Marcela Perrone-Bertolotti

This study investigates the evolving relationship between oral language comprehension (phonology, vocabulary, syntax) and verbal and nonverbal executive functions -EF- (inhibition, working memory, updating) in 395 typically developing French children aged 5 to 8 years (M = 7 years; SD = 11.91 months; 52% girls). Behavioral performances were analyzed using a graph-theory approach, allowing for the modeling of cognitive networks. Results showed a shift from early integration between language and EF in Kindergarten to increasing segregation and specialization by 3rd grade, associated with improvements in task performance and reduced interindividual variability along development. These findings highlight the dynamic between language comprehension and EF in children from the general population with further implications for developmental and clinical perspectives on language-related disorders.

Le but de ce travail est d'identifier l'effet de certaines caractéristiques liée aux individus et aux paradigmes expérimentaux sur l'organisation inter-hémisphérique (spécialisation hémisphérique) et intra-hémisphérique (cartographie fonctionnelle) du langage, (a) en condition physiologique chez les sujets sains et (b) en condition pathologique chez des patients présentant une épilepsie focale et pharmaco-résistante. Pour aborder cette question, une approche méthodologique expérimentale pluridisciplinaire a été utilisée. Plus spécifiquement nous avons évalué l'effet des variables inter-individuelles (sexe, préférence manuelle, et caractéristiques pathologiques) et intra-individuelles (opération linguistique, tâche, type de stimuli) sur l'organisation cérébrale du langage. L'un des objectifs de ce travail est de corroborer les données issues de différentes méthodes pour mettre en place un modèle de représentation et de réorganisation langagière, en fonction des facteurs considérés. Un second objectif de ce travail est de proposer aux cliniciens des outils permettant de quantifier la spécialisation hémisphérique chez les patients épileptiques. Nos résultats chez les sujets sains mettent en évidence une interaction entre les variables inter- et intra-individuelles sur le degré de spécialisation hémisphérique et sur la cartographie fonctionnelle du langage. Chez les patients épileptiques, nos résultats préliminaires permettent de mettre en relation les patterns de réorganisation cérébrale et les variables évaluées. L'ensemble de nos résultats montre que la neuropsychologie cognitive et la neuroimagerie fonctionnelle apportent des informations complémentaires nous permettant une meilleure compréhension des mécanismes d'organisation et réorganisation cérébrale. Mots clés : langage, spécialisation, hémisphère, champ visuel divisé, IRMf, phonologie, sémantique, prosodie, sexe, sain, épileptique, plasticité, réorganisation.

This study aimed to offer a depiction and comprehensive understanding of school participation in autistic youth, which has received limited exploration. Parents of 871 autistic youth aged 7 or 15 were invited to participate in a study, among whom 600 agreed, allowing data collection on diagnosis, comorbidities, school, professional support, and parental characteristics. They were asked to fill in questionnaires assessing executive functions, social-communication difficulties, and school participation, completed by 241. Structural equation modeling and descriptive methods were employed to examine factors influencing school participation and the desire for change. Social-communication abilities stand out as the sole intrinsic determinant associated with school participation. Being a female and having an intellectual disability might negatively impact mainstream school attendance, without exerting a similar influence on activity attendance and involvement. Caregivers identified school demands and the sensory environment as extrinsic barriers to school participation, while teachers’ attitudes and peer relationships were seen as both potential barriers and facilitators. Finally, 36%–58% indicated a desire for increased participation in at least one school activity. Our findings highlight the need to reduce stigma around autism, improve school support, and give special consideration to the schooling experiences of autistic girls. Lay School participation factors in autism have received limited attention. We examined this question using structural equation modeling and descriptive methods. Our findings indicate that heightened social-communication difficulties, rather than executive dysfunctions and comorbidities, are associated with decreased school participation of autistic youths. Furthermore, exploratory analyses showed that being female and having an intellectual disability negatively affect attending mainstream school for autistic children and teenagers, but not their attendance and involvement in school activities. Caregivers point out school demands, sensory environment, and teachers’ and peers’ attitudes as major factors affecting participation, often expressing a desire for increased participation for their child. These results hold significant implications for improving educational environments for autistic girls and boys.

A hallmark of human intelligence is the ability to perform multiple tasks immediately upon instruction. Yet, the neural processes that implement such flexibility remain unclear. Using intracranial electrophysiology in epilepsy patients, we examined how representational geometries evolve as participants switched among three tasks - individuation, categorization, and conceptualization - on a trial-by-trial basis. Although tasks differed in the required representational geometries, neural representations across cortex were not immediately optimized following task cues. Instead, task-tailored geometries emerged gradually over successive stimulus repetitions within a trial. Ventral temporal cortex was the only region to exhibit task-specific adjustments for all three tasks, dynamically transforming within- and between-category distances in line with task demands. Importantly, these gradual representational changes were behaviorally relevant, predicting trial-level performance. Our results show that behavioral flexibility is supported by incremental, task-dependent refinement of representational geometry already within sensory cortex - far earlier in the processing hierarchy than previously thought.

Objective: To characterize electroencephalographic (EEG) profiles of short spike‐and‐wave bursts (SWBs) in patients with idiopathic generalized epilepsy reporting sensations of fleeting/almost loss of consciousness, described as “a blip on the screen”—a phenomenon first termed “blips” by J.W. Lance. Methods: Among 176 consecutive patients, 19 were included based on a diagnosis of idiopathic generalized epilepsy and the presence of SWBs on EEG recordings. Patients were classified as “blippers” (yes) or “non‐blippers” (no) based on their response to whether they had ever experienced “blip”‐like sensations. A total of 624 SWBs extracted from EEG traces were compared between groups. The analysis focused on the spike (10–125 Hz) and wave (2.5–4 Hz) frequency band components across predefined spatial regions of interests. Results: SWBs were significantly longer in blippers than in non‐blippers (median: 1.2 s, interquartile range [IQR]: (Q1–Q3): 753–1796 vs 0.9 s, 599–1541; p < .001, r = .14). EEG analyses revealed two distinct spatial profiles, with higher fractional change in wave amplitude over anterior frontal (39.73, 12.56–81.27 vs 17.34, 5.18–56.95; p < .01, r = .13), frontal (46.94, 20.55–100.28 vs 31.08, 9.51–88.81; p < .05, r = .10), and occipital (25.25, 11.51–50.97 vs 14.99, 4.94–43.80; p < .01, r = .13) regions, but not parietal ( p > .05). Similarly, spikes showed increased amplitude in anterior frontal (5.32, 2.50–15.27 vs 4.20, 2.58–7.60; p < .05, r = .09) and central (3.95, 2.81–6.20 vs 3.07, 1.82–5.08; p < .01, r = .14) regions, with lower occipital power in blippers (1.93, 1.36–3.19 vs 2.53, 1.52–4.33; p < .05, r = −.10). Overall, spike and wave amplitudes were higher in blippers, particularly at SWB onset. All p ‐values were false discover rate (FDR)–corrected and analyses were conducted at the SWB level. Significance: Distinct EEG profiles of SWBs may be associated with self‐reported blip experiences.

Objective: Attention impairments are common in children with epilepsy and widely impact their quality of life. Interictal epileptiform discharges (IED) may induce subtle dysfunctions of various cognitive processes, but data regarding the impact of IED on attention remain limited. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the impact of IED on continuous undivided attention in children with epilepsy, controlling for the number of treatments, type of epilepsy, frequency of seizures in the last year, age at onset, and comorbid attention disorder. Methods: Using a computerized attention test synchronized with the electroencephalogram (EEG) in 119 children with diverse epilepsy syndromes, behavioral (reaction time [RT], errors, attention stability over time) and electrophysiological measures related to attentional engagement (event-related potential [ERP] in parietal electrodes) were collected. The cumulative impact of IED was evaluated using multivariate models controlling for epilepsy-related factors. The transient impact of IED was assessed by comparing responses in trials with and without IED. Results: IED induced attention fluctuations independently from other epilepsy-related factors. In terms of cumulative impact, a higher quantity of IED was associated with a poorer attentional performance over the entire task. In terms of transient impact, trials disrupted by IED were characterized by longer RT and a lower amplitude of the parietal ERP, extending over a long-time window that included attentional processing (P300). Significance: These results highlight the deleterious effect of IED on attention, at both behavioral and electrophysiological levels, independently of other epilepsy-related features. This work provides evidence that IED induce subtle attentional deficits and could be considered as biomarkers of abnormal brain function. Key points: A higher quantity of IED was associated with poorer attentional performance, irrespective of other epilepsy-related features. IED promote transient cognitive impairment: trials with IED are characterized by increased RTs and a lower amplitude of the parietal ERP. EEG-synchronized attentional tasks are needed to assess subtle deficits in patients with epilepsy.

Emotion regulation is pivotal in human interactions and well‐being. Modulating one's emotional state is intricately linked with psychological, behavioral, and physiological responses. Extensive research has explored how individuals with varying attachment orientations manage emotions, predominantly through self‐report measures and behavioral assessments. However, the influence of attachment orientations on temporal electrophysiological dynamics during emotion regulation tasks remains underexplored. Here, 90 adults' EEG brain activity was recorded while they engaged in tasks of attending to, reappraising, or suppressing emotions elicited by unpleasant images. Their attachment orientations were assessed using the Experiences in Close Relationships‐12 (ECR‐12) questionnaire to explore the association between Late Positive Potential (LPP) and attachment anxiety and avoidance amidst the deployment of emotion regulation strategies. Using Linear Mixed‐Effects Model analysis, our results revealed a lower amplitude of the LPP during cognitive reappraisal, suggesting the efficacy of this strategy in diminishing emotional intensity. Moreover, higher attachment anxiety exhibited increased LPP amplitude during both Reappraisal and Suppression, as well as during the negative natural condition, indicating heightened emotional responses. This study provides novel insights into the relationship between attachment orientations and emotion regulation, as evidenced by EEG‐based measurements of the LPP. The findings indicate that individuals with higher attachment anxiety display distinct electrophysiological responses, particularly in emotional scenarios.

Language comprehension is increasingly recognized as extending beyond the traditional linguistic system to engage motor and perceptual processes. This perspective is supported by numerous studies demonstrating that understanding action-related words often induces behavioral and neurophysiological changes in the motor system. However, it remains unclear whether the influence of action language on the motor system is restricted to cortical regions, or whether it also extends to spinal structures, as observed during motor imagery. To address this, we used transcranial magnetic stimulation and peripheral nerve stimulation to assess corticospinal excitability and cortico-motoneuronal transmission, respectively. Fifteen healthy and right-handed volunteers participated in four conditions: (i) rest, (ii) kinesthetic motor imagery of finger and wrist flexion, (iii) reading action sentences, and (iv) reading non-action sentences. As anticipated, corticospinal excitability increased during both kinesthetic motor imagery and action reading compared to rest. Interestingly, while kinesthetic motor imagery also led to the expected increase in cortico-motoneuronal transmission, no such modulation occurred during action reading. These findings suggest that action reading do not modulate the excitability of high-threshold motoneurons at the spinal level, contrary to motor imagery. Further investigation is needed to test whether action reading activate lower-threshold spinal structures, such as interneurons involved in spinal pre-synaptic inhibition.