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Loukas S, Filippa M, de Almeida JS, Boehringer AS, Tolsa CB, Barcos-Munoz F, Grandjean DM, van de Ville D, Hüppi PS. Newborn's neural representation of instrumental and vocal music as revealed by fMRI: A dynamic effective brain connectivity study. Hum Brain Mapp 2024; 45:e26724. [PMID: 39001584 PMCID: PMC11245569 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.26724] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2023] [Revised: 05/06/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 07/16/2024] Open
Abstract
Music is ubiquitous, both in its instrumental and vocal forms. While speech perception at birth has been at the core of an extensive corpus of research, the origins of the ability to discriminate instrumental or vocal melodies is still not well investigated. In previous studies comparing vocal and musical perception, the vocal stimuli were mainly related to speaking, including language, and not to the non-language singing voice. In the present study, to better compare a melodic instrumental line with the voice, we used singing as a comparison stimulus, to reduce the dissimilarities between the two stimuli as much as possible, separating language perception from vocal musical perception. In the present study, 45 newborns were scanned, 10 full-term born infants and 35 preterm infants at term-equivalent age (mean gestational age at test = 40.17 weeks, SD = 0.44) using functional magnetic resonance imaging while listening to five melodies played by a musical instrument (flute) or sung by a female voice. To examine the dynamic task-based effective connectivity, we employed a psychophysiological interaction of co-activation patterns (PPI-CAPs) analysis, using the auditory cortices as seed region, to investigate moment-to-moment changes in task-driven modulation of cortical activity during an fMRI task. Our findings reveal condition-specific, dynamically occurring patterns of co-activation (PPI-CAPs). During the vocal condition, the auditory cortex co-activates with the sensorimotor and salience networks, while during the instrumental condition, it co-activates with the visual cortex and the superior frontal cortex. Our results show that the vocal stimulus elicits sensorimotor aspects of the auditory perception and is processed as a more salient stimulus while the instrumental condition activated higher-order cognitive and visuo-spatial networks. Common neural signatures for both auditory stimuli were found in the precuneus and posterior cingulate gyrus. Finally, this study adds knowledge on the dynamic brain connectivity underlying the newborns capability of early and specialized auditory processing, highlighting the relevance of dynamic approaches to study brain function in newborn populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serafeim Loukas
- Division of Development and Growth, Department of Pediatrics, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Institute of Bioengineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Manuela Filippa
- Division of Development and Growth, Department of Pediatrics, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Joana Sa de Almeida
- Division of Development and Growth, Department of Pediatrics, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Andrew S Boehringer
- Division of Development and Growth, Department of Pediatrics, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
- Lemanic Neuroscience Doctoral School, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Cristina Borradori Tolsa
- Division of Development and Growth, Department of Pediatrics, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Francisca Barcos-Munoz
- Division of Pediatric Intensive Care and Neonatology, Department of Women, Children and Adolescents, University Hospital of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Didier M Grandjean
- Swiss Center for Affective Sciences, Department of Psychology and Educational Sciences, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Dimitri van de Ville
- Institute of Bioengineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland
- Department of Radiology and Medical Informatics, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
| | - Petra S Hüppi
- Division of Development and Growth, Department of Pediatrics, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
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Franco F, Chifa M, Politimou N. Home Musical Activities Boost Premature Infants' Language Development. CHILDREN (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2024; 11:542. [PMID: 38790537 PMCID: PMC11120229 DOI: 10.3390/children11050542] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2023] [Revised: 03/21/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/26/2024]
Abstract
Infants born prematurely are considered at risk for language development delay and impairments. Using online parental reports, the present study investigated the influence of early musical experience in the home environment (Music@Home Infant Questionnaire) on language development (MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory) while controlling for general enrichment at home (Stim-Q Cognitive Home Environment Questionnaire) and perinatal post-traumatic stress disorder (Perinatal PTSD Questionnaire). Caregivers of 117 infants between 8 and 18 months of age (corrected age) without reported developmental difficulties completed an online survey. Results revealed that the musical home environment significantly predicted outcomes in reported infants' receptive vocabulary and gestural communication, independently from infants' corrected age and general enrichment of home activities. These findings constitute the first evidence that an enriched musical experience can enhance the development of early communication skills in a population at risk for language delays, namely infants born prematurely, opening the path for future intervention research in home and/or early childcare settings. Given that the majority of participants in this study were highly educated and from socioeconomically stable backgrounds, considerations regarding the generalizability of these results are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabia Franco
- Psychology Department, Faculty of Science and Technology, Middlesex University, London NW4 4BT, UK;
| | - Maria Chifa
- Psychology Department, Faculty of Science and Technology, Middlesex University, London NW4 4BT, UK;
| | - Nina Politimou
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, IOE Faculty of Education and Society, University College London, London WC1H 0AA, UK
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Alviar C, Sahoo M, Edwards L, Jones W, Klin A, Lense M. Infant-directed song potentiates infants' selective attention to adults' mouths over the first year of life. Dev Sci 2023; 26:e13359. [PMID: 36527322 PMCID: PMC10276172 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13359] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/18/2022] [Revised: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 12/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
The mechanisms by which infant-directed (ID) speech and song support language development in infancy are poorly understood, with most prior investigations focused on the auditory components of these signals. However, the visual components of ID communication are also of fundamental importance for language learning: over the first year of life, infants' visual attention to caregivers' faces during ID speech switches from a focus on the eyes to a focus on the mouth, which provides synchronous visual cues that support speech and language development. Caregivers' facial displays during ID song are highly effective for sustaining infants' attention. Here we investigate if ID song specifically enhances infants' attention to caregivers' mouths. 299 typically developing infants watched clips of female actors engaging them with ID song and speech longitudinally at six time points from 3 to 12 months of age while eye-tracking data was collected. Infants' mouth-looking significantly increased over the first year of life with a significantly greater increase during ID song versus speech. This difference was early-emerging (evident in the first 6 months of age) and sustained over the first year. Follow-up analyses indicated specific properties inherent to ID song (e.g., slower tempo, reduced rhythmic variability) in part contribute to infants' increased mouth-looking, with effects increasing with age. The exaggerated and expressive facial features that naturally accompany ID song may make it a particularly effective context for modulating infants' visual attention and supporting speech and language development in both typically developing infants and those with or at risk for communication challenges. A video abstract of this article can be viewed at https://youtu.be/SZ8xQW8h93A. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Infants' visual attention to adults' mouths during infant-directed speech has been found to support speech and language development. Infant-directed (ID) song promotes mouth-looking by infants to a greater extent than does ID speech across the first year of life. Features characteristic of ID song such as slower tempo, increased rhythmicity, increased audiovisual synchrony, and increased positive affect, all increase infants' attention to the mouth. The effects of song on infants' attention to the mouth are more prominent during the second half of the first year of life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camila Alviar
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Manash Sahoo
- Marcus Autism Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Laura Edwards
- Marcus Autism Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Warren Jones
- Marcus Autism Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Ami Klin
- Marcus Autism Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Miriam Lense
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
- Vanderbilt Kennedy Center, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN, USA
- The Curb Center for Art, Enterprise, and Public Policy, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
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Franco F, Suttora C, Spinelli M, Kozar I, Fasolo M. Singing to infants matters: Early singing interactions affect musical preferences and facilitate vocabulary building. JOURNAL OF CHILD LANGUAGE 2022; 49:552-577. [PMID: 33908341 DOI: 10.1017/s0305000921000167] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
This research revealed that the frequency of reported parent-infant singing interactions predicted 6-month-old infants' performance in laboratory music experiments and mediated their language development in the second year. At 6 months, infants (n = 36) were tested using a preferential listening procedure assessing their sustained attention to instrumental and sung versions of the same novel tunes whilst the parents completed an ad-hoc questionnaire assessing home musical interactions with their infants. Language development was assessed with a follow-up when the infants were 14-month-old (n = 26). The main results showed that 6-month-olds preferred listening to sung rather than instrumental melodies, and that self-reported high levels of parental singing with their infants [i] were associated with less pronounced preference for the sung over the instrumental version of the tunes at 6 months, and [ii] predicted significant advantages on the language outcomes in the second year. The results are interpreted in relation to conceptions of developmental plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabia Franco
- Department of Psychology, Middlesex University, London, UK
| | - Chiara Suttora
- Department of Psychology, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - Maria Spinelli
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Science, University G. d'Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
| | - Iryna Kozar
- Department of Psychology, University of Milan-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Mirco Fasolo
- Department of Neuroscience, Imaging and Clinical Science, University G. d'Annunzio Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy
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Papadimitriou A, Smyth C, Politimou N, Franco F, Stewart L. The impact of the home musical environment on infants' language development. Infant Behav Dev 2021; 65:101651. [PMID: 34784522 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2021.101651] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/30/2020] [Revised: 09/16/2021] [Accepted: 09/30/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
There is strong evidence that musical engagement influences children's language development but little research has been carried out on the relationship between the home musical environment and language development in infancy. The current study assessed musical exposure at home (including parental singing) and language development in 64 infants (8.5-18 months). Results showed that the home musical environment significantly predicted gesture development. For a subgroup of infants' below 12 months, both parental singing and overall home musical environment score significantly predicted word comprehension. These findings represent the first demonstration that an enriched musical environment in infancy can promote development of communication skills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aspasia Papadimitriou
- Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths University of London, 8 Lewisham Way, New Cross, London, SE14 6NW, United Kingdom
| | - Catherine Smyth
- Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths University of London, 8 Lewisham Way, New Cross, London, SE14 6NW, United Kingdom
| | - Nina Politimou
- Department of Psychology and Human Development, UCL Institute of Education, 20 Bedford Way, London, WC1H 0AL, United Kingdom.
| | - Fabia Franco
- Department of Psychology, Middlesex University London, The Burroughs, Hendon, London, NW4 4BT, United Kingdom
| | - Lauren Stewart
- Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths University of London, 8 Lewisham Way, New Cross, London, SE14 6NW, United Kingdom
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