1,721,289 research outputs found
The neural basis of language talent in bilinguals
No full textIn a recent paper, Chee et al. report differences in the patterns of brain activation and deactivation in bilinguals with different levels of proficiency in their second language. Most intriguingly, this research addressed the issue of the neural basis of phonological working memory (PWM), which is crucial in language acquisition, in subjects who were under comparable social pressure to be bilinguals. The results led the authors to suggest that a more readily available working memory system might correlate with the attainment of superior proficiency in a second language
Bilingualism, dementia, cognitive and neural reserve
No full textAbstractPURPOSE OF REVIEW:We discuss the role of bilingualism as a source of cognitive reserve and we propose the putative neural mechanisms through which lifelong bilingualism leads to a neural reserve that delays the onset of dementia.RECENT FINDINGS:Recent findings highlight that the use of more than one language affects the human brain in terms of anatomo-structural changes. It is noteworthy that recent evidence from different places and cultures throughout the world points to a significant delay of dementia onset in bilingual/multilingual individuals. This delay has been reported not only for Alzheimer's dementia and its prodromal mild cognitive impairment phase, but also for other dementias such as vascular and fronto-temporal dementia, and was found to be independent of literacy, education and immigrant status.SUMMARY:Lifelong bilingualism represents a powerful cognitive reserve delaying the onset of dementia by approximately 4 years. As to the causal mechanism, because speaking more than one language heavily relies upon executive control and attention, brain systems handling these functions are more developed in bilinguals resulting in increases of gray and white matter densities that may help protect from dementia onset. These neurocognitive benefits are even more prominent when second language proficiency and exposure are kept high throughout life
Basal ganglia and thalamo-cortical hypermetabolism in patients with spasmodic torticollis
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