concreteness contrast across three tasks. In a whole-cortex analysis, the left anterior temporal lobe (ATL) was the only area that showed modulation of evoked brain activity from 100 ms post-stimulus. Furthermore, using Dynamic Causal Modeling of the evoked responses, we investigated effective connectivity amongst the candidate semantic hub regions, that is, left ATL, supramarginal/angular gyrus (SMG/AG), middle temporal gyrus, and inferior frontal gyrus. We found that models with a single semantic hub showed the highest Bayesian evidence, and the hub region was found to change from ATL (within 250 ms) to SMG/AG (within 450 ms) over time. Our results support a single semantic hub view, with ATL showing sustained modulation of neural activity by semantics, and both ATL and AG underlying connectivity depending on the stage of semantic processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seyedeh-Rezvan Farahibozorg
- MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 7EF, UK.,Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging, Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, OX3 9DU, UK
| | - Richard N Henson
- MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 7EF, UK.,Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ, UK
| | - Anna M Woollams
- Neuroscience and Aphasia Research Unit, School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, M13 9PL, UK
| | - Olaf Hauk
- MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 7EF, UK
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5
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Gao Z, Zheng L, Krieger-Redwood K, Halai A, Margulies DS, Smallwood J, Jefferies E. Flexing the principal gradient of the cerebral cortex to suit changing semantic task demands. eLife 2022; 11:e80368. [PMID: 36169281 PMCID: PMC9555860 DOI: 10.7554/elife.80368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding how thought emerges from the topographical structure of the cerebral cortex is a primary goal of cognitive neuroscience. Recent work has revealed a principal gradient of intrinsic connectivity capturing the separation of sensory-motor cortex from transmodal regions of the default mode network (DMN); this is thought to facilitate memory-guided cognition. However, studies have not explored how this dimension of connectivity changes when conceptual retrieval is controlled to suit the context. We used gradient decomposition of informational connectivity in a semantic association task to establish how the similarity in connectivity across brain regions changes during familiar and more original patterns of retrieval. Multivoxel activation patterns at opposite ends of the principal gradient were more divergent when participants retrieved stronger associations; therefore, when long-term semantic information is sufficient for ongoing cognition, regions supporting heteromodal memory are functionally separated from sensory-motor experience. In contrast, when less related concepts were linked, this dimension of connectivity was reduced in strength as semantic control regions separated from the DMN to generate more flexible and original responses. We also observed fewer dimensions within the neural response towards the apex of the principal gradient when strong associations were retrieved, reflecting less complex or varied neural coding across trials and participants. In this way, the principal gradient explains how semantic cognition is organised in the human cerebral cortex: the separation of DMN from sensory-motor systems is a hallmark of the retrieval of strong conceptual links that are culturally shared.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhiyao Gao
- Department of Psychology, University of YorkNew YorkUnited Kingdom
| | - Li Zheng
- Department of Psychology, University of ArizonaTucsonUnited States
| | | | - Ajay Halai
- MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
| | - Daniel S Margulies
- Integrative Neuroscience and Cognition Center (UMR 8002), Centre National de la Recherche ScientifiqueParisFrance
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6
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Fradkin I, Eldar E. If you don't let it in, you don't have to get it out: Thought preemption as a method to control unwanted thoughts. PLoS Comput Biol 2022; 18:e1010285. [PMID: 35834438 PMCID: PMC9282588 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pcbi.1010285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2022] [Accepted: 06/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
To attain goals, people must proactively prevent interferences and react to interferences once they occur. Whereas most research focuses on how people deal with external interferences, here we investigate the use of proactive and reactive control in dealing with unwanted thoughts. To examine this question, we asked people to generate an association to each of several repeating cue words, while forbidding the repetition of associations. Reactively rejecting and replacing unwanted repeated associations after they occur entails slower response times. Conversely, proactive control entails constricting the search space and thus faster response times. To gain further insight into different potential proactive thought control mechanisms, we augmented the analysis of raw response times with a novel, hypothesis-based, tractable computational model describing how people serially sample associations. Our results indicate that people primarily react to unwanted thoughts after they occur. Yet, we found evidence for two latent proactive control mechanisms: one that allows people to mitigate the episodic strengthening of repeated thoughts, and another that helps avoid looping in a repetitive thought. Exploratory analysis showed a relationship between model parameters and self-reported individual differences in the control over unwanted thoughts in daily life. The findings indicate the novel task and model can advance our understanding of how people can and cannot control their thoughts and memories, and benefit future research on the mechanisms responsible for unwanted thought in different psychiatric conditions. Finally, we discuss implications concerning the involvement of associative thinking and various control processes in semantic fluency, decision-making and creativity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isaac Fradkin
- Department of Psychology, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Eran Eldar
- Department of Psychology, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
- Department of Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel
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7
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Leonardelli E, Fairhall SL. Similarity-based fMRI-MEG fusion reveals hierarchical organisation within the brain's semantic system. Neuroimage 2022; 259:119405. [PMID: 35752412 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2022.119405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2021] [Revised: 06/11/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Our ability to understand and interact with our environment relies upon conceptual knowledge of the meaning of objects. This process is supported by a distributed network of frontal, parietal, and temporal brain regions. Insight into the differential roles of various elements of this system can be inferred from the timing of activation, and here we use similarity-based fMRI-MEG fusion to understand when the representational spaces in different elements of the semantic system converge with representational spaces in the evolving MEG signal. Participants performed a semantic-typicality judgment of written words drawn from nine different semantic categories in separate fMRI and MEG sessions. Results indicate an initial period of congruence between MEG and fMRI informational spaces dominated by the posterior inferior temporal gyrus and the ventral temporal cortex between 350-450 msec. This is followed by a second period of convergence between 450-795 msec where MEG and fMRI representational spaces conform in left angular gyrus and precuneus in addition to ventral temporal cortex. Results are consistent with the multistage recruitment of the semantic system, initially involving automatic aspects of the representational system and later extending to broader elements of the semantic system more strongly associated with internalised cognition.
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8
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Tan KM, Daitch AL, Pinheiro-Chagas P, Fox KCR, Parvizi J, Lieberman MD. Electrocorticographic evidence of a common neurocognitive sequence for mentalizing about the self and others. Nat Commun 2022; 13:1919. [PMID: 35395826 PMCID: PMC8993891 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29510-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2021] [Accepted: 03/11/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuroimaging studies of mentalizing (i.e., theory of mind) consistently implicate the default mode network (DMN). Nevertheless, the social cognitive functions of individual DMN regions remain unclear, perhaps due to limited spatiotemporal resolution in neuroimaging. Here we use electrocorticography (ECoG) to directly record neuronal population activity while 16 human participants judge the psychological traits of themselves and others. Self- and other-mentalizing recruit near-identical cortical sites in a common spatiotemporal sequence. Activations begin in the visual cortex, followed by temporoparietal DMN regions, then finally in medial prefrontal regions. Moreover, regions with later activations exhibit stronger functional specificity for mentalizing, stronger associations with behavioral responses, and stronger self/other differentiation. Specifically, other-mentalizing evokes slower and longer activations than self-mentalizing across successive DMN regions, implying lengthier processing at higher levels of representation. Our results suggest a common neurocognitive pathway for self- and other-mentalizing that follows a complex spatiotemporal gradient of functional specialization across DMN and beyond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin M Tan
- Social Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | - Amy L Daitch
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Pedro Pinheiro-Chagas
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Kieran C R Fox
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Josef Parvizi
- Laboratory of Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- School of Medicine, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Matthew D Lieberman
- Social Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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9
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Rempe MP, Spooner RK, Taylor BK, Eastman JA, Schantell M, Embury CM, Heinrichs-Graham E, Wilson TW. Alpha oscillations in left perisylvian cortices support semantic processing and predict performance. Cereb Cortex 2022; 32:5376-5387. [PMID: 35149873 PMCID: PMC9712697 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Revised: 01/11/2022] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Semantic processing is the ability to discern and maintain conceptual relationships among words and objects. While the neural circuits serving semantic representation and controlled retrieval are well established, the neuronal dynamics underlying these processes are poorly understood. Herein, we examined 25 healthy young adults who completed a semantic relation word-matching task during magnetoencephalography (MEG). MEG data were examined in the time-frequency domain and significant oscillatory responses were imaged using a beamformer. Whole-brain statistical analyses were conducted to compare semantic-related to length-related neural oscillatory responses. Time series were extracted to visualize the dynamics and were linked to task performance using structural equation modeling. The results indicated that participants had significantly longer reaction times in semantic compared to length trials. Robust MEG responses in the theta (3-6 Hz), alpha (10-16 Hz), and gamma (64-76 Hz and 64-94 Hz) bands were observed in parieto-occipital and frontal cortices. Whole-brain analyses revealed stronger alpha oscillations in a left-lateralized network during semantically related relative to length trials. Importantly, stronger alpha oscillations in the left superior temporal gyrus during semantic trials predicted faster responses. These data reinforce existing literature and add novel temporal evidence supporting the executive role of the semantic control network in behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maggie P Rempe
- Institute for Human Neuroscience, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE 68010, USA,College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), Omaha, NE 68198, USA
| | - Rachel K Spooner
- Institute for Human Neuroscience, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE 68010, USA,College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), Omaha, NE 68198, USA,Medical Faculty, Institute of Clinical Neuroscience and Medical Psychology, Heinrich-Heine University, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Brittany K Taylor
- Institute for Human Neuroscience, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE 68010, USA,Department of Pharmacology & Neuroscience, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA
| | - Jacob A Eastman
- Institute for Human Neuroscience, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE 68010, USA
| | - Mikki Schantell
- Institute for Human Neuroscience, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE 68010, USA,College of Medicine, University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), Omaha, NE 68198, USA
| | - Christine M Embury
- Institute for Human Neuroscience, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE 68010, USA,Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska-Omaha (UNO), Omaha, NE 68182, USA
| | - Elizabeth Heinrichs-Graham
- Institute for Human Neuroscience, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Boys Town, NE 68010, USA,Department of Pharmacology & Neuroscience, Creighton University, Omaha, NE 68178, USA
| | - Tony W Wilson
- Corresponding author: Institute for Human Neuroscience, Boys Town National Research Hospital, 14090 Mother Teresa Ln, Boys Town, NE 68010, USA.
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10
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Flick G, Abdullah O, Pylkkänen L. From letters to composed concepts: A magnetoencephalography study of reading. Hum Brain Mapp 2021; 42:5130-5153. [PMID: 34402114 PMCID: PMC8449097 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.25608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2020] [Revised: 06/23/2021] [Accepted: 07/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Language comprehension requires the recognition of individual words and the combination of their meanings to yield complex concepts or interpretations. This combinatory process often requires the insertion of unstated semantic material between words, based on thematic or feature knowledge. For example, the phrase horse barn is not interpreted as a blend of a horse and a barn, but specifically a barn where horses are kept. Previous neuroscientific evidence suggests that left posterior and anterior temporal cortex underpin thematic and feature‐based concept knowledge, respectively, but much remains unclear about how these areas contribute to combinatory language processing. Using magnetoencephalography, we contrasted source‐localized responses to modifier‐noun phrases involving thematic relations versus feature modifications, while also examining how lower‐level orthographic processing fed composition. Participants completed three procedures examining responses to letter‐strings, adjective‐noun phrases, and noun–noun combinations that varied the semantic relations between words. We found that sections of the left anterior temporal lobe, posterior temporal lobe, and cortex surrounding the angular gyrus were all engaged in the minimal composition of adjective‐noun phrases, a more distributed network than in most prior studies of minimal composition. Of these regions, only the left posterior temporal lobe was additionally sensitive to implicit thematic relations between composing words, suggesting that it houses a specialized relational processing component in a wider composition network. We additionally identified a left occipitotemporal progression from orthographic to lexical processing, feeding ventral anterior areas engaged in the combination of word meanings. Finally, by examining source signal leakage, we characterized the degree to which these responses could be distinguished from one another using source estimation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Graham Flick
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York, USA.,NYUAD Research Institute, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Osama Abdullah
- NYUAD Research Institute, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Liina Pylkkänen
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York, USA.,NYUAD Research Institute, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.,Department of Linguistics, New York University, New York, New York, USA
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11
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Li J, Pylkkänen L. Disentangling Semantic Composition and Semantic Association in the Left Temporal Lobe. J Neurosci 2021; 41:6526-6538. [PMID: 34131034 PMCID: PMC8318083 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2317-20.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2020] [Revised: 05/04/2021] [Accepted: 05/05/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Although composing two words into a complex representation (e.g., "coffee cake") is conceptually different from forming associations between a pair of words (e.g., "coffee, cake"), the brain regions supporting semantic composition have also been implicated for associative encoding. Here, we adopted a two-word magnetoencephalography (MEG) paradigm which varies compositionality ("French/Korean cheese" vs "France/Korea cheese") and strength of association ("France/French cheese" vs "Korea/Korean cheese") between the two words. We collected MEG data while 42 English speakers (24 females) viewed the two words successively in the scanner, and we applied both univariate regression analyses and multivariate pattern classification to the source estimates of the two words. We show that the left anterior temporal lobe (LATL) and left middle temporal lobe (LMTL) are distinctively modulated by semantic composition and semantic association. Specifically, the LATL is mostly sensitive to high-association compositional phrases, while the LMTL responds more to low-association compositional phrases. Pattern-based directed connectivity analyses further revealed a continuous information flow from the anterior to the middle temporal region, suggesting that the integration of adjective and noun properties originated earlier in the LATL is consistently delivered to the LMTL when the complex meaning is newly encountered. Taken together, our findings shed light into a functional dissociation within the left temporal lobe for compositional and distributional semantic processing.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Prior studies on semantic composition and associative encoding have been conducted independently within the subfields of language and memory, and they typically adopt similar two-word experimental paradigms. However, no direct comparison has been made on the neural substrates of the two processes. The current study relates the two streams of literature, and appeals to audiences in both subfields within cognitive neuroscience. Disentangling the neural computations for semantic composition and association also offers insight into modeling compositional and distributional semantics, which has been the subject of much discussion in natural language processing and cognitive science.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jixing Li
- NYUAD Institute, New York University Abu Dhabi, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
| | - Liina Pylkkänen
- NYUAD Institute, New York University Abu Dhabi, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Department of Linguistics, New York University, New York, New York 10003
- Department of Psychology, New York University Abu Dhabi, Saadiyat Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
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12
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Jedidi Z, Manard M, Balteau E, Degueldre C, Luxen A, Philips C, Collette F, Maquet P, Majerus S. Incidental Verbal Semantic Processing Recruits the Fronto-temporal Semantic Control Network. Cereb Cortex 2021; 31:5449-5459. [PMID: 34180511 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2021] [Revised: 04/21/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The frontoparietal semantic network, encompassing the inferior frontal gyrus and the posterior middle temporal cortex, is considered to be involved in semantic control processes. The explicit versus implicit nature of these control processes remains however poorly understood. The present study examined this question by assessing regional brain responses to the semantic attributes of an unattended stream of auditory words while participants' top-down attentional control processes were absorbed by a demanding visual search task. Response selectivity to semantic aspects of verbal stimuli was assessed via a functional magnetic resonance imaging response adaptation paradigm. We observed that implicit semantic processing of an unattended verbal stream recruited not only unimodal and amodal cortices in posterior supporting semantic knowledge areas, but also inferior frontal and posterior middle temporal areas considered to be part of the semantic control network. These results indicate that frontotemporal semantic networks support incidental semantic (control) processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Z Jedidi
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium.,Department of Neurology, CHU Liège, Domaine Universitaire du Sart-Tilman, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - M Manard
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - E Balteau
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - C Degueldre
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - A Luxen
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - C Philips
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - F Collette
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - P Maquet
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium.,Department of Neurology, CHU Liège, Domaine Universitaire du Sart-Tilman, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - S Majerus
- GIGA - Cyclotron Research Centre in vivo imaging, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium.,Psychology & Neuroscience of Cognition Research Unit, University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium.,Fund for Scientific Research - FNRS, 1000 Brussels, Belgium
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13
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Wang X, Margulies DS, Smallwood J, Jefferies E. A gradient from long-term memory to novel cognition: Transitions through default mode and executive cortex. Neuroimage 2020; 220:117074. [PMID: 32574804 PMCID: PMC7573535 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2020] [Revised: 05/21/2020] [Accepted: 06/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Human cognition flexibly guides decision-making in familiar and novel situations. Although these decisions are often treated as dichotomous, in reality, situations are neither completely familiar, nor entirely new. Contemporary accounts of brain organization suggest that neural function is organized along a connectivity gradient from unimodal regions of sensorimotor cortex, through executive regions to transmodal default mode network. We examined whether this graded view of neural organization helps to explain how decision-making changes across situations that vary in their alignment with long-term knowledge. We used a semantic judgment task, which parametrically varied the global semantic similarity of items within a feature matching task to create a 'task gradient', from conceptual combinations that were highly overlapping in long-term memory to trials that only shared the goal-relevant feature. We found the brain's response to the task gradient varied systematically along the connectivity gradient, with the strongest response in default mode network when the probe and target items were highly overlapping conceptually. This graded functional change was seen in multiple brain regions and within individual brains, and was not readily explained by task difficulty. Moreover, the gradient captured the spatial layout of networks involved in semantic processing, providing an organizational principle for controlled semantic cognition across the cortex. In this way, the cortex is organized to support semantic decision-making in both highly familiar and less familiar situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiuyi Wang
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, United Kingdom.
| | - Daniel S Margulies
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) UMR 7225, Frontlab, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle Épinière, Paris, France
| | - Jonathan Smallwood
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, United Kingdom
| | - Elizabeth Jefferies
- Department of Psychology, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, United Kingdom.
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14
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Controlled semantic summation correlates with intrinsic connectivity between default mode and control networks. Cortex 2020; 129:356-375. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2020.04.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2019] [Revised: 03/03/2020] [Accepted: 04/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
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15
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Lanzoni L, Ravasio D, Thompson H, Vatansever D, Margulies D, Smallwood J, Jefferies E. The role of default mode network in semantic cue integration. Neuroimage 2020; 219:117019. [PMID: 32522664 PMCID: PMC7443705 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.117019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2020] [Revised: 05/29/2020] [Accepted: 06/02/2020] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent accounts of large-scale cortical organisation suggest that the default mode network (DMN) is positioned at the top of a principal gradient, reflecting the separation between heteromodal and unimodal sensory-motor regions in patterns of connectivity and in geodesic distance along the cortical surface (Margulies et al., 2016). This isolation of DMN from external inputs might allow the integration of disparate sources of information that can constrain subsequent cognition. We tested this hypothesis by manipulating the degree to which semantic decisions for ambiguous words (e.g. jam) were constrained by preceding visual cues depicting relevant spatial contexts (e.g. supermarket or road) and/or facial emotions (e.g. happy vs. frustrated). We contrasted (i) the effects of a single preceding cue with a no-cue condition employing scrambled images, and (ii) convergent spatial and emotion cues with single cues. Single cues elicited stronger activation in the multiple demand network relative to no cues, consistent with the requirement to maintain information in working memory. The availability of two convergent cues elicited stronger activation within DMN regions (bilateral angular gyrus, middle temporal gyrus, medial prefrontal cortex, and posterior cingulate), even though behavioural performance was unchanged by cueing – consequently task difficulty is unlikely to account for the observed differences in brain activation. A regions-of-interest analysis along the unimodal-to-heteromodal principal gradient revealed maximal activation for the convergent cue condition at the heteromodal end, corresponding to the DMN. Our findings are consistent with the view that regions of DMN support states of information integration that constrain ongoing cognition and provide a framework for understanding the location of these effects at the heteromodal end of the principal gradient.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Daniela Ravasio
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Bergamo, Italy
| | | | - Deniz Vatansever
- Institute of Science and Technology for Brain-inspired Intelligence, Fudan University, Shanghai, PR China
| | - Daniel Margulies
- Institute Du Cerveau et de la Moelle épiniére (ICM), Paris, France
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16
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Abstract
Human language allows us to create an infinitude of ideas from a finite set of basic building blocks. What is the neurobiology of this combinatory system? Research has begun to dissect the neural basis of natural language syntax and semantics by analyzing the basics of meaning composition, such as two-word phrases. This work has revealed a system of composition that involves rapidly peaking activity in the left anterior temporal lobe and later engagement of the medial prefrontal cortex. Both brain regions show evidence of shared processing between comprehension and production, as well as between spoken and signed language. Both appear to compute meaning, not syntactic structure. This Review discusses how language builds meaning and lays out directions for future neurobiological research on the combinatory system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liina Pylkkänen
- Departments of Linguistics and Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA.,NYUAD Institute, New York University Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
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17
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Marino Dávolos J, Arias JC, Jefferies E. Linking individual differences in semantic cognition to white matter microstructure. Neuropsychologia 2020; 141:107438. [PMID: 32171737 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2020.107438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2019] [Revised: 02/28/2020] [Accepted: 03/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Semantic cognition is thought to involve the interaction of heteromodal conceptual representations with control processes that (i) focus retrieval on currently-relevant information, and (ii) suppress dominant yet irrelevant features and associations. Research suggests that semantic control demands are higher when retrieving a link between weakly-associated word pairs, since there is a mismatch between the pattern of semantic retrieval required by the task and the dominant associations of individual words. In addition, given that heteromodal concepts are thought to reflect the integration of vision, audition, valence and other features, the control demands of semantic tasks should be higher when there is less consistency between these features. In the present study, 62 volunteers completed a semantic decision task, where association strength and semantic-affective congruence were manipulated. We used diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging to obtain fractional anisotropy (FA) measures of white matter tracts hypothesized to be part of the semantic network. The behavioural data revealed an interaction between semantic-affective congruence and strength of association, suggesting these manipulations both contribute to semantic control demands. Next we considered how individual differences in these markers of semantic control relate to the microstructure of canonical white matter tracts, complementing previous studies that have largely focused on measures of intrinsic functional connectivity. Repeated-measures analysis of covariance showed opposing interactions between semantic control markers and FA of two tracts: left inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF) and right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF). Participants with higher FA in left ILF showed more efficient retrieval of weak associations, and more accurate performance for weak associations when meaning and valence were incongruent, consistent with the hypothesis that this left hemisphere tract supports semantic control. In contrast, participants with higher FA in right IFOF were more accurate for trials in which meaning and valence were congruent, and consequently when semantic control demands were minimised. These findings are consistent with recent studies showing that semantic control processes are strongly left-lateralised. In contrast, long-range connections from vision to semantic regions in the right hemisphere might support relatively automatic patterns of semantic retrieval.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julián Marino Dávolos
- Department of Psychology and York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, YO10 5DD, York, UK.
| | - Juan Cruz Arias
- Instituto de Investigación Oulton, Córdoba, Córdoba, Argentina.
| | - Elizabeth Jefferies
- Department of Psychology and York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, YO10 5DD, York, UK.
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18
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Jefferies E, Thompson H, Cornelissen P, Smallwood J. The neurocognitive basis of knowledge about object identity and events: dissociations reflect opposing effects of semantic coherence and control. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2019; 375:20190300. [PMID: 31840592 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Semantic memory encompasses knowledge of specific objects and their diverse associations, but the mechanisms that allow us to retrieve aspects of knowledge required for a given task are poorly understood. The dual hub theory suggests that separate semantic stores represent knowledge of (i) taxonomic categories (in the anterior temporal lobes, ATL) and (ii) thematic associations (in angular gyrus, AG or posterior middle temporal gyrus, pMTG). Alternatively, the controlled semantic cognition (CSC) framework suggests that semantic processing emerges from the flexible interaction of heteromodal semantic representations in ATL with a semantic control network, which includes pMTG as well as prefrontal regions. According to this view, ATL supports patterns of coherent auto-associative retrieval, while semantic control sites respond when ongoing conceptual activation needs to be altered to suit the task or context. These theories make different predictions about the nature of functional dissociations within the semantic network. We review evidence for these claims across multiple methods. First, we show ATL is sensitive to the strength of thematic associations as well as taxonomic relations. Next, we document functional dissociations between AG and pMTG: rather than these regions acting as comparable thematic hubs, AG is allied to the default mode network and supports more 'automatic' retrieval, while pMTG responds when control demands are high. However, the semantic control network, including pMTG, also shows a greater response to events/actions and verbs, supporting the claims of both theories. We propose that tasks tapping event semantics often require greater shaping of conceptual retrieval than comparison tasks, because these elements of our knowledge are inherently flexible, with relevant features depending on the context. In this way, the CSC account might be able to account for findings that suggest both a process and a content distinction within the semantic network. This article is part of the theme issue 'Towards mechanistic models of meaning composition'.
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19
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Loughrey DG, Pakhomov SVS, Lawlor BA. Altered verbal fluency processes in older adults with age-related hearing loss. Exp Gerontol 2019; 130:110794. [PMID: 31790801 DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2019.110794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/08/2019] [Revised: 10/27/2019] [Accepted: 11/24/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Epidemiological studies have linked age-related hearing loss (ARHL) with an increased risk of neurocognitive decline. Difficulties in speech perception with subsequent changes in brain morphometry, including regions important for lexical-semantic memory, are thought to be a possible mechanism for this relationship. This study investigated differences in automatic and executive lexical-semantic processes on verbal fluency tasks in individuals with acquired hearing loss. The primary outcomes were indices of automatic (clustering/word retrieval at start of task) and executive (switching/word retrieval after start of the task) processes from semantic and phonemic fluency tasks. To extract indices of clustering and switching, we used both manual and computerised methods. There were no differences between groups on indices of executive fluency processes or on any indices from the semantic fluency task. The hearing loss group demonstrated weaker automatic processes on the phonemic fluency task. Further research into differences in lexical-semantic processes with ARHL is warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- David G Loughrey
- Global Brain Health Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland; Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, USA; Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin.
| | | | - Brian A Lawlor
- Global Brain Health Institute, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland; Global Brain Health Institute, University of California, San Francisco, USA; Mercer's Institute for Successful Ageing, St James Hospital, Dublin, Ireland
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20
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Degrees of lateralisation in semantic cognition: Evidence from intrinsic connectivity. Neuroimage 2019; 202:116089. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.116089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2019] [Revised: 06/27/2019] [Accepted: 08/08/2019] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
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21
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Zhang Q, Wang H, Luo C, Zhang J, Jin Z, Li L. The neural basis of semantic cognition in Mandarin Chinese: A combined fMRI and TMS study. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 40:5412-5423. [PMID: 31507031 PMCID: PMC6864898 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2019] [Revised: 08/10/2019] [Accepted: 08/20/2019] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
While converging sources of evidence point to the possibility of a large‐scale distributed network for semantic cognition, a consensus regarding the underlying subregions and their specific function in this network has not been reached. In the current study, we combined functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) methodology to investigate the neural basis of semantic cognition in Mandarin Chinese. In the fMRI experiment, strong activations were observed in left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and left middle temporal gyrus (MTG) for semantic judgment task. Moreover, functional connectivity was found from seed region left IFG to left MTG. Meanwhile, negative correlation between performance and extracted parameter estimates from left IFG to left MTG was detected in semantic task. Subsequent TMS stimulation over left IFG resulted in performance deficits in semantic judgment task, in contrast to other three sites: left MTG, right intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and a control site. We concluded that the neural basis of semantic processing for Mandarin Chinese closely resembled that for alphabetic languages such as English, supporting a language‐universal view on semantic cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qian Zhang
- Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, High-Field Magnetic Resonance Brain Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China.,School of Foreign Languages, Southwest Petroleum University, Chengdu, China
| | - Hui Wang
- Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, High-Field Magnetic Resonance Brain Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Cimei Luo
- Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, High-Field Magnetic Resonance Brain Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Junjun Zhang
- Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, High-Field Magnetic Resonance Brain Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Zhenlan Jin
- Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, High-Field Magnetic Resonance Brain Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
| | - Ling Li
- Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, High-Field Magnetic Resonance Brain Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, Center for Information in Medicine, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, China
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22
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Teige C, Cornelissen PL, Mollo G, Gonzalez Alam TRDJ, McCarty K, Smallwood J, Jefferies E. Dissociations in semantic cognition: Oscillatory evidence for opposing effects of semantic control and type of semantic relation in anterior and posterior temporal cortex. Cortex 2019; 120:308-325. [PMID: 31394366 PMCID: PMC6854548 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2019.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2018] [Revised: 02/04/2019] [Accepted: 07/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/20/2023]
Abstract
How does the brain represent and process different types of knowledge? The Dual Hub account postulates that anterior temporal lobes (ATL) support taxonomic relationships based on shared physical features (mole – cat), while temporoparietal regions, including posterior middle temporal gyrus (pMTG), support thematic associations (mole – earth). Conversely, the Controlled Semantic Cognition account proposes that ATL supports both aspects of knowledge, while left pMTG contributes to controlled retrieval. This study used magnetoencephalography to test these contrasting predictions of functional dissociations within the temporal lobe. ATL and pMTG responded more strongly to taxonomic and thematic trials respectively, matched for behavioural performance, in line with predictions of the Dual Hub account. In addition, ATL showed a greater response to strong than weak thematic associations, while pMTG showed the opposite pattern, supporting a key prediction of the Controlled Semantic Cognition account. ATL showed a stronger response for word pairs that were more semantically coherent, either because they shared physical features (in taxonomic trials) or a strong thematic association. These effects largely coincided in time and frequency (although an early oscillatory response in ATL was specific to taxonomic trials). In contrast, pMTG showed non-overlapping effects of semantic control demands and thematic judgements: this site showed a larger oscillatory response to weak associations, when ongoing retrieval needed to be shaped to suit the task demands, and also a larger response to thematic judgements contrasted with taxonomic trials (which was reduced but not eliminated when the thematic trials were easier). Consequently, time-sensitive neuroimaging supports a complex pattern of functional dissociations within the left temporal lobe, which reflects both coherence versus control and distinctive oscillatory responses for taxonomic overlap (in ATL) and thematic relations (in pMTG).
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Affiliation(s)
- Catarina Teige
- Department of Psychology and York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, UK
| | | | - Giovanna Mollo
- Department of Psychology and York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, UK
| | | | | | - Jonathan Smallwood
- Department of Psychology and York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, UK
| | - Elizabeth Jefferies
- Department of Psychology and York Neuroimaging Centre, University of York, UK.
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23
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Borghesani V, Buiatti M, Eger E, Piazza M. Conceptual and Perceptual Dimensions of Word Meaning Are Recovered Rapidly and in Parallel during Reading. J Cogn Neurosci 2019; 31:95-108. [DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
A single word (the noun “ elephant”) encapsulates a complex multidimensional meaning, including both perceptual (“ big”, “ gray”, “ trumpeting”) and conceptual (“ mammal”, “ can be found in India”) features. Opposing theories make different predictions as to whether different features (also conceivable as dimensions of the semantic space) are stored in similar neural regions and recovered with similar temporal dynamics during word reading. In this magnetoencephalography study, we tracked the brain activity of healthy human participants while reading single words varying orthogonally across three semantic dimensions: two perceptual ones (i.e., the average implied real-world size and the average strength of association with a prototypical sound) and a conceptual one (i.e., the semantic category). The results indicate that perceptual and conceptual representations are supported by partially segregated neural networks: Whereas visual and auditory dimensions are encoded in the phase coherence of low-frequency oscillations of occipital and superior temporal regions, respectively, semantic features are encoded in the power of low-frequency oscillations of anterior temporal and inferior parietal areas. However, despite the differences, these representations appear to emerge at the same latency: around 200 msec after stimulus onset. Taken together, these findings suggest that perceptual and conceptual dimensions of the semantic space are recovered automatically, rapidly, and in parallel during word reading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Borghesani
- Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris, France
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Gif/Yvette, France
- University of California, San Francisco
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
| | - Marco Buiatti
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Gif/Yvette, France
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
| | - Evelyn Eger
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Gif/Yvette, France
| | - Manuela Piazza
- Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Gif/Yvette, France
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
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24
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Holmes NP, Meteyard L. Subjective Discomfort of TMS Predicts Reaction Times Differences in Published Studies. Front Psychol 2018; 9:1989. [PMID: 30405482 PMCID: PMC6200894 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.01989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2018] [Accepted: 09/27/2018] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - Lotte Meteyard
- School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, United Kingdom
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