Developmental dyslexia susceptibility genes DNAAF4, DCDC2, and NRSN1 are associated with brain function in fluently reading adolescents and young adults.

Reading skills and developmental dyslexia, characterized by difficulties in developing reading skills, have been associated with brain anomalies within the language network. Genetic factors contribute to developmental dyslexia risk, but the mechanisms by which these genes influence reading skills remain unclear. In this preregistered study (https://osf.io/7sehx), we explored if developmental dyslexia susceptibility genes DNAAF4, DCDC2, NRSN1, and KIAA0319 are associated with brain function in fluently reading adolescents and young adults. Functional MRI and task performance data were collected during tasks involving written and spoken sentence processing, and DNA sequence variants of developmental dyslexia susceptibility genes previously associated with brain structure anomalies were genotyped. The results revealed that variation in DNAAF4, DCDC2, and NRSN1 is associated with brain activity in key language regions: the left inferior frontal gyrus, middle temporal gyrus, and intraparietal sulcus. Furthermore, NRSN1 was associated with task performance, but KIAA0319 did not yield any significant associations. Our findings suggest that individuals with a genetic predisposition to developmental dyslexia may partly employ compensatory neural and behavioral mechanisms to maintain typical task performance. Our study highlights the relevance of these developmental dyslexia susceptibility genes in language-related brain function, even in individuals without developmental dyslexia, providing valuable insights into the genetic factors influencing language processing.

Multimodal Approach in the Diagnosis of Urologic Malignancies: Critical Assessment of ChatGPT-4V's Image-Reading Capabilities.

ChatGPT-4V model with image interpretation tested for distinguishing kidney & prostate tumors from normal tissue.

Action video games and posterior parietal cortex neuromodulation enhance both attention and reading in adults with developmental dyslexia.

The impact of action video games on reading performance has been already demonstrated in individuals with and without neurodevelopmental disorders. The combination of action video games and posterior parietal cortex neuromodulation by a transcranial random noise stimulation could enhance brain plasticity, improving attentional control and reading skills also in adults with developmental dyslexia. In a double blind randomized controlled trial, 20 young adult nonaction video game players with developmental dyslexia were trained for 15 h with action video games. Half of the participants were stimulated with bilateral transcranial random noise stimulation on the posterior parietal cortex during the action video game training, whereas the others were in the placebo (i.e. sham) condition. Word text reading, pseudowords decoding, and temporal attention (attentional blink), as well as electroencephalographic activity during the attentional blink, were measured before and after the training. The action video game + transcranial random noise stimulation group showed temporal attention, word text reading, and pseudoword decoding enhancements and P300 amplitude brain potential changes. The enhancement in temporal attention performance was related with the efficiency in pseudoword decoding improvement. Our results demonstrate that the combination of action video game training with parietal neuromodulation increases the efficiency of visual attention deployment, probably reshaping goal-directed and stimulus-driven fronto-parietal attentional networks interplay in young adults with neurodevelopmental conditions.

Assessing the Efficacy of Large Language Models in Health Literacy: A Comprehensive Cross-Sectional Study.

Enhanced health literacy in children has been empirically linked to better health outcomes over the long term; however, few interventions have been shown to improve health literacy. In this context, we investigate whether large language models (LLMs) can serve as a medium to improve health literacy in children. We tested pediatric conditions using 26 different prompts in ChatGPT-3.5, ChatGPT-4, Microsoft Bing, and Google Bard (now known as Google Gemini). The primary outcome measurement was the reading grade level (RGL) of output as assessed by Gunning Fog, Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level, Automated Readability Index, and Coleman-Liau indices. Word counts were also assessed. Across all models, output for basic prompts such as "Explain" and "What is (are)," were at, or exceeded, the tenth-grade RGL. When prompts were specified to explain conditions from the first- to twelfth-grade level, we found that LLMs had varying abilities to tailor responses based on grade level. ChatGPT-3.5 provided responses that ranged from the seventh-grade to college freshmen RGL while ChatGPT-4 outputted responses from the tenth-grade to the college senior RGL. Microsoft Bing provided responses from the ninth- to eleventh-grade RGL while Google Bard provided responses from the seventh- to tenth-grade RGL. LLMs face challenges in crafting outputs below a sixth-grade RGL. However, their capability to modify outputs above this threshold, provides a potential mechanism for adolescents to explore, understand, and engage with information regarding their health conditions, spanning from simple to complex terms. Future studies are needed to verify the accuracy and efficacy of these tools.

Using Monte-Carlo simulation to test predictions about the time-course of semantic and lexical access in reading.

One of the main theoretical distinctions between reading models is how and when they predict semantic processing occurs. Some models assume semantic activation occurs after word-form is retrieved. Other models assume there is no-word form, and that what people think of as word-form is actually just semantics. These models thus predict semantic effects should occur early in reading. Results showing words with inconsistent spelling-sound correspondences are faster to read aloud if they are imageable/concrete compared to if they are abstract have been used as evidence supporting this prediction, although null-effects have also been reported. To investigate this, I used Monte-Carlo simulation to create a large set of simulated experiments from RTs taken from different databases. The results showed significant main effects of concreteness and spelling-sound consistency, as well as age-of-acquisition, a variable that can potentially confound the results. Alternatively, simulations showing a significant interaction between spelling-sound consistency and concreteness did not occur above chance, even without controlling for age-of-acquisition. These results support models that use lexical form. In addition, they suggest significant interactions from previous experiments may have occurred due to idiosyncratic items affecting the results and random noise causing the occasional statistical error.

The cortical representation of language timescales is shared between reading and listening.

Language comprehension involves integrating low-level sensory inputs into a hierarchy of increasingly high-level features. Prior work studied brain representations of different levels of the language hierarchy, but has not determined whether these brain representations are shared between written and spoken language. To address this issue, we analyze fMRI BOLD data that were recorded while participants read and listened to the same narratives in each modality. Levels of the language hierarchy are operationalized as timescales, where each timescale refers to a set of spectral components of a language stimulus. Voxelwise encoding models are used to determine where different timescales are represented across the cerebral cortex, for each modality separately. These models reveal that between the two modalities timescale representations are organized similarly across the cortical surface. Our results suggest that, after low-level sensory processing, language integration proceeds similarly regardless of stimulus modality.

Quality assessment of available Internet information on early orthodontic treatment.

BACKGROUND: This study aimed to evaluate the content, reliability, quality and readability of information on Internet websites about early orthodontic treatment. METHODS: The "early orthodontic treatment" search term was individually entered into four web search engines. The content quality and reliability were reviewed with DISCERN, Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA), and Health on the Net code (HONcode) tools using the contents of websites meeting predetermined criteria. The readability of websites was evaluated with Flesch Reading Facilitate Score (FRES) and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL). RESULTS: Eighty-six websites were suitable for inclusion and scoring of the 200 websites. 80.2% of websites belonged to orthodontists, 15.1% to multidisciplinary dental clinics and 4.7% to professional organizations. The mean DISCERN score of all websites (parts 1 and 2) was 27.98/75, ranging between 19 and 67. Professional organization websites had the highest scores for DISCERN criteria. Moreover, 45.3% of websites were compatible with JAMA's disclosure criterion, 7% with the currency criterion, 5.8% with the authorship criterion and 5.8% with the attribution criterion. Only three websites met all JAMA criteria, and these websites belonged to professional organizations. None of the websites had the HONcode logo. Mean FRES and FKGL were 47.6 and 11.6, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The quality of web-based information about early orthodontic treatment is poor, and readability is insufficient. More accurate and higher quality Internet sources are required on the web.

The transition from vision to language: Distinct patterns of functional connectivity for subregions of the visual word form area.

Reading entails transforming visual symbols to sound and meaning. This process depends on specialized circuitry in the visual cortex, the visual word form area (VWFA). Recent findings suggest that this text-selective cortex comprises at least two distinct subregions: the more posterior VWFA-1 is sensitive to visual features, while the more anterior VWFA-2 processes higher level language information. Here, we explore whether these two subregions also exhibit different patterns of functional connectivity. To this end, we capitalize on two complementary datasets: Using the Natural Scenes Dataset (NSD), we identify text-selective responses in high-quality 7T adult data (N = 8), and investigate functional connectivity patterns of VWFA-1 and VWFA-2 at the individual level. We then turn to the Healthy Brain Network (HBN) database to assess whether these patterns replicate in a large developmental sample (N = 224; age 6-20 years), and whether they relate to reading development. In both datasets, we find that VWFA-1 is primarily correlated with bilateral visual regions. In contrast, VWFA-2 is more strongly correlated with language regions in the frontal and lateral parietal lobes, particularly the bilateral inferior frontal gyrus. Critically, these patterns do not generalize to adjacent face-selective regions, suggesting a specific relationship between VWFA-2 and the frontal language network. No correlations were observed between functional connectivity and reading ability. Together, our findings support the distinction between subregions of the VWFA, and suggest that functional connectivity patterns in the ventral temporal cortex are consistent over a wide range of reading skills.

Does rotation eliminate masked priming effects for Japanese kanji words?

A key issue in recent visual word recognition literature is whether text rotation disrupts the early stages of orthographic processing. Previous research found no masked repetition priming effect when primes were rotated ≥90° in alphabetic languages. The present study investigated the impact of text rotation using logographic (two-character Japanese kanji) words. In Experiment 1, we conducted a masked repetition priming lexical decision experiment with upright and 180° rotated primes. The rotated primes produced a significant priming effect, although the effect was smaller than the upright primes. In Experiment 2, we further examined the effectiveness of 180° rotated primes in two different conditions: the whole words were rotated vs. each constituent character was rotated at their own positions. Both prime types produced significant priming effects of similar magnitudes. These findings suggest that orthographic processing is more robust against text rotation in logographic languages than in alphabetic languages.

A pilot study of axial length changes associated with myopia control spectacles in subjects reading under mesopic conditions.

PURPOSE: To investigate whether axial length changes in subjects wearing myopia control spectacles under mesopic conditions. METHODS: Young users of monofocal spectacles with myopic spherical equivalent ranging from -1.00 D to -5.00 D were enrolled prospectively. Subjects were tested while using a pair of special defocus spectacles with a central zone including the distance myopic correction and a peripheral zone with an addition of +3.50 D. Subjects first read an online book with black letters on white background on a desktop computer with their monofocal spectacles for 20 minutes and then read with special defocus spectacles for another 20 minutes. Reading took place in a darkened room under 20 lux illumination. Before and after these periods, axial length of the right eye was measured ten times using the Lenstar, and average measurements were recorded. RESULTS: The 11 subjects in this pilot study had a mean age of 20.9 ± 7.7 years, and 1 was female. Their mean spherical equivalent of the right eyes was -3.20 ± 2.29 D. As expected, axial length increased by 8.2 ± 9.4 µm (P < 0.01) after 20 minutes of reading with monofocal spectacles in low light. When reading with defocus spectacles under the same conditions, the axial length saw an additional, nonsignificant change of 2.2 ± 12.2 µm (P = 0.56). CONCLUSIONS: When reading in mesopic conditions, the axial length in study subjects did not return to baseline values with myopia control spectacles.

Neural consequences of symptomatic convergence insufficiency: A small sample study.

INTRODUCTION: Convergence insufficiency (CI) is an oculomotor abnormality characterised by exophoria and inadequate convergence when focusing on nearby objects. CI has been shown to cause symptoms when reading. However, the downstream consequences on brain structure have yet to be investigated. Here, we investigated the neural consequences of symptomatic CI, focusing on the left arcuate fasciculus, a bundle of white matter fibres which supports reading ability and has been associated with reading deficits. METHODS: We compared the arcuate fasciculus microstructure of participants with symptomatic CI versus normal binocular vision (NBV). Six CI participants and seven NBV controls were included in the analysis. All participants were scanned with 3 T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and anatomical and diffusion-weighted images were acquired. Diffusion-weighted images were processed with TRACULA to identify the arcuate fasciculus in each participant and compute volume and radial diffusivity (RD). RESULTS: Compared with NBV controls, those with symptomatic CI had significantly smaller arcuate fasciculi bilaterally (left: t = -3.21, p = 0.008; right: t = -3.29, p = 0.007), and lower RD in the left (t = -2.66, p = 0.02), but not the right (t = -0.81, p = 0.44, false discovery rate (FDR)-corrected p > 0.05) arcuate fasciculus. Those with higher levels of reading symptoms had smaller arcuate fasciculi (r = -0.74, p = 0.004) with lower RD (r = -0.61, p = 0.03). CONCLUSIONS: These findings suggest that symptomatic CI may lead to microstructural changes in the arcuate fasciculus. Since it is highly unlikely that abnormalities in the arcuate fasciculus are the cause of the neuromuscular deficits in the eyes, we argue that these changes may be a potential neuroplastic consequence of disruptions in sustained reading.

Early life stress, literacy and dyslexia: an evolutionary perspective.

Stress and learning co-evolved in parallel, with their interdependence critical to the survival of the species. Even today, the regulation of moderate levels of stress by the central autonomic network (CAN), especially during pre- and post-natal periods, facilitates biological adaptability and is an essential precursor for the cognitive requisites of learning to read. Reading is a remarkable evolutionary achievement of the human brain, mysteriously unusual, because it is not pre-wired with a genetic address to facilitate its acquisition. There is no gene for reading. The review suggests that reading co-opts a brain circuit centered in the left hemisphere ventral occipital cortex that evolved as a domain-general visual processor. Its adoption by reading depends on the CAN's coordination of the learning and emotional requirements of learning to read at the metabolic, cellular, synaptic, and network levels. By stabilizing a child's self-control and modulating the attention network's inhibitory controls over the reading circuit, the CAN plays a key role in school readiness and learning to read. In addition, the review revealed two beneficial CAN evolutionary adjustments to early-life stress "overloads" that come with incidental costs of school under-performance and dyslexia. A short-term adaptation involving methylation of the FKBP5 and NR3C1 genes is a liability for academic achievement in primary school. The adaptation leading to dyslexia induces alterations in BDNF trafficking, promoting long-term adaptive fitness by protecting against excessive glucocorticoid toxicity but risks reading difficulties by disruptive signaling from the CAN to the attention networks and the reading circuit.

A Systematic Review on Visual-Processing Deficits in Neurofibromatosis Type 1: What Possible Impact on Learning to Read?

This systematic review aimed to examine the possible implication of visual-perceptual, visuo-attentional and oculomotor processing in the reading deficits frequently experienced by children with Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1), as previously shown in dyslexia. Using PRISMA methodological guidelines, we examined 49 studies; most of these reported visual-processing deficits in this population, raising the importance of directly studying the visuo-perceptual and visuo-attentional processes and eye-movement control involved in the learning-to-read process in NF1. The discussion provides a reflection for a better understanding of how visual-processing skills interact with reading deficits in NF1, as well as new avenues for their screening and care.

Electrophysiological signatures of spelling sensitivity development from primary school age to adulthood.

Recognizing spelling errors is important for correct writing and reading, and develops over an extended period. The neural bases of the development of orthographic sensitivity remain poorly understood. We investigated event-related potentials (ERPs) associated with spelling error recognition when performing the orthographic decision task with correctly spelled and misspelled words in children aged 8-10 years old, early adolescents aged 11-14 years old, and adults. Spelling processing in adults included an early stage associated with the initial recognition of conflict between orthography and phonology (reflected in the N400 time window) and a later stage (reflected in the P600 time window) related to re-checking the spelling. In children 8-10 years old, there were no differences in ERPs to correct and misspelled words; in addition, their behavioral scores were worse than those of early adolescents, implying that the ability to quickly recognize the correct spelling is just beginning to develop at this age. In early adolescents, spelling recognition was reflected only at the later stage, corresponding to the P600 component. At the behavioral level, they were worse than adults at recognizing misspelled words. Our data suggest that orthographic sensitivity can develop beyond 14 years.

Sodium alginate hydrogelation mediated paper-based POCT sensor for visual distance reading and smartphone-assisted colorimetric dual-signal determination of L-lactate.

Herein, we present a paper-based POCT sensor based on lactate dehydrogenase-mediated alginate gelation combined with visual distance reading and smartphone-assisted colorimetric dual-signal analysis to determine the concentration of L-lactate in yogurt samples. In this research, L-lactate was transformed into pyruvate by lactate dehydrogenase. Pyruvate then triggered the gelation of a sol mixture, increasing the viscosity (ηs) of the mixture, which was shown as a decrease in the diffusion diameter on the paper-based sensor. In addition, protons from pyruvate accelerated the degradation of Rhodamine B, causing color fading of the mixture, which was analyzed using RGB analysis application software. Under optimal experimental conditions, the linear ranges of visual distance reading and smartphone-assisted colorimetric analysis were 0.1-15 µM and 0.3-15 µM and the detection limits were 0.03 µM and 0.07 µM, respectively. As a proof-of-concept application, we exploited the paper-based sensor to determine the concentration of L-lactate in yogurt samples. The results from the dual-signal paper-based sensor were consistent with the ones from HPLC analysis. In short, this study developed a simple, convenient, cost-effective, and feasible method for the quantitative detection of L-lactate in real samples.

Reading Comprehension in the Arabic Diglossia: The SVR Between the Spoken and Literary Varieties.

This study aimed to examine the validity of the "simple view of reading" (SVR) model in the diglossic Arabic language. Using a longitudinal design, we tested whether decoding and listening comprehension (LC) in kindergarten can later predict reading comprehension (RC) in the first grade and whether the contribution of LC to RC differs between the spoken and literary varieties of Arabic. The participants were 261 kindergartners who were followed to the first grade. Our results from separate SEM analysis for the spoken and literary varieties revealed some similarity between the explained variance in the spoken (52%) and literary (48%) variety models. However, while the contribution of LC to RC was higher than the contribution of decoding in the spoken variety model, an opposite pattern was observed in the literary variety model. The results are discussed in light of the diglossia phenomenon and its impact on comprehension skills in Arabic, with theoretical and pedagogical implications.

Does the Processing Advantage of Formulaic Language Persist in Its Nonadjacent Forms? Evidence from Eye Movements of Chinese Collocations.

It has been well documented that formulaic language (such as collocations; e.g., provide information) enjoys a processing advantage over novel language (e.g., compare information). In natural language use, however, many formulaic sequences are often inserted with words intervening in between the individual constituents (e.g., provided information → provide some of the information). Whether or not the processing advantage persists in nonadjacent forms remains largely unknown. The present study thus sought to address this gap by recording the eye movements of Chinese native speakers when they were reading sentences embedded with formulaic sequences (high frequency collocations) versus novel phrases (low frequency controls), in their adjacent (e.g., 'resolve difficulties' vs. 'experience difficulties'), short-insertion (e.g., 'resolve these difficulties' vs. 'experience these difficulties'), and long-insertion forms (e.g., 'resolved so many difficulties' vs. 'experienced so many difficulties'). Results suggested that the processing advantage for formulaic language over novel language existed not only in their adjacent form, but also in their short-insertion form, albeit the magnitude of the processing advantage diminished with the increase of insertion length. The persistence of FL processing advantage is in line with usage-based approach to language learning, processing, and use.

Oligomerization mediated by the D2 domain of DTX3L is critical for DTX3L-PARP9 reading function of mono-ADP-ribosylated androgen receptor.

Deltex proteins are a family of E3 ubiquitin ligases that encode C-terminal RING and DTC domains that mediate interactions with E2 ubiquitin-conjugating enzymes and recognize ubiquitination substrates. DTX3L is unique among the Deltex proteins based on its N-terminal domain architecture. The N-terminal D1 and D2 domains of DTX3L mediate homo-oligomerization, and the D3 domain interacts with PARP9, a protein that contains tandem macrodomains with ADP-ribose reader function. While DTX3L and PARP9 are known to heterodimerize, and assemble into a high molecular weight oligomeric complex, the nature of the oligomeric structure, including whether this contributes to the ADP-ribose reader function is unknown. Here, we report a crystal structure of the DTX3L N-terminal D2 domain and show that it forms a tetramer with, conveniently, D2 symmetry. We identified two interfaces in the structure: a major, conserved interface with a surface of 973 Å2 and a smaller one of 415 Å2. Using native mass spectrometry, we observed molecular species that correspond to monomers, dimers and tetramers of the D2 domain. Reconstitution of DTX3L knockout cells with a D1-D2 deletion mutant showed the domain is dispensable for DTX3L-PARP9 heterodimer formation, but necessary to assemble an oligomeric complex with efficient reader function for ADP-ribosylated androgen receptor. Our results suggest that homo-oligomerization of DTX3L is important for the DTX3L-PARP9 complex to read mono-ADP-ribosylation on a ligand-regulated transcription factor.

Prismatic adaptation coupled with cognitive training as novel treatment for developmental dyslexia: a randomized controlled trial.

Despite intense and costly treatments, developmental dyslexia (DD) often persists into adulthood. Several brain skills unrelated to speech sound processing (i.e., phonology), including the spatial distribution of visual attention, are abnormal in DD and may represent possible treatment targets. This study explores the efficacy in DD of rightward prismatic adaptation (rPA), a visuomotor adaptation technique that enables visuo-attentive recalibration through shifts in the visual field induced by prismatic goggles. A digital intervention of rPA plus cognitive training was delivered weekly over 10 weeks to adolescents with DD (aged 13-17) assigned either to treatment (N = 35) or waitlist (N = 35) group. Efficacy was evaluated by repeated measures MANOVA assessing changes in working memory index (WMI), processing speed index (PSI), text reading speed, and words/pseudowords reading accuracy. rPA treatment was significantly more effective than waitlist (p ≤ 0.001; ηp2 = 0.815). WMI, PSI, and reading speed increased in the intervention group only (p ≤ 0.001, ηp2 = 0.67; p ≤ 0.001, ηp2 = 0.58; p ≤ 0.001, ηp2 = 0.29, respectively). Although modest change was detected for words and pseudowords accuracy in the waitlist group only (words: p ≤ 0.001, d = 0.17, pseudowords: p = 0.028; d = 0.27), between-group differences were non-significant. rPA-coupled cognitive training enhances cognitive and reading abilities in adolescents with DD. This innovative approach could have implications for early remedial treatment.