López-Barroso, DianaThiebaut de Schotten, MichelMorais, JoséKolinsky, RégineBraga, Lucia W.Guerreiro-Tauil, AlexandreDehaene, StanislasCohen, Laurent2022-07-082022-07-082020-03-07López-Barroso D, Thiebaut de Schotten M, Morais J, Kolinsky R, Braga LW, Guerreiro-Tauil A, et al. Impact of literacy on the functional connectivity of vision and language related networks. Neuroimage. 2020 Jun;213:116722http://hdl.handle.net/10668/3763Learning to read leads to functional and structural changes in cortical brain areas related to vision and language. Previous evidence suggests that the Visual Word Form Area (VWFA), a region devoted to the recognition of letter strings in literate persons, acts as an interface between both systems. While different studies have performed univariate analyses to study the effects of literacy on brain function, little is known about its impact on whole functional networks, especially when literacy is acquired during adulthood. We investigated functional connectivity in three groups of adults with different literacy status: illiterates, ex-illiterates (i.e., who learned to read during adulthood), and literates (i.e., who learned to read in childhood). We used a data-driven, multivariate whole brain approach (Independent Component Analysis [ICA]) combined with a region of interest (ROI) analysis in order to explore the functional connectivity of the VWFA with four ICA networks related to vision and language functions. ICA allowed for the identification of four networks of interest: left fronto-parietal, auditory, medial visual and lateral visual functional networks, plus a control right fronto-parietal network. We explored the effects literacy on the connectivity between the VWFA and these networks, trying furthermore to disentangle the roles of reading proficiency and age of acquisition (i.e., literacy status) in these changes. Results showed that functional connectivity between the VWFA and the left fronto-parietal and lateral visual networks increased and decreased, respectively, with literacy. Moreover, the functional coupling of the VWFA and the auditory network decreased with literacy. This study provides novel insights in the mechanisms of reading acquisition and brain plasticity, putting to light the emergence of the VWFA as a bridge between language and vision. Further studies are required to characterize the interplay of proficiency and age of reading acquisition, and its relevance to models of brain plasticity across lifespan.enAttribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 Internacionalhttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/Left fronto-parietal networkFunctional connectivityIndependent component analysisLiteracyVisual word form areaLanguageAlfabetizaciónLenguajeVWFALecturaPercepción visualMedical Subject Headings::Persons::Persons::Age Groups::AdultMedical Subject Headings::Analytical, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Techniques and Equipment::Diagnosis::Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures::Diagnostic Imaging::Neuroimaging::Functional Neuroimaging::Brain MappingMedical Subject Headings::Check Tags::FemaleMedical Subject Headings::Organisms::Eukaryota::Animals::Chordata::Vertebrates::Mammals::Primates::Haplorhini::Catarrhini::Hominidae::HumansMedical Subject Headings::Information Science::Information Science::Computing Methodologies::Image Processing, Computer-AssistedMedical Subject Headings::Analytical, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Techniques and Equipment::Diagnosis::Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures::Diagnostic Imaging::Tomography::Magnetic Resonance ImagingMedical Subject Headings::Check Tags::MaleMedical Subject Headings::Persons::Persons::Age Groups::Adult::Middle AgedMedical Subject Headings::Anatomy::Nervous System::Neural PathwaysMedical Subject Headings::Phenomena and Processes::Musculoskeletal and Neural Physiological Phenomena::Nervous System Physiological Phenomena::Nervous System Physiological Processes::Neuronal PlasticityMedical Subject Headings::Anatomy::Nervous System::Central Nervous System::Brain::Prosencephalon::Telencephalon::Cerebrum::Cerebral Cortex::Temporal LobeMedical Subject Headings::Psychiatry and Psychology::Behavior and Behavior Mechanisms::Behavior::Communication::LanguageMedical Subject Headings::Information Science::Information Science::Communication::Language::Language Arts::ReadingMedical Subject Headings::Psychiatry and Psychology::Psychological Phenomena and Processes::Mental Processes::Perception::Visual Perceptionresearch article32156625Acceso abierto10.1016/j.neuroimage.2020.1167221095-9572