Lack of neural evidence for implicit language learning in 9-month-old infants at high risk for autism.

ABSTRACT: Word segmentation is a fundamental aspect of language learning, since identification of word boundaries in continuous speech must occur before the acquisition of word meanings can take place. We previously used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to show that youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are less sensitive to statistical and speech cues that guide implicit word segmentation. However, little is known about the neural mechanisms underlying this process during infancy and how this may be associated with ASD risk. Here, we examined early neural signatures of language-related learning in 9-month-old infants at high (HR) and low familial risk (LR) for ASD. During natural sleep, infants underwent fMRI while passively listening to three speech streams containing strong statis

SUBMITTER: Liu J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8935986 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature