scholarly journals A Double Dissociation in Sensitivity to Verb and Noun Semantics Across Cortical Networks

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (11) ◽  
pp. 4803-4817 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia V Elli ◽  
Connor Lane ◽  
Marina Bedny
Keyword(s):  
Pattern Analysis ◽  
Light Emission ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Cortical Networks ◽  
Multivoxel Pattern Analysis ◽  
Grammatical Class ◽  
Double Dissociation ◽  
Neural Organization ◽  
Left Posterior

AbstractWhat is the neural organization of the mental lexicon? Previous research suggests that partially distinct cortical networks are active during verb and noun processing, but what information do these networks represent? We used multivoxel pattern analysis (MVPA) to investigate whether these networks are sensitive to lexicosemantic distinctions among verbs and among nouns and, if so, whether they are more sensitive to distinctions among words in their preferred grammatical class. Participants heard 4 types of verbs (light emission, sound emission, hand-related actions, mouth-related actions) and 4 types of nouns (birds, mammals, manmade places, natural places). As previously shown, the left posterior middle temporal gyrus (LMTG+), and inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) responded more to verbs, whereas the inferior parietal lobule (LIP), precuneus (LPC), and inferior temporal (LIT) cortex responded more to nouns. MVPA revealed a double-dissociation in lexicosemantic sensitivity: classification was more accurate among verbs than nouns in the LMTG+, and among nouns than verbs in the LIP, LPC, and LIT. However, classification was similar for verbs and nouns in the LIFG, and above chance for the nonpreferred category in all regions. These results suggest that the lexicosemantic information about verbs and nouns is represented in partially nonoverlapping networks.

scholarly journals A double dissociation in sensitivity to verb and noun semantics across cortical networks

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giulia V. Elli ◽  
Connor Lane ◽  
Marina Bedny
Keyword(s):  
Pattern Analysis ◽  
Light Emission ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Cortical Networks ◽  
Multivoxel Pattern Analysis ◽  
Double Dissociation ◽  
Neural Organization ◽  
Left Posterior

AbstractWhat is the neural organization of the mental lexicon? Previous research suggests that partially distinct cortical networks are active during verb and noun processing. Are these networks preferentially involved in representing the meanings of verbs as opposed to nouns? We used multivoxel pattern analysis (MVPA) to investigate whether brain regions that are more active during verb than noun processing are also more sensitive to distinctions among their preferred lexical class. Participants heard four types of verbs (light emission, sound emission, hand-related actions, mouth-related actions) and four types of nouns (birds, mammals, manmade places, natural places). As previously shown, the left posterior middle temporal gyrus (LMTG) and inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) responded more to verbs, whereas areas in the inferior parietal lobule (LIP), precuneus (LPC), and inferior temporal (LIT) cortex responded more to nouns. MVPA revealed a double-dissociation in semantic sensitivity: classification was more accurate among verbs than nouns in the LMTG, and among nouns than verbs in the LIP, LPC, and LIT. However, classification was similar for verbs and nouns in the LIFG, and above chance for the non-preferred category in all regions. These results suggest that the meanings of verbs and nouns are represented in partially non-overlapping networks.

scholarly journals Executive Semantic Processing Is Underpinned by a Large-scale Neural Network: Revealing the Contribution of Left Prefrontal, Posterior Temporal, and Parietal Cortex to Controlled Retrieval and Selection Using TMS

2012 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 133-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carin Whitney ◽  
Marie Kirk ◽  
Jamie O'Sullivan ◽  
Matthew A. Lambon Ralph ◽  
Elizabeth Jefferies
Keyword(s):  
Semantic Processing ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Semantic Representation ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Semantic Knowledge ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Neural Basis ◽  
Healthy Human ◽  
Left Posterior ◽  
Domain Dependence

To understand the meanings of words and objects, we need to have knowledge about these items themselves plus executive mechanisms that compute and manipulate semantic information in a task-appropriate way. The neural basis for semantic control remains controversial. Neuroimaging studies have focused on the role of the left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG), whereas neuropsychological research suggests that damage to a widely distributed network elicits impairments of semantic control. There is also debate about the relationship between semantic and executive control more widely. We used TMS in healthy human volunteers to create “virtual lesions” in structures typically damaged in patients with semantic control deficits: LIFG, left posterior middle temporal gyrus (pMTG), and intraparietal sulcus (IPS). The influence of TMS on tasks varying in semantic and nonsemantic control demands was examined for each region within this hypothesized network to gain insights into (i) their functional specialization (i.e., involvement in semantic representation, controlled retrieval, or selection) and (ii) their domain dependence (i.e., semantic or cognitive control). The results revealed that LIFG and pMTG jointly support both the controlled retrieval and selection of semantic knowledge. IPS specifically participates in semantic selection and responds to manipulations of nonsemantic control demands. These observations are consistent with a large-scale semantic control network, as predicted by lesion data, that draws on semantic-specific (LIFG and pMTG) and domain-independent executive components (IPS).

scholarly journals Supramodal Sentence Processing in the Human Brain: Fmri Evidence for the Influence of Syntactic Complexity in More Than 200 Participants

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Uddén ◽  
Annika Hultén ◽  
Jan-Mathijs Schoffelen ◽  
Nietzsche Lam ◽  
Karin Harbusch ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Language Processing ◽  
Sentence Processing ◽  
Parietal Lobe ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Syntactic Complexity ◽  
Input Modality ◽  
Middle Temporal ◽  
Left Posterior ◽  
Brain Fmri

ABSTRACTThis study investigated two questions. One is to which degree sentence processing beyond single words is independent of the input modality (speech vs. reading). The second question is which parts of the network recruited by both modalities is sensitive to syntactic complexity. These questions were investigated by having more than 200 participants read or listen to well-formed sentences or series of unconnected words. A largely left-hemisphere fronto-temporoparietal network was found to be supramodal in nature, i.e. independent of input modality. In addition, the left inferior frontal gyrus (LIFG) and the left posterior middle temporal gyrus (LpMTG) were most clearly associated with left-branching complexity. The left anterior middle temporal gyrus (LaMTG) showed the greatest sensitivity to sentences that differed in right-branching complexity. Moreover, activity in LIFG and LpMTG increased from sentence onset to end, in parallel with an increase of the left-branching complexity. While LIFG, bilateral anterior and posterior MTG and left inferior parietal lobe (LIPL) all contribute to the supramodal unification processes, the results suggest that these regions differ in their respective contributions to syntactic complexity related processing. The consequences of these findings for neurobiological models of language processing are discussed.

scholarly journals Distinct representations of spatial and categorical relationships across human scene-selective cortex

2019 ◽  
Vol 116 (42) ◽  
pp. 21312-21317 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew S. Persichetti ◽  
Daniel D. Dilks
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Pattern Analysis ◽  
Relevant Information ◽  
Neural Systems ◽  
General Category ◽  
Coffee Shop ◽  
Opposite Pattern ◽  
Multivoxel Pattern Analysis ◽  
Double Dissociation ◽  
Parahippocampal Place Area

We represent the locations of places (e.g., the coffee shop on 10th Street vs. the coffee shop on Peachtree Street) so that we can use them as landmarks to orient ourselves while navigating large-scale environments. While several neuroimaging studies have argued that the parahippocampal place area (PPA) represents such navigationally relevant information, evidence from other studies suggests otherwise, leaving this issue unresolved. Here we hypothesize that the PPA is, in fact, not well suited to recognize specific landmarks in the environment (e.g., the coffee shop on 10th Street), but rather is involved in recognizing the general category membership of places (e.g., a coffee shop, regardless of its location). Using fMRI multivoxel pattern analysis, we directly test this hypothesis. If the PPA represents landmark information, then it must be able to discriminate between 2 places of the same category, but in different locations. Instead, if the PPA represents general category information (as hypothesized here), then it will not represent the location of a particular place, but only the category of the place. As predicted, we found that the PPA represents 2 buildings from the same category, but in different locations, as more similar than 2 buildings from different categories, but in the same location. In contrast, another scene-selective region of cortex, the retrosplenial complex (RSC), showed the exact opposite pattern of results. Such a double dissociation suggests distinct neural systems involved in categorizing and navigating our environment, including the PPA and RSC, respectively.

scholarly journals The Interaction of Lexical Semantics and Cohort Competition in Spoken Word Recognition: An fMRI Study

2011 ◽  
Vol 23 (12) ◽  
pp. 3778-3790 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jie Zhuang ◽  
Billi Randall ◽  
Emmanuel A. Stamatakis ◽  
William D. Marslen-Wilson ◽  
Lorraine K. Tyler
Keyword(s):  
Word Recognition ◽  
Spoken Word Recognition ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Spoken Word ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Middle Temporal ◽  
Fmri Study ◽  
Left Posterior ◽  
Cohort Competition ◽  
Semantic Properties

Spoken word recognition involves the activation of multiple word candidates on the basis of the initial speech input—the “cohort”—and selection among these competitors. Selection may be driven primarily by bottom–up acoustic–phonetic inputs or it may be modulated by other aspects of lexical representation, such as a word's meaning [Marslen-Wilson, W. D. Functional parallelism in spoken word-recognition. Cognition, 25, 71–102, 1987]. We examined these potential interactions in an fMRI study by presenting participants with words and pseudowords for lexical decision. In a factorial design, we manipulated (a) cohort competition (high/low competitive cohorts which vary the number of competing word candidates) and (b) the word's semantic properties (high/low imageability). A previous behavioral study [Tyler, L. K., Voice, J. K., & Moss, H. E. The interaction of meaning and sound in spoken word recognition. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 7, 320–326, 2000] showed that imageability facilitated word recognition but only for words in high competition cohorts. Here we found greater activity in the left inferior frontal gyrus (BA 45, 47) and the right inferior frontal gyrus (BA 47) with increased cohort competition, an imageability effect in the left posterior middle temporal gyrus/angular gyrus (BA 39), and a significant interaction between imageability and cohort competition in the left posterior superior temporal gyrus/middle temporal gyrus (BA 21, 22). In words with high competition cohorts, high imageability words generated stronger activity than low imageability words, indicating a facilitatory role of imageability in a highly competitive cohort context. For words in low competition cohorts, there was no effect of imageability. These results support the behavioral data in showing that selection processes do not rely solely on bottom–up acoustic–phonetic cues but rather that the semantic properties of candidate words facilitate discrimination between competitors.

Exploration of irony comprehension in schizophrenia with fMRI

2011 ◽  
Vol 26 (S2) ◽  
pp. 959-959
Author(s):  
E. Varga ◽  
Z. Schell ◽  
M. Simon ◽  
A. Hajnal ◽  
T. Tényi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Superior Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Contextual Processing ◽  
Left Posterior ◽  
Schizophrenic Patients ◽  
And Control ◽  
Left Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
The Given

IntroductionIrony is a form of speech used to convey feelings in an indirect way. Schizophrenic patients usually demonstrate impaired irony processing, associated with poor theory of mind.AimsWe used fMRI to examine neural circuitry underlying deficits in understanding irony in schizophrenia.Methods21 schizophrenic patients and 24 healthy subjects were studied. Short scenarios and three conditions were used: irony condition (IC), irony with linguistic help condition (IHC), and control condition (CC). We used event-related design. Scenarios started with a contextual part, followed by a 2–4s ISI. The ironic sentence appeared next, and a question followed. Between trials an ITI of 5–7s were used.ResultsPatients performed significantly worse in the conditions (IC:p = 0.0003;IHC:p = 0.0034;CC:p = 0.0036). In the IC: patients activated the left insula, left anterior cingulum, right and left superior frontal gyrus (SFG), right middle frontal gyrus (MFG) during the contextual part, and activated the left inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), left middle temporal gyrus (MTG) and right superior temporal gyrus during the statement. In the IHC: patients activated the left precuneus, left IFG, left SFG, left and right MFG, right cuneus and left MTG during the context, and activated right SFG and left posterior cingulum during the statement.ConclusionsPatients probably have an abnormal contextual processing and a missing activation of the theory of mind network during the interpretation of ironic statements. The given linguistic help proved to be efficient help for many patients in processing the context correctly, and in understanding ironic situations more successfully.

scholarly journals Speaking in the Brain: The Interaction between Words and Syntax in Sentence Production

2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (8) ◽  
pp. 1466-1483
Author(s):  
Atsuko Takashima ◽  
Agnieszka Konopka ◽  
Antje Meyer ◽  
Peter Hagoort ◽  
Kirsten Weber
Keyword(s):  
Language Production ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Sentence Production ◽  
Angular Gyrus ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Temporal Region ◽  
Middle Temporal ◽  
Sentence Level ◽  
Left Posterior ◽  
Language Network

This neuroimaging study investigated the neural infrastructure of sentence-level language production. We compared brain activation patterns, as measured with BOLD-fMRI, during production of sentences that differed in verb argument structures (intransitives, transitives, ditransitives) and the lexical status of the verb (known verbs or pseudoverbs). The experiment consisted of 30 mini-blocks of six sentences each. Each mini-block started with an example for the type of sentence to be produced in that block. On each trial in the mini-blocks, participants were first given the (pseudo-)verb followed by three geometric shapes to serve as verb arguments in the sentences. Production of sentences with known verbs yielded greater activation compared to sentences with pseudoverbs in the core language network of the left inferior frontal gyrus, the left posterior middle temporal gyrus, and a more posterior middle temporal region extending into the angular gyrus, analogous to effects observed in language comprehension. Increasing the number of verb arguments led to greater activation in an overlapping left posterior middle temporal gyrus/angular gyrus area, particularly for known verbs, as well as in the bilateral precuneus. Thus, producing sentences with more complex structures using existing verbs leads to increased activation in the language network, suggesting some reliance on memory retrieval of stored lexical–syntactic information during sentence production. This study thus provides evidence from sentence-level language production in line with functional models of the language network that have so far been mainly based on single-word production, comprehension, and language processing in aphasia.

scholarly journals Resting state functional connectivity in relapsing remitting multiple sclerosis with mild disability – a data driven, whole brain multivoxel pattern analysis study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gowthami Nair ◽  
Sruthi S Nair ◽  
K M Arun ◽  
Paul B Camacho ◽  
Elshal Bava ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Pattern Analysis ◽  
Anterior Cingulate ◽  
Data Driven ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Resting State Functional Connectivity ◽  
Multivoxel Pattern Analysis ◽  
Whole Brain ◽  
Middle Temporal ◽  
Relapsing Remitting ◽  
Relapsing Remitting Multiple Sclerosis

Multivoxel pattern analysis (MVPA) has emerged as a powerful unbiased approach for generating seed regions of interest (ROIs) in resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) analysis in a data-driven manner. The aim of the present study was to investigate RSFC differences between persons with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) and healthy controls (HCs). We performed a whole-brain connectome-wide MVPA in 50 RRMS patients with expanded disability status scale ≤4 and 50 age and gender-matched HCs. Significant group differences were noted in RSFC in 9 clusters distributed in 7 regions; right middle frontal gyrus, frontal medial cortex, left frontal pole, anterior cingulate gyrus, right middle temporal gyrus, left posterior middle temporal gyrus and right lateral occipital cortex. Whole-brain seed-to-voxel RSFC characterization of these clusters as seed ROIs revealed significantly increased RSFC to the posterior brain regions (bilateral superior lateral occipital cortices, right lingual gyrus and left occipital pole) and reduced connectivity in the anterior and medial regions (right paracingulate gyrus, anterior cingulate gyrus, left amygdala and left frontal orbital cortex) in RRMS compared to HCs. The results of this study agree with the previous reports on abnormalities of RSFC in RRMS, the cognitive and clinical implications of which are discussed herein.

The Neural Correlates of Linguistic Distinctions: Unaccusative and Unergative Verbs

2010 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 2306-2315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Einat Shetreet ◽  
Naama Friedmann ◽  
Uri Hadar
Keyword(s):  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Subject Position ◽  
Middle Temporal Gyrus ◽  
Left Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Middle Temporal ◽  
Left Posterior ◽  
Unaccusative Verbs ◽  
Transitive Verbs ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Conjunction Analysis

Unaccusative verbs like fall are special in that their sole argument is syntactically generated at the object position of the verb rather than at the subject position. Unaccusative verbs are derived by a lexical operation that reduces the agent from transitive verbs. Their insertion into a sentence often involves a syntactic movement from the object to the subject position. To explore the neurological reality of the distinction between different verb types and to identify the cortical activations associated with the lexical and syntactic operations, we compared unaccusative verbs with verbs that do not undergo such operations—unergatives (verbs with one argument, an agent) and transitives (verbs with two arguments). The observed pattern of activation revealed that the brain distinguishes between unaccusative and unergative verbs, lending neurological support for the linguistic distinction. A conjunction analysis between the comparisons between unaccusatives and the other verb types revealed activations in the left inferior frontal gyrus and the left posterior middle temporal gyrus. These, together with previous neuroimaging results, suggest that the inferior frontal gyrus may be involved with the execution of the syntactic operation, whereas the middle temporal gyrus may be responsible for the lexical operation that derives unaccusative verbs.

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