Action viewing and language in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder.

The mirror neuron system consists of fronto-parietal regions and responds to both goal-directed action execution and observation. The broader action observation network is specifically involved in observation of actions and is thought to play a role in understanding the goals of the motor act, the intention of others, empathy, and language. Many, but not all, studies have found mirror neuron system or action observation network dysfunction in autism spectrum disorder.

Limb Apraxia: a Disorder of Learned Skilled Movement.

Purpose Of Review: This chapter focuses on limb apraxia, a cognitive-motor disorder of learned skilled movement, and the nature of the spatiotemporal errors that disrupt movement sequences.

Recent Findings: A cognitive model that attempts to reconcile conceptual and preparatory aspects of the motor program with perceptual and kinematic features will be discussed. An update on the localization of the praxis network will be provided.

Frontal lesions predict response to prism adaptation treatment in spatial neglect: A randomised controlled study.

Spatial neglect commonly follows right hemisphere stroke. It is defined as impaired contralesional stimulus detection, response, or action, causing functional disability. While prism adaptation treatment is highly promising to promote functional recovery of spatial neglect, not all individuals respond.

Atypical PT anatomy in children with autism spectrum disorder with expressive language deficits.

Deficits in communication are a core feature of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), however, structural language abilities are highly variable, ranging from minimally verbal to superior linguistic skills. Differences in the anatomy of cortical language regions, including anterior and posterior areas, have been found in ASD. It remains unclear, however, if anatomical differences distinguish individuals with impaired expressive language from those without such deficits.

Unilateral repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation differentially affects younger and older adults completing a verbal working memory task.

Functional neuroimaging studies have found that lateralization of activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) is reduced with aging. In the present study, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) was used to disrupt dlPFC activity in order to test the relationship of dlPFC laterality and age in verbal working memory (WM). Young (n=36) and older (n=35) subjects received 1Hz-rTMS (sham or active) to left or right dlPFC and WM performance was assessed pre- and post-stimulation via the n-back task.

Atypical activation of action-semantic network in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder.

In typical adults, fMRI studies have shown activation of primary and pre-motor regions during action word processing. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social and communication impairments. ASD studies have shown atypical semantic processing and motor deficits.

Cortical activity during cued picture naming predicts individual differences in stuttering frequency.

Objective: Developmental stuttering is characterized by fluent speech punctuated by stuttering events, the frequency of which varies among individuals and contexts. Most stuttering events occur at the beginning of an utterance, suggesting neural dynamics associated with stuttering may be evident during speech preparation.

Methods: This study used EEG to measure cortical activity during speech preparation in men who stutter, and compared the EEG measures to individual differences in stuttering rate as well as to a fluent control group.

Handedness in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder.

The left hemisphere is usually predominant in manual skills and language, suggesting a link between hand dominance and language. Studies of autism spectrum disorder show atypical handedness; however, few have examined language-handedness associations. Handedness, assessed by task performance, and standardized receptive and expressive language tests were completed in 110 autism spectrum disorder children (96 boys; M age = 8.

Polyphenon E, non-futile at neuroprotection in multiple sclerosis but unpredictably hepatotoxic: Phase I single group and phase II randomized placebo-controlled studies.

Objectives: Phase I (PhI): assess the safety of Polyphenon E in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) and determine the futility of Polyphenon E as a neuroprotective agent. Correlate plasma levels of EGCG with neuroprotective effects. Phase II (PhII): Further assess safety and confirm the neuroprotective effects of Polyphenon E.

Speech preparation in adults with persistent developmental stuttering.

Motor efference copy conveys movement information to sensory areas before and during vocalization. We hypothesized speech preparation would modulate auditory processing, via motor efference copy, differently in men who stutter (MWS) vs. fluent adults.

Ipsilesional neglect: behavioral and anatomical correlates.

Unlabelled: [Correction Notice: An Erratum for this article was reported in Vol 29(2) of Neuropsychology (see record 2014-42242-001). The funding source information was missing from the author note, and A. M.

Presence of Motor-Intentional Aiming Deficit Predicts Functional Improvement of Spatial Neglect With Prism Adaptation.

Unlabelled: Background Spatial neglect is a debilitating disorder for which there is no agreed on course of rehabilitation. The lack of consensus on treatment may result from systematic differences in the syndrome's characteristics, with spatial cognitive deficits potentially affecting perceptual-attentional "Where" or motor-intentional "Aiming" spatial processing. Heterogeneity of response to treatment might be explained by different treatment impacts on these dissociated deficits: prism adaptation, for example, might reduce Aiming deficits without affecting Where spatial deficits.

Atypical caudate anatomy in children who stutter.

A temporal motor defect in speech preparation and/or planning may contribute to the development of stuttering. This defect may be linked to a dysfunctional cortical-subcortical network at the level of the striatum. To determine whether structural differences exist and whether group differences are associated with stuttering severity or manual laterality, the caudate was measured in 14 children who stutter (CWS) and in a control group of right-handed boys, ages 8-13 years.

The SpeechEasy device in stuttering and nonstuttering adults: fluency effects while speaking and reading.

The SpeechEasy is an electronic device designed to alleviate stuttering by manipulating auditory feedback via time delays and frequency shifts. Device settings (control, default, custom), ear-placement (left, right), speaking task, and cognitive variables were examined in people who stutter (PWS) (n=14) compared to controls (n=10). Among the PWS there was a significantly greater reduction in stuttering (compared to baseline) with custom device settings compared to the non-altered feedback (control) condition.

Apraxia: neural mechanisms and functional recovery.

Apraxia is a cognitive-motor disorder that impacts the performance of learned, skilled movements. Limb apraxia, which is the topic of this chapter, is specific to disordered movements of the upper limb that cannot be explained by weakness, sensory loss, abnormalities of posture/tone/movement, or a lack of understanding/cooperation. Patients with limb apraxia have deficits in the control or programming of the spatial-temporal organization and sequencing of goal-directed movements.

Prefrontal and occipital asymmetry and volume in boys with autism spectrum disorder.

Objective: To examine prefrontal and occipital asymmetry (brain torque) in boys with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and controls. A secondary aim was to study age-related changes in gray and white matter volume.

Background: Several studies have found atypical early cortical development in ASD.

Integrity of medial temporal structures may predict better improvement of spatial neglect with prism adaptation treatment.

Prism adaptation treatment (PAT) is a promising rehabilitative method for functional recovery in persons with spatial neglect. Previous research suggests that PAT improves motor-intentional "aiming" deficits that frequently occur with frontal lesions. To test whether presence of frontal lesions predicted better improvement of spatial neglect after PAT, the current study evaluated neglect-specific improvement in functional activities (assessment with the Catherine Bergego Scale) over time in 21 right-brain-damaged stroke survivors with left-sided spatial neglect.

Atypical brain torque in boys with developmental stuttering.

The counterclockwise brain torque, defined as a larger right prefrontal and left parietal-occipital lobe, is a consistent brain asymmetry. Reduced or reversed lobar asymmetries are markers of atypical cerebral laterality and have been found in adults who stutter. It was hypothesized that atypical brain torque would be more common in children who stutter.

Sylvian fissure and parietal anatomy in children with autism spectrum disorder.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is characterized by deficits in social functioning and language and communication, with restricted interests or stereotyped behaviors. Anatomical differences have been found in the parietal cortex in children with ASD, but parietal subregions and associations between Sylvian fissure (SF) and parietal anatomy have not been explored. In this study, SF length and anterior and posterior parietal volumes were measured on MRI in 30 right-handed boys with ASD and 30 right-handed typically developing boys (7-14 years), matched on age and non-verbal IQ.

Selective influence of auditory distractors on motor cortex excitability.

The diversion of attention from a primary goal by irrelevant events is known as attention capture, and is often followed by a directed action. The hypothesis that corticospinal excitability is modulated by attention capture was tested using transcranial magnetic stimulation. Participants watched a video while sounds were intermittently presented.

Modulation of sensory and motor cortex activity during speech preparation.

Previous studies have shown that speaking affects auditory and motor cortex responsiveness, which may reflect the influence of motor efference copy. If motor efference copy is involved, it would also likely influence auditory and motor cortical activity when preparing to speak. We tested this hypothesis by using auditory event-related potentials and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) of the motor cortex.

Relevance of subcortical stroke in dysphagia.

Background And Purpose: Unilateral cortical lesions are associated with dysphagia in ischemic stroke. It is unclear, however, whether acute subcortical stroke is associated with a similar risk of dysphagia. The aim of this study was to determine the occurrence of dysphagia in purely subcortical stroke and identify dysphagia characteristics.

Morphometry of human insular cortex and insular volume reduction in Williams syndrome.

Functional imaging in humans and anatomical data in monkeys have implicated the insula as a multimodal sensory integrative brain region. The topography of insular connections is organized by its cytoarchitectonic regions. Previous attempts to measure the insula have utilized either indirect or automated methods.

Broca's area: nomenclature, anatomy, typology and asymmetry.

In this review, we (i) describe the nomenclature of Broca's area and show how the circumscribed definition of Broca's area is disassociated from Broca's aphasia, (ii) describe in detail how the gross anatomy of Broca's area varies between people, and how the definitions vary between studies, (iii) attempt to reconcile the findings of structural asymmetry of Broca's area with the differences in methodological approaches, (iv) consider the functional significance of cytoarchitectonic definitions of Broca's area, and (v) critically elucidate the significance of circumscribed regions of cortex for language lateralisation and language development. Contrary to what has previously been reported in the literature, asymmetry of Broca's area has not been reproducibly demonstrated, particularly on a gross morphological level. This may be due to major inconsistencies in methodology (including different anatomical boundaries, measurement techniques and samples studied) or that the sulcal contours defining Broca's area are so naturally variable between people making a standard definition difficult.