Thread by @GaabLab

New preprint from the @GaabLab with first author @JenniferMZuk : "White matter in #infancy is prospectively associated with language outcome in kindergarten" biorxiv.org/content/10.110…
We would love to hear your feedback! Please find a summary below #infant #mri #brain #language 1/9

https://twitter.com/biorxivpreprint/status/1176966220526084097

We think that our paper is the first #longitudinal #neuroimaging study to document white matter organization in #infancy & follow-up w these infants 5 years later to characterize their #language outcomes. Recent work in the field of #developmental cognitive #neuroscience...2/9

...proposes that the first 2 years of life signify the most rapid period of #brain development & sets a foundation for long-term development, but there has yet to be direct evidence with respect to brain structure due to a lack of longitudinal designs with #neuroimaging. ...3/9

...This new study sheds light on white matter organization in #infancy that is prospectively associated with long-term #language outcomes. Contributions of this paper: (a) The left #arcuate #fasciculus has been repeatedly implicated in language skills among...4/9

school-age children & adults...here we show that structural organization of the arcuate fasciculus from as early as infancy is prospectively associated with school-age #language outcome after school entry. We reveal that the white matter in infancy linked with later language..5/9

...outcome is not only specific to pathways primarily known for language, but that structural organization of the corticospinal tract in infancy is also prospectively associated with subsequent school-age language outcome in elementary school... 6/9

...Results suggest that this earlier developing white matter pathway may make a key contribution in early childhood in facilitating #cognitive-linguistic development. Why it is important? (1) Our findings illuminate the importance of the first 2 years of life in establishing..7/9

...white matter structural organization that serves as important foundation underlying the trajectory of #language #development in early #childhood and ... 8/9

(2) Results raise theoretical implications for trajectory of language acquisition...as a process of refinement that builds upon a pre-existing structural scaffold in infancy. 9/9 end. Please give us feedback! Thank you!