Research Group Experimental ORL, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Herestraat 49 Box 721, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium; Parenting and Special Education Research Unit, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Leopold Vanderkelenstraat 32 Box 3765, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium.
Research Group Experimental ORL, Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Herestraat 49 Box 721, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium; Parenting and Special Education Research Unit, Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Leopold Vanderkelenstraat 32 Box 3765, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium; Psychological Sciences Research Institute, Université catholique de Louvain, Place du Cardinal Mercier 10, B-1348 Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium.
Dev Cogn Neurosci. 2020 Dec;46:100874. doi: 10.1016/j.dcn.2020.100874. Epub 2020 Oct 20.
Phonological processing skills are known as the most robust cognitive predictor of reading ability. Therefore, the neural determinants of phonological processing have been extensively investigated by means of either neurofunctional or neurostructural techniques. However, to fully understand how the brain represents and processes phonological information, there is need for studies that combine both methods. The present study applies such a multimodal approach with the aim of investigating the pre-reading relation between neural measures of auditory temporal processing, white matter properties of the reading network and phonological processing skills. We administered auditory steady-state responses, diffusion-weighted MRI scans and phonological awareness tasks in 59 pre-readers. Our results demonstrate that a stronger rightward lateralization of syllable-rate (4 Hz) processing coheres with higher fractional anisotropy in the left fronto-temporoparietal arcuate fasciculus. Both neural features each in turn relate to better phonological processing skills. As such, the current study provides novel evidence for the existence of a pre-reading relation between functional measures of syllable-rate processing, structural organization of the arcuate fasciculus and cognitive precursors of reading development. Moreover, our findings demonstrate the value of combining different neural techniques to gain insight in the underlying neural systems for reading (dis)ability.
语音加工技能被认为是阅读能力的最稳健认知预测因子。因此，语音加工的神经决定因素已通过神经功能或神经结构技术得到了广泛研究。然而，为了全面了解大脑如何表示和处理语音信息，需要结合这两种方法进行研究。本研究采用了这种多模态方法，旨在研究阅读网络的听觉时间处理的神经测量、白质特性和语音加工技能之间的阅读前关系。我们在 59 名阅读前儿童中进行了听觉稳态反应、弥散加权 MRI 扫描和语音意识任务。我们的结果表明，音节率（4 Hz）处理的右偏侧化越强，左侧额颞顶颞弓状束的各向异性分数越高。这两种神经特征都与更好的语音加工技能有关。因此，本研究为音节率处理的功能测量、弓状束的结构组织以及阅读发展的认知前体之间存在阅读前关系提供了新的证据。此外，我们的发现表明，结合不同的神经技术对于深入了解阅读（障碍）的潜在神经系统具有重要价值。
