Work

Dysfunctional and compensatory brain networks underlying math fluency

Year: 2019

Type: preprint

Abstract: Poor math fluency, or timed calculation (TC) performance, is a characteristic of dyscalculia, a common cause of poor educational and occupational outcomes. Here, we examined neural substrates of dysfunctional math fluency and potential compensatory mechanisms. We performed functional MRI scans of participants with divergent performance on an event-related TC paradigm (poor TC, <0.5 accuracy, n=34; vs. controls, accuracy>0.8, n=34). Individuals with poor TC had decreased intraparietal sulcus (IPS) engagement, and decreased IPS-striatal and IPS-prefrontal effective connectivity. We next examined an independent well-performing sample (TC accuracy>0.8, n=100), stratified according to relatively low-versus high-IPS activation during TC. Relatively reduced IPS engagement, or patterns of IPS-related effective connectivity similar to those with poor TC, appeared to be compensated for by increased engagement of effective connectivity involving fusiform gyrus, angular gyrus, inferior frontal gyrus and striatum. Neural connectivity involving high-level visual processing in fusiform gyrus and related ventral cortical networks may be relevant in compensatory function ameliorating aspects of dyscalculia and mathematical difficulty.

Source: bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)

DOI: 10.1101/752089

Authors: Michelle AN La, Debjani Saha, Karen F Berman, Hao Yang Tan

Institutions: Lieber Institute for Brain Development, National Institute of Mental Health, Johns Hopkins University, Johns Hopkins Medicine

Language: English

Topic: Cognitive and developmental aspects of mathematical skills

Subfield: Statistics and Probability

Field: Mathematics

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funder: National Institute of Mental Health