1
|
Hodapp A, Rabovsky M. Error-based Implicit Learning in Language: The Effect of Sentence Context and Constraint in a Repetition Paradigm. J Cogn Neurosci 2024; 36:1048-1070. [PMID: 38530326 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_02145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/27/2024]
Abstract
Prediction errors drive implicit learning in language, but the specific mechanisms underlying these effects remain debated. This issue was addressed in an EEG study manipulating the context of a repeated unpredictable word (repetition of the complete sentence or repetition of the word in a new sentence context) and sentence constraint. For the manipulation of sentence constraint, unexpected words were presented either in high-constraint (eliciting a precise prediction) or low-constraint sentences (not eliciting any specific prediction). Repetition-induced reduction of N400 amplitudes and of power in the alpha/beta frequency band was larger for words repeated with their sentence context as compared with words repeated in a new low-constraint context, suggesting that implicit learning happens not only at the level of individual items but additionally improves sentence-based predictions. These processing benefits for repeated sentences did not differ between constraint conditions, suggesting that sentence-based prediction update might be proportional to the amount of unpredicted semantic information, rather than to the precision of the prediction that was violated. In addition, the consequences of high-constraint prediction violations, as reflected in a frontal positivity and increased theta band power, were reduced with repetition. Overall, our findings suggest a powerful and specific adaptation mechanism that allows the language system to quickly adapt its predictions when unexpected semantic information is processed, irrespective of sentence constraint, and to reduce potential costs of strong predictions that were violated.
Collapse
|
2
|
Terporten R, Huizeling E, Heidlmayr K, Hagoort P, Kösem A. The Interaction of Context Constraints and Predictive Validity during Sentence Reading. J Cogn Neurosci 2024; 36:225-238. [PMID: 37944125 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_02082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2023]
Abstract
Words are not processed in isolation; instead, they are commonly embedded in phrases and sentences. The sentential context influences the perception and processing of a word. However, how this is achieved by brain processes and whether predictive mechanisms underlie this process remain a debated topic. Here, we employed an experimental paradigm in which we orthogonalized sentence context constraints and predictive validity, which was defined as the ratio of congruent to incongruent sentence endings within the experiment. While recording electroencephalography, participants read sentences with three levels of sentential context constraints (high, medium, and low). Participants were also separated into two groups that differed in their ratio of valid congruent to incongruent target words that could be predicted from the sentential context. For both groups, we investigated modulations of alpha power before, and N400 amplitude modulations after target word onset. The results reveal that the N400 amplitude gradually decreased with higher context constraints and cloze probability. In contrast, alpha power was not significantly affected by context constraint. Neither the N400 nor alpha power were significantly affected by changes in predictive validity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Eleanor Huizeling
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | | | - Peter Hagoort
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Anne Kösem
- Centre for Research in Neuroscience Lyon, France
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Huizeling E, Alday PM, Peeters D, Hagoort P. Combining EEG and 3D-eye-tracking to study the prediction of upcoming speech in naturalistic virtual environments: A proof of principle. Neuropsychologia 2023; 191:108730. [PMID: 37939871 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2023.108730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2023] [Revised: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 11/03/2023] [Indexed: 11/10/2023]
Abstract
EEG and eye-tracking provide complementary information when investigating language comprehension. Evidence that speech processing may be facilitated by speech prediction comes from the observation that a listener's eye gaze moves towards a referent before it is mentioned if the remainder of the spoken sentence is predictable. However, changes to the trajectory of anticipatory fixations could result from a change in prediction or an attention shift. Conversely, N400 amplitudes and concurrent spectral power provide information about the ease of word processing the moment the word is perceived. In a proof-of-principle investigation, we combined EEG and eye-tracking to study linguistic prediction in naturalistic, virtual environments. We observed increased processing, reflected in theta band power, either during verb processing - when the verb was predictive of the noun - or during noun processing - when the verb was not predictive of the noun. Alpha power was higher in response to the predictive verb and unpredictable nouns. We replicated typical effects of noun congruence but not predictability on the N400 in response to the noun. Thus, the rich visual context that accompanied speech in virtual reality influenced language processing compared to previous reports, where the visual context may have facilitated processing of unpredictable nouns. Finally, anticipatory fixations were predictive of spectral power during noun processing and the length of time fixating the target could be predicted by spectral power at verb onset, conditional on the object having been fixated. Overall, we show that combining EEG and eye-tracking provides a promising new method to answer novel research questions about the prediction of upcoming linguistic input, for example, regarding the role of extralinguistic cues in prediction during language comprehension.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eleanor Huizeling
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
| | | | - David Peeters
- Department of Communication and Cognition, TiCC, Tilburg University, Tilburg, the Netherlands
| | - Peter Hagoort
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Radboud University, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Li J, Ou J, Xiang M. Context-specific effects of violated expectations: ERP evidence. Cognition 2023; 241:105628. [PMID: 37801750 DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2023.105628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2022] [Revised: 09/21/2023] [Accepted: 09/22/2023] [Indexed: 10/08/2023]
Abstract
A complete understanding of the predictive processing effect in sentence comprehension needs to understand both the facilitation effect of successful prediction and the cost associated with disconfirmed predictions. The current study compares the predictive processing effect across two types of contexts in Mandarin Chinese: the classifier-noun vs. verb-noun phrases, when controlling for the degree of contextual constraints and cloze probability of the target nouns across the two contexts. The two contexts showed similar N400 patterns for expected target nouns, indicative of an identical facilitation effect of confirmed contextual expectation. But in the post-N400 time window, the processing cost associated with the unexpected words differed between the two contexts. Additional differences between the two contexts were also revealed by the neural oscillation patterns obtained prior to the target noun. The differences between the classifier vs. verb contexts shed new light on the revision mechanism that deals with disconfirmed expectations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jiaxuan Li
- Department of Language Science, University of California, Irvine, USA.
| | - Jinghua Ou
- Department of Linguistics, University of Chicago, USA
| | - Ming Xiang
- Department of Linguistics, University of Chicago, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Branzi FM, Martin CD, Biau E. Activating words without language: beta and theta oscillations reflect lexical access and control processes during verbal and non-verbal object recognition tasks. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:6228-6240. [PMID: 36724048 PMCID: PMC10183750 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2022] [Revised: 11/27/2022] [Accepted: 11/28/2022] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
The intention to name an object modulates neural responses during object recognition tasks. However, the nature of this modulation is still unclear. We established whether a core operation in language, i.e. lexical access, can be observed even when the task does not require language (size-judgment task), and whether response selection in verbal versus non-verbal semantic tasks relies on similar neuronal processes. We measured and compared neuronal oscillatory activities and behavioral responses to the same set of pictures of meaningful objects, while the type of task participants had to perform (picture-naming versus size-judgment) and the type of stimuli to measure lexical access (cognate versus non-cognate) were manipulated. Despite activation of words was facilitated when the task required explicit word-retrieval (picture-naming task), lexical access occurred even without the intention to name the object (non-verbal size-judgment task). Activation of words and response selection were accompanied by beta (25-35 Hz) desynchronization and theta (3-7 Hz) synchronization, respectively. These effects were observed in both picture-naming and size-judgment tasks, suggesting that words became activated via similar mechanisms, irrespective of whether the task involves language explicitly. This finding has important implications to understand the link between core linguistic operations and performance in verbal and non-verbal semantic tasks.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Francesca M Branzi
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZA, UK
| | - Clara D Martin
- BCBL. Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language, Paseo Mikeletegi 69, San Sebastian 20009, Spain
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Maria Diaz de Haro 3, Bilbao 48013, Spain
| | - Emmanuel Biau
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 7ZA, UK
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Stinkeste C, Vincent MA, Delrue L, Brunellière A. Between alpha and gamma oscillations: Neural signatures of linguistic predictions and listener's attention to speaker's communication intention. Biol Psychol 2023; 180:108583. [PMID: 37156325 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2023.108583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2022] [Revised: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 05/05/2023] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
When listeners hear a message produced by their interlocutor, they can predict upcoming words thanks to the sentential context and their attention can be focused on the speaker's communication intention. In two electroencephalographical (EEG) studies, we investigated the oscillatory correlates of prediction in spoken-language comprehension and how they are modulated by the listener's attention. Sentential contexts which were strongly predictive of a particular word were ended by a possessive adjective either matching the gender of the predicted word or not. Alpha, beta and gamma oscillations were studied as they were considered to play a crucial role in the predictive process. While evidence of word prediction was related to alpha fluctuations when listeners focused their attention on sentence meaning, changes in high-gamma oscillations were triggered by word prediction when listeners focused their attention on the speaker's communication intention. Independently of the endogenous attention to a level of linguistic information, the oscillatory correlates of word predictions in language comprehension were sensitive to the prosodic emphasis produced by the speaker at a late stage. These findings thus bear major implications for understanding the neural mechanisms that support predictive processing in spoken-language comprehension.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Charlotte Stinkeste
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, UMR 9193 - SCALab - Sciences Cognitives et Sciences Affectives, F-59000 Lille, France
| | - Marion A Vincent
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, UMR 9193 - SCALab - Sciences Cognitives et Sciences Affectives, F-59000 Lille, France
| | - Laurence Delrue
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, UMR 8163 - STL - Savoirs Textes Langage, F-59000 Lille, France
| | - Angèle Brunellière
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, UMR 9193 - SCALab - Sciences Cognitives et Sciences Affectives, F-59000 Lille, France.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Functional neuroanatomy of lexical access in contextually and visually guided spoken word production. Cortex 2023; 159:254-267. [PMID: 36641964 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2022.10.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2022] [Revised: 09/09/2022] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Lexical access is commonly studied using bare picture naming, which is visually guided, but in real-life conversation, lexical access is more commonly contextually guided. In this fMRI study, we examined the underlying functional neuroanatomy of contextually and visually guided lexical access, and its consistency across sessions. We employed a context-driven picture naming task with fifteen healthy speakers reading incomplete sentences (word-by-word) and subsequently naming the picture depicting the final word. Sentences provided either a constrained or unconstrained lead-in setting for the picture to be named, thereby approximating lexical access in natural language use. The picture name could be planned either through sentence context (constrained) or picture appearance (unconstrained). This procedure was repeated in an equivalent second session two to four weeks later with the same sample to test for test-retest consistency. Picture naming times showed a strong context effect, confirming that constrained sentences speed up production of the final word depicted as an image. fMRI results showed that the areas common to contextually and visually guided lexical access were left fusiform and left inferior frontal gyrus (both consistently active across-sessions), and middle temporal gyrus. However, non-overlapping patterns were also found, notably in the left temporal and parietal cortices, suggesting a different neural circuit for contextually versus visually guided lexical access.
Collapse
|
8
|
Gastaldon S, Busan P, Arcara G, Peressotti F. Inefficient speech-motor control affects predictive speech comprehension: atypical electrophysiological correlates in stuttering. Cereb Cortex 2023:6995383. [PMID: 36682885 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhad004] [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: 12/20/2021] [Revised: 12/29/2022] [Accepted: 12/30/2022] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Listeners predict upcoming information during language comprehension. However, how this ability is implemented is still largely unknown. Here, we tested the hypothesis proposing that language production mechanisms have a role in prediction. We studied 2 electroencephalographic correlates of predictability during speech comprehension-pre-target alpha-beta (8-30 Hz) power decrease and the post-target N400 event-related potential effect-in a population with impaired speech-motor control, i.e. adults who stutter (AWS), compared to typically fluent adults (TFA). Participants listened to sentences that could either constrain towards a target word or not, modulating its predictability. As a complementary task, participants also performed context-driven word production. Compared to TFA, AWS not only displayed atypical neural responses in production, but, critically, they showed a different pattern also in comprehension. Specifically, while TFA showed the expected pre-target power decrease, AWS showed a power increase in frontal regions, associated with speech-motor control. In addition, the post-target N400 effect was reduced for AWS with respect to TFA. Finally, we found that production and comprehension power changes were positively correlated in TFA, but not in AWS. Overall, the results support the idea that processes and neural structures prominently devoted to speech planning also support prediction during speech comprehension.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Simone Gastaldon
- Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione (DPSS), University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, Padova (PD) 35131, Italy.,Padova Neuroscience Center (PNC), University of Padova, Via Giuseppe Orus 2/B, Padova (PD) 35131, Italy
| | - Pierpaolo Busan
- IRCCS Ospedale San Camillo, Via Alberoni 70, Lido (VE) 30126, Italy
| | - Giorgio Arcara
- IRCCS Ospedale San Camillo, Via Alberoni 70, Lido (VE) 30126, Italy
| | - Francesca Peressotti
- Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione (DPSS), University of Padova, Via Venezia 8, Padova (PD) 35131, Italy.,Padova Neuroscience Center (PNC), University of Padova, Via Giuseppe Orus 2/B, Padova (PD) 35131, Italy.,Centro Interdipartimentale di Ricerca "I-APPROVE-International Auditory Processing Project in Venice", University of Padova, Via Belzoni 160, Padova (PD) 35121, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Hardy SM, Jensen O, Wheeldon L, Mazaheri A, Segaert K. Modulation in alpha band activity reflects syntax composition: an MEG study of minimal syntactic binding. Cereb Cortex 2023; 33:497-511. [PMID: 35311899 PMCID: PMC9890467 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhac080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2021] [Revised: 02/06/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Successful sentence comprehension requires the binding, or composition, of multiple words into larger structures to establish meaning. Using magnetoencephalography, we investigated the neural mechanisms involved in binding at the syntax level, in a task where contributions from semantics were minimized. Participants were auditorily presented with minimal sentences that required binding (pronoun and pseudo-verb with the corresponding morphological inflection; "she grushes") and pseudo-verb wordlists that did not require binding ("cugged grushes"). Relative to no binding, we found that syntactic binding was associated with a modulation in alpha band (8-12 Hz) activity in left-lateralized language regions. First, we observed a significantly smaller increase in alpha power around the presentation of the target word ("grushes") that required binding (-0.05 to 0.1 s), which we suggest reflects an expectation of binding to occur. Second, during binding of the target word (0.15-0.25 s), we observed significantly decreased alpha phase-locking between the left inferior frontal gyrus and the left middle/inferior temporal cortex, which we suggest reflects alpha-driven cortical disinhibition serving to strengthen communication within the syntax composition neural network. Altogether, our findings highlight the critical role of rapid spatial-temporal alpha band activity in controlling the allocation, transfer, and coordination of the brain's resources during syntax composition.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sophie M Hardy
- Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
- Department of Psychology, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK
| | - Ole Jensen
- Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
| | - Linda Wheeldon
- Department of Foreign Languages and Translations, University of Agder, Kristiansand 4630, Norway
| | - Ali Mazaheri
- Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
| | - Katrien Segaert
- Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
- School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Chupina I, Sierpowska J, Zheng XY, Dewenter A, Piastra M, Piai V. Time course of right-hemisphere recruitment during word production following left-hemisphere damage: A single case of young stroke. Eur J Neurosci 2022; 56:5235-5259. [PMID: 36028218 PMCID: PMC9826534 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15813] [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: 02/25/2022] [Revised: 08/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Our understanding of post-stroke language function is largely based on older age groups, who show increasing age-related brain pathology and neural reorganisation. To illustrate language outcomes in the young-adult brain, we present the case of J., a 23-year-old woman with chronic aphasia from a left-hemisphere stroke affecting the temporal lobe. Diffusion MRI-based tractography indicated that J.'s language-relevant white-matter structures were severely damaged. Employing magnetoencephalography (MEG), we explored J.'s conceptual preparation and word planning abilities using context-driven and bare picture-naming tasks. These revealed naming deficits, manifesting as word-finding difficulties and semantic paraphasias about half of the time. Naming was however facilitated by semantically constraining lead-in sentences. Altogether, this pattern indicates disrupted lexical-semantic and phonological retrieval abilities. MEG revealed that J.'s conceptual and naming-related neural responses were supported by the right hemisphere, compared to the typical left-lateralised brain response of a matched control. Differential recruitment of right-hemisphere structures (330-440 ms post-picture onset) was found concurrently during successful naming (right mid-to-posterior temporal lobe) and word-finding attempts (right inferior frontal gyrus). Disconnection of the temporal lobes via corpus callosum was not critical for recruitment of the right hemisphere in visually guided naming, possibly due to neural activity right lateralising from the outset. Although J.'s right hemisphere responded in a timely manner during word planning, its lexical and phonological retrieval abilities remained modest.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Irina Chupina
- Donders Centre for CognitionRadboud UniversityNijmegenThe Netherlands
| | - Joanna Sierpowska
- Donders Centre for CognitionRadboud UniversityNijmegenThe Netherlands,Cognition and Brain Plasticity Unit, Department of Cognition, Development and Educational PsychologyInstitut de Neurociències, Universitat de BarcelonaBarcelonaSpain
| | - Xiaochen Y. Zheng
- Donders Centre for Cognitive NeuroimagingRadboud UniversityNijmegenThe Netherlands
| | - Anna Dewenter
- Institute for Stroke and Dementia Research (ISD)University Hospital, LMU MunichMunichGermany
| | - Maria‐Carla Piastra
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and BehaviourRadboud University Medical CenterNijmegenThe Netherlands,Department of Neuroinformatics, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and BehaviourRadboud UniversityNijmegenThe Netherlands,Clinical Neurophysiology, Technical Medical Centre, Faculty of Science and TechnologyUniversity of TwenteEnschedeThe Netherlands
| | - Vitória Piai
- Donders Centre for CognitionRadboud UniversityNijmegenThe Netherlands,Department of Medical Psychology, Donders Centre for Medical NeuroscienceRadboud University Medical CenterNijmegenThe Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Egurtzegi A, Blasi DE, Bornkessel-Schlesewsky I, Laka I, Meyer M, Bickel B, Sauppe S. Cross-linguistic differences in case marking shape neural power dynamics and gaze behavior during sentence planning. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2022; 230:105127. [PMID: 35605312 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2022.105127] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2021] [Revised: 04/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/21/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Languages differ in how they mark the dependencies between verbs and arguments, e.g., by case. An eye tracking and EEG picture description study examined the influence of case marking on the time course of sentence planning in Basque and Swiss German. While German assigns an unmarked (nominative) case to subjects, Basque specifically marks agent arguments through ergative case. Fixations to agents and event-related synchronization (ERS) in the theta and alpha frequency bands, as well as desynchronization (ERD) in the alpha and beta bands revealed multiple effects of case marking on the time course of early sentence planning. Speakers decided on case marking under planning early when preparing sentences with ergative-marked agents in Basque, whereas sentences with unmarked agents allowed delaying structural commitment across languages. These findings support hierarchically incremental accounts of sentence planning and highlight how cross-linguistic differences shape the neural dynamics underpinning language use.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Aitor Egurtzegi
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, University of Zurich, Switzerland; English Department, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Damián E Blasi
- Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, United States; Department of Linguistic and Cultural Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Germany
| | - Ina Bornkessel-Schlesewsky
- School of Psychology, Social Work and Social Policy, University of South Australia, Australia; Cognitive and Systems Neuroscience Research Hub, University of South Australia, Australia
| | - Itziar Laka
- Department of Linguistics and Basque Studies, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Spain
| | - Martin Meyer
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Cognitive Psychology Unit, Psychological Institute, University of Klagenfurt, Austria
| | - Balthasar Bickel
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sebastian Sauppe
- Department of Comparative Language Science, University of Zurich, Switzerland; Center for the Interdisciplinary Study of Language Evolution, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Alpha power decreases associated with prediction in written and spoken sentence comprehension. Neuropsychologia 2022; 173:108286. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108286] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Revised: 05/16/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
|
13
|
Oscillatory correlates of linguistic prediction and modality effects during listening to auditory-only and audiovisual sentences. Int J Psychophysiol 2022; 178:9-21. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2022.06.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2022] [Revised: 04/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
|
14
|
What is Functional Communication? A Theoretical Framework for Real-World Communication Applied to Aphasia Rehabilitation. Neuropsychol Rev 2022; 32:937-973. [PMID: 35076868 PMCID: PMC9630202 DOI: 10.1007/s11065-021-09531-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Aphasia is an impairment of language caused by acquired brain damage such as stroke or traumatic brain injury, that affects a person’s ability to communicate effectively. The aim of rehabilitation in aphasia is to improve everyday communication, improving an individual’s ability to function in their day-to-day life. For that reason, a thorough understanding of naturalistic communication and its underlying mechanisms is imperative. The field of aphasiology currently lacks an agreed, comprehensive, theoretically founded definition of communication. Instead, multiple disparate interpretations of functional communication are used. We argue that this makes it nearly impossible to validly and reliably assess a person’s communicative performance, to target this behaviour through therapy, and to measure improvements post-therapy. In this article we propose a structured, theoretical approach to defining the concept of functional communication. We argue for a view of communication as “situated language use”, borrowed from empirical psycholinguistic studies with non-brain damaged adults. This framework defines language use as: (1) interactive, (2) multimodal, and (3) contextual. Existing research on each component of the framework from non-brain damaged adults and people with aphasia is reviewed. The consequences of adopting this approach to assessment and therapy for aphasia rehabilitation are discussed. The aim of this article is to encourage a more systematic, comprehensive approach to the study and treatment of situated language use in aphasia.
Collapse
|
15
|
Cao Y, Oostenveld R, Alday PM, Piai V. Are alpha and beta oscillations spatially dissociated over the cortex in context-driven spoken-word production? Psychophysiology 2022; 59:e13999. [PMID: 35066874 PMCID: PMC9285923 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Revised: 10/19/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Decreases in oscillatory alpha‐ and beta‐band power have been consistently found in spoken‐word production. These have been linked to both motor preparation and conceptual‐lexical retrieval processes. However, the observed power decreases have a broad frequency range that spans two “classic” (sensorimotor) bands: alpha and beta. It remains unclear whether alpha‐ and beta‐band power decreases contribute independently when a spoken word is planned. Using a re‐analysis of existing magnetoencephalography data, we probed whether the effects in alpha and beta bands are spatially distinct. Participants read a sentence that was either constraining or non‐constraining toward the final word, which was presented as a picture. In separate blocks participants had to name the picture or score its predictability via button press. Irregular‐resampling auto‐spectral analysis (IRASA) was used to isolate the oscillatory activity in the alpha and beta bands from the background 1‐over‐f spectrum. The sources of alpha‐ and beta‐band oscillations were localized based on the participants’ individualized peak frequencies. For both tasks, alpha‐ and beta‐power decreases overlapped in left posterior temporal and inferior parietal cortex, regions that have previously been associated with conceptual and lexical processes. The spatial distributions of the alpha and beta power effects were spatially similar in these regions to the extent we could assess it. By contrast, for left frontal regions, the spatial distributions differed between alpha and beta effects. Our results suggest that for conceptual‐lexical retrieval, alpha and beta oscillations do not dissociate spatially and, thus, are distinct from the classical sensorimotor alpha and beta oscillations. It remains unclear whether the consistently found alpha‐ and beta‐band power decreases in spoken‐word production support a single operation or contribute independently. Using novel methodology, we probed whether the alpha and beta bands are distinct from an anatomical perspective. We found anatomical overlap in the left posterior temporal and inferior parietal cortex, whereas for the left frontal region, the spatial overlap was limited. Our results suggest that for conceptual‐lexical retrieval, alpha and beta oscillations do not dissociate and, thus, are distinct from the classical sensorimotor alpha and beta.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yang Cao
- Donders Centre for Cognition, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Robert Oostenveld
- Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.,NatMEG, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Phillip M Alday
- Max-Planck-Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Vitória Piai
- Donders Centre for Cognition, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.,Donders Centre for Medical Neuroscience, Department of Medical Psychology, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Geng S, Molinaro N, Timofeeva P, Quiñones I, Carreiras M, Amoruso L. Oscillatory dynamics underlying noun and verb production in highly proficient bilinguals. Sci Rep 2022; 12:764. [PMID: 35031665 PMCID: PMC8760282 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-04737-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Words representing objects (nouns) and words representing actions (verbs) are essential components of speech across languages. While there is evidence regarding the organizational principles governing neural representation of nouns and verbs in monolingual speakers, little is known about how this knowledge is represented in the bilingual brain. To address this gap, we recorded neuromagnetic signals while highly proficient Spanish-Basque bilinguals performed a picture-naming task and tracked the brain oscillatory dynamics underlying this process. We found theta (4-8 Hz) power increases and alpha-beta (8-25 Hz) power decreases irrespectively of the category and language at use in a time window classically associated to the controlled retrieval of lexico-semantic information. When comparing nouns and verbs within each language, we found theta power increases for verbs as compared to nouns in bilateral visual cortices and cognitive control areas including the left SMA and right middle temporal gyrus. In addition, stronger alpha-beta power decreases were observed for nouns as compared to verbs in visual cortices and semantic-related regions such as the left anterior temporal lobe and right premotor cortex. No differences were observed between categories across languages. Overall, our results suggest that noun and verb processing recruit partially different networks during speech production but that these category-based representations are similarly processed in the bilingual brain.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shuang Geng
- grid.423986.20000 0004 0536 1366Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009 San Sebastian, Spain ,grid.11480.3c0000000121671098University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU, 48940 Bilbao, Spain
| | - Nicola Molinaro
- grid.423986.20000 0004 0536 1366Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009 San Sebastian, Spain ,grid.424810.b0000 0004 0467 2314IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48009 Bilbao, Spain
| | - Polina Timofeeva
- grid.423986.20000 0004 0536 1366Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009 San Sebastian, Spain ,grid.11480.3c0000000121671098University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU, 48940 Bilbao, Spain
| | - Ileana Quiñones
- grid.423986.20000 0004 0536 1366Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009 San Sebastian, Spain
| | - Manuel Carreiras
- grid.423986.20000 0004 0536 1366Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009 San Sebastian, Spain ,grid.424810.b0000 0004 0467 2314IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48009 Bilbao, Spain ,grid.11480.3c0000000121671098University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU, 48940 Bilbao, Spain
| | - Lucia Amoruso
- Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009, San Sebastian, Spain. .,IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48009, Bilbao, Spain.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Momsen JP, Abel AD. Neural oscillations reflect meaning identification for novel words in context. NEUROBIOLOGY OF LANGUAGE (CAMBRIDGE, MASS.) 2022; 3:132-148. [PMID: 36340747 PMCID: PMC9632687 DOI: 10.1162/nol_a_00052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/27/2021] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
During language processing, people make rapid use of contextual information to promote comprehension of upcoming words. When new words are learned implicitly, information contained in the surrounding context can provide constraints on their possible meaning. In the current study, EEG was recorded as participants listened to a series of three sentences, each containing an identical target pseudoword, with the aim of using contextual information in the surrounding language to identify a meaning representation for the novel word. In half of trials, sentences were semantically coherent so that participants could develop a single representation for the novel word that fit all contexts. Other trials contained unrelated sentence contexts so that meaning associations were not possible. We observed greater theta band enhancement over the left-hemisphere across central and posterior electrodes in response to pseudowords processed across semantically related compared to unrelated contexts. Additionally, relative alpha and beta band suppression was increased prior to pseudoword onset in trials where contextual information more readily promoted pseudoword-meaning associations. Under the hypothesis that theta enhancement indexes processing demands during lexical access, the current study provides evidence for selective online memory retrieval to novel words learned implicitly in a spoken context.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jacob Pohaku Momsen
- Joint Doctoral Program in Language and Communicative Disorders, San Diego State University and UC San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA
- * Corresponding Author:
| | - Alyson D. Abel
- School of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Hendriks M, van Ginkel W, Dijkstra T, Piai V. Dropping Beans or Spilling Secrets: How Idiomatic Context Bias Affects Prediction. J Cogn Neurosci 2021; 34:209-223. [PMID: 34813643 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Idioms can have both a literal interpretation and a figurative interpretation (e.g., to "kick the bucket"). Which interpretation should be activated can be disambiguated by a preceding context (e.g., "The old man was sick. He kicked the bucket."). We investigated whether the idiomatic and literal uses of idioms have different predictive properties when the idiom has been biased toward a literal or figurative sentence interpretation. EEG was recorded as participants performed a lexical decision task on idiom-final words in biased idioms and literal (compositional) sentences. Targets in idioms were identified faster in both figuratively and literally used idioms than in compositional sentences. Time-frequency analysis of a prestimulus interval revealed relatively more alpha-beta power decreases in literally than figuratively used idiomatic sequences and compositional sentences. We argue that lexico-semantic retrieval plays a larger role in literally than figuratively biased idioms, as retrieval of the word meaning is less relevant in the latter and the word form has to be matched to a template. The results are interpreted in terms of context integration and word retrieval and have implications for models of language processing and predictive processing in general.
Collapse
|
19
|
Hustá C, Zheng X, Papoutsi C, Piai V. Electrophysiological Signatures of Conceptual and Lexical Retrieval from Semantic Memory. Neuropsychologia 2021; 161:107988. [PMID: 34389320 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2021.107988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2020] [Revised: 04/28/2021] [Accepted: 08/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Retrieval from semantic memory of conceptual and lexical information is essential for producing speech. It is unclear whether there are differences in the neural mechanisms of conceptual and lexical retrieval when spreading activation through semantic memory is initiated by verbal or nonverbal settings. The same twenty participants took part in two EEG experiments. The first experiment examined conceptual and lexical retrieval following nonverbal settings, whereas the second experiment was a replication of previous studies examining conceptual and lexical retrieval following verbal settings. Target pictures were presented after constraining and nonconstraining contexts. In the nonverbal settings, contexts were provided as two priming pictures (e.g., constraining: nest, feather; nonconstraining: anchor, lipstick; target picture: BIRD). In the verbal settings, contexts were provided as sentences (e.g., constraining: "The farmer milked a..."; nonconstraining: "The child drew a..."; target picture: COW). Target pictures were named faster following constraining contexts in both experiments, indicating that conceptual preparation starts before target picture onset in constraining conditions. In the verbal experiment, we replicated the alpha-beta power decreases in constraining relative to nonconstraining conditions before target picture onset. No such power decreases were found in the nonverbal experiment. Power decreases in constraining relative to nonconstraining conditions were significantly different between experiments. Our findings suggest that participants engage in conceptual preparation following verbal and nonverbal settings, albeit differently. The retrieval of a target word, initiated by verbal settings, is associated with alpha-beta power decreases. By contrast, broad conceptual preparation alone, prompted by nonverbal settings, does not seem enough to elicit alpha-beta power decreases. These findings have implications for theories of oscillations and semantic memory.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cecília Hustá
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.
| | - Xiaochen Zheng
- Radboud University, Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Christina Papoutsi
- Radboud University, Donders Centre for Cognition, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Utrecht University, RMA Linguistics, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Vitória Piai
- Radboud University, Donders Centre for Cognition, Nijmegen, the Netherlands; Radboudumc, Donders Centre for Medical Neuroscience, Department of Medical Psychology, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Quiñones I, Amoruso L, Pomposo Gastelu IC, Gil-Robles S, Carreiras M. What Can Glioma Patients Teach Us about Language (Re)Organization in the Bilingual Brain: Evidence from fMRI and MEG. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:2593. [PMID: 34070619 PMCID: PMC8198785 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13112593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2021] [Revised: 05/20/2021] [Accepted: 05/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent evidence suggests that the presence of brain tumors (e.g., low-grade gliomas) triggers language reorganization. Neuroplasticity mechanisms called into play can transfer linguistic functions from damaged to healthy areas unaffected by the tumor. This phenomenon has been reported in monolingual patients, but much less is known about the neuroplasticity of language in the bilingual brain. A central question is whether processing a first or second language involves the same or different cortical territories and whether damage results in diverse recovery patterns depending on the language involved. This question becomes critical for preserving language areas in bilingual brain-tumor patients to prevent involuntary pathological symptoms following resection. While most studies have focused on intraoperative mapping, here, we go further, reporting clinical cases for five bilingual patients tested before and after tumor resection, using a novel multimethod approach merging neuroimaging information from fMRI and MEG to map the longitudinal reshaping of the language system. Here, we present four main findings. First, all patients preserved linguistic function in both languages after surgery, suggesting that the surgical intervention with intraoperative language mapping was successful in preserving cortical and subcortical structures necessary for brain plasticity at the functional level. Second, we found reorganization of the language network after tumor resection in both languages, mainly reflected by a shift of activity to right hemisphere nodes and the recruitment of ipsilesional left nodes. Third, we found that this reorganization varied according to the language involved, indicating that L1 and L2 follow different reshaping patterns after surgery. Fourth, oscillatory longitudinal effects were correlated with BOLD laterality changes in superior parietal and middle frontal areas. These findings may reflect that neuroplasticity impacts on the compensatory involvement of executive control regions, supporting the allocation of cognitive resources as a consequence of increased attentional demands. Furthermore, these results hint at the complementary role of this neuroimaging approach in language mapping, with fMRI offering excellent spatial localization and MEG providing optimal spectrotemporal resolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ileana Quiñones
- Neurobiology of Language Group, Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain; (L.A.); (M.C.)
| | - Lucia Amoruso
- Neurobiology of Language Group, Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain; (L.A.); (M.C.)
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48009 Bilbao, Spain
| | | | - Santiago Gil-Robles
- BioCruces Research Institute, 48015 Bilbao, Spain;
- Department of Neurosurgery, Hospital Quironsalud, 28223 Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuel Carreiras
- Neurobiology of Language Group, Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language (BCBL), 20009 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain; (L.A.); (M.C.)
- IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48009 Bilbao, Spain
- Department of Basque Language and Communication, University of the Basque Country, UPV/EHU, 48940 Bilbao, Spain
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Meyer L, Lakatos P, He Y. Language Dysfunction in Schizophrenia: Assessing Neural Tracking to Characterize the Underlying Disorder(s)? Front Neurosci 2021; 15:640502. [PMID: 33692672 PMCID: PMC7937925 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.640502] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2020] [Accepted: 02/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Deficits in language production and comprehension are characteristic of schizophrenia. To date, it remains unclear whether these deficits arise from dysfunctional linguistic knowledge, or dysfunctional predictions derived from the linguistic context. Alternatively, the deficits could be a result of dysfunctional neural tracking of auditory information resulting in decreased auditory information fidelity and even distorted information. Here, we discuss possible ways for clinical neuroscientists to employ neural tracking methodology to independently characterize deficiencies on the auditory-sensory and abstract linguistic levels. This might lead to a mechanistic understanding of the deficits underlying language related disorder(s) in schizophrenia. We propose to combine naturalistic stimulation, measures of speech-brain synchronization, and computational modeling of abstract linguistic knowledge and predictions. These independent but likely interacting assessments may be exploited for an objective and differential diagnosis of schizophrenia, as well as a better understanding of the disorder on the functional level-illustrating the potential of neural tracking methodology as translational tool in a range of psychotic populations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lars Meyer
- Research Group Language Cycles, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
- Clinic for Phoniatrics and Pedaudiology, University Hospital Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Peter Lakatos
- Center for Biomedical Imaging and Neuromodulation, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, United States
| | - Yifei He
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Philipps-University Marburg, Marburg, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Wang C, Zhang Q. Word frequency effect in written production: Evidence from ERPs and neural oscillations. Psychophysiology 2021; 58:e13775. [PMID: 33522614 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.13775] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2020] [Revised: 12/29/2020] [Accepted: 01/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
It has been widely documented that word frequency (WF) modulates language processing in various input and output modalities. WF effect has also been reported in the domain of written production; however, how WF affects written production is a controversial issue. The present study attempts to investigate the time course of and neural oscillation underlying the WF effect in handwritten production. Participants were asked to handwrite pictures names of high versus low WF, while concurrently recording EEG. EEG trials were extracted time-locked to picture onsets and then submitted to event-related potential analysis and time-frequency analysis. WF affected ERPs in the time windows of around 98-160 and 282-360 ms after picture onsets. More importantly, WF modulated the evoked and induced theta-band (4-8 Hz) neural oscillations in the time window of around 36-240 and 244-472 ms, respectively. Considering the time course of language production and the role of theta-band oscillation in long-term memory retrieval, we suggest that the two stages of the WF effect, respectively, reflect conceptual preparation and retrieval of orthographic word-forms in written production.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cheng Wang
- Department of Psychology, Zhejiang Normal University, Jinhua, China
| | - Qingfang Zhang
- Department of Psychology, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Neural signatures of syntactic variation in speech planning. PLoS Biol 2021; 19:e3001038. [PMID: 33497384 PMCID: PMC7837500 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3001038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2020] [Accepted: 12/31/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Planning to speak is a challenge for the brain, and the challenge varies between and within languages. Yet, little is known about how neural processes react to these variable challenges beyond the planning of individual words. Here, we examine how fundamental differences in syntax shape the time course of sentence planning. Most languages treat alike (i.e., align with each other) the 2 uses of a word like “gardener” in “the gardener crouched” and in “the gardener planted trees.” A minority keeps these formally distinct by adding special marking in 1 case, and some languages display both aligned and nonaligned expressions. Exploiting such a contrast in Hindi, we used electroencephalography (EEG) and eye tracking to suggest that this difference is associated with distinct patterns of neural processing and gaze behavior during early planning stages, preceding phonological word form preparation. Planning sentences with aligned expressions induces larger synchronization in the theta frequency band, suggesting higher working memory engagement, and more visual attention to agents than planning nonaligned sentences, suggesting delayed commitment to the relational details of the event. Furthermore, plain, unmarked expressions are associated with larger desynchronization in the alpha band than expressions with special markers, suggesting more engagement in information processing to keep overlapping structures distinct during planning. Our findings contrast with the observation that the form of aligned expressions is simpler, and they suggest that the global preference for alignment is driven not by its neurophysiological effect on sentence planning but by other sources, possibly by aspects of production flexibility and fluency or by sentence comprehension. This challenges current theories on how production and comprehension may affect the evolution and distribution of syntactic variants in the world’s languages. Little is known about the neural processes involved in planning to speak. This study uses eye-tracking and EEG to show that speakers prepare sentence structures in different ways and rely on alpha and theta oscillations differently when planning sentences with and without agent case marking, challenging theories on how production and comprehension affect language evolution.
Collapse
|
24
|
Gastaldon S, Arcara G, Navarrete E, Peressotti F. Commonalities in alpha and beta neural desynchronizations during prediction in language comprehension and production. Cortex 2020; 133:328-345. [PMID: 33171348 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2020.09.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2020] [Revised: 08/25/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
The present study investigates whether predictions during language comprehension are generated by engaging the language production system. Previous studies investigating either prediction or production highlighted M/EEG desynchronization (power decrease) in the alpha (8-10 Hz) and beta (13-30 Hz) frequency bands preceding the target. However, it is unclear whether this electrophysiological modulation underlies common mechanisms. We recorded EEG from participants performing both a comprehension and a production task in two separate blocks. Participants listened to high and low constraint incomplete sentences and were asked either to name a picture to complete them (production) or to simply listen to the final word (comprehension). We found that in a silent gap before the final stimulus, predictable stimuli elicited alpha and beta desynchronization in both tasks, signaling the pre-activation of linguistic information. Source estimation highlighted the involvement of left-lateralized language areas and temporo-parietal areas in the right hemisphere. Furthermore, correlations between the desynchronizations in comprehension and production showed spatiotemporal commonalities in language-relevant areas of the left hemisphere. As proposed by prediction-by-production models, our results suggest that comprehenders engage the production system while predicting upcoming words.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Simone Gastaldon
- Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione (DPSS), University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
| | | | - Eduardo Navarrete
- Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione (DPSS), University of Padova, Padova, Italy
| | - Francesca Peressotti
- Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione (DPSS), University of Padova, Padova, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Mousavi N, Nazari MA, Babapour J, Jahan A. Electroencephalographic characteristics of word finding during phonological and semantic verbal fluency tasks. Neuropsychopharmacol Rep 2020; 40:254-261. [PMID: 32757253 PMCID: PMC7722674 DOI: 10.1002/npr2.12129] [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: 01/22/2020] [Revised: 06/06/2020] [Accepted: 06/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Aims Verbal Fluency is sensitive to brain damage and is employed to assess language abilities like the size of vocabulary and the semantic‐lexical networks’ integrity and executive functioning abilities particularly inhibition, working memory, and self‐monitoring. Various studies revealed oscillatory changes related to word retrieval during different tasks. However, there are not enough studies on electroencephalographic characteristics of word retrieval routes (phonological or semantic pathway) during free recall. The purpose of our study was to investigate electroencephalography power relationship with semantic and phonological word finding routes during verbal fluency. Methods In this within‐subject study, the electroencephalography of 20 healthy participants was recorded during written category and letter fluency tasks and compared with the rest state. Absolute power of the signals in delta (1‐3.5 Hz), theta (4‐7.5 Hz), alpha (8‐12 Hz), and beta (12.5‐30 Hz) was calculated in three lobes (frontal, parietal, and temporal). Results A repeated measures ANOVA showed significant interaction of condition × lobe × frequency × side (P < .001). Post hoc test for each lobe showed significant changes in the absolute power of delta, theta and beta for frontal, delta and theta for parietal, and theta and beta for temporal lobes (P‐values < .05). Conclusion Searching the words by phonological entries is associated with decreased beta and increased theta in left frontal lobe. These changes are not necessary for semantic word retrieval strategy. Word retrieval either by phonological entries or semantic categories is accompanied by increased delta in frontal and parietal lobes. Decreased beta and increased theta bands in the left frontal lobe are associated with phonological word retrieval strategy while during semantic word finding, increased beta was observed in the left temporal lobe.![]()
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Najva Mousavi
- Division of Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
| | | | - Jalil Babapour
- Psychology Department, University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran
| | - Ali Jahan
- Department of Speech Therapy, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Scaltritti M, Job R, Alario FX, Sulpizio S. On the Boundaries between Decision and Action: Effector-selective Lateralization of Beta-frequency Power Is Modulated by the Lexical Frequency of Printed Words. J Cogn Neurosci 2020; 32:2131-2144. [PMID: 32662730 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Current computational and neuroscientific models of decision-making posit a discrete, serial processing distinction between upstream decisional stages and downstream processes of motor-response implementation. We investigated this framework in the context of two-alternative forced-choice tasks on linguistic stimuli, words and pseudowords. In two experiments, we assessed the impact of lexical frequency and action semantics on two effector-selective EEG indexes of motor-response activation: the lateralized readiness potential and the lateralization of beta-frequency power. This allowed us to track potentially continuous streams of processing progressively mapping the evaluation of linguistic stimuli onto corresponding response channels. Whereas action semantics showed no influence on EEG indexes of motor-response activation, lexical frequency affected the lateralization of response-locked beta-frequency power. We argue that these observations point toward a continuity between linguistic processing of word input stimuli and implementation of corresponding choice in terms of motor behavior. This interpretation challenges the commonly held assumption of a discrete processing distinction between decisional and motor-response processes in the context of decisions based on symbolic stimuli.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michele Scaltritti
- Università degli Studi di Trento, Italy.,Fondazione Marica De Vincenzi, ONLUS, Trento, Italy
| | - Remo Job
- Università degli Studi di Trento, Italy.,Fondazione Marica De Vincenzi, ONLUS, Trento, Italy
| | - F-Xavier Alario
- Aix-Marseille University, CNRS, LPC, France.,University of Pittsburgh
| | - Simone Sulpizio
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy.,Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca, Italy
| |
Collapse
|
27
|
Roos NM, Piai V. Across-session consistency of context-driven language processing: A magnetoencephalography study. Eur J Neurosci 2020; 52:3457-3469. [PMID: 32432366 PMCID: PMC7586931 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2019] [Revised: 05/04/2020] [Accepted: 05/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Changes in brain organization following damage are commonly observed, but they remain poorly understood. These changes are often studied with imaging techniques that overlook the temporal granularity at which language processes occur. By contrast, electrophysiological measures provide excellent temporal resolution. To test the suitability of magnetoencephalography (MEG) to track language‐related neuroplasticity, the present study aimed at establishing the spectro‐temporo‐spatial across‐session consistency of context‐driven picture naming in healthy individuals, using MEG in two test–retest sessions. Spectro‐temporo‐spatial test–retest consistency in a healthy population is a prerequisite for studying neuronal changes in clinical populations over time. For this purpose, 15 healthy speakers were tested with MEG while performing a context‐driven picture‐naming task at two time points. Participants read a sentence missing the final word and named a picture completing the sentence. Sentences were constrained or unconstrained toward the picture, such that participants could either retrieve the picture name through sentence context (constrained sentences), or could only name it after the picture appeared (unconstrained sentences). The context effect (constrained versus unconstrained) in picture‐naming times had a strong effect size and high across‐session consistency. The context MEG results revealed alpha–beta power decreases (10–20 Hz) in the left temporal and inferior parietal lobule that were consistent across both sessions. As robust spectro‐temporo‐spatial findings in a healthy population are required for working toward longitudinal patient studies, we conclude that using context‐driven language production and MEG is a suitable way to examine language‐related neuroplasticity after brain damage.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Vitória Piai
- Donders Center for Cognition, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.,Department of Medical Psychology, Radboudumc, Donders Centre for Medical Neuroscience, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Scaltritti M, Suitner C, Peressotti F. Language and motor processing in reading and typing: Insights from beta-frequency band power modulations. BRAIN AND LANGUAGE 2020; 204:104758. [PMID: 32032864 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2020.104758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2019] [Revised: 12/30/2019] [Accepted: 01/20/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Power modulations of the EEG activity within the beta-frequency band were investigated across silent-reading and copy-typing tasks featuring emotionally negative and neutral words in order to clarify the interplay between language and motor processing. In reading, a single desynchronization surfaced 200-600 ms after target presentation, with a stronger power-decrease in lower beta frequencies for neutral compared to negative words. The typing task revealed two distinct desynchronizations. A first one surfaced within spatio-temporal coordinates closely resembling those of the desynchronization observed in the reading task, thus pointing towards a common origin at the level of linguistic processing of the input word stimuli. Additionally, a second motor-related desynchronization surfaced during the typed response, from 700 to 2000 ms after stimulus onset. Here, words' emotional connotation affected the higher beta band. The comparison between tasks thus suggests that different beta desynchronizations reflect distinct EEG landmarks for language and motor processing. Further, the effect of emotional connotation on the motor-related desynchronization of the typing task suggests that language processing can propagate its influence onto the stage of motor response execution, pointing against a serial flow of information from language onto motor processing.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michele Scaltritti
- Dipartimento di Psicologia e Scienze Cognitive, Università degli Studi di Trento, Corso Bettini 84, 38068 Rovereto, TN, Italy; Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione, Università degli Studi di Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, PD, Italy.
| | - Caterina Suitner
- Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione, Università degli Studi di Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, PD, Italy.
| | - Francesca Peressotti
- Dipartimento di Psicologia dello Sviluppo e della Socializzazione, Università degli Studi di Padova, Via Venezia 8, 35131 Padova, PD, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Foley E, Wood AG, Furlong PL, Walsh AR, Kearney S, Bill P, Hillebrand A, Seri S. Mapping language networks and their association with verbal abilities in paediatric epilepsy using MEG and graph analysis. Neuroimage Clin 2020; 27:102265. [PMID: 32413809 PMCID: PMC7226893 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2020.102265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2019] [Revised: 03/26/2020] [Accepted: 03/26/2020] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Recent theoretical models of language have emphasised the importance of integration within distributed networks during language processing. This is particularly relevant to young patients with epilepsy, as the topology of the functional network and its dynamics may be altered by the disease, resulting in reorganisation of functional language networks. Thus, understanding connectivity within the language network in patients with epilepsy could provide valuable insights into healthy and pathological brain function, particularly when combined with clinical correlates. The objective of this study was to investigate interactions within the language network in a paediatric population of epilepsy patients using measures of MEG phase synchronisation and graph-theoretical analysis, and to examine their association with language abilities. Task dependent increases in connectivity were observed in fronto-temporal networks during verb generation across a group of 22 paediatric patients (9 males and 13 females; mean age 14 years). Differences in network connectivity were observed between patients with typical and atypical language representation and between patients with good and poor language abilities. In addition, node centrality in left frontal and temporal regions was significantly associated with language abilities, where patients with good language abilities had significantly higher node centrality within inferior frontal and superior temporal regions of the left hemisphere, compared to patients with poor language abilities. Our study is one of the first to apply task-based measures of MEG network synchronisation in paediatric epilepsy, and we propose that these measures of functional connectivity and node centrality could be used as tools to identify critical regions of the language network prior to epilepsy surgery.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elaine Foley
- School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston Brain Centre, Aston University, Birmingham, UK.
| | - Amanda G Wood
- School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston Brain Centre, Aston University, Birmingham, UK; School of Psychology, Faculty of Health, Melbourne Burwood Campus, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia
| | - Paul L Furlong
- School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston Brain Centre, Aston University, Birmingham, UK
| | - A Richard Walsh
- Children's Epilepsy Surgery Service, Birmingham Women's and Children's Hospital, Birmingham, UK
| | - Shauna Kearney
- Children's Epilepsy Surgery Service, Birmingham Women's and Children's Hospital, Birmingham, UK
| | - Peter Bill
- Children's Epilepsy Surgery Service, Birmingham Women's and Children's Hospital, Birmingham, UK
| | - Arjan Hillebrand
- Department of Clinical Neurophysiology and MEG Center, Amsterdam Neuroscience, Amsterdam UMC, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1117, Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Stefano Seri
- School of Life and Health Sciences, Aston Brain Centre, Aston University, Birmingham, UK; Children's Epilepsy Surgery Service, Birmingham Women's and Children's Hospital, Birmingham, UK
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
The Relation between Alpha/Beta Oscillations and the Encoding of Sentence induced Contextual Information. Sci Rep 2019; 9:20255. [PMID: 31882830 PMCID: PMC6934725 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-56600-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2019] [Accepted: 12/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Pre-stimulus alpha (8-12 Hz) and beta (16-20 Hz) oscillations have been frequently linked to the prediction of upcoming sensory input. Do these frequency bands serve as a neural marker of linguistic prediction as well? We hypothesized that if pre-stimulus alpha and beta oscillations index language predictions, their power should monotonically relate to the degree of predictability of incoming words based on past context. We expected that the more predictable the last word of a sentence, the stronger the alpha and beta power modulation. To test this, we measured neural responses with magnetoencephalography of healthy individuals during exposure to a set of linguistically matched sentences featuring three levels of sentence context constraint (high, medium and low constraint). We observed fluctuations in alpha and beta power before last word onset, and modulations in M400 amplitude after last word onset. The M400 amplitude was monotonically related to the degree of context constraint, with a high constraining context resulting in the strongest amplitude decrease. In contrast, pre-stimulus alpha and beta power decreased more strongly for intermediate constraints, followed by high and low constraints. Therefore, unlike the M400, pre-stimulus alpha and beta dynamics were not indexing the degree of word predictability from sentence context.
Collapse
|
31
|
Klaus J, Schutter DJLG, Piai V. Transient perturbation of the left temporal cortex evokes plasticity-related reconfiguration of the lexical network. Hum Brain Mapp 2019; 41:1061-1071. [PMID: 31705740 PMCID: PMC7267941 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.24860] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2019] [Revised: 09/30/2019] [Accepted: 10/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
While much progress has been made in how brain organization supports language function, the language network's ability to adapt to immediate disturbances by means of reorganization remains unclear. The aim of this study was to examine acute reorganizational changes in brain activity related to conceptual and lexical retrieval in unimpaired language production following transient disruption of the left middle temporal gyrus (MTG). In a randomized single‐blind within‐subject experiment, we recorded the electroencephalogram from 16 healthy participants during a context‐driven picture‐naming task. Prior to the task, the left MTG was perturbed with real continuous theta‐burst stimulation (cTBS) or sham stimulation. During the task, participants read lead‐in sentences creating a constraining (e.g., “The farmer milks the”) or nonconstraining context (e.g., “The farmer buys the”). The last word was shown as a picture that participants had to name (e.g., “cow”). Replicating behavioral studies, participants were overall faster in naming pictures following a constraining relative to a nonconstraining context, but this effect did not differ between real and sham cTBS. In contrast, real cTBS increased overall error rates compared to sham cTBS. In line with previous studies, we observed a decrease in alpha‐beta (8–24 Hz) oscillatory power for constraining relative to nonconstraining contexts over left temporal–parietal cortex after participants received sham cTBS. However, following real cTBS, this decrease extended toward left prefrontal regions associated with both domain‐general and domain‐specific control mechanisms. Our findings provide evidence that immediately after perturbing the left MTG, the lexical‐semantic network is able to quickly reconfigure, also recruiting domain‐general regions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jana Klaus
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany.,Helmholtz Institute, Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Dennis J L G Schutter
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Helmholtz Institute, Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Vitória Piai
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands.,Donders Centre for Medical Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
Shao Z, Rommers J. How a question context aids word production: Evidence from the picture–word interference paradigm. Q J Exp Psychol (Hove) 2019; 73:165-173. [DOI: 10.1177/1747021819882911] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Difficulties in saying the right word at the right time arise at least in part because multiple response candidates are simultaneously activated in the speaker’s mind. The word selection process has been simulated using the picture–word interference task, in which participants name pictures while ignoring a superimposed written distractor word. However, words are usually produced in context, in the service of achieving a communicative goal. Two experiments addressed the questions whether context influences word production, and if so, how. We embedded the picture–word interference task in a dialogue-like setting, in which participants heard a question and named a picture as an answer to the question while ignoring a superimposed distractor word. The conversational context was either constraining or nonconstraining towards the answer. Manipulating the relationship between the picture name and the distractor, we focused on two core processes of word production: retrieval of semantic representations (Experiment 1) and phonological encoding (Experiment 2). The results of both experiments showed that naming reaction times (RTs) were shorter when preceded by constraining contexts as compared with nonconstraining contexts. Critically, constraining contexts decreased the effect of semantically related distractors but not the effect of phonologically related distractors. This suggests that conversational contexts can help speakers with aspects of the meaning of to-be-produced words, but phonological encoding processes still need to be performed as usual.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zeshu Shao
- The School of Psychology, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Joost Rommers
- The School of Psychology, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Prystauka Y, Lewis AG. THE POWER OF NEURAL OSCILLATIONS TO INFORM SENTENCE COMPREHENSION: A LINGUISTIC PERSPECTIVE. LANGUAGE AND LINGUISTICS COMPASS 2019; 13:e12347. [PMID: 33042211 PMCID: PMC7546279 DOI: 10.1111/lnc3.12347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
The field of psycholinguistics is currently experiencing an explosion of interest in the analysis of neural oscillations - rhythmic brain activity synchronized at different temporal and spatial levels. Given that language comprehension relies on a myriad of processes, which are carried out in parallel in distributed brain networks, there is hope that this methodology might bring the field closer to understanding some of the more basic (spatially and temporally distributed, yet at the same time often overlapping) neural computations that support language function. In this review we discuss existing proposals linking oscillatory dynamics in different frequency bands to basic neural computations, and review relevant theories suggesting associations between band-specific oscillations and higher-level cognitive processes. More or less consistent patterns of oscillatory activity related to certain types of linguistic processing can already be derived from the evidence that has accumulated over the past few decades. The centerpiece of the current review is a synthesis of such patterns grouped by linguistic phenomenon. We restrict our review to evidence linking measures of oscillatory power to the comprehension of sentences, as well as linguistically (and/or pragmatically) more complex structures. For each grouping, we provide a brief summary and a table of associated oscillatory signatures that a psycholinguist might expect to find when employing a particular linguistic task. Summarizing across different paradigms, we conclude that a handful of basic neural oscillatory mechanisms are likely recruited in different ways and at different times for carrying out a variety of linguistic computations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yanina Prystauka
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Connecticut
- Connecticut Institute for the Brain and Cognitive Sciences
| | - Ashley Glen Lewis
- Radboud University, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Haskins Laboratories, New Haven, CT 06510, USA
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Linguistic networks associated with lexical, semantic and syntactic predictability in reading: A fixation-related fMRI study. Neuroimage 2019; 189:224-240. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.01.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2018] [Revised: 12/11/2018] [Accepted: 01/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
|
35
|
Ahead of time: Early sentence slow cortical modulations associated to semantic prediction. Neuroimage 2019; 189:192-201. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2019.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2018] [Revised: 11/28/2018] [Accepted: 01/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
|
36
|
Piai V, Zheng X. Speaking waves: Neuronal oscillations in language production. PSYCHOLOGY OF LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2019. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.plm.2019.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
|
37
|
Wang L, Kuperberg G, Jensen O. Specific lexico-semantic predictions are associated with unique spatial and temporal patterns of neural activity. eLife 2018; 7:e39061. [PMID: 30575521 PMCID: PMC6322859 DOI: 10.7554/elife.39061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2018] [Accepted: 12/20/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
We used Magnetoencephalography (MEG) in combination with Representational Similarity Analysis to probe neural activity associated with distinct, item-specific lexico-semantic predictions during language comprehension. MEG activity was measured as participants read highly constraining sentences in which the final words could be predicted. Before the onset of the predicted words, both the spatial and temporal patterns of brain activity were more similar when the same words were predicted than when different words were predicted. The temporal patterns localized to the left inferior and medial temporal lobe. These findings provide evidence that unique spatial and temporal patterns of neural activity are associated with item-specific lexico-semantic predictions. We suggest that the unique spatial patterns reflected the prediction of spatially distributed semantic features associated with the predicted word, and that the left inferior/medial temporal lobe played a role in temporally 'binding' these features, giving rise to unique lexico-semantic predictions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lin Wang
- Department of PsychiatryHarvard Medical SchoolBostonUnited States
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical ImagingMassachusetts General HospitalCharlestownUnited States
- Department of PsychologyTufts UniversityMedfordUnited States
| | - Gina Kuperberg
- Department of PsychiatryHarvard Medical SchoolBostonUnited States
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical ImagingMassachusetts General HospitalCharlestownUnited States
- Department of PsychologyTufts UniversityMedfordUnited States
| | - Ole Jensen
- School of PsychologyCentre for Human Brain Health, University of BirminghamBirminghamUnited Kingdom
| |
Collapse
|
38
|
Abstract
Using magnetoencephalography, the current study examined gamma activity associated with language prediction. Participants read high- and low-constraining sentences in which the final word of the sentence was either expected or unexpected. Although no consistent gamma power difference induced by the sentence-final words was found between the expected and unexpected conditions, the correlation of gamma power during the prediction and activation intervals of the sentence-final words was larger when the presented words matched with the prediction compared with when the prediction was violated or when no prediction was available. This suggests that gamma magnitude relates to the match between predicted and perceived words. Moreover, the expected words induced activity with a slower gamma frequency compared with that induced by unexpected words. Overall, the current study establishes that prediction is related to gamma power correlations and a slowing of the gamma frequency.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lin Wang
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Harvard Medical School
| | - Peter Hagoort
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | | |
Collapse
|
39
|
Python G, Fargier R, Laganaro M. When Wine and Apple Both Help the Production of Grapes: ERP Evidence for Post-lexical Semantic Facilitation in Picture Naming. Front Hum Neurosci 2018; 12:136. [PMID: 29692716 PMCID: PMC5902702 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2018.00136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2017] [Accepted: 03/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: Producing a word in referential naming requires to select the right word in our mental lexicon among co-activated semantically related words. The mechanisms underlying semantic context effects during speech planning are still controversial, particularly for semantic facilitation which investigation remains under-represented in contrast to the plethora of studies dealing with interference. Our aim is to study the time-course of semantic facilitation in picture naming, using a picture-word "interference" paradigm and event-related potentials (ERPs). Methods: We compared two different types of semantic relationships, associative and categorical, in a single word priming and a double word priming paradigm. The primes were presented visually with a long negative Stimulus Onset Asynchrony (SOA), which is expected to cause facilitation. Results: Shorter naming latencies were observed after both associative and categorical primes, as compared to unrelated primes, and even shorter latencies after two primes. Electrophysiological results showed relatively late modulations of waveform amplitudes for both types of primes (beginning ~330 ms post picture onset with a single prime and ~275 ms post picture onset with two primes), corresponding to a shift in latency of similar topographic maps across conditions. Conclusion: The present results are in favor of a post-lexical locus of semantic facilitation for associative and categorical priming in picture naming and confirm that semantic facilitation is as relevant as semantic interference to inform on word production. The post-lexical locus argued here might be related to self-monitoting or/and to modulations at the level of word-form planning, without excluding the participation of strategic processes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Grégoire Python
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Science, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Raphaël Fargier
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Science, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Marina Laganaro
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Science, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
40
|
Meyer L. The neural oscillations of speech processing and language comprehension: state of the art and emerging mechanisms. Eur J Neurosci 2017; 48:2609-2621. [PMID: 29055058 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.13748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 142] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2017] [Revised: 09/14/2017] [Accepted: 10/09/2017] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Neural oscillations subserve a broad range of functions in speech processing and language comprehension. On the one hand, speech contains-somewhat-repetitive trains of air pressure bursts that occur at three dominant amplitude modulation frequencies, physically marking the linguistically meaningful progressions of phonemes, syllables and intonational phrase boundaries. To these acoustic events, neural oscillations of isomorphous operating frequencies are thought to synchronise, presumably resulting in an implicit temporal alignment of periods of neural excitability to linguistically meaningful spectral information on the three low-level linguistic description levels. On the other hand, speech is a carrier signal that codes for high-level linguistic meaning, such as syntactic structure and semantic information-which cannot be read from stimulus acoustics, but must be acquired during language acquisition and decoded for language comprehension. Neural oscillations subserve the processing of both syntactic structure and semantic information. Here, I synthesise a mapping from each linguistic processing domain to a unique set of subserving oscillatory mechanisms-the mapping is plausible given the role ascribed to different oscillatory mechanisms in different subfunctions of cortical information processing and faithful to the underlying electrophysiology. In sum, the present article provides an accessible and extensive review of the functional mechanisms that neural oscillations subserve in speech processing and language comprehension.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lars Meyer
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstraße 1A, 04103, Leipzig, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Piai V, Rommers J, Knight RT. Lesion evidence for a critical role of left posterior but not frontal areas in alpha-beta power decreases during context-driven word production. Eur J Neurosci 2017; 48:2622-2629. [PMID: 28887896 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.13695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2017] [Revised: 08/30/2017] [Accepted: 08/30/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Different frequency bands in the electroencephalogram are postulated to support distinct language functions. Studies have suggested that alpha-beta power decreases may index word-retrieval processes. In context-driven word retrieval, participants hear lead-in sentences that either constrain the final word ('He locked the door with the') or not ('She walked in here with the'). The last word is shown as a picture to be named. Previous studies have consistently found alpha-beta power decreases prior to picture onset for constrained relative to unconstrained sentences, localised to the left lateral-temporal and lateral-frontal lobes. However, the relative contribution of temporal versus frontal areas to alpha-beta power decreases is unknown. We recorded the electroencephalogram from patients with stroke lesions encompassing the left lateral-temporal and inferior-parietal regions or left-lateral frontal lobe and from matched controls. Individual participant analyses revealed a behavioural sentence context facilitation effect in all participants, except for in the two patients with extensive lesions to temporal and inferior parietal lobes. We replicated the alpha-beta power decreases prior to picture onset in all participants, except for in the two same patients with extensive posterior lesions. Thus, whereas posterior lesions eliminated the behavioural and oscillatory context effect, frontal lesions did not. Hierarchical clustering analyses of all patients' lesion profiles, and behavioural and electrophysiological effects identified those two patients as having a unique combination of lesion distribution and context effects. These results indicate a critical role for the left lateral-temporal and inferior parietal lobes, but not frontal cortex, in generating the alpha-beta power decreases underlying context-driven word production.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vitória Piai
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Donders Centre for Cognition, Radboud University, Montessorilaan 3, 6525 HR, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.,Department of Medical Psychology, Radboudumc, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Joost Rommers
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Donders Centre for Cognitive Neuroimaging, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Robert T Knight
- Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute and Department of Psychology, University of California Berkeley, Berkeley, CA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Wang L, Hagoort P, Jensen O. Language Prediction Is Reflected by Coupling between Frontal Gamma and Posterior Alpha Oscillations. J Cogn Neurosci 2017; 30:432-447. [PMID: 28949823 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01190] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Readers and listeners actively predict upcoming words during language processing. These predictions might serve to support the unification of incoming words into sentence context and thus rely on interactions between areas in the language network. In the current magnetoencephalography study, participants read sentences that varied in contextual constraints so that the predictability of the sentence-final words was either high or low. Before the sentence-final words, we observed stronger alpha power suppression for the highly compared with low constraining sentences in the left inferior frontal cortex, left posterior temporal region, and visual word form area. Importantly, the temporal and visual word form area alpha power correlated negatively with left frontal gamma power for the highly constraining sentences. We suggest that the correlation between alpha power decrease in temporal language areas and left prefrontal gamma power reflects the initiation of an anticipatory unification process in the language network.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lin Wang
- Radboud University.,Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.,Harvard Medical School
| | | | - Ole Jensen
- Radboud University.,University of Birmingham
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
Piai V, Meyer L, Dronkers NF, Knight RT. Neuroplasticity of language in left-hemisphere stroke: Evidence linking subsecond electrophysiology and structural connections. Hum Brain Mapp 2017; 38:3151-3162. [PMID: 28345282 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2016] [Revised: 03/08/2017] [Accepted: 03/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The understanding of neuroplasticity following stroke is predominantly based on neuroimaging measures that cannot address the subsecond neurodynamics of impaired language processing. We combined behavioral and electrophysiological measures and structural-connectivity estimates to characterize neuroplasticity underlying successful compensation of language abilities after left-hemispheric stroke. We recorded the electroencephalogram from patients with stroke lesions to the left temporal lobe and from matched controls during context-driven word retrieval. Participants heard lead-in sentences that either constrained the final word ("He locked the door with the") or not ("She walked in here with the"). The last word was shown as a picture to be named. Individual-participant analyses were conducted, focusing on oscillatory power as a subsecond indicator of a brain region's functional neurophysiological computations. All participants named pictures faster following constrained than unconstrained sentences, except for two patients, who had extensive damage to the left temporal lobe. Left-lateralized alpha-beta oscillatory power decreased in controls pre-picture presentation for constrained relative to unconstrained contexts. In patients, the alpha-beta power decreases were observed with the same time course as in controls but were lateralized to the intact right hemisphere. The right lateralization depended on the probability of white-matter connections between the bilateral temporal lobes. The two patients who performed poorly behaviorally showed no alpha-beta power decreases. Our findings suggest that incorporating direct measures of neural activity into investigations of neuroplasticity can provide important neural markers to help predict language recovery, assess the progress of neurorehabilitation, and delineate targets for therapeutic neuromodulation. Hum Brain Mapp 38:3151-3162, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vitória Piai
- Radboud University, Donders Centre for Cognition, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.,Radboudumc, Department of Medical Psychology, Nijmegen, the Netherlands.,Department of Psychology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California.,Center for Aphasia and Related Disorders, Veterans Affairs Northern California Health Care System, Martinez, California
| | - Lars Meyer
- Department of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Nina F Dronkers
- Center for Aphasia and Related Disorders, Veterans Affairs Northern California Health Care System, Martinez, California.,Department of Neurology, University of California, Davis, California.,Neurolinguistics Laboratory, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia
| | - Robert T Knight
- Department of Psychology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Direct brain recordings reveal hippocampal rhythm underpinnings of language processing. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2016; 113:11366-11371. [PMID: 27647880 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1603312113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 107] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Language is classically thought to be supported by perisylvian cortical regions. Here we provide intracranial evidence linking the hippocampal complex to linguistic processing. We used direct recordings from the hippocampal structures to investigate whether theta oscillations, pivotal in memory function, track the amount of contextual linguistic information provided in sentences. Twelve participants heard sentences that were either constrained ("She locked the door with the") or unconstrained ("She walked in here with the") before presentation of the final word ("key"), shown as a picture that participants had to name. Hippocampal theta power increased for constrained relative to unconstrained contexts during sentence processing, preceding picture presentation. Our study implicates hippocampal theta oscillations in a language task using natural language associations that do not require memorization. These findings reveal that the hippocampal complex contributes to language in an active fashion, relating incoming words to stored semantic knowledge, a necessary process in the generation of sentence meaning.
Collapse
|
45
|
Luke SG, Christianson K. Limits on lexical prediction during reading. Cogn Psychol 2016; 88:22-60. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cogpsych.2016.06.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2015] [Revised: 06/14/2016] [Accepted: 06/15/2016] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
|
46
|
Nicolo P, Fargier R, Laganaro M, Guggisberg AG. Neurobiological Correlates of Inhibition of the Right Broca Homolog during New-Word Learning. Front Hum Neurosci 2016; 10:371. [PMID: 27516735 PMCID: PMC4963391 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2016.00371] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2016] [Accepted: 07/11/2016] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) has demonstrated beneficial effects on motor learning. It would be important to obtain a similar enhancement for verbal learning. However, previous studies have mostly assessed short-term effects of rTMS on language performance and the effect on learning is largely unknown. This study examined whether an inhibition of the right Broca homolog has long-term impact on neural processes underlying the acquisition of new words in healthy individuals. Sixteen young participants trained a new-word learning paradigm with rare, mostly unknown objects and their corresponding words immediately after continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) or sham stimulation of right inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) in a cross-over design. Neural effects were assessed with electroencephalography (EEG) source power analyses during the naming task as well as coherence analyses at rest 1 day before and after training. Inhibition of the right Broca homolog did not affect new word learning performance at the group level. Behavioral and neural responses to cTBS were variable across participants and were associated with the magnitude of resting-state alpha-band coherence between the stimulated area and the rest of the brain before stimulation. Only participants with high intrinsic alpha-band coherence between the stimulated area and the rest of the brain before stimulation showed the expected inhibition during naming and greater learning performance. In conclusion, our study confirms that cTBS can induce lasting modulations of neural processes which are associated with learning, but the effect depends on the individual network state.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Pierre Nicolo
- Division of Neurorehabilitation, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University Hospital GenevaGeneva, Switzerland; Laboratory of Cognitive Neurorehabilitation, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Medical School, University of GenevaGeneva, Switzerland
| | - Raphaël Fargier
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Marina Laganaro
- Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Adrian G Guggisberg
- Division of Neurorehabilitation, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University Hospital GenevaGeneva, Switzerland; Laboratory of Cognitive Neurorehabilitation, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Medical School, University of GenevaGeneva, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
47
|
Rommers J, Dickson DS, Norton JJS, Wlotko EW, Federmeier KD. Alpha and theta band dynamics related to sentential constraint and word expectancy. LANGUAGE, COGNITION AND NEUROSCIENCE 2016; 32:576-589. [PMID: 28761896 PMCID: PMC5533299 DOI: 10.1080/23273798.2016.1183799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2015] [Accepted: 04/15/2016] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Despite strong evidence for prediction during language comprehension, the underlying mechanisms, and the extent to which they are specific to language, remain unclear. Re-analyzing an ERP study, we examined responses in the time-frequency domain to expected and unexpected (but plausible) words in strongly and weakly constraining sentences, and found results similar to those reported in nonverbal domains. Relative to expected words, unexpected words elicited an increase in the theta band (4-7 Hz) in strongly constraining contexts, suggesting the involvement of control processes to deal with the consequences of having a prediction disconfirmed. Prior to critical word onset, strongly constraining sentences exhibited a decrease in the alpha band (8-12 Hz) relative to weakly constraining sentences, suggesting that comprehenders can take advantage of predictive sentence contexts to prepare for the input. The results suggest that the brain recruits domain-general preparation and control mechanisms when making and assessing predictions during sentence comprehension.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joost Rommers
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
| | | | - James J. S. Norton
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
- Program in Neuroscience, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
| | - Edward W. Wlotko
- Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University, Boston, USA
| | - Kara D. Federmeier
- Department of Psychology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
- Program in Neuroscience, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, USA
| |
Collapse
|
48
|
Piai V, Roelofs A, Rommers J, Dahlslätt K, Maris E. Withholding planned speech is reflected in synchronized beta-band oscillations. Front Hum Neurosci 2015; 9:549. [PMID: 26528164 PMCID: PMC4601260 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2015.00549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/16/2015] [Accepted: 09/18/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
When engaged in a conversation, speakers sometimes have to withhold a planned response, for example, before it is their turn to speak. In the present study, using magnetoencephalography (MEG) outside of a conversational setting, we investigate the oscillatory brain mechanisms involved in the process of withholding a planned verbal response until it is time to speak. Our participants viewed a sequence of four random consonant strings and one pseudoword, which they had to pronounce when the fifth string (the imperative stimulus) was presented. The pseudoword appeared either as the fourth or fifth stimulus in the sequence, creating two conditions. In the withhold condition, the pseudoword was the fourth string and the verbal response was withheld until the imperative stimulus was presented. In the control condition, the fifth string was the pseudoword, so no response was withheld. We compared oscillatory responses to the withhold relative to the control condition in the time period preceding speech. Alpha-beta power (8–30 Hz) decreased over occipital sensors in the withhold condition relative to the control condition. Source-level analysis indicated a posterior source (i.e., occipital cortex) associated with the alpha-beta power decreases. This occipital alpha-beta desynchronization likely reflects attentional allocation to the upcoming imperative stimulus. Moreover, beta (12–20 Hz) power increased over frontal sensors. Source-level analysis indicated a frontal source (i.e., middle and superior frontal gyri) associated with the beta-power increases. We interpret the frontal beta synchronization to reflect a mechanism aiding the maintenance of the current motor or cognitive state. Our results provide a window into a possible oscillatory mechanism implementing the ability of speakers to withhold a planned verbal response until they have to speak.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vitória Piai
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands ; Knight Lab, Department of Psychology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley Berkeley, CA, USA
| | - Ardi Roelofs
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
| | - Joost Rommers
- Department of Psychology and The Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois Urbana, IL, USA
| | | | - Eric Maris
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
Doesburg SM, Tingling K, MacDonald MJ, Pang EW. Development of Network Synchronization Predicts Language Abilities. J Cogn Neurosci 2015; 28:55-68. [PMID: 26401810 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_00879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Synchronization of oscillations among brain areas is understood to mediate network communication supporting cognition, perception, and language. How task-dependent synchronization during word production develops throughout childhood and adolescence, as well as how such network coherence is related to the development of language abilities, remains poorly understood. To address this, we recorded magnetoencephalography while 73 participants aged 4-18 years performed a verb generation task. Atlas-guided source reconstruction was performed, and phase synchronization among regions was calculated. Task-dependent increases in synchronization were observed in the theta, alpha, and beta frequency ranges, and network synchronization differences were observed between age groups. Task-dependent synchronization was strongest in the theta band, as were differences between age groups. Network topologies were calculated for brain regions associated with verb generation and were significantly associated with both age and language abilities. These findings establish the maturational trajectory of network synchronization underlying expressive language abilities throughout childhood and adolescence and provide the first evidence for an association between large-scale neurophysiological network synchronization and individual differences in the development of language abilities.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Elizabeth W Pang
- Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute, Toronto, Canada.,Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
50
|
Bakker I, Takashima A, van Hell JG, Janzen G, McQueen JM. Changes in Theta and Beta Oscillations as Signatures of Novel Word Consolidation. J Cogn Neurosci 2015; 27:1286-97. [DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_00801] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
The complementary learning systems account of word learning states that novel words, like other types of memories, undergo an offline consolidation process during which they are gradually integrated into the neocortical memory network. A fundamental change in the neural representation of a novel word should therefore occur in the hours after learning. The present EEG study tested this hypothesis by investigating whether novel words learned before a 24-hr consolidation period elicited more word-like oscillatory responses than novel words learned immediately before testing. In line with previous studies indicating that theta synchronization reflects lexical access, unfamiliar novel words elicited lower power in the theta band (4–8 Hz) than existing words. Recently learned words still showed a marginally lower theta increase than existing words, but theta responses to novel words that had been acquired 24 hr earlier were indistinguishable from responses to existing words. Consistent with evidence that beta desynchronization (16–21 Hz) is related to lexical-semantic processing, we found that both unfamiliar and recently learned novel words elicited less beta desynchronization than existing words. In contrast, no difference was found between novel words learned 24 hr earlier and existing words. These data therefore suggest that an offline consolidation period enables novel words to acquire lexically integrated, word-like neural representations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - James M. McQueen
- 1Radboud University Nijmegen
- 3Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|