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Kausel L, Michon M, Soto-Icaza P, Aboitiz F. A multimodal interface for speech perception: the role of the left superior temporal sulcus in social cognition and autism. Cereb Cortex 2024; 34:84-93. [PMID: 38696598 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhae066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Revised: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 02/03/2024] [Indexed: 05/04/2024] Open
Abstract
Multimodal integration is crucial for human interaction, in particular for social communication, which relies on integrating information from various sensory modalities. Recently a third visual pathway specialized in social perception was proposed, which includes the right superior temporal sulcus (STS) playing a key role in processing socially relevant cues and high-level social perception. Importantly, it has also recently been proposed that the left STS contributes to audiovisual integration of speech processing. In this article, we propose that brain areas along the right STS that support multimodal integration for social perception and cognition can be considered homologs to those in the left, language-dominant hemisphere, sustaining multimodal integration of speech and semantic concepts fundamental for social communication. Emphasizing the significance of the left STS in multimodal integration and associated processes such as multimodal attention to socially relevant stimuli, we underscore its potential relevance in comprehending neurodevelopmental conditions characterized by challenges in social communication such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Further research into this left lateral processing stream holds the promise of enhancing our understanding of social communication in both typical development and ASD, which may lead to more effective interventions that could improve the quality of life for individuals with atypical neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonie Kausel
- Centro de Estudios en Neurociencia Humana y Neuropsicología (CENHN), Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Diego Portales, Chile, Vergara 275, 8370076 Santiago, Chile
| | - Maëva Michon
- Praxiling Laboratory, Joint Research Unit (UMR 5267), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul Valéry, Montpellier, France, Route de Mende, 34199 Montpellier cedex 5, France
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile, Marcoleta 391, 2do piso, 8330024 Santiago, Chile
- Laboratorio de Neurociencia Cognitiva y Evolutiva, Facultad de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile, Marcoleta 391, 2do piso, 8330024 Santiago, Chile
| | - Patricia Soto-Icaza
- Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social (CICS), Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Chile, Av. Las Condes 12461, edificio 3, piso 3, 7590943, Las Condes Santiago, Chile
| | - Francisco Aboitiz
- Centro Interdisciplinario de Neurociencia, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile, Marcoleta 391, 2do piso, 8330024 Santiago, Chile
- Laboratorio de Neurociencia Cognitiva y Evolutiva, Facultad de Medicina, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Chile, Marcoleta 391, 2do piso, 8330024 Santiago, Chile
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2
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Oesch N. Social Brain Perspectives on the Social and Evolutionary Neuroscience of Human Language. Brain Sci 2024; 14:166. [PMID: 38391740 PMCID: PMC10886718 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci14020166] [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: 01/16/2024] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/03/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024] Open
Abstract
Human language and social cognition are two key disciplines that have traditionally been studied as separate domains. Nonetheless, an emerging view suggests an alternative perspective. Drawing on the theoretical underpinnings of the social brain hypothesis (thesis of the evolution of brain size and intelligence), the social complexity hypothesis (thesis of the evolution of communication), and empirical research from comparative animal behavior, human social behavior, language acquisition in children, social cognitive neuroscience, and the cognitive neuroscience of language, it is argued that social cognition and language are two significantly interconnected capacities of the human species. Here, evidence in support of this view reviews (1) recent developmental studies on language learning in infants and young children, pointing to the important crucial benefits associated with social stimulation for youngsters, including the quality and quantity of incoming linguistic information, dyadic infant/child-to-parent non-verbal and verbal interactions, and other important social cues integral for facilitating language learning and social bonding; (2) studies of the adult human brain, suggesting a high degree of specialization for sociolinguistic information processing, memory retrieval, and comprehension, suggesting that the function of these neural areas may connect social cognition with language and social bonding; (3) developmental deficits in language and social cognition, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), illustrating a unique developmental profile, further linking language, social cognition, and social bonding; and (4) neural biomarkers that may help to identify early developmental disorders of language and social cognition. In effect, the social brain and social complexity hypotheses may jointly help to describe how neurotypical children and adults acquire language, why autistic children and adults exhibit simultaneous deficits in language and social cognition, and why nonhuman primates and other organisms with significant computational capacities cannot learn language. But perhaps most critically, the following article argues that this and related research will allow scientists to generate a holistic profile and deeper understanding of the healthy adult social brain while developing more innovative and effective diagnoses, prognoses, and treatments for maladies and deficits also associated with the social brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan Oesch
- Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, ON L5L 1C6, Canada
- Department of Psychology, University of Toronto Mississauga, Mississauga, ON L5L 1C6, Canada
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3
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Schwartz E, Nenning KH, Heuer K, Jeffery N, Bertrand OC, Toro R, Kasprian G, Prayer D, Langs G. Evolution of cortical geometry and its link to function, behaviour and ecology. Nat Commun 2023; 14:2252. [PMID: 37080952 PMCID: PMC10119184 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-37574-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2022] [Accepted: 03/22/2023] [Indexed: 04/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Studies in comparative neuroanatomy and of the fossil record demonstrate the influence of socio-ecological niches on the morphology of the cerebral cortex, but have led to oftentimes conflicting theories about its evolution. Here, we study the relationship between the shape of the cerebral cortex and the topography of its function. We establish a joint geometric representation of the cerebral cortices of ninety species of extant Euarchontoglires, including commonly used experimental model organisms. We show that variability in surface geometry relates to species' ecology and behaviour, independent of overall brain size. Notably, ancestral shape reconstruction of the cortical surface and its change during evolution enables us to trace the evolutionary history of localised cortical expansions, modal segregation of brain function, and their association to behaviour and cognition. We find that individual cortical regions follow different sequences of area increase during evolutionary adaptations to dynamic socio-ecological niches. Anatomical correlates of this sequence of events are still observable in extant species, and relate to their current behaviour and ecology. We decompose the deep evolutionary history of the shape of the human cortical surface into spatially and temporally conscribed components with highly interpretable functional associations, highlighting the importance of considering the evolutionary history of cortical regions when studying their anatomy and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ernst Schwartz
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Computational Imaging Research Lab, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Karl-Heinz Nenning
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Computational Imaging Research Lab, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
- Center for Biomedical Imaging and Neuromodulation, Nathan Kline Institute, Orangeburg, NY, USA
| | - Katja Heuer
- Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Unité de Neuroanatomie Appliquée et Théorique, F-75015, Paris, France
| | - Nathan Jeffery
- Institute of Life Course & Medical Sciences, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, England
| | - Ornella C Bertrand
- Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona Edifici ICTA-ICP, c/ Columnes s/n, Campus de la UAB, 08193 Cerdanyola del Vallès., Barcelona, Spain
- School of GeoSciences, University of Edinburgh, Grant Institute, Edinburgh, Scotland, EH9 3FE, United Kingdom
| | - Roberto Toro
- Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, Unité de Neuroanatomie Appliquée et Théorique, F-75015, Paris, France
| | - Gregor Kasprian
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Computational Imaging Research Lab, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Daniela Prayer
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Computational Imaging Research Lab, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Georg Langs
- Department of Biomedical Imaging and Image-guided Therapy, Computational Imaging Research Lab, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
- Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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4
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Zamorano-Abramson J, Michon M, Hernández-Lloreda MV, Aboitiz F. Multimodal imitative learning and synchrony in cetaceans: A model for speech and singing evolution. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1061381. [PMID: 37138983 PMCID: PMC10150787 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1061381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2022] [Accepted: 02/13/2023] [Indexed: 05/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Multimodal imitation of actions, gestures and vocal production is a hallmark of the evolution of human communication, as both, vocal learning and visual-gestural imitation, were crucial factors that facilitated the evolution of speech and singing. Comparative evidence has revealed that humans are an odd case in this respect, as the case for multimodal imitation is barely documented in non-human animals. While there is evidence of vocal learning in birds and in mammals like bats, elephants and marine mammals, evidence in both domains, vocal and gestural, exists for two Psittacine birds (budgerigars and grey parrots) and cetaceans only. Moreover, it draws attention to the apparent absence of vocal imitation (with just a few cases reported for vocal fold control in an orangutan and a gorilla and a prolonged development of vocal plasticity in marmosets) and even for imitation of intransitive actions (not object related) in monkeys and apes in the wild. Even after training, the evidence for productive or "true imitation" (copy of a novel behavior, i.e., not pre-existent in the observer's behavioral repertoire) in both domains is scarce. Here we review the evidence of multimodal imitation in cetaceans, one of the few living mammalian species that have been reported to display multimodal imitative learning besides humans, and their role in sociality, communication and group cultures. We propose that cetacean multimodal imitation was acquired in parallel with the evolution and development of behavioral synchrony and multimodal organization of sensorimotor information, supporting volitional motor control of their vocal system and audio-echoic-visual voices, body posture and movement integration.
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Affiliation(s)
- José Zamorano-Abramson
- Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social, Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
- Grupo UCM de Psicobiología Social, Evolutiva y Comparada, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- *Correspondence: José Zamorano-Abramson,
| | - Maëva Michon
- Centro de Estudios en Neurociencia Humana y Neuropsicología, Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Diego Portales, Santiago, Chile
- Laboratory for Cognitive and Evolutionary Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Interdisciplinary Center for Neuroscience, Pontificia Universidad Católica de, Santiago, Chile
- Maëva Michon,
| | - Ma Victoria Hernández-Lloreda
- Grupo UCM de Psicobiología Social, Evolutiva y Comparada, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
- Departamento de Psicobiología y Metodología de las Ciencias del Comportamiento, Facultad de Psicología, Campus de Somosaguas, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Francisco Aboitiz
- Laboratory for Cognitive and Evolutionary Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Interdisciplinary Center for Neuroscience, Pontificia Universidad Católica de, Santiago, Chile
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Miyagawa S, Arévalo A, Nóbrega VA. On the representation of hierarchical structure: Revisiting Darwin's musical protolanguage. Front Hum Neurosci 2022; 16:1018708. [PMID: 36438635 PMCID: PMC9692108 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.1018708] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In this article, we address the tenability of Darwin's musical protolanguage, arguing that a more compelling evolutionary scenario is one where a prosodic protolanguage is taken to be the preliminary step to represent the hierarchy involved in linguistic structures within a linear auditory signal. We hypothesize that the establishment of a prosodic protolanguage results from an enhancement of a rhythmic system that transformed linear signals into speech prosody, which in turn can mark syntactic hierarchical relations. To develop this claim, we explore the role of prosodic cues on the parsing of syntactic structures, as well as neuroscientific evidence connecting the evolutionary development of music and linguistic capacities. Finally, we entertain the assumption that the capacity to generate hierarchical structure might have developed as part of tool-making in human prehistory, and hence was established prior to the enhancement of a prosodic protolinguistic system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shigeru Miyagawa
- Department of Linguistics and Philosophy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, United States
- Institute of Biosciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Analía Arévalo
- School of Medicine, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Vitor A. Nóbrega
- Institute of Romance Studies, University of Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
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6
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Kaczanowska J, Ganglberger F, Chernomor O, Kargl D, Galik B, Hess A, Moodley Y, von Haeseler A, Bühler K, Haubensak W. Molecular archaeology of human cognitive traits. Cell Rep 2022; 40:111287. [PMID: 36044840 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.111287] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/24/2019] [Revised: 05/20/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The brains and minds of our human ancestors remain inaccessible for experimental exploration. Therefore, we reconstructed human cognitive evolution by projecting nonsynonymous/synonymous rate ratios (ω values) in mammalian phylogeny onto the anatomically modern human (AMH) brain. This atlas retraces human neurogenetic selection and allows imputation of ancestral evolution in task-related functional networks (FNs). Adaptive evolution (high ω values) is associated with excitatory neurons and synaptic function. It shifted from FNs for motor control in anthropoid ancestry (60-41 mya) to attention in ancient hominoids (26-19 mya) and hominids (19-7.4 mya). Selection in FNs for language emerged with an early hominin ancestor (7.4-1.7 mya) and was later accompanied by adaptive evolution in FNs for strategic thinking during recent (0.8 mya-present) speciation of AMHs. This pattern mirrors increasingly complex cognitive demands and suggests that co-selection for language alongside strategic thinking may have separated AMHs from their archaic Denisovan and Neanderthal relatives.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Kaczanowska
- Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Campus-Vienna-Biocenter 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | | | - Olga Chernomor
- Center for Integrative Bioinformatics Vienna (CIBIV), Max Perutz Labs, University of Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, Dr. Bohr Gasse 9, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Dominic Kargl
- Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Campus-Vienna-Biocenter 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria; Department of Neuronal Cell Biology, Center for Brain Research, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Bence Galik
- Bioinformatics and Scientific Computing, Vienna Biocenter Core Facilities (VBCF), Dr. Bohr Gasse 3, 1030 Vienna, Austria
| | - Andreas Hess
- Institute of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Toxicology, Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Fahrstrasse 17, 91054 Erlangen, Germany
| | - Yoshan Moodley
- Department of Zoology, University of Venda, Private Bag X5050, Thohoyandou, Republic of South Africa
| | - Arndt von Haeseler
- Center for Integrative Bioinformatics Vienna (CIBIV), Max Perutz Labs, University of Vienna, Medical University of Vienna, Dr. Bohr Gasse 9, 1030 Vienna, Austria; Faculty of Computer Science, University of Vienna, Währinger Str. 29, 1090 Vienna, Austria
| | - Katja Bühler
- VRVis Research Center, Donau-City Strasse 11, 1220 Vienna, Austria
| | - Wulf Haubensak
- Research Institute of Molecular Pathology (IMP), Vienna Biocenter (VBC), Campus-Vienna-Biocenter 1, 1030 Vienna, Austria; Department of Neuronal Cell Biology, Center for Brain Research, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria.
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7
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Johansson C, Folgerø PO. Is Reduced Visual Processing the Price of Language? Brain Sci 2022; 12:brainsci12060771. [PMID: 35741656 PMCID: PMC9221435 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12060771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2022] [Revised: 06/06/2022] [Accepted: 06/08/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
We suggest a later timeline for full language capabilities in Homo sapiens, placing the emergence of language over 200,000 years after the emergence of our species. The late Paleolithic period saw several significant changes. Homo sapiens became more gracile and gradually lost significant brain volumes. Detailed realistic cave paintings disappeared completely, and iconic/symbolic ones appeared at other sites. This may indicate a shift in perceptual abilities, away from an accurate perception of the present. Language in modern humans interact with vision. One example is the McGurk effect. Studies show that artistic abilities may improve when language-related brain areas are damaged or temporarily knocked out. Language relies on many pre-existing non-linguistic functions. We suggest that an overwhelming flow of perceptual information, vision, in particular, was an obstacle to language, as is sometimes implied in autism with relative language impairment. We systematically review the recent research literature investigating the relationship between language and perception. We see homologues of language-relevant brain functions predating language. Recent findings show brain lateralization for communicative gestures in other primates without language, supporting the idea that a language-ready brain may be overwhelmed by raw perception, thus blocking overt language from evolving. We find support in converging evidence for a change in neural organization away from raw perception, thus pushing the emergence of language closer in time. A recent origin of language makes it possible to investigate the genetic origins of language.
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8
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Michon M, Zamorano-Abramson J, Aboitiz F. Faces and Voices Processing in Human and Primate Brains: Rhythmic and Multimodal Mechanisms Underlying the Evolution and Development of Speech. Front Psychol 2022; 13:829083. [PMID: 35432052 PMCID: PMC9007199 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.829083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
While influential works since the 1970s have widely assumed that imitation is an innate skill in both human and non-human primate neonates, recent empirical studies and meta-analyses have challenged this view, indicating other forms of reward-based learning as relevant factors in the development of social behavior. The visual input translation into matching motor output that underlies imitation abilities instead seems to develop along with social interactions and sensorimotor experience during infancy and childhood. Recently, a new visual stream has been identified in both human and non-human primate brains, updating the dual visual stream model. This third pathway is thought to be specialized for dynamics aspects of social perceptions such as eye-gaze, facial expression and crucially for audio-visual integration of speech. Here, we review empirical studies addressing an understudied but crucial aspect of speech and communication, namely the processing of visual orofacial cues (i.e., the perception of a speaker's lips and tongue movements) and its integration with vocal auditory cues. Along this review, we offer new insights from our understanding of speech as the product of evolution and development of a rhythmic and multimodal organization of sensorimotor brain networks, supporting volitional motor control of the upper vocal tract and audio-visual voices-faces integration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maëva Michon
- Laboratory for Cognitive and Evolutionary Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Interdisciplinary Center for Neuroscience, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Centro de Estudios en Neurociencia Humana y Neuropsicología, Facultad de Psicología, Universidad Diego Portales, Santiago, Chile
| | - José Zamorano-Abramson
- Centro de Investigación en Complejidad Social, Facultad de Gobierno, Universidad del Desarrollo, Santiago, Chile
| | - Francisco Aboitiz
- Laboratory for Cognitive and Evolutionary Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Interdisciplinary Center for Neuroscience, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
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9
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Mollon JD, Takahashi C, Danilova MV. What kind of network is the brain? Trends Cogn Sci 2022; 26:312-324. [PMID: 35216895 DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2022.01.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2021] [Revised: 01/23/2022] [Accepted: 01/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
The different areas of the cerebral cortex are linked by a network of white matter, comprising the myelinated axons of pyramidal cells. Is this network a neural net, in the sense that representations of the world are embodied in the structure of the net, its pattern of nodes, and connections? Or is it a communications network, where the same physical substrate carries different information from moment to moment? This question is part of the larger question of whether the brain is better modeled by connectionism or by symbolic artificial intelligence (AI), but we review it in the specific context of the psychophysics of stimulus comparison and the format and protocol of information transmission over the long-range tracts of the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- John D Mollon
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK; I.P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, St. Petersburg, Russia.
| | - Chie Takahashi
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Marina V Danilova
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, UK; I.P. Pavlov Institute of Physiology, St. Petersburg, Russia
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10
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Iwasaki SI, Yoshimura K, Asami T, Erdoğan S. Comparative morphology and physiology of the vocal production apparatus and the brain in the extant primates. Ann Anat 2022; 240:151887. [PMID: 35032565 DOI: 10.1016/j.aanat.2022.151887] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Revised: 12/26/2021] [Accepted: 12/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Objective data mainly from the comparative anatomy of various organs related to human speech and language is considered to unearth clues about the mechanisms behind language development. The two organs of the larynx and hyoid bone are considered to have evolved towards suitable positions and forms in preparation for the occurrence of the large repertoire of vocalization necessary for human speech. However, some researchers have asserted that there is no significant difference of these organs between humans and non-human primates. Speech production is dependent on the voluntary control of the respiratory, laryngeal, and vocal tract musculature. Such control is fully present in humans but only partially so in non-human primates, which appear to be able to voluntarily control only supralaryngeal articulators. Both humans and non-human primates have direct cortical innervation of motor neurons controlling the supralaryngeal vocal tract but only human appear to have direct cortical innervation of motor neurons controlling the larynx. In this review, we investigate the comparative morphology and function of the wide range of components involved in vocal production, including the larynx, the hyoid bone, the tongue, and the vocal brain. We would like to emphasize the importance of the tongue in the primary development of human speech and language. It is now time to reconsider the possibility of the tongue playing a definitive role in the emergence of human speech.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shin-Ichi Iwasaki
- Faculty of Health Science, Gunma PAZ University, Takasaki, Japan; The Nippon Dental University, Tokyo and Niigata, Japan
| | - Ken Yoshimura
- Department of Anatomy, The Nippon Dental University School of Life Dentistry at Niigata, Niigata, Japan
| | - Tomoichiro Asami
- Faculty of Rehabilitation, Gunma Paz University, Takasaki, Japan
| | - Serkan Erdoğan
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Tekirdağ Namık Kemal University, Tekirdağ, Turkey.
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11
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Becker Y, Loh KK, Coulon O, Meguerditchian A. The Arcuate Fasciculus and language origins: Disentangling existing conceptions that influence evolutionary accounts. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 134:104490. [PMID: 34914937 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2021] [Revised: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 12/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The Arcuate Fasciculus (AF) is of considerable interdisciplinary interest, because of its major implication in language processing. Theories about language brain evolution are based on anatomical differences in the AF across primates. However, changing methodologies and nomenclatures have resulted in conflicting findings regarding interspecies AF differences: Historical knowledge about the AF originated from human blunt dissections and later from monkey tract-tracing studies. Contemporary tractography studies reinvestigate the fasciculus' morphology, but remain heavily bound to unclear anatomical priors and methodological limitations. First, we aim to disentangle the influences of these three epistemological steps on existing AF conceptions, and to propose a contemporary model to guide future work. Second, considering the influence of various AF conceptions, we discuss four key evolutionary changes that propagated current views about language evolution: 1) frontal terminations, 2) temporal terminations, 3) greater Dorsal- versus Ventral Pathway expansion, 4) lateralisation. We conclude that new data point towards a more shared AF anatomy across primates than previously described. Language evolution theories should incorporate this continuous AF evolution across primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yannick Becker
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7290, Marseille, France; Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7289, Marseille, France.
| | - Kep Kee Loh
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7290, Marseille, France; Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7289, Marseille, France; Institute for Language, Communication, and the Brain, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France
| | - Olivier Coulon
- Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7289, Marseille, France; Institute for Language, Communication, and the Brain, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France
| | - Adrien Meguerditchian
- Laboratoire de Psychologie Cognitive, Aix-Marseille Univ, CNRS UMR 7290, Marseille, France; Institute for Language, Communication, and the Brain, Aix-Marseille Univ, Marseille, France; Station de Primatologie CNRS, Rousset, France
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12
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Mamashli F, Khan S, Hämäläinen M, Jas M, Raij T, Stufflebeam SM, Nummenmaa A, Ahveninen J. Synchronization patterns reveal neuronal coding of working memory content. Cell Rep 2021; 36:109566. [PMID: 34433024 PMCID: PMC8428113 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109566] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2020] [Revised: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Neuronal oscillations are suggested to play an important role in auditory working memory (WM), but their contribution to content-specific representations has remained unclear. Here, we measure magnetoencephalography during a retro-cueing task with parametric ripple-sound stimuli, which are spectrotemporally similar to speech but resist non-auditory memory strategies. Using machine learning analyses, with rigorous between-subject cross-validation and non-parametric permutation testing, we show that memorized sound content is strongly represented in phase-synchronization patterns between subregions of auditory and frontoparietal cortices. These phase-synchronization patterns predict the memorized sound content steadily across the studied maintenance period. In addition to connectivity-based representations, there are indices of more local, “activity silent” representations in auditory cortices, where the decoding accuracy of WM content significantly increases after task-irrelevant “impulse stimuli.” Our results demonstrate that synchronization patterns across auditory sensory and association areas orchestrate neuronal coding of auditory WM content. This connectivity-based coding scheme could also extend beyond the auditory domain. Mamashli et al. use machine learning analyses of human magnetoencephalography (MEG) recordings to study “working memory,” maintenance of information in mind over brief periods of time. Their results show that the human brain maintains working memory content in transient functional connectivity patterns across sensory and association areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fahimeh Mamashli
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bldg. 149 13(th) Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Sheraz Khan
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bldg. 149 13(th) Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Matti Hämäläinen
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bldg. 149 13(th) Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Mainak Jas
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bldg. 149 13(th) Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Tommi Raij
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bldg. 149 13(th) Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA; Departments of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Neurobiology, Northwestern University, 710 North Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60611, USA
| | - Steven M Stufflebeam
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bldg. 149 13(th) Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Aapo Nummenmaa
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bldg. 149 13(th) Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Jyrki Ahveninen
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Bldg. 149 13(th) Street, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA; Department of Radiology, Harvard Medical School, 25 Shattuck Street, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
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13
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Asano R. The evolution of hierarchical structure building capacity for language and music: a bottom-up perspective. Primates 2021; 63:417-428. [PMID: 33839984 PMCID: PMC9463250 DOI: 10.1007/s10329-021-00905-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2020] [Accepted: 03/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
A central property of human language is its hierarchical structure. Humans can flexibly combine elements to build a hierarchical structure expressing rich semantics. A hierarchical structure is also considered as playing a key role in many other human cognitive domains. In music, auditory-motor events are combined into hierarchical pitch and/or rhythm structure expressing affect. How did such a hierarchical structure building capacity evolve? This paper investigates this question from a bottom-up perspective based on a set of action-related components as a shared basis underlying cognitive capacities of nonhuman primates and humans. Especially, I argue that the evolution of hierarchical structure building capacity for language and music is tractable for comparative evolutionary study once we focus on the gradual elaboration of shared brain architecture: the cortico-basal ganglia-thalamocortical circuits for hierarchical control of goal-directed action and the dorsal pathways for hierarchical internal models. I suggest that this gradual elaboration of the action-related brain architecture in the context of vocal control and tool-making went hand in hand with amplification of working memory, and made the brain ready for hierarchical structure building in language and music.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rie Asano
- Systematic Musicology, Institute of Musicology, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany.
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Ren J, Xu T, Wang D, Li M, Lin Y, Schoeppe F, Ramirez JSB, Han Y, Luan G, Li L, Liu H, Ahveninen J. Individual Variability in Functional Organization of the Human and Monkey Auditory Cortex. Cereb Cortex 2020; 31:2450-2465. [PMID: 33350445 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhaa366] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2020] [Revised: 11/01/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Accumulating evidence shows that auditory cortex (AC) of humans, and other primates, is involved in more complex cognitive processes than feature segregation only, which are shaped by experience-dependent plasticity and thus likely show substantial individual variability. However, thus far, individual variability of ACs has been considered a methodological impediment rather than a phenomenon of theoretical importance. Here, we examined the variability of ACs using intrinsic functional connectivity patterns in humans and macaques. Our results demonstrate that in humans, interindividual variability is greater near the nonprimary than primary ACs, indicating that variability dramatically increases across the processing hierarchy. ACs are also more variable than comparable visual areas and show higher variability in the left than in the right hemisphere, which may be related to the left lateralization of auditory-related functions such as language. Intriguingly, remarkably similar modality differences and lateralization of variability were also observed in macaques. These connectivity-based findings are consistent with a confirmatory task-based functional magnetic resonance imaging analysis. The quantification of variability in auditory function, and the similar findings in both humans and macaques, will have strong implications for understanding the evolution of advanced auditory functions in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianxun Ren
- National Engineering Laboratory for Neuromodulation, School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China.,Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Ting Xu
- Center for the Developing Brain, Child Mind Institute, New York, NY 10022, USA
| | - Danhong Wang
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Meiling Li
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Yuanxiang Lin
- Department of Neurosurgery, First Affiliated Hospital, Fujian Medical University, 350108 Fuzhou, China
| | - Franziska Schoeppe
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
| | - Julian S B Ramirez
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | - Ying Han
- Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, 100053 Beijing, China
| | - Guoming Luan
- Department of Neurosurgery, Comprehensive Epilepsy Center, Sanbo Brain Hospital, Capital Medical University, 100093 Beijing, China
| | - Luming Li
- National Engineering Laboratory for Neuromodulation, School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China.,Precision Medicine & Healthcare Research Center, Tsinghua-Berkeley Shenzhen Institute, Tsinghua University, 518055 Shenzhen, China.,IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Hesheng Liu
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA.,Department of Neuroscience, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 29425, USA
| | - Jyrki Ahveninen
- Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Charlestown, MA 02129, USA
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15
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Argolo F, Magnavita G, Mota NB, Ziebold C, Mabunda D, Pan PM, Zugman A, Gadelha A, Corcoran C, Bressan RA. Lowering costs for large-scale screening in psychosis: a systematic review and meta-analysis of performance and value of information for speech-based psychiatric evaluation. REVISTA BRASILEIRA DE PSIQUIATRIA (SAO PAULO, BRAZIL : 1999) 2020; 42:673-686. [PMID: 32321060 PMCID: PMC7678898 DOI: 10.1590/1516-4446-2019-0722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2019] [Accepted: 01/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Obstacles for computational tools in psychiatry include gathering robust evidence and keeping implementation costs reasonable. We report a systematic review of automated speech evaluation for the psychosis spectrum and analyze the value of information for a screening program in a healthcare system with a limited number of psychiatrists (Maputo, Mozambique). METHODS Original studies on speech analysis for forecasting of conversion in individuals at clinical high risk (CHR) for psychosis, diagnosis of manifested psychotic disorder, and first-episode psychosis (FEP) were included in this review. Studies addressing non-verbal components of speech (e.g., pitch, tone) were excluded. RESULTS Of 168 works identified, 28 original studies were included. Valuable speech features included direct measures (e.g., relative word counting) and mathematical embeddings (e.g.: word-to-vector, graphs). Accuracy estimates reported for schizophrenia diagnosis and CHR conversion ranged from 71 to 100% across studies. Studies used structured interviews, directed tasks, or prompted free speech. Directed-task protocols were faster while seemingly maintaining performance. The expected value of perfect information is USD 9.34 million. Imperfect tests would nevertheless yield high value. CONCLUSION Accuracy for screening and diagnosis was high. Larger studies are needed to enhance precision of classificatory estimates. Automated analysis presents itself as a feasible, low-cost method which should be especially useful for regions in which the physician pool is insufficient to meet demand.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felipe Argolo
- Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
- King’s College London, London, UK
| | | | - Natalia Bezerra Mota
- Brain Institute, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Natal, RN, Brazil
- Departamento de Física, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco (UFPE), Recife, PE, Brazil
| | | | - Dirceu Mabunda
- Faculdade de Medicina, Universidade Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique
| | - Pedro M. Pan
- Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - André Zugman
- National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Ary Gadelha
- Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
| | - Cheryl Corcoran
- Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
- Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC VISN2), New York, NY, USA
| | - Rodrigo A. Bressan
- Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil
- King’s College London, London, UK
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Gowen CL, Khwaounjoo P, Cakmak YO. EMG-Free Monitorization of the Acoustic Startle Reflex with a Mobile Phone: Implications of Sound Parameters with Posture Related Responses. SENSORS 2020; 20:s20215996. [PMID: 33105890 PMCID: PMC7660167 DOI: 10.3390/s20215996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2020] [Revised: 10/14/2020] [Accepted: 10/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
(1) Background: Acute acoustic (sound) stimulus prompts a state of defensive motivation in which unconscious muscle responses are markedly enhanced in humans. The orbicularis oculi (OO) of the eye is an easily accessed muscle common for acoustic startle reaction/response/reflex (ASR) investigations and is the muscle of interest in this study. Although the ASR can provide insights about numerous clinical conditions, existing methodologies (Electromyogram, EMG) limit the usability of the method in real clinical conditions. (2) Objective: With EMG-free muscle recording in mind, our primary aim was to identify and investigate potential correlations in the responses of individual and cooperative OO muscles to various acoustic stimuli using a mobile and wire-free system. Our secondary aim was to investigate potential altered responses to high and also relatively low intensity acoustics at different frequencies in both sitting and standing positions through the use of biaural sound induction and video diagnostic techniques and software. (3) Methods: This study used a mobile-phone acoustic startle response monitoring system application to collect blink amplitude and velocity data on healthy males, aged 18–28 community cohorts during (n = 30) in both sitting and standing postures. The iPhone X application delivers specific sound parameters and detects blinking responses to acoustic stimulus (in millisecond resolution) to study the responses of the blinking reflex to acoustic sounds in standing and sitting positions by using multiple acoustic test sets of different frequencies and amplitudes introduced as acute sound stimuli (<0.5 s). The single acoustic battery of 15 pure-square wave sounds consisted of frequencies and amplitudes between 500, 1000, 2000, 3000, and 4000 Hz scales using 65, 90, and 105 dB (e.g., 3000 Hz_90 dB). (4) Results: Results show that there was a synchronization of amplitude and velocity between both eyes to all acoustic startles. Significant differences (p = 0.01) in blinking reaction time between sitting vs. standing at the high intensity (105 dB) 500 Hz acoustic test set was discovered. Interestingly, a highly significant difference (p < 0.001) in response times between test sets 500 Hz_105 dB and 4000 Hz_105 dB was identified. (5) Conclusions: To our knowledge, this is the first mobile phone-based acoustic battery used to detect and report significant ASR responses to specific frequencies and amplitudes of sound stimulus with corresponding sitting and standing conditions. The results from this experiment indicate the potential significance of using the specific frequency, amplitude, and postural conditions (as never before identified) which can open new horizons for ASR to be used for diagnosis and monitoring in numerous clinical and remote or isolated conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher L. Gowen
- Department of Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University Of Otago, Po Box 56, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand; (C.L.G.); (P.K.)
| | - Prashanna Khwaounjoo
- Department of Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University Of Otago, Po Box 56, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand; (C.L.G.); (P.K.)
- Medtech Core, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
| | - Yusuf O. Cakmak
- Department of Anatomy, School of Biomedical Sciences, University Of Otago, Po Box 56, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand; (C.L.G.); (P.K.)
- Medtech Core, Auckland 1010, New Zealand
- Brain Health Research Centre, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand
- Centre for Health Systems and Technology, Dunedin 9054, New Zealand
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +64-03-479-4030
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17
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Deschamps I, Courson M, Dick AS, Tremblay P. The phonological loop: is speech special? Exp Brain Res 2020; 238:2307-2321. [PMID: 32734355 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-020-05886-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2020] [Accepted: 07/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
It has been proposed that the maintenance of phonological information in verbal working memory (vWM) is carried by a domain-specific short-term storage center-the phonological loop-which is composed of a phonological store and an articulatory rehearsal system. Several brain regions including the left posterior inferior frontal gyrus (pIFG) and anterior supramarginal gyri (aSMG) are thought to support these processes. However, recent behavioral evidence suggests that verbal and non-verbal auditory information may be processed as part of a unique domain general short-term storage center instead of through specialized subsystems such as the phonological loop. In the current study, we used a single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)-delayed priming paradigm with speech (syllables) and acoustically complex non-speech sounds (bird songs) to examine whether the pIFG and aSMG are involved in the processing of verbal information or, alternatively, in the processing of any complex auditory information. Our results demonstrate that TMS delivered to both regions had an effect on performance for speech and non-speech stimuli, but the nature of the effect was different. That is, priming was reduced for the speech sounds because TMS facilitated the detection of different but not identical stimuli, and accuracy was decreased for non-speech sounds. Since TMS interfered with both speech and non-speech sounds, these findings support the existence of an auditory short-term storage center located within the dorsal auditory stream.
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Affiliation(s)
- Isabelle Deschamps
- Département de Réadaptation, Faculté de Médecine, Université Laval, 1050 Avenue de La Médecine, Office 4109, Quebec City, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Quebec City, QC, Canada
| | - Melody Courson
- Département de Réadaptation, Faculté de Médecine, Université Laval, 1050 Avenue de La Médecine, Office 4109, Quebec City, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Quebec City, QC, Canada
| | | | - Pascale Tremblay
- Département de Réadaptation, Faculté de Médecine, Université Laval, 1050 Avenue de La Médecine, Office 4109, Quebec City, QC, G1V 0A6, Canada.
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Quebec City, QC, Canada.
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18
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Stankova EP, Kruchinina OV, Shepovalnikov AN, Galperina EI. Evolution of the Central Mechanisms
of Oral Speech. J EVOL BIOCHEM PHYS+ 2020. [DOI: 10.1134/s0022093020030011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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19
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Oesch N. Music and Language in Social Interaction: Synchrony, Antiphony, and Functional Origins. Front Psychol 2019; 10:1514. [PMID: 31312163 PMCID: PMC6614337 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01514] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2019] [Accepted: 06/17/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Music and language are universal human abilities with many apparent similarities relating to their acoustics, structure, and frequent use in social situations. We might therefore expect them to be understood and processed similarly, and indeed an emerging body of research suggests that this is the case. But the focus has historically been on the individual, looking at the passive listener or the isolated speaker or performer, even though social interaction is the primary site of use for both domains. Nonetheless, an important goal of emerging research is to compare music and language in terms of acoustics and structure, social interaction, and functional origins to develop parallel accounts across the two domains. Indeed, a central aim of both of evolutionary musicology and language evolution research is to understand the adaptive significance or functional origin of human music and language. An influential proposal to emerge in recent years has been referred to as the social bonding hypothesis. Here, within a comparative approach to animal communication systems, I review empirical studies in support of the social bonding hypothesis in humans, non-human primates, songbirds, and various other mammals. In support of this hypothesis, I review six research fields: (i) the functional origins of music; (ii) the functional origins of language; (iii) mechanisms of social synchrony for human social bonding; (iv) language and social bonding in humans; (v) music and social bonding in humans; and (vi) pitch, tone and emotional expression in human speech and music. I conclude that the comparative study of complex vocalizations and behaviors in various extant species can provide important insights into the adaptive function(s) of these traits in these species, as well as offer evidence-based speculations for the existence of "musilanguage" in our primate ancestors, and thus inform our understanding of the biology and evolution of human music and language.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan Oesch
- Music and Neuroscience Lab, Department of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, ON, Canada
- Cognitive Neuroscience of Communication and Hearing (CoNCH) Lab, Department of Psychology, The Brain and Mind Institute, Western University, London, ON, Canada
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21
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Abstract
We investigate which of the higher cognitive abilities or types of intelligence characteristic of humans are found, even in preliminary form, in non-human animals, predominantly primates, or whether qualitatively different ("unique") human abilities exist. This concerns (1) tool use and fabrication, (2) problem solving, (3) gaze following, (4) mirror self-recognition, (5) imitation, (6) metacognition, (7) theory of mind, (8) consciousness, (9) prosociality, and (10) language. We found that none of these abilities can be regarded as unique to humans without precursors in non-human primates. The observed differences in cognitive functions, underlying brain mechanisms and resulting behaviors correlate best with differences in the information processing capacity as an equivalent of general intelligence based on the number of cortical neurons, packing density and axonal conduction velocity plus long-range cortical fascicles. The biggest quantitative change appears to concern the origin of syntactical language, but this was preceded by an increased mental ability to manipulate sequential events within working memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerhard Roth
- Faculty of Biology and Chemistry, Brain Research Institute, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany.
| | - Ursula Dicke
- Faculty of Biology and Chemistry, Brain Research Institute, University of Bremen, Bremen, Germany
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22
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Origin and evolution of human speech: Emergence from a trimodal auditory, visual and vocal network. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2019; 250:345-371. [PMID: 31703907 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2019.01.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
In recent years, there have been important additions to the classical model of speech processing as originally depicted by the Broca-Wernicke model consisting of an anterior, productive region and a posterior, perceptive region, both connected via the arcuate fasciculus. The modern view implies a separation into a dorsal and a ventral pathway conveying different kinds of linguistic information, which parallels the organization of the visual system. Furthermore, this organization is highly conserved in evolution and can be seen as the neural scaffolding from which the speech networks originated. In this chapter we emphasize that the speech networks are embedded in a multimodal system encompassing audio-vocal and visuo-vocal connections, which can be referred to an ancestral audio-visuo-motor pathway present in nonhuman primates. Likewise, we propose a trimodal repertoire for speech processing and acquisition involving auditory, visual and motor representations of the basic elements of speech: phoneme, observation of mouth movements, and articulatory processes. Finally, we discuss this proposal in the context of a scenario for early speech acquisition in infants and in human evolution.
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Hofman MA. On the nature and evolution of the human mind. PROGRESS IN BRAIN RESEARCH 2019; 250:251-283. [DOI: 10.1016/bs.pbr.2019.03.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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