Reverse engineering tone-deafness: disrupting pitch-matching by creating temporary dysfunctions in the auditory-motor network

Perceiving and producing vocal sounds are important functions of the auditory-motor system and are fundamental to communication. Prior studies have identified a network of brain regions involved in pitch production, specifically pitch matching. Here we reverse engineer the function of the auditory p...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Hohmann, Anja (Author) , Loui, Psyche (Author) , Li, Charles H. (Author) , Schlaug, Gottfried (Author)
Format: Article (Journal)
Language:English
Published: 30 January 2018
In: Frontiers in human neuroscience
Year: 2018, Volume: 12
ISSN:1662-5161
DOI:10.3389/fnhum.2018.00009
Online Access:Verlag, Volltext: https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2018.00009
Verlag, Volltext: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2018.00009/full
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Author Notes:Anja Hohmann, Psyche Loui, Charles H. Li and Gottfried Schlaug
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Summary:Perceiving and producing vocal sounds are important functions of the auditory-motor system and are fundamental to communication. Prior studies have identified a network of brain regions involved in pitch production, specifically pitch matching. Here we reverse engineer the function of the auditory perception-production network by targeting specific cortical regions (e.g., right and left posterior superior temporal (pSTG) and posterior inferior frontal gyri (pIFG)) with cathodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) — commonly found to decrease excitability in the underlying cortical region — allowing us to causally test the role of particular nodes in this network. Performance on a pitch-matching task was determined before and after 20 minutes of cathodal stimulation. Acoustic analyses of pitch productions showed impaired accuracy after cathodal stimulation to the left pIFG and the right pSTG in comparison to sham stimulation. Both regions share particular roles in the feedback and feedforward motor control of pitched vocal production with a differential hemispheric dominance.
Item Description:Gesehen am 19.11.2019
Physical Description:Online Resource
ISSN:1662-5161
DOI:10.3389/fnhum.2018.00009