Connectivity precedes function in the development of the visual word form area.
Nat Neurosci
; 19(9): 1250-5, 2016 09.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-27500407
ABSTRACT
What determines the cortical location at which a given functionally specific region will arise in development? We tested the hypothesis that functionally specific regions develop in their characteristic locations because of pre-existing differences in the extrinsic connectivity of that region to the rest of the brain. We exploited the visual word form area (VWFA) as a test case, scanning children with diffusion and functional imaging at age 5, before they learned to read, and at age 8, after they learned to read. We found the VWFA developed functionally in this interval and that its location in a particular child at age 8 could be predicted from that child's connectivity fingerprints (but not functional responses) at age 5. These results suggest that early connectivity instructs the functional development of the VWFA, possibly reflecting a general mechanism of cortical development.
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Reading
/
Visual Perception
/
Functional Laterality
/
Neural Pathways
Type of study:
Prognostic_studies
Limits:
Child
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
Language:
En
Journal:
Nat Neurosci
Journal subject:
NEUROLOGIA
Year:
2016
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
United States