[BIC-announce] CRLMB Distinguished Lecture Series - Neuroimaging Studies of Reading and Language Development: An update on recent findings

[Jennifer Chew, Ms.]

The Centre for Research on Language, Mind and Brain (CRLMB) is pleased
to announce a lecture entitled

NEUROIMAGING STUDIES OF READING AND LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT: AN UPDATE ON
RECENT FINDINGS

As part of our CRLMB Distinguished Lecture Series

Presentation by Dr. Ken Pugh

Friday, November 7, 2008 at 1:30 pm -3:00 pm 
Room 1034, McIntyre Medical Building

Ken Pugh is President and Director of Research, Senior Scientist, at
Haskins Laboratories, in New Haven, Connecticut

ABSTRACT

Our research combines several types of neuroimaging technologies with
intensive behavioral testing in order to examine developmental
trajectories for language and reading in both reading disabled (RD) and
non-impaired (NI) cohorts. In studies of both adults and children, RD
readers demonstrate anomalous brain activation patterns at posterior
regions in the left hemisphere (LH) during tasks that make explicit
demands on phonological processing, along with, what appears to be, a
compensatory reliance on frontal lobe sites and right hemisphere
systems. Brain/behavior analyses have indicated that the development of
reading fluency in young children is strongly associated with the
development of the left hemisphere posterior reading system.

Our new longitudinal project is aimed at establishing key neuro-chemical
and genetic factors associated with atypical brain/behavior
trajectories; initial findings will be discussed. With regard to
plasticity and learning, intervention studies have examined the
influence of intensive phonological remediation in young at-risk
children, revealing substantial gains in both reading scores and
development of these LH reading systems for children afforded this
treatment. Recent extensions of our learning research with older RD
readers continue to suggest a high degree of plasticity in this
population.




Further information at http://www.crlmb.ca/


Thanks,

Vince

Vincent L. Gracco, PhD
Director, Centre for Research on Language, Mind and Brain
McGill University
3640 de la Montagne
Montreal, Quebec, Canada H3G 2A8

ph: 514-398-7298
fax: 514-398-8123
email: vincent.gracco at mcgill.ca