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Enhancement of speech-in-noise comprehension through vibrotactile stimulation at the syllabic rate.

ABSTRACT: SignificanceSyllables are important building blocks of speech. They occur at a rate between 4 and 8 Hz, corresponding to the theta frequency range of neural activity in the cerebral cortex. When listening to speech, the theta activity becomes aligned to the syllabic rhythm, presumably aiding in parsing a speech signal into distinct syllables. However, this neural activity cannot only be influenced by sound, but also by somatosensory information. Here, we show that the presentation of vibrotactile signals at the syllabic rate can enhance the comprehension of speech in background noise. We further provide evidence that this multisensory enhancement of speech comprehension reflects the multisensory integration of auditory and tactile information in the auditory cortex.

SUBMITTER: Guilleminot P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9060510 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Enhancement of speech-in-noise comprehension through vibrotactile stimulation at the syllabic rate.

Guilleminot Pierre P Reichenbach Tobias T

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 20220321 13

SignificanceSyllables are important building blocks of speech. They occur at a rate between 4 and 8 Hz, corresponding to the theta frequency range of neural activity in the cerebral cortex. When listening to speech, the theta activity becomes aligned to the syllabic rhythm, presumably aiding in parsing a speech signal into distinct syllables. However, this neural activity cannot only be influenced by sound, but also by somatosensory information. Here, we show that the presentation of vibrotactil ...[more]

PMID: 35312362

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