Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
J Cogn Neurosci. 2011 Nov;23(11):3304-17. doi: 10.1162/jocn_a_00061. Epub 2011 May 13.
For more than a century, neurologists have hypothesized that the arcuate fasciculus carries signals that are essential for language function; however, the relevance of the pathway for particular behaviors is highly controversial. The primary objective of this study was to use diffusion tensor imaging to examine the relationship between individual variation in the microstructural properties of arcuate fibers and behavioral measures of language and reading skills. A second objective was to use novel fiber-tracking methods to reassess estimates of arcuate lateralization. In a sample of 55 children, we found that measurements of diffusivity in the left arcuate correlate with phonological awareness skills and arcuate volume lateralization correlates with phonological memory and reading skills. Contrary to previous investigations that report the absence of the right arcuate in some subjects, we demonstrate that new techniques can identify the pathway in every individual. Our results provide empirical support for the role of the arcuate fasciculus in the development of reading skills.
一个多世纪以来，神经学家一直假设弓状束携带对语言功能至关重要的信号；然而，该通路对于特定行为的相关性存在很大争议。本研究的主要目的是使用弥散张量成像来检查弓状纤维微观结构特性的个体差异与语言和阅读技能行为测量之间的关系。第二个目的是使用新的纤维追踪方法重新评估弓状纤维偏侧化的估计。在 55 名儿童的样本中，我们发现左侧弓状纤维的扩散率测量值与语音意识技能相关，而弓状纤维体积偏侧化与语音记忆和阅读技能相关。与之前的一些研究报告称在某些受试者中不存在右侧弓状束的研究结果相反，我们证明了新的技术可以在每个个体中识别该通路。我们的结果为弓状束在阅读技能发展中的作用提供了实证支持。
