H2020Индивидуална стипендия2020–2022

DYSC-EYE-7T · The neural substrate of numerical cognition in dyscalculia revealed by eye tracking and ultra-high field 7T functional magnetic imaging

„Хоризонт 2020“ — Действия „Мария Склодовска-Кюри“

Период: 2020-04-01 → 2022-09-01
Финансиране от ЕС: 171 473 €
Участници: 1
Схема: MSCA-IF

Линиите свързват координатора с партньорите.

Накратко на български

Невронните механизми при разпознаване на количества, като разликата между две групи обекти, се анализират чрез проследяване на очите и ЯМР. Това помага за по-ранна диагностика на дискалкулията (математическата дислексия) и прилагане на по-ефективни интервенции.

Този кратък обзор е генериран от изкуствен интелект

Кратко обяснение, генерирано от езиков модел по текста на CORDIS. Оригиналът е по-долу.

Резултати накратко

The neural substrate of numerical cognition in dyscalculia revealed by eye tracking and ultra-high field 7T functional magnetic imaging

The ability to quickly estimate the number of enemies or prey has obvious evolutionary benefits and is present in all animals, from insects to humans. This non-symbolic and language independent ability is based on the ‘number sense’ and allows for an immediate and spontaneous perception of numerosity. In humans it predicts formal arithmetical skills: individuals who struggle in discriminating numerosity between two ensembles of items also find learning math more difficult, and this is particularly evident in people with developmental dyscalculia (DD). The overall goal of this action was to investigate how individuals with and without DD perceive numerical quantities and to establish an innovative quantification of numerical processing, based on completely objective, replicable, and non-invasive indices that can be obtained with eye tracking. The action had three objectives that aimed at studying the spontaneous nature of numerical perception by measuring 1) saccadic eye movements, 2) pupil size and 3) its neural correlates with fMRI. By leveraging on a highly interdisciplinary approach that combined psychophysics, eye tracking and imaging techniques to test neurotypical and clinical populations, DYSC-EYE-7T provided insights into the neural mechanisms supporting numerosity perception and their interplay with higher cognitive functions such as attention and working memory. The results shed new light on the neurocognitive substrate of DD and identified new biomarkers to explore numerical cognition that are independent of language and potentially allows for early diagnosis of DD. Earlier identification would allow for earlier interventions that have higher effectiveness, like for most developmental disorders, consequently decreasing the negative impact of this condition on the employment prospects, mental and physical health of the affected individuals, as well as its socioeconomic burden on the society.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз

Цел на проекта

What is the foundation of numerical thinking and why do some people struggle with math so much? For children with Developmental Dyscalculia (DD) understanding even the most basic numerical and arithmetical concepts can pose a major challenge, despite their normal intelligence and schooling opportunities. Different etiological accounts attempted to identify the neurocognitive basis of this developmental disorder, yet a universally recognized diagnostic measure of DD is still missing. One possible cause of DD is the lack of a functional “number sense”, the capability to estimate the approximate number of objects in a visual scene, which is thought to be the precursor of formal mathematics. A different account attributes DD to the suboptimal recruitment of general cognitive functions (e.g. attention and cognitive control) and denies any role of the number sense in mathematical learning. Here I propose a third view where domain general cognitive functions are strongly but specifically affected in DD, being maximally dysfunctional when individuals have to deal with numerical quantities. The ambitious aim of DYSC-EYE-7T is to evaluate the role of attention in numerical cognition by means of eye tracking, pupillometry and ultra-high field (7T) imaging. For the first time, these techniques will be used to identify objective and reliable biomarkers of numerical processing: I will develop indices based on eye-movement speed and pupil-size modulation to track individuals’ focus of attention during numerical processing and detect dysfunctional strategies in DD. These indices will be combined with multivariate analysis of functional imaging data to read-out the neural representation of number at high resolution and to identify the cortical origin of the specific attentional deficit in DD. A full understanding of the neurocognitive basis of DD and the validation of unobtrusive methods suited for children will pave the way for precocious diagnosis and more effective interventions.

Оригинален текст от CORDIS (на английски).

Участници

UNIVERSITA DI PISA · PisaКоординаторИталия