1
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Guo T, Schwieter JW, Liu H. fMRI reveals overlapping and non-overlapping neural bases of domain-general and emotional conflict control. Psychophysiology 2023; 60:e14355. [PMID: 37254582 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14355] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2022] [Revised: 04/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2023] [Indexed: 06/01/2023]
Abstract
The present study uses functional magnetic resonance image (fMRI) to examine the overlapping and specific neural correlates of contextualized emotional conflict control and domain-general conflict control. During a performance on emotional and domain-general conflict tasks, conjunction analyses showed that neural areas distributed in the frontoparietal network were engaged in both processes, supporting the notion that similar neural mechanisms are implemented in these two types of control. Importantly, disjunction analyses revealed a broader neural recruitment of emotional conflict control compared to domain-general conflict control as shown by the possible lateralization of the lateral prefrontal cortex (lPFC), such that emotional conflict control significantly involved the left lPFC while domain-general conflict control seemly involved the right lPFC. Results of generalized psychophysiological interaction (gPPI) analyses further demonstrated that emotional conflict control, compared to domain-general conflict control, elicited broader synergistic activities in individuals' brain networks. Together, these findings offer novel and compelling neural evidence that furthers our understanding of the complex relationship between domain-general and emotional conflict control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tingting Guo
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Province, Dalian, China
| | - John W Schwieter
- Language Acquisition, Cognition, and Multilingualism Laboratory, Bilingualism Matters @ Wilfrid Laurier University, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Linguistics and Languages, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Huanhuan Liu
- Research Center of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Normal University, Dalian, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Neuroscience, Liaoning Province, Dalian, China
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2
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Dȩbska A, Wójcik M, Chyl K, Dziȩgiel-Fivet G, Jednoróg K. Beyond the Visual Word Form Area - a cognitive characterization of the left ventral occipitotemporal cortex. Front Hum Neurosci 2023; 17:1199366. [PMID: 37576470 PMCID: PMC10416454 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1199366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 08/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The left ventral occipitotemporal cortex has been traditionally viewed as a pathway for visual object recognition including written letters and words. Its crucial role in reading was strengthened by the studies on the functionally localized "Visual Word Form Area" responsible for processing word-like information. However, in the past 20 years, empirical studies have challenged the assumptions of this brain region as processing exclusively visual or even orthographic stimuli. In this review, we aimed to present the development of understanding of the left ventral occipitotemporal cortex from the visually based letter area to the modality-independent symbolic language related region. We discuss theoretical and empirical research that includes orthographic, phonological, and semantic properties of language. Existing results showed that involvement of the left ventral occipitotemporal cortex is not limited to unimodal activity but also includes multimodal processes. The idea of the integrative nature of this region is supported by the broad functional and structural connectivity with language-related and attentional brain networks. We conclude that although the function of the area is not yet fully understood in human cognition, its role goes beyond visual word form processing. The left ventral occipitotemporal cortex seems to be crucial for combining higher-level language information with abstract forms that convey meaning independently of modality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agnieszka Dȩbska
- Laboratory of Language Neurobiology, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Marta Wójcik
- Laboratory of Language Neurobiology, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Chyl
- Laboratory of Language Neurobiology, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
- The Educational Research Institute, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Gabriela Dziȩgiel-Fivet
- Laboratory of Language Neurobiology, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Jednoróg
- Laboratory of Language Neurobiology, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
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3
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Shi L, Liu C, Peng X, Cao Y, Levy DA, Xue G. The neural representations underlying asymmetric cross-modal prediction of words. Hum Brain Mapp 2023; 44:2418-2435. [PMID: 36715307 PMCID: PMC10028649 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 01/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Cross-modal prediction serves a crucial adaptive role in the multisensory world, yet the neural mechanisms underlying this prediction are poorly understood. The present study addressed this important question by combining a novel audiovisual sequence memory task, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and multivariate neural representational analyses. Our behavioral results revealed a reliable asymmetric cross-modal predictive effect, with a stronger prediction from visual to auditory (VA) modality than auditory to visual (AV) modality. Mirroring the behavioral pattern, we found the superior parietal lobe (SPL) showed higher pattern similarity for VA than AV pairs, and the strength of the predictive coding in the SPL was positively correlated with the behavioral predictive effect in the VA condition. Representational connectivity analyses further revealed that the SPL mediated the neural pathway from the visual to the auditory cortex in the VA condition but was not involved in the auditory to visual cortex pathway in the AV condition. Direct neural pathways within the unimodal regions were found for the visual-to-visual and auditory-to-auditory predictions. Together, these results provide novel insights into the neural mechanisms underlying cross-modal sequence prediction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liang Shi
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Chuqi Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaojing Peng
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Yifei Cao
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
| | - Daniel A Levy
- Baruch Ivcher School of Psychology, Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya, Herzliya, Israel
| | - Gui Xue
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, People's Republic of China
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4
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Di Pietro SV, Willinger D, Frei N, Lutz C, Coraj S, Schneider C, Stämpfli P, Brem S. Disentangling influences of dyslexia, development, and reading experience on effective brain connectivity in children. Neuroimage 2023; 268:119869. [PMID: 36639004 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2023.119869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Revised: 12/29/2022] [Accepted: 01/09/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Altered brain connectivity between regions of the reading network has been associated with reading difficulties. However, it remains unclear whether connectivity differences between children with dyslexia (DYS) and those with typical reading skills (TR) are specific to reading impairments or to reading experience. In this functional MRI study, 132 children (M = 10.06 y, SD = 1.46) performed a phonological lexical decision task. We aimed to disentangle (1) disorder-specific from (2) experience-related differences in effective connectivity and to (3) characterize the development of DYS and TR. We applied dynamic causal modeling to age-matched (ndys = 25, nTR = 35) and reading-level-matched (ndys = 25, nTR = 22) groups. Developmental effects were assessed in beginning and advanced readers (TR: nbeg = 48, nadv = 35, DYS: nbeg = 24, nadv = 25). We show that altered feedback connectivity between the inferior parietal lobule and the visual word form area (VWFA) during print processing can be specifically attributed to reading impairments, because these alterations were found in DYS compared to both the age-matched and reading-level-matched TR. In contrast, feedforward connectivity from the VWFA to parietal and frontal regions characterized experience in TR and increased with age and reading skill. These directed connectivity findings pinpoint disorder-specific and experience-dependent alterations in the brain's reading network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah V Di Pietro
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Switzerland; URPP Adaptive Brain Circuits in Development and Learning (AdaBD), University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - David Willinger
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Switzerland; Department of Psychology and Psychodynamics, Karl Landsteiner University of Health Sciences, Krems an der Donau, Austria
| | - Nada Frei
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Christina Lutz
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Seline Coraj
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Chiara Schneider
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Philipp Stämpfli
- MR-Center of the Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics and the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Silvia Brem
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Switzerland; URPP Adaptive Brain Circuits in Development and Learning (AdaBD), University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland; MR-Center of the Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics and the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
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5
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Xue L, Lv Y, Zhao J. Neural attenuation: age-related dedifferentiation in the left occipitotemporal cortex for visual word processing. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:6111-6119. [PMID: 36600600 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2022] [Revised: 11/21/2022] [Accepted: 11/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The present study investigated the age-related neural basis of cognitive decline in the left ventral occipitotemporal cortex (vOT)-a brain area that responds selectively to visual words processing. Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to estimate neural activity in this area, while young and old adults viewed words and line drawings. Our results demonstrated the existence of neural dedifferentiation of the left vOT in old adults during visual word processing. More specifically, this dedifferentiation was due to neural attenuation that is, decreased response to words rather than increased response to line drawings in old adults compared with young adults. In addition, individuals who showed decreased neural response to words had worse performance in visual word processing. Taken together, our findings support the neural attenuation hypothesis for the cognitive decline in visual word processing in old adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Licheng Xue
- Jing Hengyi School of Education, Hangzhou Normal University, No. 2318 Yuhangtang Rd, Yuhang District, Hangzhou 311121, China.,Institute for Brain Research and Rehabilitation, South China Normal University, No. 55 Zhongshan Avenue West Rd, Tianhe District, Guangzhou 510631, China
| | - Yating Lv
- Center for Cognition and Brain Disorders, The Affiliated Hospital of Hangzhou Normal University, No. 126 Wenzhou Rd, Gongshu District, Hangzhou 311121, China.,Institute of Psychological Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, No. 2318 Yuhangtang Rd, Yuhang District, Hangzhou 311121, China.,Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Research in Assessment of Cognitive Impairments, No. 2318 Yuhangtang Rd, Yuhang District, Hangzhou 311121, China
| | - Jing Zhao
- Jing Hengyi School of Education, Hangzhou Normal University, No. 2318 Yuhangtang Rd, Yuhang District, Hangzhou 311121, China.,Zhejiang Key Laboratory for Research in Assessment of Cognitive Impairments, No. 2318 Yuhangtang Rd, Yuhang District, Hangzhou 311121, China
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6
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Jia F, Liu CY, Tan LH, Siok WT. Lifespan developmental changes in neural substrates and functional connectivity for visual semantic processing. Cereb Cortex 2022; 33:4714-4728. [PMID: 36130092 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac374] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 08/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Human learning and cognitive functions change with age and experience, with late-developed complex cognitive functions, particularly those served by the prefrontal cortex, showing more age-dependent variance. Reading as a complex process of constructing meaning from print uses the left prefrontal cortex and may show a similar aging pattern. In this study, we delineated the lifespan developmental changes in the neural substrates and functional connectivity for visual semantic processing from childhood (age 6) to late adulthood (age 74). Different from previous studies that reported aging as a form of activation or neuronal changes, we examined additionally how the functional connectivity networks changed with age. A cohort of 122 Chinese participants performed semantic and font-size judgment tasks during functional magnetic resonance imaging. Although a common left-lateralized neural system including the left mid-inferior prefrontal cortex was recruited across all participants, the effect of age, or reading experience, is evident as 2 contrastive developmental patterns: a declining trend in activation strength and extent and an increasing trend in functional connections of the network. This study suggests that visual semantic processing is not prone to cognitive decline, and that continuous reading until old age helps strengthen the functional connections of reading-related brain regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fanlu Jia
- School of Education and Psychology, University of Jinan, Jinan 250022, Shandong, China.,Center for Language and Brain, Shenzhen Institute of Neuroscience, Shenzhen 518107, China
| | - Chun Yin Liu
- Department of Linguistics, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China
| | - Li Hai Tan
- Center for Language and Brain, Shenzhen Institute of Neuroscience, Shenzhen 518107, China.,Guangdong-Hongkong-Macau Institute of CNS Regeneration and Ministry of Education CNS Regeneration Collaborative Joint Laboratory, Jinan University, Shenzhen 518020, China.,Neuroscience and Neurorehabilitation Institute, University of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Qingdao 266071, Shandong, China
| | - Wai Ting Siok
- Department of Linguistics, The University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China
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7
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Tu L, Zhou F, Omata K, Li W, Huang R, Gao W, Zhu Z, Li Y, Liu C, Mao M, Zhang S, Hanakawa T. Increased Gray Matter Volume Induced by Chinese Language Acquisition in Adult Alphabetic Language Speakers. Front Psychol 2022; 13:824219. [PMID: 35548546 PMCID: PMC9084625 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.824219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 03/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022] Open
Abstract
It is interesting to explore the effects of second language (L2) acquisition on anatomical change in brain at different stages for the neural structural adaptations are dynamic. Short-term Chinese training effects on brain anatomical structures in alphabetic language speakers have been already studied. However, little is known about the adaptations of the gray matter induced by acquiring Chinese language for a relatively long learning period in adult alphabetic language speakers. To explore this issue, we recruited 38 Indian overseas students in China as our subjects. The learned group included 17 participants who had learned Mandarin Chinese for an average of 3.24 years and achieved intermediate Chinese language proficiency. The control group included 21 subjects who had no knowledge about Chinese. None of the participants had any experience in learning logographic and tonal language before Chinese learning. We found that (1) the learned group had significantly greater gray matter volume (GMV) in the left lingual gyrus (LG) compared with the control group; (2) the Chinese characters’ reading accuracy was significantly and positively correlated to the GMV in the left LG and fusiform gyrus (FG) across the two groups; and (3) in the learned group, the duration of Chinese learning was significantly and positively correlated with the GMV in the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) after correction for multiple comparisons with small volume corrections. Our structural imaging findings are in line with the functional imaging studies reporting increased brain activation induced by Chinese acquisition in alphabetic language speakers. The regional gray matter changes reflected the additional requirements imposed by the more difficult processing of Chinese characters and tones. The present study also show that the biological bases of the adaptations induced by a relatively long period of Chinese learning were limited in the common areas for first and foreign language processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liu Tu
- College of Foreign Studies, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Fangyuan Zhou
- College of Foreign Studies, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Kei Omata
- Department of Advanced Neuroimaging, Integrative Brain Imaging Center, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Kodaira, Japan
| | - Wendi Li
- College of Foreign Studies, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Ruiwang Huang
- School of Psychology, Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science of Guangdong, Center for the Study of Applied Psychology and MRI Center, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Wei Gao
- College of Foreign Studies, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhenzhen Zhu
- Center for Linguistics and Applied Linguistics, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yanyan Li
- Higher Education Mega Center, Guangzhou, China
| | - Chang Liu
- South China Business Trade College, Guangzhou, China
| | - Mengying Mao
- College of Foreign Studies, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Shuyu Zhang
- College of Foreign Studies, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Takashi Hanakawa
- Integrated Neuroanatomy and Neuroimaging, Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan
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8
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Hirshorn EA, Harris LN. Culture is not destiny, for reading: highlighting variable routes to literacy within writing systems. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2022; 1513:31-47. [PMID: 35313016 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.14768] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 02/17/2022] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Cross-writing system research in psychology and cognitive neuroscience has yielded important findings regarding how a writing system's structure can influence the cognitive challenges of learning to read and the neural underpinnings of literacy. The current paper reviews these differences and extends the findings to demonstrate diversity in how skilled reading is accomplished within a single writing system, English. We argue that broad clusters of behavioral and neural patterns found across writing systems can also be found within subpopulations who display atypical routes to skilled English reading, subpopulations including Chinese-English bilinguals, deaf native signers, compensated readers, and distortion-sensitive readers. The patterns of interest include a tradeoff between the degree of reliance on phonological and morphological processing for skilled reading, a shift in attentional focus from smaller to larger orthographic units, and enhanced bilaterality of neural processing during word reading. Lastly, we consider how understanding atypical routes to reading may apply to other writing systems.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lindsay N Harris
- Department of Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois
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9
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Qu J, Pang Y, Liu X, Cao Y, Huang C, Mei L. Task modulates the orthographic and phonological representations in the bilateral ventral Occipitotemporal cortex. Brain Imaging Behav 2022; 16:1695-1707. [PMID: 35247162 DOI: 10.1007/s11682-022-00641-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 01/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
As a key area in word reading, the left ventral occipitotemporal cortex is proposed for abstract orthographic processing, and its middle part has even been labeled as the visual word form area. Because the definition of the VWFA largely varies and the reading task differs across studies, the function of the left ventral occipitotemporal cortex in word reading is continuingly debated on whether this region is specific for orthographic processing or be involved in an interactive framework. By using representational similarity analysis (RSA), this study examined information representation in the VWFA at the individual level and the modulatory effect of reading task. Twenty-four subjects were scanned while performing the explicit (i.e., the naming task) and implicit (i.e., the perceptual task) reading tasks. Activation analysis showed that the naming task elicited greater activation in regions related to phonological processing (e.g., the bilateral prefrontal cortex and temporoparietal cortex), while the perceptual task recruited greater activation in visual cortex and default mode network (e.g., the bilateral middle frontal gyrus, angular gyrus, and the right middle temporal gyrus). More importantly, RSA also showed that task modulated information representation in the bilateral anterior occipitotemporal cortex and VWFA. Specifically, ROI-based RSA revealed enhanced orthographic and phonological representations in the bilateral anterior fusiform cortex and VWFA in the naming task relative to the perceptual task. These results suggest that lexical representation in the VWFA is influenced by the demand of phonological processing, which supports the interactive account of the VWFA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Qu
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Yingdan Pang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Xiaoyu Liu
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Ying Cao
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Chengmei Huang
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China
- School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, 510631, China
| | - Leilei Mei
- Philosophy and Social Science Laboratory of Reading and Development in Children and Adolescents (South China Normal University), Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.
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10
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Mazor M, Moran R, Fleming SM. Metacognitive asymmetries in visual perception. Neurosci Conscious 2021; 2021:niab025. [PMID: 34676104 PMCID: PMC8524176 DOI: 10.1093/nc/niab025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2021] [Revised: 07/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Representing the absence of objects is psychologically demanding. People are slower, less confident and show lower metacognitive sensitivity (the alignment between subjective confidence and objective accuracy) when reporting the absence compared with presence of visual stimuli. However, what counts as a stimulus absence remains only loosely defined. In this Registered Report, we ask whether such processing asymmetries extend beyond the absence of whole objects to absences defined by stimulus features or expectation violations. Our pre-registered prediction was that differences in the processing of presence and absence reflect a default mode of reasoning: we assume an absence unless evidence is available to the contrary. We predicted asymmetries in response time, confidence, and metacognitive sensitivity in discriminating between stimulus categories that vary in the presence or absence of a distinguishing feature, or in their compliance with an expected default state. Using six pairs of stimuli in six experiments, we find evidence that the absence of local and global stimulus features gives rise to slower, less confident responses, similar to absences of entire stimuli. Contrary to our hypothesis, however, the presence or absence of a local feature has no effect on metacognitive sensitivity. Our results weigh against a proposal of a link between the detection metacognitive asymmetry and default reasoning, and are instead consistent with a low-level visual origin of metacognitive asymmetries for presence and absence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matan Mazor
- Institute of Neurology, Wellcome Centre for Human
Neuroimaging, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Rani Moran
- Institute of Neurology, Wellcome Centre for Human
Neuroimaging, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, UK
- Institute of Neurology, Max Planck UCL Centre for
Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, London WC1B 5EH, UK
| | - Stephen M Fleming
- Institute of Neurology, Wellcome Centre for Human
Neuroimaging, University College London, London WC1N 3BG, UK
- Institute of Neurology, Max Planck UCL Centre for
Computational Psychiatry and Ageing Research, London WC1B 5EH, UK
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University
College London, London WC1H 0AP, UK
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11
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Werth R. Is Developmental Dyslexia Due to a Visual and Not a Phonological Impairment? Brain Sci 2021; 11:1313. [PMID: 34679378 PMCID: PMC8534212 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11101313] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 09/21/2021] [Accepted: 09/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
It is a widely held belief that developmental dyslexia (DD) is a phonological disorder in which readers have difficulty associating graphemes with their corresponding phonemes. In contrast, the magnocellular theory of dyslexia assumes that DD is a visual disorder caused by dysfunctional magnocellular neural pathways. The review explores arguments for and against these theories. Recent results have shown that DD is caused by (1) a reduced ability to simultaneously recognize sequences of letters that make up words, (2) longer fixation times required to simultaneously recognize strings of letters, and (3) amplitudes of saccades that do not match the number of simultaneously recognized letters. It was shown that pseudowords that could not be recognized simultaneously were recognized almost without errors when the fixation time was extended. However, there is an individual maximum number of letters that each reader with DD can recognize simultaneously. Findings on the neurobiological basis of temporal summation have shown that a necessary prolongation of fixation times is due to impaired processing mechanisms of the visual system, presumably involving magnocells and parvocells. An area in the mid-fusiform gyrus also appears to play a significant role in the ability to simultaneously recognize words and pseudowords. The results also contradict the assumption that DD is due to a lack of eye movement control. The present research does not support the assumption that DD is caused by a phonological disorder but shows that DD is due to a visual processing dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Reinhard Werth
- Institute for Social Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, University of Munich, Haydnstrasse 5, D-80336 Munich, Germany
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12
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Mao J, Liu L, Perkins K, Cao F. Poor reading is characterized by a more connected network with wrong hubs. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2021; 220:104983. [PMID: 34174464 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2021.104983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2020] [Revised: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/15/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Using graph theory, we examined topological organization of the language network in Chinese children with poor reading during an auditory rhyming task and a visual spelling task, compared to reading-matched controls and age-matched controls. First, poor readers (PR) showed reduced clustering coefficient in the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) and higher nodal efficiency in the bilateral superior temporal gyri (STG) during the visual task, indicating a less functionally specialized cluster around the left IFG and stronger functional links between bilateral STGs and other regions. Furthermore, PR adopted additional right-hemispheric hubs in both tasks, which may explain increased global efficiency across both tasks and lower normalized characteristic shortest path length in the visual task for the PR. These results underscore deficits in the left IFG during visual word processing and conform previous findings about compensation in the right hemisphere in children with poor reading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaqi Mao
- Department of Psychology, Sun Yat-Sen University, China
| | - Lanfang Liu
- Department of Psychology, Sun Yat-Sen University, China
| | - Kyle Perkins
- Department of Teaching and Learning, College of Arts, Sciences and Education, Florida International University, United States
| | - Fan Cao
- Department of Psychology, Sun Yat-Sen University, China.
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13
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Qu J, Hu L, Liu X, Dong J, Yang R, Mei L. The contributions of the left hippocampus and bilateral inferior parietal lobule to form-meaning associative learning. Psychophysiology 2021; 58:e13834. [PMID: 33949705 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Revised: 04/13/2021] [Accepted: 04/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Existing studies have identified crucial roles for the hippocampus and a distributed set of cortical regions (e.g., the inferior parietal cortex) in learning novel words. Nevertheless, researchers have not clearly determined how the hippocampus and cortical regions dynamically interact during novel word learning, especially during form-meaning associative learning. As a method to address this question, we used an online learning paradigm and representational similarity analysis to explore the contributions of the hippocampus and neocortex to form-meaning associative learning. Twenty-nine native Chinese college students were recruited to learn 30 form-meaning pairs, which were repeated 7 times during fMRI scan. Form-meaning associative learning elicited activations in a wide neural network including regions required for word processing (i.e., the bilateral inferior frontal gyrus and the occipitotemporal cortex), regions required for encoding (i.e., the bilateral parahippocampus and hippocampus), and regions required for cognitive control (i.e., the anterior cingulate cortex and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex). More importantly, our study revealed the differential roles of the left hippocampus and bilateral inferior parietal lobule (IPL) in form-meaning associative learning. Specifically, higher pattern similarity in the bilateral IPL in the early learning phase (repetitions 1 to 3) was related to better learning performance, while higher pattern similarity in the left hippocampus in the late learning phase (repetitions 5 to 7) was associated with better learning performance. These findings indicate that the hippocampus and cortical regions (e.g., the IPL) contribute to form-meaning learning in different stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Qu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Liyuan Hu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiaoyu Liu
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jie Dong
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Rui Yang
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Leilei Mei
- Key Laboratory of Brain, Cognition and Education Sciences, Ministry of Education, Guangzhou, China.,School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Center for Studies of Psychological Application, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.,Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
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14
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Zhang G, Yuan B, Hua H, Lou Y, Lin N, Li X. Individual differences in first-pass fixation duration in reading are related to resting-state functional connectivity. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2021; 213:104893. [PMID: 33360162 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2020.104893] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2020] [Revised: 12/04/2020] [Accepted: 12/06/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Although there are considerable individual differences in eye movements during text reading, their neural correlates remain unclear. In this study, we investigated the relationship between the first-pass fixation duration (FPFD) in natural reading and resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) in the brain. We defined the brain regions associated with early visual processing, word identification, attention shifts, and oculomotor control as seed regions. The results showed that individual FPFDs were positively correlated with individual RSFCs between the early visual network, visual word form area, and eye movement control/dorsal attention network. Our findings provide new evidence on the neural correlates of eye movements in text reading and indicate that individual differences in fixation time may shape the RSFC differences in the brain through the time-on-task effect and the mechanism of Hebbian learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guangyao Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Binke Yuan
- Center for Language and Brain, Shenzhen Institute of Neuroscience, Shenzhen, China
| | - Huimin Hua
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Ya Lou
- Beijing Institute of Education, Beijing, China
| | - Nan Lin
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
| | - Xingshan Li
- CAS Key Laboratory of Behavioral Science, Institute of Psychology, Beijing, China; Department of Psychology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
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15
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Wong YK, Tong CKY, Lui M, Wong ACN. Perceptual expertise with Chinese characters predicts Chinese reading performance among Hong Kong Chinese children with developmental dyslexia. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0243440. [PMID: 33481782 PMCID: PMC7822259 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0243440] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2020] [Accepted: 11/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
This study explores the theoretical proposal that developmental dyslexia involves a failure to develop perceptual expertise with words despite adequate education. Among a group of Hong Kong Chinese children diagnosed with developmental dyslexia, we investigated the relationship between Chinese word reading and perceptual expertise with Chinese characters. In a perceptual fluency task, the time of visual exposure to Chinese characters was manipulated and limited such that the speed of discrimination of a short sequence of Chinese characters at an accuracy level of 80% was estimated. Pair-wise correlations showed that perceptual fluency for characters predicted speeded and non-speeded word reading performance. Exploratory hierarchical regressions showed that perceptual fluency for characters accounted for 5.3% and 9.6% variance in speeded and non-speeded reading respectively, in addition to age, non-verbal IQ, phonological awareness, morphological awareness, rapid automatized naming (RAN) and perceptual fluency for digits. The findings suggest that perceptual expertise with words plays an important role in Chinese reading performance in developmental dyslexia, and that perceptual training is a potential remediation direction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yetta Kwailing Wong
- Department of Educational Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | | | - Ming Lui
- Department of Education Studies, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Alan C.-N. Wong
- Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
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16
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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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17
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Neural Representation in Visual Word Form Area during Word Reading. Neuroscience 2020; 452:49-62. [PMID: 33212220 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2020.10.040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2020] [Revised: 10/26/2020] [Accepted: 10/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The visual word form area (VWFA) has been consistently identified as a crucial structure in visual word processing. Nevertheless, it is controversial whether the VWFA represents external visual information (e.g., case information) of visual words. To address that question, we functionally localized VWFA at the group level (gVWFA) and at the individual level (iVWFA), and used multivariate pattern analysis (MVPA) to explore the information representation in the VWFA during an implicit reading task (i.e., a passive viewing task). Univariate activation analysis revealed that participants showed stronger activations for uppercase English words compared to lowercase ones in the VWFA. MVPA further revealed that the classifier trained based on lowercase words versus letter strings significantly distinguished uppercase words versus letter strings in the iVWFA, while that trained based on lowercase words versus uppercase words distinguished lowercase letter strings versus uppercase letter strings neither in the gVWFA nor in the iVWFA. These results suggest that the VWFA does not represent case information, but represents case-independent linguistic information. Our findings elaborate the function in the VWFA and support the VWFA hypothesis.
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18
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Brem S, Maurer U, Kronbichler M, Schurz M, Richlan F, Blau V, Reithler J, van der Mark S, Schulz E, Bucher K, Moll K, Landerl K, Martin E, Goebel R, Schulte-Körne G, Blomert L, Wimmer H, Brandeis D. Visual word form processing deficits driven by severity of reading impairments in children with developmental dyslexia. Sci Rep 2020; 10:18728. [PMID: 33127943 PMCID: PMC7603304 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-75111-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2020] [Accepted: 09/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The visual word form area (VWFA) in the left ventral occipito-temporal (vOT) cortex is key to fluent reading in children and adults. Diminished VWFA activation during print processing tasks is a common finding in subjects with severe reading problems. Here, we report fMRI data from a multicentre study with 140 children in primary school (7.9-12.2 years; 55 children with dyslexia, 73 typical readers, 12 intermediate readers). All performed a semantic task on visually presented words and a matched control task on symbol strings. With this large group of children, including the entire spectrum from severely impaired to highly fluent readers, we aimed to clarify the association of reading fluency and left vOT activation during visual word processing. The results of this study confirm reduced word-sensitive activation within the left vOT in children with dyslexia. Interestingly, the association of reading skills and left vOT activation was especially strong and spatially extended in children with dyslexia. Thus, deficits in basic visual word form processing increase with the severity of reading disability but seem only weakly associated with fluency within the typical reading range suggesting a linear dependence of reading scores with VFWA activation only in the poorest readers.
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Affiliation(s)
- S Brem
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Neumuensterallee 9, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland.
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - U Maurer
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Neumuensterallee 9, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Psychology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
- Brain and Mind Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China
| | - M Kronbichler
- Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience and Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
- Neuroscience Institute, Christian Doppler Clinic, Paracelsus Medical University, Salzburg, Austria
| | - M Schurz
- Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience and Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
| | - F Richlan
- Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience and Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
| | - V Blau
- Cognitive Neuroscience Department, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center (M-BIC), Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - J Reithler
- Cognitive Neuroscience Department, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center (M-BIC), Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - S van der Mark
- MR-Center, University Children's Hospital, University of Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - E Schulz
- Department of Neurology, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - K Bucher
- MR-Center, University Children's Hospital, University of Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - K Moll
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - K Landerl
- Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
- Institute of Psychology, University of Graz, Graz, Austria
| | - E Martin
- MR-Center, University Children's Hospital, University of Zürich, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - R Goebel
- Cognitive Neuroscience Department, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center (M-BIC), Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - G Schulte-Körne
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - L Blomert
- Cognitive Neuroscience Department, Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center (M-BIC), Faculty of Psychology and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - H Wimmer
- Centre for Cognitive Neuroscience and Department of Psychology, University of Salzburg, Salzburg, Austria
| | - D Brandeis
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychiatric Hospital, University of Zurich, Neumuensterallee 9, 8032, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
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19
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Zimmer HD, Fischer B. Visual Working Memory of Chinese Characters and Expertise: The Expert's Memory Advantage Is Based on Long-Term Knowledge of Visual Word Forms. Front Psychol 2020; 11:516. [PMID: 32362852 PMCID: PMC7180225 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.00516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2019] [Accepted: 03/04/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
People unfamiliar with Chinese characters show poorer visual working memory (VWM) performance for Chinese characters than do literates in Chinese. In a series of experiments, we investigated the reasons for this expertise advantage. Experiments 1 and 2 showed that the advantage of Chinese literates does not transfer to novel material. Experts had similar resolution as novices for material outside of their field of expertise, and the memory of novices and experts did not differ when detecting a big change, e.g., when a character’s color was changed. Memorizing appears to function as a rather abstract representation of word forms because memory for characters’ fonts was poor independently of expertise (Experiment 3), though still visual. Distractors that were highly similar conceptually did not increase memory errors, but visually similar distractors impaired memory (Experiment 4). We hypothesized that literates in Chinese represent characters in VWM as tokens of visual word forms made available by long-term memory. In Experiment 5, we provided novices with visual word form knowledge. Participants subsequently performed a change detection task with trained and novel characters in a functional magnetic resonance experiment. We analyzed set size- and training-dependent effects in the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) and the visual word form area. VWM for trained characters was better than for novel characters. Neural activity increased with set size and at a slower rate for trained than for novel characters. All conditions approached the same maximum, but novel characters reached the maximum at a smaller set size than trained characters. The time course of the bold response depended on set size and knowledge status. Starting from the same initial maximum, neural activity at small set sizes returned to baseline more quickly for trained characters than for novel characters. Additionally, high performers showed generally more neural activity in the IPS than low performers. We conclude that experts’ better performance in working memory (WM) is caused by the availability of visual long-term representations (word form types) that allow a sparse representation of the perceived stimuli and make even small changes big because they cause a type change that is easily detected.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hubert D Zimmer
- Brain & Cognition Unit, Department of Psychology, Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany
| | - Benjamin Fischer
- International Research Training Group "Adaptive Minds", Saarland University, Saarbrücken, Germany
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20
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Li M, Xu Y, Luo X, Zeng J, Han Z. Linguistic experience acquisition for novel stimuli selectively activates the neural network of the visual word form area. Neuroimage 2020; 215:116838. [PMID: 32298792 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.116838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2020] [Revised: 03/24/2020] [Accepted: 04/06/2020] [Indexed: 10/24/2022] Open
Abstract
The human ventral visual cortex is functionally organized into different domains that sensitively respond to different categories, such as words and objects. There is heated debate over what principle constrains the locations of those domains. Taking the visual word form area (VWFA) as an example, we tested whether the word preference in this area originates from the bottom-up processes related to word shape (the shape hypothesis) or top-down connectivity of higher-order language regions (the connectivity hypothesis). We trained subjects to associate identical, meaningless, non-word-like figures with high-level features of either words or objects. We found that the word-feature learning for the figures elicited the neural activation change in the VWFA, and learning performance effectively predicted the activation strength of this area after learning. Word-learning effects were also observed in other language areas (i.e., the left posterior superior temporal gyrus, postcentral gyrus, and supplementary motor area), with increased functional connectivity between the VWFA and the language regions. In contrast, object-feature learning was not associated with obvious activation changes in the language regions. These results indicate that high-level language features of stimuli can modulate the activation of the VWFA, providing supportive evidence for the connectivity hypothesis of words processing in the ventral occipitotemporal cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mingyang Li
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Yangwen Xu
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Trento, 38123, Italy; International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), Trieste, 34136, Italy
| | - Xiangqi Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Jiahong Zeng
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China
| | - Zaizhu Han
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China.
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21
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Liu X, Wu Q, Ying K, Li A, Sun Y, Mei L. Functional laterality of the anterior and posterior occipitotemporal cortex is affected by language experience and processing strategy, respectively. Neuropsychologia 2020; 137:107301. [PMID: 31821831 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2019.107301] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2018] [Revised: 12/03/2019] [Accepted: 12/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Both language experience and processing strategy have been found to affect functional lateralization of the ventral occipitotemporal cortex (vOT). In this study, we adopted a factorial design to investigate the effects of language experience and processing strategy on functional lateralization of different vOT subregions in the processing of familiar (Chinese characters) and unfamiliar characters (Korean Hangul characters) in logographic writings. The processing strategy was manipulated by using part- and whole-based judgement tasks to induce part- and whole-based processing, respectively. The results showed that language experience enhanced neural responses in the anterior and middle vOT subregions, whereas part-based processing enhanced neural activations in the middle and posterior vOT subregions. More importantly, increased neural activations in the left hemisphere induced by language experience and part-based processing resulted in left laterality of the anterior and posterior vOT subregions, respectively, in the processing of logographic characters. These results suggested that functional lateralization of the anterior and posterior vOT subregions were respectively affected by language experience and processing strategy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyu Liu
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Qiulan Wu
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Kangli Ying
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Aqian Li
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yue Sun
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Leilei Mei
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal University, Guangzhou, China.
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22
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van de Walle de Ghelcke A, Rossion B, Schiltz C, Lochy A. Impact of Learning to Read in a Mixed Approach on Neural Tuning to Words in Beginning Readers. Front Psychol 2020; 10:3043. [PMID: 32038406 PMCID: PMC6989560 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.03043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2019] [Accepted: 12/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The impact of learning to read in a mixed approach using both the global and phonics teaching methods on the emergence of left hemisphere neural specialization for word recognition is yet unknown in children. Taking advantage of a natural school context with such a mixed approach, we tested 42 first graders behaviorally and with Fast Periodic Visual Stimulation using electroencephalographic recordings (FPVS-EEG) to measure selective neural responses to letter strings. Letter strings were inserted periodically (1/5) in pseudofonts in 40 s sequences displayed at 6 Hz and were either words globally taught at school, that could therefore be processed by visual whole-word form recognition (global method), or control words/pseudowords eliciting grapheme-phoneme (GP) mappings (phonics method). Results show that selective responses (F/5, 1.2 Hz) were left lateralized for control stimuli that triggered GP mappings but bilateral for globally taught words. It implies that neural mechanisms recruited during visual word processing are influenced by the nature of the mapping between written and spoken word forms. GP mappings induce left hemisphere discrimination responses, and visual recognition of whole-word forms induce bilateral responses, probably because the right hemisphere is relatively more involved in holistic visual object recognition. Splitting the group as a function of the mastery of GP mappings into "good" and "poor" readers strongly suggests that good readers actually processed all stimuli (including global words) predominantly with their left hemisphere, while poor readers showed bilateral responses for global words. These results show that in a mixed approach of teaching to read, global method instruction may induce neural processes that differ from those specialized for reading in the left hemisphere. Furthermore, given their difficulties in automatizing GP mappings, poor readers are especially prone to rely on this alternative visual strategy. A preprint of this paper has been released on Biorxiv (van de Walle de Ghelcke et al., 2018).
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Affiliation(s)
- Alice van de Walle de Ghelcke
- Psychological Sciences Research Institute and Institute of Neuroscience, Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Bruno Rossion
- Psychological Sciences Research Institute and Institute of Neuroscience, Université catholique de Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
- CNRS-CRAN, Université de Lorraine, Nancy, France
- Service de Neurologie, CHRU-Nancy, Université de Lorraine, Nancy, France
| | - Christine Schiltz
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, Social and Educational Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Science and Assessment, Université du Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Aliette Lochy
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences, Faculty of Humanities, Social and Educational Sciences, Institute of Cognitive Science and Assessment, Université du Luxembourg, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
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23
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Chen L, Wassermann D, Abrams DA, Kochalka J, Gallardo-Diez G, Menon V. The visual word form area (VWFA) is part of both language and attention circuitry. Nat Commun 2019; 10:5601. [PMID: 31811149 PMCID: PMC6898452 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-13634-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 73] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2019] [Accepted: 11/04/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
While predominant models of visual word form area (VWFA) function argue for its specific role in decoding written language, other accounts propose a more general role of VWFA in complex visual processing. However, a comprehensive examination of structural and functional VWFA circuits and their relationship to behavior has been missing. Here, using high-resolution multimodal imaging data from a large Human Connectome Project cohort (N = 313), we demonstrate robust patterns of VWFA connectivity with both canonical language and attentional networks. Brain-behavior relationships revealed a striking pattern of double dissociation: structural connectivity of VWFA with lateral temporal language network predicted language, but not visuo-spatial attention abilities, while VWFA connectivity with dorsal fronto-parietal attention network predicted visuo-spatial attention, but not language abilities. Our findings support a multiplex model of VWFA function characterized by distinct circuits for integrating language and attention, and point to connectivity-constrained cognition as a key principle of human brain organization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lang Chen
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94394, USA.
- Department of Psychology, Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA, 95053, USA.
- Neuroscience Program, Santa Clara University, Santa Clara, CA, 95053, USA.
| | - Demian Wassermann
- Parietal, Inria Saclay Île-de-France, CEA, Université Paris-Sud, 1 Rue Honoré d'Estienne d'Orves, 91120, Palaiseau, France
| | - Daniel A Abrams
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94394, USA
| | - John Kochalka
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94394, USA
| | - Guillermo Gallardo-Diez
- Athena Project Team, INRIA Sophia Antipolis-Méditerranée, 06902, Sophia Antipolis CEDEX, France
| | - Vinod Menon
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94394, USA.
- Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94394, USA.
- Stanford Neuroscience Institute, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94394, USA.
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24
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Longcamp M, Hupé JM, Ruiz M, Vayssière N, Sato M. Shared premotor activity in spoken and written communication. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2019; 199:104694. [PMID: 31586790 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2019.104694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2018] [Revised: 09/12/2019] [Accepted: 09/15/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The aim of the present study was to uncover a possible common neural organizing principle in spoken and written communication, through the coupling of perceptual and motor representations. In order to identify possible shared neural substrates for processing the basic units of spoken and written language, a sparse sampling fMRI acquisition protocol was performed on the same subjects in two experimental sessions with similar sets of letters being read and written and of phonemes being heard and orally produced. We found evidence of common premotor regions activated in spoken and written language, both in perception and in production. The location of those brain regions was confined to the left lateral and medial frontal cortices, at locations corresponding to the premotor cortex, inferior frontal cortex and supplementary motor area. Interestingly, the speaking and writing tasks also appeared to be controlled by largely overlapping networks, possibly indicating some domain general cognitive processing. Finally, the spatial distribution of individual activation peaks further showed more dorsal and more left-lateralized premotor activations in written than in spoken language.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jean-Michel Hupé
- CNRS, Université de Toulouse Paul Sabatier, CerCo, Toulouse, France
| | - Mathieu Ruiz
- CNRS, Université de Toulouse Paul Sabatier, CerCo, Toulouse, France
| | - Nathalie Vayssière
- CNRS, Université de Toulouse Paul Sabatier, CerCo, Toulouse, France; Toulouse Mind and Brain Institute, France
| | - Marc Sato
- CNRS, Aix-Marseille Univ, LPL, Aix-en-Provence, France
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25
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Ludersdorfer P, Price CJ, Kawabata Duncan KJ, DeDuck K, Neufeld NH, Seghier ML. Dissociating the functions of superior and inferior parts of the left ventral occipito-temporal cortex during visual word and object processing. Neuroimage 2019; 199:325-335. [PMID: 31176833 PMCID: PMC6693527 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2018] [Revised: 05/10/2019] [Accepted: 06/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
During word and object recognition, extensive activation has consistently been observed in the left ventral occipito-temporal cortex (vOT), focused around the occipito-temporal sulcus (OTs). Previous studies have shown that there is a hierarchy of responses from posterior to anterior vOT regions (along the y-axis) that corresponds with increasing levels of recognition - from perceptual to semantic processing, respectively. In contrast, the functional differences between superior and inferior vOT responses (i.e. along the z-axis) have not yet been elucidated. To investigate, we conducted an extensive review of the literature and found that peak activation for reading varies by more than 1 cm in the z-axis. In addition, we investigated functional differences between superior and inferior parts of left vOT by analysing functional MRI data from 58 neurologically normal skilled readers performing 8 different visual processing tasks. We found that group activation in superior vOT was significantly more sensitive than inferior vOT to the type of task, with more superior vOT activation when participants were matching visual stimuli for their semantic or perceptual content than producing speech to the same stimuli. This functional difference along the z-axis was compared to existing boundaries between cytoarchitectonic areas around the OTs. In addition, using dynamic causal modelling, we show that connectivity from superior vOT to anterior vOT increased with semantic content during matching tasks but not during speaking tasks whereas connectivity from inferior vOT to anterior vOT was sensitive to semantic content for matching and speaking tasks. The finding of a functional dissociation between superior and inferior parts of vOT has implications for predicting deficits and response to rehabilitation for patients with partial damage to vOT following stroke or neurosurgery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Philipp Ludersdorfer
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK
| | - Cathy J Price
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK.
| | - Keith J Kawabata Duncan
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK; Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kristina DeDuck
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK; Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal, Canada
| | - Nicholas H Neufeld
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada
| | - Mohamed L Seghier
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, UK; Cognitive Neuroimaging Unit, Emirates College for Advanced Education (ECAE), Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
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26
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Cross-Language Pattern Similarity in the Bilateral Fusiform Cortex Is Associated with Reading Proficiency in Second Language. Neuroscience 2019; 410:254-263. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2019.05.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2018] [Revised: 05/03/2019] [Accepted: 05/08/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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27
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Folstein JR, Monfared SS. Extended categorization of conjunction object stimuli decreases the latency of attentional feature selection and recruits orthography-linked ERPs. Cortex 2019; 120:49-65. [PMID: 31233910 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2019.05.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2019] [Revised: 04/29/2019] [Accepted: 05/20/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The role of attention in driving perceptual expertise effects is controversial. The current study addressed the effect of training on ERP components related to and independent of attentional feature selection. Participants learned to categorize cartoon animals over six training sessions (8,800 trials) after which ERPs were recorded during a target detection task performed on trained and untrained stimulus sets. The onset of the selection negativity, an ERP component indexing attentional modulation, was about 60 msec earlier for trained than untrained stimuli. Trained stimuli also elicited centro-parietal N200 and N320 components that were insensitive to attentional feature selection. The scalp distribution and timecourse of these components were better matched by studies of orthography than object expertise. Source localization using eLORETA suggested that the strongest neural sources of the selection negativity were in right ventral temporal cortex whereas the strongest sources of the N200/N320 components were in left ventral temporal cortex, again consistent with the hypothesis that training recruited orthography related areas. Overall, training altered neural processes related to attentional selection, but also affected neural processes that were independent of feature selection.
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28
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Tagarelli KM, Shattuck KF, Turkeltaub PE, Ullman MT. Language learning in the adult brain: A neuroanatomical meta-analysis of lexical and grammatical learning. Neuroimage 2019; 193:178-200. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.02.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2018] [Revised: 01/24/2019] [Accepted: 02/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
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29
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Emerging neural specialization of the ventral occipitotemporal cortex to characters through phonological association learning in preschool children. Neuroimage 2019; 189:813-831. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.01.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2018] [Revised: 12/21/2018] [Accepted: 01/21/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
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30
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James R, O’Boyle M. Graffiti and perceived neighborhood safety: a neuroimaging study. PROPERTY MANAGEMENT 2019. [DOI: 10.1108/pm-12-2017-0071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to uncover the neural basis underlying the negative impact of graffiti on evaluations of neighborhood safety.
Design/methodology/approach
While in a functional magnetic resonance imaging scanner, participants rated the perceived safety of neighborhood scenes shown in photographic images. Some scenes were systematically altered to include graffiti, surveillance cameras or framed public art.
Findings
Consistent with previous research, the average safety rating for each scene including graffiti was significantly lower than for every other non-graffiti scene presented. The powerful salience of graffiti (as demonstrated by increased activation of the left fusiform gyrus) accompanied a decreased salience of other built environment scene elements (as demonstrated by reduced activation in the right parahippocampal gyrus). It appears as though the presence of graffiti causes the cognitive impact of other scene elements to fade. This redirection of cognitive focus may help to explain the dominant impact of graffiti on neighborhood safety evaluations.
Practical implications
Because of these basic perceptual tendencies, graffiti will necessarily dominate neighborhood safety evaluations. In any attempts to improve neighborhood safety evaluations, combating graffiti should be accorded a position of great importance, in keeping with these cognitive realities.
Originality/value
This is the first neuroimaging study of graffiti and perceived neighborhood safety.
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31
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Guo J, Li D, Bi Y, Chen C. Modulating Effects of Contextual Emotions on the Neural Plasticity Induced by Word Learning. Front Hum Neurosci 2018; 12:464. [PMID: 30532700 PMCID: PMC6266032 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2018.00464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2018] [Accepted: 11/02/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Recently, numerous studies have investigated the neurocognitive mechanism of learning words in isolation or in semantic contexts. However, emotion as an important influencing factor on novel word learning has not been fully considered in the previous studies. In addition, the effects of emotion on word learning and the underlying neural mechanism have not been systematically investigated. Sixteen participants were trained to learn novel concrete or abstract words under negative, neutral, and positive contextual emotions over 3 days; then, fMRI scanning was done during the testing sessions on day 1 and day 3. We compared the brain activations in day 1 and day 3 to investigate the role of contextual emotions in learning different types of words and the corresponding neural plasticity changes. Behaviorally, the performance of the words learned in the negative context was lower than those in the neutral and positive contexts, which indicated that contextual emotions had a significant impact on novel word learning. Correspondingly, the functional plasticity changes of the right angular gyrus (AG), bilateral insula, and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) induced by word learning were modulated by the contextual emotions. The insula also was sensitive to the concreteness of the learned words. More importantly, the functional plasticity changes of the left inferior frontal gyrus (left IFG) and left fusiform gyrus (left FG) were interactively influenced by the contextual emotions and concreteness, suggesting that the contextual emotional information had a discriminable effect on different types of words in the neural mechanism level. These results demonstrate that emotional information in contexts is inevitably involved in word learning. The role of contextual emotions in brain plasticity for learning is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jingjing Guo
- Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience in Shaanxi Province, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China
- *Correspondence: Jingjing Guo
| | - Dingding Li
- Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience in Shaanxi Province, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China
| | - Yanling Bi
- Key Laboratory of Behavior and Cognitive Neuroscience in Shaanxi Province, School of Psychology, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, China
| | - Chunhui Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China
- Chunhui Chen
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32
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Xia Z, Zhang L, Hoeft F, Gu B, Gong G, Shu H. Neural Correlates of Oral Word Reading, Silent Reading Comprehension, and Cognitive Subcomponents. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT 2018; 42:342-356. [PMID: 29904229 DOI: 10.1177/0165025417727872] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The ability to read is essential for cognitive development. To deepen our understanding of reading acquisition, we explored the neuroanatomical correlates (cortical thickness (CT)) of word reading fluency and sentence comprehension efficiency in Chinese with a group of typically developing children (N = 21; 12 females and 9 males; age range 10.7-12.3 years). Then, we investigated the relationship between the CT of reading-defined regions and the cognitive subcomponents of reading to determine whether our study lends support to the multi-component model. The results demonstrated that children's performance on oral word reading was positively correlated with CT in the left superior temporal gyrus (LSTG), inferior temporal gyrus (LITG), supramarginal gyrus (LSMG) and right superior temporal gyrus (RSTG). Moreover, CT in the LSTG, LSMG and LITG uniquely predicted children's phonetic representation, phonological awareness, and orthography-phonology mapping skills, respectively. By contrast, children's performance on sentence reading comprehension was positively correlated with CT in the left parahippocampus (LPHP) and right calcarine fissure (RV1). As for the subcomponents of reading, CT in the LPHP was exclusively correlated with morphological awareness, whereas CT in the RV1 was correlated with orthography-semantic mapping. Taken together, these findings indicate that the reading network of typically developing children consists of multiple subdivisions, thus providing neuroanatomical evidence in support of the multi-componential view of reading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhichao Xia
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, China.,Department of Psychiatry and Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), USA
| | - Linjun Zhang
- Faculty of Linguistic Sciences and KIT-BLCU MEG Laboratory for Brain Science, Beijing Language and Culture University, China
| | - Fumiko Hoeft
- Department of Psychiatry and Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), USA.,Precision Learning Center (PrecL), UC, USA.,Dyslexia Center, UCSF, USA.,Haskins Laboratories, 300 George Street #900, New Haven, USA.,Department of Neuropsychiatry, Keio University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Bin Gu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, China
| | - Gaolang Gong
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, China
| | - Hua Shu
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, China
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33
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Oliver M, Carreiras M, Paz-Alonso PM. Functional Dynamics of Dorsal and Ventral Reading Networks in Bilinguals. Cereb Cortex 2018; 27:5431-5443. [PMID: 28122808 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhw310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2015] [Accepted: 09/19/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In today's world, bilingualism is increasingly common. However, it is still unclear how left-lateralized dorsal and ventral reading networks are tuned to reading in proficient second-language learners. Here, we investigated differences in functional regional activation and connectivity as a function of L1 and L2 reading, L2 orthographic depth, and task demands. Thirty-seven late bilinguals with the same L1 and either an opaque or transparent L2 performed perceptual and semantic reading tasks in L1 and L2 during functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scanning. Results revealed stronger regional recruitment for L2 versus L1 reading and stronger connectivity within the dorsal stream during L1 versus L2 reading. Differences in orthographic depth were associated with a segregated profile of left ventral occipitotemporal (vOT) coactivation with dorsal regions for the transparent L2 group and with ventral regions for the opaque L2 group. Finally, semantic versus perceptual demands modulated left vOT engagement, supporting the interactive account of the contribution of vOT to reading, and were associated with stronger coactivation within the ventral network. Our findings support a division of labor between ventral and dorsal reading networks, elucidating the critical role of the language used to read, L2 orthographic depth, and task demands on the functional dynamics of bilingual reading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Myriam Oliver
- BCBL, Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language, Donostia-San Sebastian, 2009 Gipuzkoa, Spain
| | - Manuel Carreiras
- BCBL, Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language, Donostia-San Sebastian, 2009 Gipuzkoa, Spain.,IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao, 48013 Bizkaia, Spain.,Department of Basque Language and Communication, EHU/UPV, Bilbao, 48940 Bizkaia, Spain
| | - Pedro M Paz-Alonso
- BCBL, Basque Center on Cognition Brain and Language, Donostia-San Sebastian, 2009 Gipuzkoa, Spain
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34
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Zhao L, Chen C, Shao L, Wang Y, Xiao X, Chen C, Yang J, Zevin J, Xue G. Orthographic and Phonological Representations in the Fusiform Cortex. Cereb Cortex 2018; 27:5197-5210. [PMID: 27664959 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhw300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2016] [Accepted: 09/06/2016] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Mental and neural representations of words are at the core of understanding the cognitive and neural mechanisms of reading. Despite extensive studies, the nature of visual word representation remains highly controversial due to methodological limitations. In particular, it is unclear whether the fusiform cortex contains only abstract orthographic representation, or represents both lower and higher level orthography as well as phonology. Using representational similarity analysis, we integrated behavioral ratings, computational models of reading and visual object recognition, and neuroimaging data to examine the nature of visual word representations in the fusiform cortex. Our results provided clear evidence that the middle and anterior fusiform represented both phonological and orthographic information. Whereas lower level orthographic information was represented at every stage of the ventral visual stream, abstract orthographic information was increasingly represented along the posterior-to-anterior axis. Furthermore, the left and right hemispheres were tuned to high- and low-frequency orthographic information, respectively. These results help to resolve the long-standing debates regarding the role of the fusiform in reading, and have significant implications for the development of psychological, neural, and computational theories of reading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Libo Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China
| | - Chunhui Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China
| | - Luying Shao
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China
| | - Yapeng Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China
| | - Xiaoqian Xiao
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China
| | - Chuansheng Chen
- Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California, Irvine, CA 92697, USA
| | - Jianfeng Yang
- School of Psychology, Shanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, PR China
| | - Jason Zevin
- Department of Linguistics, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA
| | - Gui Xue
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning & IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China.,Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, PR China
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35
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Brem S, Hunkeler E, Mächler M, Kronschnabel J, Karipidis II, Pleisch G, Brandeis D. Increasing expertise to a novel script modulates the visual N1 ERP in healthy adults. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BEHAVIORAL DEVELOPMENT 2017. [DOI: 10.1177/0165025417727871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Neural tuning to print develops when children learn to read and is reflected by a more pronounced left occipito-temporal negativity to orthographic stimuli as compared to non-orthographic false fonts or symbols after around 150–250 ms in their N1, a visual event-related potential (ERP). In adults, initial expertise for a novel script can emerge in less than 2 hours through repeated exposure or training. Here, we aimed to assess changes in the visual N1 related to the process of learning associations between unknown written characters and familiar, spoken syllables or words. Thirty-two healthy literate adults learned to associate a set of foreign characters with either syllables or German words within a single experimental session. EEG was recorded during a visual one-back character repetition detection task in which trained characters, untrained characters and familiar letters were presented before and after the training. A bilateral occipito-temporal increase in the N1 negativity with training was only found for the newly learned characters, but not for the control characters. In conclusion, the present data indicate that expertise to novel characters can be induced by a short character–sound association training and is reflected by a bilateral modulation of the visual N1 amplitude. However, no differentiation was found regarding the comparison of word or syllable training, indicating that the visual N1 most likely reflects gaining expertise driven by phonological associations common to both training types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Brem
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
- University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Neuroscience Center Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Eliane Hunkeler
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Markus Mächler
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Jens Kronschnabel
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Iliana Irini Karipidis
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
- University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Neuroscience Center Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Georgette Pleisch
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
- University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Neuroscience Center Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Daniel Brandeis
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital of Psychiatry Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
- University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Neuroscience Center Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany
- Center for Integrative Human Physiology Zurich, University of Zurich, Switzerland
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36
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Qu J, Qian L, Chen C, Xue G, Li H, Xie P, Mei L. Neural Pattern Similarity in the Left IFG and Fusiform Is Associated with Novel Word Learning. Front Hum Neurosci 2017; 11:424. [PMID: 28878640 PMCID: PMC5572377 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2017.00424] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2017] [Accepted: 08/07/2017] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Previous studies have revealed that greater neural pattern similarity across repetitions is associated with better subsequent memory. In this study, we used an artificial language training paradigm and representational similarity analysis to examine whether neural pattern similarity across repetitions before training was associated with post-training behavioral performance. Twenty-four native Chinese speakers were trained to learn a logographic artificial language for 12 days and behavioral performance was recorded using the word naming and picture naming tasks. Participants were scanned while performing a passive viewing task before training, after 4-day training and after 12-day training. Results showed that pattern similarity in the left pars opercularis (PO) and fusiform gyrus (FG) before training was negatively associated with reaction time (RT) in both word naming and picture naming tasks after training. These results suggest that neural pattern similarity is an effective neurofunctional predictor of novel word learning in addition to word memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Qu
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal UniversityGuangzhou, China
| | - Liu Qian
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal UniversityGuangzhou, China
| | - Chuansheng Chen
- Department of Psychology and Social Behavior, University of California, IrvineIrvine, CA, United States
| | - Gui Xue
- State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning, IDG McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Beijing Normal UniversityBeijing, China
| | - Huiling Li
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal UniversityGuangzhou, China
| | - Peng Xie
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal UniversityGuangzhou, China
| | - Leilei Mei
- Guangdong Key Laboratory of Mental Health and Cognitive Science, Center for Studies of Psychological Application, School of Psychology, South China Normal UniversityGuangzhou, China
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37
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Zhang Y, Fan L, Caspers S, Heim S, Song M, Liu C, Mo Y, Eickhoff SB, Amunts K, Jiang T. Cross-cultural consistency and diversity in intrinsic functional organization of Broca's Region. Neuroimage 2017; 150:177-190. [PMID: 28215624 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2017.02.042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2015] [Revised: 02/14/2017] [Accepted: 02/15/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
As a core language area, Broca's region was consistently activated in a variety of language studies even across different language systems. Moreover, a high degree of structural and functional heterogeneity in Broca's region has been reported in many studies. This raised the issue of how the intrinsic organization of Broca's region effects by different language experiences in light of its subdivisions. To address this question, we used multi-center resting-state fMRI data to explore the cross-cultural consistency and diversity of Broca's region in terms of its subdivisions, connectivity patterns and modularity organization in Chinese and German speakers. A consistent topological organization of the 13 subdivisions within the extended Broca's region was revealed on the basis of a new in-vivo parcellation map, which corresponded well to the previously reported receptorarchitectonic map. Based on this parcellation map, consistent functional connectivity patterns and modularity organization of these subdivisions were found. Some cultural difference in the functional connectivity patterns was also found, for instance stronger connectivity in Chinese subjects between area 6v2 and the motor hand area, as well as higher correlations between area 45p and middle frontal gyrus. Our study suggests that a generally invariant organization of Broca's region, together with certain regulations of different language experiences on functional connectivity, might exists to support language processing in human brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Zhang
- Brainnetome Center, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; National Laboratory of Pattern Recognition, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Lingzhong Fan
- Brainnetome Center, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Svenja Caspers
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Juelich, 52425 Juelich, Germany; C. and O. Vogt Institute for Brain Research, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; JARA-BRAIN, Juelich-Aachen Research Alliance, 52425 Juelich, Germany
| | - Stefan Heim
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Juelich, 52425 Juelich, Germany; Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical Faculty, RWTH Aachen, 52074 Aachen, Germany; JARA-BRAIN, Juelich-Aachen Research Alliance, 52425 Juelich, Germany
| | - Ming Song
- Brainnetome Center, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; National Laboratory of Pattern Recognition, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China
| | - Cirong Liu
- Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, QLD 4072, Australia
| | - Yin Mo
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University, Kunming 650032, China
| | - Simon B Eickhoff
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Juelich, 52425 Juelich, Germany; Institute for Clinical Neuroscience and Medical Psychology, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Katrin Amunts
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine (INM-1), Research Centre Juelich, 52425 Juelich, Germany; C. and O. Vogt Institute for Brain Research, Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany; JARA-BRAIN, Juelich-Aachen Research Alliance, 52425 Juelich, Germany
| | - Tianzi Jiang
- Brainnetome Center, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; National Laboratory of Pattern Recognition, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence technology, Institute of Automation, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100190, China; Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, QLD 4072, Australia; Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation of Ministry of Education, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 625014, China.
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Cao F, Yan X, Wang Z, Liu Y, Wang J, Spray GJ, Deng Y. Neural signatures of phonological deficits in Chinese developmental dyslexia. Neuroimage 2017; 146:301-311. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.11.051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2016] [Revised: 11/07/2016] [Accepted: 11/21/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
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Fraga González G, Žarić G, Tijms J, Bonte M, van der Molen MW. Contributions of Letter-Speech Sound Learning and Visual Print Tuning to Reading Improvement: Evidence from Brain Potential and Dyslexia Training Studies. Brain Sci 2017; 7:E10. [PMID: 28106790 PMCID: PMC5297299 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci7010010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2016] [Revised: 12/20/2016] [Accepted: 01/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
We use a neurocognitive perspective to discuss the contribution of learning letter-speech sound (L-SS) associations and visual specialization in the initial phases of reading in dyslexic children. We review findings from associative learning studies on related cognitive skills important for establishing and consolidating L-SS associations. Then we review brain potential studies, including our own, that yielded two markers associated with reading fluency. Here we show that the marker related to visual specialization (N170) predicts word and pseudoword reading fluency in children who received additional practice in the processing of morphological word structure. Conversely, L-SS integration (indexed by mismatch negativity (MMN)) may only remain important when direct orthography to semantic conversion is not possible, such as in pseudoword reading. In addition, the correlation between these two markers supports the notion that multisensory integration facilitates visual specialization. Finally, we review the role of implicit learning and executive functions in audiovisual learning in dyslexia. Implications for remedial research are discussed and suggestions for future studies are presented.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gorka Fraga González
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1018 WS, The Netherlands.
- Rudolf Berlin Center, Amsterdam 1018 WS, The Netherlands.
| | - Gojko Žarić
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht 6200 MD, The Netherlands.
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, Maastricht University, Maastricht 6200 MD, The Netherlands.
| | - Jurgen Tijms
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1018 WS, The Netherlands.
- Rudolf Berlin Center, Amsterdam 1018 WS, The Netherlands.
- IWAL Institute, Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1001 EW, The Netherlands.
| | - Milene Bonte
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht 6200 MD, The Netherlands.
- Maastricht Brain Imaging Center, Maastricht University, Maastricht 6200 MD, The Netherlands.
| | - Maurits W van der Molen
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1018 WS, The Netherlands.
- Amsterdam Brain and Cognition, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam 1018 WT, The Netherlands.
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40
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Word and object recognition during reading acquisition: MEG evidence. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2017; 24:21-32. [PMID: 28119183 PMCID: PMC5437840 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2017.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2016] [Revised: 11/28/2016] [Accepted: 01/04/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Studies on adults suggest that reading-induced brain changes might not be limited to linguistic processes. It is still unclear whether these results can be generalized to reading development. The present study shows to which extent neural responses to verbal and nonverbal stimuli are reorganized while children learn to read. MEG data of thirty Basque children (4-8y) were collected while they were presented with written words, spoken words and visual objects. The evoked fields elicited by the experimental stimuli were compared to their scrambled counterparts. Visual words elicited left posterior (200-300ms) and temporal activations (400-800ms). The size of these effects increased as reading performance improved, suggesting a reorganization of children's visual word responses. Spoken words elicited greater left temporal responses relative to scrambles (300-700ms). No evidence for the influence of reading expertise was observed. Brain responses to objects were greater than to scrambles in bilateral posterior regions (200-500ms). There was a greater left hemisphere involvement as reading errors decreased, suggesting a strengthened verbal decoding of visual configurations with reading acquisition. The present results reveal that learning to read not only influences written word processing, but also affects visual object recognition, suggesting a non-language specific impact of reading on children's neural mechanisms.
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41
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Qiu WH, Wu HX, Yang QL, Kang Z, Chen ZC, Li K, Qiu GR, Xie CQ, Wan GF, Chen SQ. Evidence of cortical reorganization of language networks after stroke with subacute Broca's aphasia: a blood oxygenation level dependent-functional magnetic resonance imaging study. Neural Regen Res 2017; 12:109-117. [PMID: 28250756 PMCID: PMC5319215 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.198996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
Abstract
Aphasia is an acquired language disorder that is a common consequence of stroke. The pathogenesis of the disease is not fully understood, and as a result, current treatment options are not satisfactory. Here, we used blood oxygenation level-dependent functional magnetic resonance imaging to evaluate the activation of bilateral cortices in patients with Broca's aphasia 1 to 3 months after stroke. Our results showed that language expression was associated with multiple brain regions in which the right hemisphere participated in the generation of language. The activation areas in the left hemisphere of aphasia patients were significantly smaller compared with those in healthy adults. The activation frequency, volumes, and intensity in the regions related to language, such as the left inferior frontal gyrus (Broca's area), the left superior temporal gyrus, and the right inferior frontal gyrus (the mirror region of Broca's area), were lower in patients compared with healthy adults. In contrast, activation in the right superior temporal gyrus, the bilateral superior parietal lobule, and the left inferior temporal gyrus was stronger in patients compared with healthy controls. These results suggest that the right inferior frontal gyrus plays a role in the recovery of language function in the subacute stage of stroke-related aphasia by increasing the engagement of related brain areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei-Hong Qiu
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Hui-Xiang Wu
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Qing-Lu Yang
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Zhuang Kang
- Department of Radiology, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Zhao-Cong Chen
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Kui Li
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Guo-Rong Qiu
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Chun-Qing Xie
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Gui-Fang Wan
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Shao-Qiong Chen
- Department of Radiology, the Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China
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42
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Sacchi E, Laszlo S. An event-related potential study of the relationship between N170 lateralization and phonological awareness in developing readers. Neuropsychologia 2016; 91:415-425. [PMID: 27614290 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2016.09.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/17/2016] [Revised: 09/02/2016] [Accepted: 09/03/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
As reading development progresses, the visual processing of word forms becomes increasingly left-lateralized. This is visible, among other ways, as increased left-lateralization of the N170 ERP component. A primary explanation of this effect, the phonological mapping hypothesis, proposes that the left-lateralization of visual word form processing that accompanies reading development is the result of calling upon left hemisphere auditory language regions to perform the linking of orthography with phonology (phonological mapping). A key, but untested, prediction of the phonological mapping hypothesis is thus that individuals with greater phonological awareness should exhibit more left lateralized visual processing of word forms than individuals with poorer phonological awareness. We set out to test this hypothesis here. We accomplished this by collecting ERPs while children grades 5-6 viewed words, objects, and word/object ambiguous items (e.g., "SMILE" shaped like a smile - hereafter referred to as wobjects). Results revealed that, consistent with the phonological mapping hypothesis, individual phonological awareness (but not other measures of reading development) predicted left-lateralization of the N170 component elicited in response to words (but not item types that were not word-like).
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sarah Laszlo
- Department of Psychology, Binghamton University, United States; Program in Linguistics, Binghamton University, United States.
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43
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Takashima A, Hulzink I, Wagensveld B, Verhoeven L. Emergence of representations through repeated training on pronouncing novel letter combinations leads to efficient reading. Neuropsychologia 2016; 89:14-30. [PMID: 27192222 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2016.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2015] [Revised: 05/09/2016] [Accepted: 05/13/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Printed text can be decoded by utilizing different processing routes depending on the familiarity of the script. A predominant use of word-level decoding strategies can be expected in the case of a familiar script, and an almost exclusive use of letter-level decoding strategies for unfamiliar scripts. Behavioural studies have revealed that frequently occurring words are read more efficiently, suggesting that these words are read in a more holistic way at the word-level, than infrequent and unfamiliar words. To test whether repeated exposure to specific letter combinations leads to holistic reading, we monitored both behavioural and neural responses during novel script decoding and examined changes related to repeated exposure. We trained a group of Dutch university students to decode pseudowords written in an unfamiliar script, i.e., Korean Hangul characters. We compared behavioural and neural responses to pronouncing trained versus untrained two-character pseudowords (equivalent to two-syllable pseudowords). We tested once shortly after the initial training and again after a four days' delay that included another training session. We found that trained pseudowords were pronounced faster and more accurately than novel combinations of radicals (equivalent to letters). Imaging data revealed that pronunciation of trained pseudowords engaged the posterior temporo-parietal region, and engagement of this network was predictive of reading efficiency a month later. The results imply that repeated exposure to specific combinations of graphemes can lead to emergence of holistic representations that result in efficient reading. Furthermore, inter-individual differences revealed that good learners retained efficiency more than bad learners one month later.
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Affiliation(s)
- Atsuko Takashima
- Radboud University, Behavioural Science Institute, PO Box 9104, 6500 HE Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
| | - Iris Hulzink
- Radboud University, Behavioural Science Institute, PO Box 9104, 6500 HE Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Barbara Wagensveld
- Studio Lakmoes, Statenlaan 8, De Kleine Campus, BG lokaal 0.2, 6828 WE Arnhem, The Netherlands
| | - Ludo Verhoeven
- Radboud University, Behavioural Science Institute, PO Box 9104, 6500 HE Nijmegen, The Netherlands
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44
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Madec S, Le Goff K, Anton JL, Longcamp M, Velay JL, Nazarian B, Roth M, Courrieu P, Grainger J, Rey A. Brain correlates of phonological recoding of visual symbols. Neuroimage 2016; 132:359-372. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2015] [Revised: 01/26/2016] [Accepted: 02/07/2016] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
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45
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Krafnick AJ, Tan LH, Flowers DL, Luetje MM, Napoliello EM, Siok WT, Perfetti C, Eden GF. Chinese Character and English Word processing in children's ventral occipitotemporal cortex: fMRI evidence for script invariance. Neuroimage 2016; 133:302-312. [PMID: 27012502 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2016.03.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2015] [Revised: 03/09/2016] [Accepted: 03/10/2016] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Learning to read is thought to involve the recruitment of left hemisphere ventral occipitotemporal cortex (OTC) by a process of "neuronal recycling", whereby object processing mechanisms are co-opted for reading. Under the same theoretical framework, it has been proposed that the visual word form area (VWFA) within OTC processes orthographic stimuli independent of culture and writing systems, suggesting that it is universally involved in written language. However, this "script invariance" has yet to be demonstrated in monolingual readers of two different writing systems studied under the same experimental conditions. Here, using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we examined activity in response to English Words and Chinese Characters in 1st graders in the United States and China, respectively. We examined each group separately and found the readers of English as well as the readers of Chinese to activate the left ventral OTC for their respective native writing systems (using both a whole-brain and a bilateral OTC-restricted analysis). Critically, a conjunction analysis of the two groups revealed significant overlap between them for native writing system processing, located in the VWFA and therefore supporting the hypothesis of script invariance. In the second part of the study, we further examined the left OTC region responsive to each group's native writing system and found that it responded equally to Object stimuli (line drawings) in the Chinese-reading children. In English-reading children, the OTC responded much more to Objects than to English Words. Together, these results support the script invariant role of the VWFA and also support the idea that the areas recruited for character or word processing are rooted in object processing mechanisms of the left OTC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony J Krafnick
- Center for the Study of Learning, Georgetown University Medical Center, 4000 Reservoir Road, Building D Suite 150, Washington, DC 20057, USA.
| | - Li-Hai Tan
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Room 409, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Building for Interdisciplinary Research, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
| | - D Lynn Flowers
- Center for the Study of Learning, Georgetown University Medical Center, 4000 Reservoir Road, Building D Suite 150, Washington, DC 20057, USA.
| | - Megan M Luetje
- Center for the Study of Learning, Georgetown University Medical Center, 4000 Reservoir Road, Building D Suite 150, Washington, DC 20057, USA.
| | - Eileen M Napoliello
- Center for the Study of Learning, Georgetown University Medical Center, 4000 Reservoir Road, Building D Suite 150, Washington, DC 20057, USA.
| | - Wai-Ting Siok
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Hong Kong, Room 409, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Building for Interdisciplinary Research, Pokfulam, Hong Kong.
| | - Charles Perfetti
- University of Pittsburgh, Learning Research and Development Center, 3939 O'Hara Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA.
| | - Guinevere F Eden
- Center for the Study of Learning, Georgetown University Medical Center, 4000 Reservoir Road, Building D Suite 150, Washington, DC 20057, USA.
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46
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Siuda-Krzywicka K, Bola Ł, Paplińska M, Sumera E, Jednoróg K, Marchewka A, Śliwińska MW, Amedi A, Szwed M. Massive cortical reorganization in sighted Braille readers. eLife 2016; 5:e10762. [PMID: 26976813 PMCID: PMC4805536 DOI: 10.7554/elife.10762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 70] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2015] [Accepted: 01/19/2016] [Indexed: 12/05/2022] Open
Abstract
The brain is capable of large-scale reorganization in blindness or after massive injury. Such reorganization crosses the division into separate sensory cortices (visual, somatosensory...). As its result, the visual cortex of the blind becomes active during tactile Braille reading. Although the possibility of such reorganization in the normal, adult brain has been raised, definitive evidence has been lacking. Here, we demonstrate such extensive reorganization in normal, sighted adults who learned Braille while their brain activity was investigated with fMRI and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Subjects showed enhanced activity for tactile reading in the visual cortex, including the visual word form area (VWFA) that was modulated by their Braille reading speed and strengthened resting-state connectivity between visual and somatosensory cortices. Moreover, TMS disruption of VWFA activity decreased their tactile reading accuracy. Our results indicate that large-scale reorganization is a viable mechanism recruited when learning complex skills. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.10762.001 According to most textbooks, our brain is divided into separate areas that are dedicated to specific senses. We have a visual cortex for vision, a tactile cortex for touch, and so on. However, researchers suspect that this division might not be as fixed as the textbooks say. For example, blind people can switch their 'leftover' visual cortex to non-visual purposes, such as reading Braille – a tactile alphabet. Can this switch in functional organization also happen in healthy people with normal vision? To investigate this, Siuda-Krzywicka, Bola et al. taught a group of healthy, sighted people to read Braille by touch, and monitored the changes in brain activity that this caused using a technique called functional magnetic resonance imaging. According to textbooks, tactile reading should engage the tactile cortex. Yet, the experiment revealed that the brain activity critical for reading Braille by touch did not occur in the volunteers’ tactile cortex, but in their visual cortex. Further experiments used a technique called transcranial magnetic stimulation to suppress the activity of the visual cortex of the volunteers. This impaired their ability to read Braille by touch. This is a clear-cut proof that sighted adults can re-program their visual cortex for non-visual, tactile purposes. These results show that intensive training in a complex task can overcome the sensory division-of-labor of our brain. This indicates that our brain is much more flexible than previously thought, and that such flexibility might occur when we learn everyday, complex skills such as driving a car or playing a musical instrument. The next question that follows from this work is: what enables the brain’s activity to change after learning to read Braille? To understand this, Siuda-Krzywicka, Bola et al. are currently exploring how the physical structure of the brain changes as a result of a person acquiring the ability to read Braille by touch. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.10762.002
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Affiliation(s)
- Katarzyna Siuda-Krzywicka
- Department of Psychology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland.,INSERM U 1127, CNRS UMR 7225, Sorbonne Universités, and Université Pierre et Marie Curie-Paris 6, UMR S 1127, Institut du Cerveau et de la Moelle épinière (ICM), Paris, France
| | - Łukasz Bola
- Department of Psychology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland.,Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Neurobiology Center, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
| | | | - Ewa Sumera
- Institute for the Blind and Partially Sighted Children in Krakow, Kraków, Poland
| | - Katarzyna Jednoróg
- Laboratory of Psychophysiology, Department of Neurophysiology, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Artur Marchewka
- Laboratory of Brain Imaging, Neurobiology Center, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Magdalena W Śliwińska
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Amir Amedi
- The Cognitive Science Program, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,Department of Medical Neurobiology, The Institute for Medical Research Israel-Canada, Faculty of Medicine, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel.,Sorbonne Universite´s, UPMC Univ Paris 06, Institut de la Vision, Paris, France
| | - Marcin Szwed
- Department of Psychology, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
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47
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Gao Q, Wang J, Yu C, Chen H. Effect of handedness on brain activity patterns and effective connectivity network during the semantic task of Chinese characters. Sci Rep 2015; 5:18262. [PMID: 26666706 PMCID: PMC4678893 DOI: 10.1038/srep18262] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2015] [Accepted: 11/13/2015] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Increasing efforts have been denoted to elucidating the effective connectivity (EC) among brain regions recruited by certain language task; however, it remains unclear the impact of handedness on the EC network underlying language processing. In particularly, this has not been investigated in Chinese language, which shows several differences from alphabetic language. This study thereby explored the functional activity patterns and the EC network during a Chinese semantic task based on functional MRI data of healthy left handers (LH) and right handers (RH). We found that RH presented a left lateralized activity pattern in cerebral cortex and a right lateralized pattern in cerebellum; while LH were less lateralized than RH in both cerebral and cerebellar areas. The conditional Granger causality method in deconvolved BOLD level further demonstrated more interhemispheric directional connections in LH than RH group, suggesting better bihemispheric coordination and increased interhemispheric communication in LH. Furthermore, we found significantly increased EC from right middle occipital gyrus to bilateral insula (INS) while decreased EC from left INS to left precentral gyrus in LH group comparing to RH group, implying that handedness may differentiate the causal relationship of information processing in integration of visual-spatial analysis and semantic word retrieval of Chinese characters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qing Gao
- School of Mathematical Sciences, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, China
| | - Junping Wang
- Department of Radiology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China
| | - Chunshui Yu
- Department of Radiology, Tianjin Medical University General Hospital, Tianjin, 300052, China
| | - Huafu Chen
- Key laboratory for Neuroinformation of Ministry of Education, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 610054, China
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48
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Johnson MA, Turk-Browne NB, Goldberg AE. Neural systems involved in processing novel linguistic constructions and their visual referents. LANGUAGE, COGNITION AND NEUROSCIENCE 2015; 31:129-144. [PMID: 27453896 PMCID: PMC4955660 DOI: 10.1080/23273798.2015.1055280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2015] [Accepted: 05/19/2015] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
In language, abstract phrasal patterns provide an important source of meaning, but little is known about whether or how such constructions are used to predict upcoming visual scenes. Findings from two fMRI studies indicate that initial exposure to a novel construction allows its semantics to be used for such predictions. Specifically, greater activity in the ventral striatum, a region sensitive to prediction errors, was linked to worse overall comprehension of a novel construction. Moreover, activity in occipital cortex was attenuated when a visual event could be inferred from a learned construction, which may reflect predictive coding of the event. These effects disappeared when predictions were unlikely: that is, when phrases provided no additional information about visual events. These findings support the idea that learners create and evaluate predictions about new instances during comprehension of novel linguistic constructions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew A Johnson
- Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Peretsman-Scully Hall, Princeton, NJ, 08540
| | - Nicholas B Turk-Browne
- Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Peretsman-Scully Hall, Princeton, NJ, 08540
| | - Adele E Goldberg
- Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Peretsman-Scully Hall, Princeton, NJ, 08540
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49
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What is special about expertise? Visual expertise reveals the interactive nature of real-world object recognition. Neuropsychologia 2015; 83:88-99. [PMID: 26095002 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2015.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2015] [Revised: 06/02/2015] [Accepted: 06/03/2015] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Ever since Diamond and Carey (1986. J. Exp. Psychol.: Gen., vol. 115, pp. 107-117) seminal work, the main model for studying expertise in visual object recognition ("visual expertise") has been face perception. The underlying assumption was that since faces may be considered the ultimate domain of visual expertise, any face-processing signature might actually be a general characteristic of visual expertise. However, while humans are clearly experts in face recognition, visual expertise is not restricted to faces and can be observed in a variety of domains. This raises the question of whether face recognition is in fact the right model to study visual expertise, and if not, what are the common cognitive and neural characteristics of visual expertise. The current perspective article addresses this question by revisiting past and recent neuroimaging and behavioural works on visual expertise. The view of visual expertise that emerges from these works is that expertise is a unique phenomenon, with distinctive neural and cognitive characteristics. Specifically, visual expertise is a controlled, interactive process that develops from the reciprocal interactions between the visual system and multiple top-down factors, including semantic knowledge, top-down attentional control, and task relevance. These interactions enable the ability to flexibly access domain-specific information at multiple scales and levels guided by multiple recognition goals. Extensive visual experience with a given object category culminates in the recruitment of these multiple systems, and is reflected in widespread neural activity, extending well beyond visual cortex, to include higher-level cortical areas.
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Adding words to the brain's visual dictionary: novel word learning selectively sharpens orthographic representations in the VWFA. J Neurosci 2015; 35:4965-72. [PMID: 25810526 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.4031-14.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The nature of orthographic representations in the human brain is still subject of much debate. Recent reports have claimed that the visual word form area (VWFA) in left occipitotemporal cortex contains an orthographic lexicon based on neuronal representations highly selective for individual written real words (RWs). This theory predicts that learning novel words should selectively increase neural specificity for these words in the VWFA. We trained subjects to recognize novel pseudowords (PWs) and used fMRI rapid adaptation to compare neural selectivity with RWs, untrained PWs (UTPWs), and trained PWs (TPWs). Before training, PWs elicited broadly tuned responses, whereas responses to RWs indicated tight tuning. After training, TPW responses resembled those of RWs, whereas UTPWs continued to show broad tuning. This change in selectivity was specific to the VWFA. Therefore, word learning appears to selectively increase neuronal specificity for the new words in the VWFA, thereby adding these words to the brain's visual dictionary.
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