Biology subjects

Rogenmoser, L.

Publications and source records attributed to Rogenmoser, L..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2022

The processing of stress in a foreign language modulates functional antagonism between default mode and attention network regions

Lexical stress is an essential element of prosody. Mastering this prosodic feature is challenging, especially in a stress-free foreign language for individuals native to a stress-fixed language, a phenomenon referred to as stress deafness. By using functional magnetic resonance imaging, we elucidated the neuronal underpinnings of stress processing in a stress-free foreign language, and determined the underlying mechanism of stress deafness. Here, we contrasted behavioral and hemodynamic responses revealed by native speakers of a stress-free (German; N = 38) and a stress-fixed (French; N = 47) language while discriminating pairs of words in a stress-free foreign language (Spanish). Consistent with the stress deafness phenomenon, French speakers performed worse than German speakers in discriminating Spanish words based on cues of stress but not of vowel. Whole-brain analyses revealed widespread bilateral networks (cerebral regions including frontal, temporal and parietal areas as well as insular, subcortical and cerebellar structures), overlapping with the ones previously associated with stress processing within native languages. Moreover, our results provide evidence that the structures pertaining to a right-lateralized attention system (i.e., middle frontal gyrus, anterior insula) and the Default Mode Network modulate stress processing as a function of the proficiency level. In comparison to the German speakers, the French speakers activated the attention system and deactivated the Default Mode Network to a stronger degree, reflecting attentive engagement, likely a compensatory mechanism underlying the "stress-deaf" brain. The mechanism modulating stress processing argues for a rightward lateralization, indeed overlapping with the location covered by the dorsal stream but remaining unspecific to speech.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

The left dorsal stream causally mediates the tone labeling in absolute pitch

BackgroundAbsolute pitch (AP) refers to the ability of effortlessly identifying given pitches without the reliance on any reference pitch. Correlative evidence suggests that the left posterior dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) is responsible for the process underlying pitch labeling in AP. ObjectiveHere, we aimed at investigating the causal relationship between the DLPFC and the pitch-labeling process underlying AP. MethodsTo address this, we measured sight-reading performance of right-handed AP possessors and matched control musicians (N =18 per sample) under cathodal and sham transcranial direct current stimulation of the left DLPFC. The participants were instructed to report visually presenting notations as accurately and fast as possible by playing with their right hand on a piano. The notations were simultaneously presented with distracting auditory stimuli that either matched or mismatched them in different semitone degrees. ResultsUnlike the control participants, the AP possessors revealed an interference effect in that they responded slower in mismatching conditions than in the matching one. Under cathodal stimulation, half of the time discrepancies between matching and mismatching conditions vanished; specifically, the ones with small up to moderate deviations. ConclusionsThese findings confirm that the pitch-labeling process underlying AP occurs automatically and is largely non-suppressible when triggered by tone exposure. The improvement of the AP possessors sight-reading performance in response to the suppression of the left DLPFC using cathodal stimulation confirms a causal relationship between this brain structure and pitch labeling.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

Auditory aversion in absolute pitch possessors

Absolute pitch (AP) refers to the ability of identifying the pitch of a given tone without reliance on any reference pitch. The downside of possessing AP may be the experience of disturbance when exposed to out-of-tune tones. Here, we investigated this so-far unexplored phenomenon in AP, which we refer to as auditory aversion. Electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded in a sample of AP possessors and matched control musicians without AP while letting them perform a task underlying a so-called affective priming paradigm: Participants judged valenced pictures preceded by musical primes as quickly and accurately as possible. The primes were bimodal, presented as tones in combination with visual notations that either matched or mismatched the actually presented tone. Regardless of the prime condition, AP possessors performed more poorly in judging pleasant pictures and their EEG revealed later peaks at around 200 ms (P200) after prime onset. Their performance dropped when responding to pleasant pictures preceded by incongruent primes, especially when mistuned by one semitone. This interference was also reflected in an EEG deflection at around 400 ms (N400) after picture onset, preceding the behavior responses. These findings suggest that AP possessors process mistuned musical stimuli and pleasant pictures as affectively unrelated with each other, supporting an aversion towards out-of-tune tones in AP possessors. The longer prime-related P200 latencies exhibited by AP possessors suggest a delay in integrating musical stimuli, underlying an altered affinity towards pitch-label associations.

neuroscience↗