scholarly journals Distinctive neural correlates of phonological processing and reading impairment in fetal alcohol-exposed adolescents with and without facial dysmorphology

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xi Yu ◽  
Jade Dunstan ◽  
Sandra W. Jacobson ◽  
Christopher D. Molteno ◽  
Nadine M. Lindinger ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phonological Processing ◽  
Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Angular Gyrus ◽  
Precentral Gyrus ◽  
Fetal Alcohol ◽  
Reading Impairment ◽  
The Right ◽  
Structural Mechanisms ◽  
The Brain

Background: Prenatal alcohol exposure (PAE) has been linked to atypical brain development and a wide range of cognitive and behavioral impairments, including poor reading performance in childhood and adolescence. However, little is known about how structural and/or functional teratogenesis in the brain mediate reading impairment in fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) and whether neural correlates of reading and phonological processing differ between FASD subtypes with different clinical presentations in facial morphology. Methods: The current study utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) to characterize functional and structural mechanisms mediating reading deficits in 26 syndromal adolescents with PAE-related facial dysmorphology (i.e., fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) or partial FAS (PFAS)) and 30 heavily exposed (HE) without this dysmorphology, in comparison with 19 typically developing controls. Importantly, the levels of PAE and reading ability were comparable between the FAS/PFAS and HE groups in the current study. Results: Compared to the nonsyndromal HE and control groups, the syndromal adolescents showed greater activation in the right precentral gyrus during an fMRI phonological processing task and rightward lateralization in an important reading-related tract (inferior longitudinal fasciculus, ILF), suggesting an atypical reliance on the right hemisphere during reading. By contrast, in the HE group, better reading skills were associated with increased neural activation in the left angular gyrus (LAG) and higher fractional anisotropy in the white matter organization of the left ILF. However, the brain function-behavior relation was weaker in the HE than among the controls, suggesting less efficient function of the typical reading neural network that may contribute to the observed reading impairments. Conclusions: Our findings provide the first evidence for the distinctive functional and structural mechanisms underlying atypical reading and phonological processing in PAE adolescents with and without FAS facial dysmorphology.

Effects of the SNAP25 on Integration Ability of Brain Functions in Children With ADHD

2020 ◽  
pp. 108705472096456
Author(s):  
Yue Yang ◽  
Gang Peng ◽  
Hongwu Zeng ◽  
Diangang Fang ◽  
Linlin Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Time Window ◽  
Precentral Gyrus ◽  
Children With Adhd ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Lingual Gyrus ◽  
Window Method ◽  
Central Gyrus ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Insight Into

Objective: The present study aimed to examine the effects of SNAP25 on the integration ability of intrinsic brain functions in children with ADHD, and whether the integration ability was associated with working memory (WM). Methods: A sliding time window method was used to calculate the spatial and temporal concordance among five rs-fMRI regional indices in 55 children with ADHD and 20 healthy controls. Results: The SNAP25 exhibited significant interaction effects with ADHD diagnosis on the voxel-wise concordance in the right posterior central gyrus, fusiform gyrus and lingual gyrus. Specifically, for children with ADHD, G-carriers showed increased voxel-wise concordance in comparison to TT homozygotes in the right precentral gyrus, superior frontal gyrus, postcentral gyrus, and middle frontal gyrus. The voxel-wise concordance was also found to be related to WM. Conclusion: Our findings provided a new insight into the neural mechanisms of the brain function of ADHD children.

scholarly journals Sex differences in neural and behavioral signatures of cooperation revealed by fNIRS hyperscanning

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph M. Baker ◽  
Ning Liu ◽  
Xu Cui ◽  
Pascal Vrticka ◽  
Manish Saggar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Temporal Cortex ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Behavioral Signatures ◽  
Computer Based ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Brain And Behavior ◽  
The Right ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
The Brain

Abstract Researchers from multiple fields have sought to understand how sex moderates human social behavior. While over 50 years of research has revealed differences in cooperation behavior of males and females, the underlying neural correlates of these sex differences have not been explained. A missing and fundamental element of this puzzle is an understanding of how the sex composition of an interacting dyad influences the brain and behavior during cooperation. Using fNIRS-based hyperscanning in 111 same- and mixed-sex dyads, we identified significant behavioral and neural sex-related differences in association with a computer-based cooperation task. Dyads containing at least one male demonstrated significantly higher behavioral performance than female/female dyads. Individual males and females showed significant activation in the right frontopolar and right inferior prefrontal cortices, although this activation was greater in females compared to males. Female/female dyad’s exhibited significant inter-brain coherence within the right temporal cortex, while significant coherence in male/male dyads occurred in the right inferior prefrontal cortex. Significant coherence was not observed in mixed-sex dyads. Finally, for same-sex dyads only, task-related inter-brain coherence was positively correlated with cooperation task performance. Our results highlight multiple important and previously undetected influences of sex on concurrent neural and behavioral signatures of cooperation.

scholarly journals Dissociating Neural Correlates of Action Monitoring and Metacognition of Agency

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (11) ◽  
pp. 3620-3636 ◽  
Author(s):  
David B. Miele ◽  
Tor D. Wager ◽  
Jason P. Mitchell ◽  
Janet Metcalfe
Keyword(s):  
Brain Activity ◽  
Dorsal Striatum ◽  
Neural Correlates ◽  
Action Monitoring ◽  
Fmri Study ◽  
Metacognitive Judgments ◽  
The Right ◽  
Reflective Processing ◽  
Increased Activity ◽  
The Brain

Judgments of agency refer to people's self-reflective assessments concerning their own control: their assessments of the extent to which they themselves are responsible for an action. These self-reflective metacognitive judgments can be distinguished from action monitoring, which involves the detection of the divergence (or lack of divergence) between observed states and expected states. Presumably, people form judgments of agency by metacognitively reflecting on the output of their action monitoring and then consciously inferring the extent to which they caused the action in question. Although a number of previous imaging studies have been directed at action monitoring, none have assessed judgments of agency as a potentially separate process. The present fMRI study used an agency paradigm that not only allowed us to examine the brain activity associated with action monitoring but that also enabled us to investigate those regions associated with metacognition of agency. Regarding action monitoring, we found that being “out of control” during the task (i.e., detection of a discrepancy between observed and expected states) was associated with increased brain activity in the right TPJ, whereas being “in control” was associated with increased activity in the pre-SMA, rostral cingulate zone, and dorsal striatum (regions linked to self-initiated action). In contrast, when participants made self-reflective metacognitive judgments about the extent of their own control (i.e., judgments of agency) compared with when they made judgments that were not about control (i.e., judgments of performance), increased activity was observed in the anterior PFC, a region associated with self-reflective processing. These results indicate that action monitoring is dissociable from people's conscious self-attributions of control.

scholarly journals Algebra dissociates from arithmetic in the brain semantic network

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dazhi Cheng ◽  
Mengyi Li ◽  
Naiyi Wang ◽  
Liangyuan Ouyang ◽  
Xinlin Zhou
Keyword(s):  
Supplementary Motor Area ◽  
Semantic Network ◽  
Brain Activation ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Motor Area ◽  
Angular Gyrus ◽  
Precentral Gyrus ◽  
Single Trial ◽  
Brain Behavior ◽  
The Brain

Abstract Background Mathematical expressions mainly include arithmetic (such as 8 − (1 + 3)) and algebraic expressions (such as a − (b + c)). Previous studies shown that both algebraic processing and arithmetic involved the bilateral parietal brain regions. Although behavioral and neuropsychological studies have revealed the dissociation between algebra and arithmetic, how algebraic processing is dissociated from arithmetic in brain networks is still unclear. Methods Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), this study scanned 30 undergraduates and directly compared the brain activation during algebra and arithmetic. Brain activations, single-trial (item-wise) interindividual correlation and mean-trial interindividual correlation related to algebra processing were compared with those related to arithmetic. Results Brain activation analyses showed that algebra elicited greater activation in the angular gyrus and arithmetic elicited greater activation in the bilateral supplementary motor area, left insula, and left inferior parietal lobule. Interindividual single-trial brain-behavior correlation revealed significant brain-behavior correlations in the semantic network, including the middle temporal gyri, inferior frontal gyri, dorsomedial prefrontal cortices, and left angular gyrus, for algebra. For arithmetic, the significant brain-behavior correlations were located in the phonological network, including the precentral gyrus and supplementary motor area, and in the visuospatial network, including the bilateral superior parietal lobules. Conclusion These findings suggest that algebra relies on the semantic network and arithmetic relies on the phonological and visuospatial networks.

scholarly journals Interpersonal brain synchronization under bluffing in strategic games

2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. 1326-1335
Author(s):  
Zhihao Wang ◽  
Yiwen Wang ◽  
Xiaolin Zhou ◽  
Rongjun Yu
Keyword(s):  
Near Infrared ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
Strategic Thinking ◽  
Human Condition ◽  
Angular Gyrus ◽  
Strategic Games ◽  
Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy ◽  
High Penalty ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Brain

Abstract People commonly use bluffing as a strategy to manipulate other people’s beliefs about them for gain. Although bluffing is an important part of successful strategic thinking, the inter-brain mechanisms underlying bluffing remain unclear. Here, we employed a functional near-infrared spectroscopy hyperscanning technique to simultaneously record the brain activity in the right temporal-parietal junction in 32 pairs of participants when they played a bluffing game against each other or with computer opponents separately. We also manipulated the penalty for bluffing (high vs low). Under the condition of high relative to low penalty, results showed a higher bluffing rate and a higher calling rate in human-to-human as compared to human-to-computer pairing. At the neural level, high relative to low penalty condition increased the interpersonal brain synchronization (IBS) in the right angular gyrus (rAG) during human-to-human as compared to human-to-computer interaction. Importantly, bluffing relative to non-bluffing, under the high penalty and human-to-human condition, resulted in an increase in response time and enhanced IBS in the rAG. Participants who bluffed more frequently also elicited stronger IBS. Our findings support the view that regions associated with mentalizing become synchronized during bluffing games, especially under the high penalty and human-to-human condition.

scholarly journals Manipulation of Length and Lexicality Localizes the Functional Neuroanatomy of Phonological Processing in Adult Readers

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (6) ◽  
pp. 1475-1493 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica A. Church ◽  
David A. Balota ◽  
Steven E. Petersen ◽  
Bradley L. Schlaggar
Keyword(s):  
Phonological Processing ◽  
Time Course ◽  
Word Reading ◽  
Angular Gyrus ◽  
Functional Neuroanatomy ◽  
Supramarginal Gyrus ◽  
Adult Readers ◽  
Whole Brain ◽  
Left Angular Gyrus ◽  
The Brain

In a previous study of single word reading, regions in the left supramarginal gyrus and left angular gyrus showed positive BOLD activity in children but significantly less activity in adults for high-frequency words [Church, J. A., Coalson, R. S., Lugar, H. M., Petersen, S. E., & Schlaggar, B. L. A developmental fMRI study of reading and repetition reveals changes in phonological and visual mechanisms over age. Cerebral Cortex, 18, 2054–2065, 2008]. This developmental decrease may reflect decreased reliance on phonological processing for familiar stimuli in adults. Therefore, in the present study, variables thought to influence phonological demand (string length and lexicality) were manipulated. Length and lexicality effects in the brain were explored using both ROI and whole-brain approaches. In the ROI analysis, the supramarginal and angular regions from the previous study were applied to this study. The supramarginal region showed a significant positive effect of length, consistent with a role in phonological processing, whereas the angular region showed only negative deflections from baseline with a strong effect of lexicality and other weaker effects. At the whole-brain level, varying effects of length and lexicality and their interactions were observed in 85 regions throughout the brain. The application of hierarchical clustering analysis to the BOLD time course data derived from these regions revealed seven clusters, with potentially revealing anatomical locations. Of note, a left angular gyrus region was the sole constituent of one cluster. Taken together, these findings in adult readers (1) provide support for a widespread set of brain regions affected by lexical variables, (2) corroborate a role for phonological processing in the left supramarginal gyrus, and (3) do not support a strong role for phonological processing in the left angular gyrus.

Functional reorganization oF the primary motor cortex in a patient with a large arteriovenous malFormation involving the precentral gyrus

2013 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Milan Radoš ◽  
Ines Nikić ◽  
Marko Radoš ◽  
Ivica Kostović ◽  
Patrick Hof ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Primary Motor Cortex ◽  
Right Hemisphere ◽  
Motor Area ◽  
Lower Limbs ◽  
Motor Deficits ◽  
Precentral Gyrus ◽  
Functional Reorganization ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Brain

AbstractIt is known that the brain can compensate for deficits induced by acquired and developmental lesions through functional reorganization of the remaining parenchyma. Arteriovenous malformations (AVM) usually appear prenatally before a functional regional organization of the brain is fully established and patients generally do not present with motor deficits even when the AVM is located in the primary motor area indicating the redistribution of functions in cortical areas that are not pathologically altered. Here we present reorganization of the motor cortex in a patient with a large AVM involving most of the left parietal lobe and the paramedian part of the left precentral gyrus that is responsible for controlling the muscles of the lower limbs. Functional MRI showed that movements of both the right and left feet activated only the primary motor cortex in the right hemisphere, while there was no activation in the left motor cortex. This suggests that complete ipsilateral control over the movements of the right foot had been established in this patient. A reconstruction of the corticospinal tract using diffusion tensor imaging showed a near-complete absence of corticospinal fibers from the part of the left precentral gyrus affected by the AVM. From this clinical presentation it can be concluded that full compensation of motor deficits had occurred by redistributing function to the corresponding motor area of the contralateral

scholarly journals Motivationally Significant Self-control: Enhanced Action Withholding Involves the Right Inferior Frontal Junction

2015 ◽  
Vol 27 (1) ◽  
pp. 112-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
David A. O'Connor ◽  
Daniel J. Upton ◽  
Jennifer Moore ◽  
Robert Hester
Keyword(s):  
Well Being ◽  
Neutral Condition ◽  
Self Control ◽  
Behavioral Performance ◽  
Precentral Gyrus ◽  
Monetary Rewards ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Inferior Frontal Junction

In everyday life, people use self-control to withhold actions. This ability is particularly important when the consequences of action withholding have an impact on the individual's well-being. Despite its importance, it is unclear as to how the neural nodes implicated in action withholding contribute to this real-world type of self-control. By modifying an action withholding paradigm, the go/no-go task, we examined how the brain exerts self-control during a scenario in which the implications of withholding an action are meaningful and motivationally significant. A successfully withheld response contributed to long-term monetary rewards, whereas failure to withhold a response incurred an immediate monetary punishment. Compared with neutral action withholding, participants significantly improved their performance when these contingencies were applied. Crucially, although the right IFG and pre-SMA were found to promote overall action withholding, the enhancement in behavioral performance relative to a neutral condition was only reflected by a physiological change in a region encompassing the right inferior frontal junction and precentral gyrus. We speculate that the ability to flexibly modulate attention to goal-relevant stimuli is crucial to enhanced, motivationally driven action withholding and that this ability is subserved by the right inferior frontal junction. These findings suggest that control-modulating factors, rather than action withholding processes per se, can be critical to improving motivationally significant action withholding outcomes.

scholarly journals Developmental Alcohol Exposure in Drosophila: Effects on Adult Phenotypes and Gene Expression in the Brain

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sneha S. Mokashi ◽  
Vijay Shankar ◽  
Rebecca A. MacPherson ◽  
Rachel C. Hannah ◽  
Trudy F. C. Mackay ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Differential Gene Expression ◽  
Genetic Model ◽  
Alcohol Exposure ◽  
Behavioral Changes ◽  
Glutathione Metabolism ◽  
Human Populations ◽  
Fetal Alcohol ◽  
Differential Gene ◽  
The Brain

Fetal alcohol exposure can lead to developmental abnormalities, intellectual disability, and behavioral changes, collectively termed fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). In 2015, the Centers for Disease Control found that 1 in 10 pregnant women report alcohol use and more than 3 million women in the USA are at risk of exposing their developing fetus to alcohol. Drosophila melanogaster is an excellent genetic model to study developmental effects of alcohol exposure because many individuals of the same genotype can be reared rapidly and economically under controlled environmental conditions. Flies exposed to alcohol undergo physiological and behavioral changes that resemble human alcohol-related phenotypes. Here, we show that adult flies that developed on ethanol-supplemented medium have decreased viability, reduced sensitivity to ethanol, and disrupted sleep and activity patterns. To assess the effects of exposure to alcohol during development on brain gene expression, we performed single cell RNA sequencing and resolved cell clusters with differentially expressed genes which represent distinct neuronal and glial populations. Differential gene expression showed extensive sexual dimorphism with little overlap between males and females. Gene expression differences following developmental alcohol exposure were similar to previously reported differential gene expression following cocaine consumption, suggesting that common neural substrates respond to both drugs. Genes associated with glutathione metabolism, lipid transport, glutamate and GABA metabolism, and vision feature in sexually dimorphic global multi-cluster interaction networks. Our results provide a blueprint for translational studies on alcohol-induced effects on gene expression in the brain that may contribute to or result from FASD in human populations.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document