TY - JOUR
T1 - Early specialization for voice and emotion processing in the infant brain
AU - Blasi, Anna
AU - Mercure, Evelyne
AU - Lloyd-Fox, Sarah
AU - Thomson, Alex
AU - Brammer, Michael
AU - Sauter, Disa
AU - Deeley, Quinton
AU - Barker, Gareth J
AU - Renvall, Ville
AU - Deoni, Sean
AU - Gasston, David
AU - Williams, Steven C R
AU - Johnson, Mark H
AU - Simmons, Andrew
AU - Murphy, Declan G M
PY - 2011/7/26
Y1 - 2011/7/26
N2 - Human voices play a fundamental role in social communication, and areas of the adult "social brain" show specialization for processing voices and their emotional content (superior temporal sulcus, inferior prefrontal cortex, premotor cortical regions, amygdala, and insula). However, it is unclear when this specialization develops. Functional magnetic resonance (fMRI) studies suggest that the infant temporal cortex does not differentiate speech from music or backward speech, but a prior study with functional near-infrared spectroscopy revealed preferential activation for human voices in 7-month-olds, in a more posterior location of the temporal cortex than in adults. However, the brain networks involved in processing nonspeech human vocalizations in early development are still unknown. To address this issue, in the present fMRI study, 3- to 7-month-olds were presented with adult nonspeech vocalizations (emotionally neutral, emotionally positive, and emotionally negative) and nonvocal environmental sounds. Infants displayed significant differential activation in the anterior portion of the temporal cortex, similarly to adults. Moreover, sad vocalizations modulated the activity of brain regions involved in processing affective stimuli such as the orbitofrontal cortex and insula. These results suggest remarkably early functional specialization for processing human voice and negative emotions.
AB - Human voices play a fundamental role in social communication, and areas of the adult "social brain" show specialization for processing voices and their emotional content (superior temporal sulcus, inferior prefrontal cortex, premotor cortical regions, amygdala, and insula). However, it is unclear when this specialization develops. Functional magnetic resonance (fMRI) studies suggest that the infant temporal cortex does not differentiate speech from music or backward speech, but a prior study with functional near-infrared spectroscopy revealed preferential activation for human voices in 7-month-olds, in a more posterior location of the temporal cortex than in adults. However, the brain networks involved in processing nonspeech human vocalizations in early development are still unknown. To address this issue, in the present fMRI study, 3- to 7-month-olds were presented with adult nonspeech vocalizations (emotionally neutral, emotionally positive, and emotionally negative) and nonvocal environmental sounds. Infants displayed significant differential activation in the anterior portion of the temporal cortex, similarly to adults. Moreover, sad vocalizations modulated the activity of brain regions involved in processing affective stimuli such as the orbitofrontal cortex and insula. These results suggest remarkably early functional specialization for processing human voice and negative emotions.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?partnerID=yv4JPVwI&eid=2-s2.0-79960702964&md5=6b00d6aca454f58d7a112a29198c5c40
U2 - 10.1016/j.cub.2011.06.009
DO - 10.1016/j.cub.2011.06.009
M3 - Article
C2 - 21723130
SN - 0960-9822
VL - 21
SP - 1220
EP - 1224
JO - Current Biology
JF - Current Biology
IS - 14
ER -