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Delage É, Rouleau I, Akzam-Ouellette MA, Rahayel S, Filiatrault M, Joubert S. Patterns of cortical thickness in MCI patients with and without semantic impairment. Brain Cogn 2025; 184:106258. [PMID: 39746285 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2024.106258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2024] [Revised: 12/23/2024] [Accepted: 12/23/2024] [Indexed: 01/04/2025]
Abstract
BACKGROUND About half of MCI patients experience semantic deficits, which may predict progression to Alzheimer's disease (AD). The neural basis of these deficits in MCI is not well understood. This study aimed to examine the relationship between semantic memory performance and cortical thickness in MCI patients. METHODS Using FreeSurfer, T1-weighted MRI scans were analyzed from MCI patients with (MCIsem+) and without (MCIsem-) semantic deficits. Correlation analyses across all participants, including healthy controls, examined the link between semantic memory and cortical thickness, controlling for age and education. Group comparisons of cortical thickness were also conducted between MCIsem+ and MCIsem- groups. RESULTS Significant correlations emerged between semantic memory performance and cortical thickness in the left medial temporal lobe, right temporal pole, and bilateral frontal regions-areas involved in central semantic and executive processes. Additionally, MCIsem + patients showed reduced cortical thickness in frontal, parietal, and occipital areas compared to MCIsem- patients. CONCLUSION Semantic memory performance in MCI patients is associated with structural differences in regions supporting both central and executive aspects of semantic processing. Given that MCIsem + patients may face higher risk of AD progression, longitudinal studies should investigate these cortical markers' predictive value.
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Affiliation(s)
- Émilie Delage
- Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), Montreal, QC, Canada; Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Isabelle Rouleau
- Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM), Montreal, QC, Canada; Département de Psychologie, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Marc-Antoine Akzam-Ouellette
- Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), Montreal, QC, Canada; Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Shady Rahayel
- Centre for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal-CIUSSS-NIM, Montreal, QC, Canada; Department of Medicine, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Marie Filiatrault
- Centre for Advanced Research in Sleep Medicine, Hôpital du Sacré-Coeur de Montréal-CIUSSS-NIM, Montreal, QC, Canada; Department of Neuroscience, University of Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Sven Joubert
- Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), Montreal, QC, Canada; Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montreal, QC, Canada.
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Macoir J, Laforce R, Hudon C. The Impact of Lexical-semantic Impairment on Spoken Verb Production in Individuals With Mild Cognitive Impairment. Cogn Behav Neurol 2024:00146965-990000000-00075. [PMID: 39359049 DOI: 10.1097/wnn.0000000000000378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2024] [Accepted: 05/06/2024] [Indexed: 10/04/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although episodic memory is the primary concern in individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), other cognitive functions may also be affected, including language. Language impairment in individuals with MCI has been attributed primarily to the breakdown of semantic representations, difficulties in accessing semantic information, and the weakening of executive functions. However, in most prior studies of word processing in individuals with MCI, researchers have used measures focused on noun production. OBJECTIVE To investigate how verb production tasks might aid in detecting cognitive impairment in individuals with MCI. METHODS We compared the performance of 45 individuals with MCI and 45 healthy controls on action naming and action fluency tasks. RESULTS In the action naming task, the performance of participants with MCI was significantly impaired compared to healthy controls in terms of total score, the number of semantic errors produced, and the use of generic terms. In the action fluency task, participants with MCI produced significantly fewer verbs, fewer clusters, and fewer switches than healthy controls. CONCLUSION The results of our study emphasize the utility of verb production tasks in the identification of cognitive impairment in individuals with MCI and provide evidence of the importance of including action naming and action fluency tasks in the assessment of individuals with MCI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joël Macoir
- Faculty of Medicine, School of Rehabilitation Sciences, Université Laval, Québec, Canada
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Québec, Canada
| | - Robert Laforce
- Research Chair on Primary Progressive Aphasias, Lemaire Family Foundation, Québec, Canada
- Faculty of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Université Laval, Québec, Canada
- Interdisciplinary Memory Clinic, Laval University Hospital Center
| | - Carol Hudon
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Québec, Canada
- VITAM Research Centre, Québec, Canada
- Faculty of Social Sciences, School of Psychology, Université Laval, Québec, Canada
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Ulep MG, Liénard P. Free-listing and Semantic Knowledge: A Tool for Detecting Alzheimer Disease? Cogn Behav Neurol 2024; 37:117-143. [PMID: 38899852 PMCID: PMC11356687 DOI: 10.1097/wnn.0000000000000370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2023] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 06/21/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Impairment in semantic knowledge contributes to Alzheimer disease (AD)-related decline. However, the particulars of the impact AD has on specific domains of knowledge remain debatable. OBJECTIVE To investigate the impact of AD on specific semantic categories that are integral to daily functions-living things and man-made objects. METHOD We administered a free-listing task (written version) to 19 individuals with AD and 15 cognitively normal older adults and assessed the task's relationship with other cognitive and functional tests in clinical use. We compared the contents of the lists of salient concepts generated by the AD and control groups. RESULTS Group membership (AD or control), after controlling for age, sex, formal education, and an estimate of premorbid intellectual ability, predicted the groups' performance on the free-listing task across two categories. Functional status was inversely related to performance on the free-listing task, holding demographic variables constant. Based on a comparison of the contents of the free lists that were generated by the two groups, it was possible to conclude that, in individuals with AD, conceptual knowledge central to the respective categories was well preserved, whereas the peripheral conceptual material showed evidence of degradation. CONCLUSION The free-listing task, which is an easy-to-administer and cost-effective tool, could aid in the preliminary detection of semantic knowledge dysfunction, revealing concepts that are better preserved and, possibly, the characterization of AD. Cognitive assessment tools that can be applied across cultures are needed, and the free-listing task has the potential to address this gap.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maileen G. Ulep
- Cognitive Disorders Clinic, Cleveland Clinic Nevada, Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, Las Vegas, Nevada
- Department of Anthropology, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
| | - Pierre Liénard
- Department of Anthropology, University of Nevada Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada
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Ozel-Kizil ET, Bastug G, Kirici S, Dinc K, Gursay M. Modified Dead-Alive Test for the assessment of semantic and episodic memory performance of older patients with neurocognitive disorder. APPLIED NEUROPSYCHOLOGY. ADULT 2024:1-7. [PMID: 39096205 DOI: 10.1080/23279095.2024.2378869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/05/2024]
Abstract
The aim of this study is to provide a test that allows for evaluation of both semantic memory (SM) and episodic memory (EM). The study sought to examine psychometric characteristics of the Modified Dead-Alive Test (M-DAT) in patients with neurocognitive disorders and the healthy elderly (HE). The M-DAT consists of 45 names of celebrities who have died in the remote past (15), died in the last five years (15), and are still alive (15), and participants are asked whether they are alive or dead. The M-DAT performances of patients with Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-5 (DSM-5) major neurocognitive disorder due to Alzheimer's Disease (MND-AD) (n = 69) and patients with minor neurocognitive disorder (MiND) (n = 27) who were admitted to a geriatric psychiatry clinic and healthy controls (HC) (n = 29) were compared. Age and level of education were taken as covariates, and an analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was performed since the MND-AD group was older and less educated. The MND-AD group had lower performance in EM and SM scores of the M-DAT. M-DAT failed to differentiate between MiND and HE. Both subscale scores of the M-DAT were associated with other neuropsychological test performances as well as the level of education. The results suggest that M-DAT is a valid and reliable tool that examines both EM and SM performances. M-DAT is an alternative for the assessment of SM evaluated by verbal fluency or naming tests. Evaluating EM and SM together is an important advantage; however, M-DAT is influenced by education, and the items require updating.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gulbahar Bastug
- Ankara University Vocational School of Health Services; Ankara University Institute of Forensic Sciences, Forensic Psychology Program, Ankara, Turkey
| | - Sevinc Kirici
- Ankara University Institute of Forensic Sciences, Forensic Psychology Program; Ankara University School of Medicine, Psychiatry Department, Ankara, Turkey
| | - Kubra Dinc
- Ankara University Institute of Forensic Sciences, Forensic Psychology Program, Ankara, Turkey
| | - Muge Gursay
- Ankara University Institute of Forensic Sciences, Forensic Psychology Program, Ankara, Turkey
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Cao L, Han K, Lin L, Hing J, Ooi V, Huang N, Yu J, Ng TKS, Feng L, Mahendran R, Kua EH, Bao Z. Reversal of the concreteness effect can be detected in the natural speech of older adults with amnestic, but not non-amnestic, mild cognitive impairment. ALZHEIMER'S & DEMENTIA (AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS) 2024; 16:e12588. [PMID: 38638800 PMCID: PMC11024957 DOI: 10.1002/dad2.12588] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2023] [Revised: 03/12/2024] [Accepted: 03/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Patients with Alzheimer's disease present with difficulty in lexical retrieval and reversal of the concreteness effect in nouns. Little is known about the phenomena before the onset of symptoms. We anticipate early linguistic signs in the speech of people who suffer from amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Here, we report the results of a corpus-linguistic approach to the early detection of cognitive impairment. METHODS One hundred forty-eight English-speaking Singaporeans provided natural speech data, on topics of their choice; 74 were diagnosed with single-domain MCI (38 amnestic, 36 non-amnestic), 74 cognitively healthy. The recordings yield 267,310 words, which are tagged for parts of speech. We calculate the per-minute word counts and concreteness scores of all tagged words, nouns, and verbs in the dataset. RESULTS Compared to controls, subjects with amnestic MCI produce fewer but more abstract nouns. Verbs are not affected. DISCUSSION Slower retrieval of nouns and the reversal of the concreteness effect in nouns are manifested in natural speech and can be detected early through corpus-based analysis. Highlights Reversal of the concreteness effect is manifested in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and semantic dementia.The paper reports a corpus-based analysis of natural speech by people with amnestic and non-amnestic mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and cognitively healthy controls.People with amnestic MCI produce fewer and more abstract nouns than people with non-amnestic MCI and healthy controls. Verbs appear to be unaffected.The imageability problem can be detected in natural everyday speech by people with amnestic MCI, which carries a higher risk of conversion to AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luwen Cao
- Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre StudiesNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
| | - Kunmei Han
- Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre StudiesNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
| | - Li Lin
- Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre StudiesNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
- School of Foreign StudiesEast China University of Political Science and LawShanghaiChina
| | - Jiawen Hing
- Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre StudiesNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
| | - Vincent Ooi
- Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre StudiesNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
| | - Nick Huang
- Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre StudiesNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
| | - Junhong Yu
- Cognitive and Brain Health LaboratorySchool of Social SciencesNanyang Technological UniversitySingaporeSingapore
| | - Ted Kheng Siang Ng
- Department of Psychological MedicineYong Loo Lin School of MedicineNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
- Rush Institute for Healthy Aging, Department of Internal MedicineRush University Medical CenterChicagoIllinoisUSA
| | - Lei Feng
- Department of Psychological MedicineYong Loo Lin School of MedicineNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
- Healthy Longevity Translational Research Program, Yong Loo Lin School of MedicineNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
- Centre for Healthy Longevity, Clinic LAlexandra HospitalSingaporeSingapore
| | - Rathi Mahendran
- Department of Psychological MedicineYong Loo Lin School of MedicineNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
| | - Ee Heok Kua
- Department of Psychological MedicineYong Loo Lin School of MedicineNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
| | - Zhiming Bao
- Department of English, Linguistics and Theatre StudiesNational University of SingaporeSingaporeSingapore
- Institute of Corpus Studies and ApplicationsShanghai International Studies UniversityShanghaiChina
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Che J, Cheng N, Jiang B, Liu Y, Liu H, Li Y, Liu H. Executive function measures of participants with mild cognitive impairment: Systematic review and meta-analysis of event-related potential studies. Int J Psychophysiol 2024; 197:112295. [PMID: 38266685 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpsycho.2023.112295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2023] [Revised: 12/19/2023] [Accepted: 12/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Objective measurements of executive functions using event-related potential (ERP) may be used as markers for differentiating healthy controls (HC) from patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). ERP is non-invasive, cost-effective, and affordable. Older adults with MCI demonstrate deteriorated executive function, serving as a potentially valid neurophysiological marker for identifying MCI. We aimed to review published ERP studies on executive function in older adults with MCI and summarize the performance differences by component between healthy older adults and older adults with MCI. METHODS Eight electronic databases (Web of Science, PubMed, ScienceDirect, American Psychological Association PsycNet, Cochrane Library, Scopus, Embase, and Ovid) were searched for the study. Articles published from January 1 to December 31, 2022, were considered for this review. A random-effects meta-analysis and between-study heterogeneity analysis were conducted using Comprehensive Meta-Analysis V3.0 software. RESULTS We identified 7829 articles of which 28 met the full inclusion criteria and were included in the systematic review and analyses. Our pooled analysis suggested that participants with MCI can be differentiated from HC by significant P200, P300, and N200 latencies. The P100 and P300 amplitudes were significantly smaller in participants with MCI when compared with those in the HCs, and the patients with MCI showed increased N200 amplitudes. Our findings provide new insights into potential electrophysiological biomarkers for diagnosing MCI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiajun Che
- Department of Psychology, Chengde Medical University, Chengde 067000, China
| | - Nan Cheng
- Department of Psychology, Chengde Medical University, Chengde 067000, China
| | - Bicong Jiang
- Department of Psychology, Chengde Medical University, Chengde 067000, China
| | - Yanli Liu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Chengde Medical University, Chengde 067000, China
| | - Haihong Liu
- Department of Psychology, Chengde Medical University, Chengde 067000, China; Natural University of Malaysia, Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Centre for Psychology and Human Welfare, Bangui, Malaysia
| | - Yutong Li
- Department of Psychology, Chengde Medical University, Chengde 067000, China
| | - Haining Liu
- Department of Psychology, Chengde Medical University, Chengde 067000, China; Hebei Key Laboratory of Nerve Injury and Repair, Chengde Medical University, Chengde 067000, China.
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Tseng YT, Chang YL, Chiu YS. Assessment of Language Function in Older Mandarin-Speaking Adults with Mild Cognitive Impairment using Multifaceted Language Tests. J Alzheimers Dis 2024; 97:1189-1209. [PMID: 38217600 PMCID: PMC10836557 DOI: 10.3233/jad-230871] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/15/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Individuals with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), especially for those with multidomain cognitive deficits, should be clinically examined for determining risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. English-speakers with aMCI exhibit language impairments mostly at the lexical-semantic level. Given that the language processing of Mandarin Chinese is different from that of alphabetic languages, whether previous findings for English-speakers with aMCI can be generalized to Mandarin Chinese speakers with aMCI remains unclear. OBJECTIVE This study examined the multifaceted language functions of Mandarin Chinese speakers with aMCI and compared them with those without cognitive impairment by using a newly developed language test battery. METHODS Twenty-three individuals with aMCI and 29 individuals without cognitive impairment were recruited. The new language test battery comprises five language domains (oral production, auditory and reading comprehension, reading aloud, repetition, and writing). RESULTS Compared with the controls, the individuals with aMCI exhibited poorer performance in the oral production and auditory and reading comprehension domains, especially on tests involving effortful lexical and semantic processing. Moreover, the aMCI group made more semantic naming errors compared with their counterparts and tended to experience difficulty in processing items belonging to the categories of living objects. CONCLUSIONS The pattern identified in the present study is similar to that of English-speaking individuals with aMCI across multiple language domains. Incorporating language tests involving lexical and semantic processing into clinical practice is essential and can help identify early language dysfunction in Mandarin Chinese speakers with aMCI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun-Ting Tseng
- Department of Psychology, College of Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Chi Mei Medical Center, Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Yu-Ling Chang
- Department of Psychology, College of Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Department of Neurology, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Graduate Institute of Brain and Mind Sciences, College of Medicine, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Neurobiology and Cognitive Science Center, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Center for Artificial Intelligence and Advanced Robotics, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Yen-Shiang Chiu
- Department of Psychology, College of Science, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
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Ryoo N, Suh J, Son EJ, Park YH, Kim S. Neuropsychological Correlates of Clinical Progression in Subjective Cognitive Decline. J Alzheimers Dis 2024; 101:1121-1126. [PMID: 39302360 DOI: 10.3233/jad-231042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/22/2024]
Abstract
Background Subjective cognitive decline (SCD) refers to self-reported cognitive decline in individuals with normal performance on standardized cognitive tests. Understanding the factors predicting progression from SCD to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) is crucial, as approximately 14% of SCD cases progress to dementia and about 27% develop MCI over four years. Objective This study aims to identify neuropsychological predictors of progression from SCD to MCI, focusing on cognitive domains assessed through neuropsychological tests. Methods This retrospective study at Seoul National University Bundang Hospital analyzed a cohort of 107 patients diagnosed with SCD through comprehensive assessment. Patients underwent annual neuropsychological testing, including the Digit Span Test, Boston Naming Test, Rey Complex Figure Test, Seoul Verbal Learning Test, and Stroop Test. Results Annually, these patients underwent neuropsychological tests over a 5-year period; 24 progressed to MCI per NIA-AA criteria. Key predictors of MCI progression included age, ischemic heart disease, and scores from the forward digit span, delayed recall, and Boston naming tests. Lower scores in delayed recall and Boston naming tests significantly correlated with a higher risk of MCI (p < 0.001). Conclusions These findings suggest a need for targeted management of memory and language functions to monitor disease progression effectively.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nayoung Ryoo
- Department of Neurology, Eunpyeong St. Mary's Hospital, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Jeewon Suh
- Department of Neurology, National Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Eun Ji Son
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Seoul National University College of Medicine and Seoul National University Hospital, Seoul, Republic of Korea
| | - Young Ho Park
- Department of Neurology, Seoul National University College of Medicine and Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea
| | - SangYun Kim
- Department of Neurology, Seoul National University College of Medicine and Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, Gyeonggi-do, Republic of Korea
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Gordon JK, Chen H. How well does the discrepancy between semantic and letter verbal fluency performance distinguish Alzheimer's dementia from typical aging? NEUROPSYCHOLOGY, DEVELOPMENT, AND COGNITION. SECTION B, AGING, NEUROPSYCHOLOGY AND COGNITION 2023; 30:729-758. [PMID: 35612362 DOI: 10.1080/13825585.2022.2079602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 05/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
In Alzheimer's dementia (AD), greater declines in semantic fluency (SF) relative to letter fluency (LF) have been assumed to reflect semantic disintegration. However, the same pattern is observed in typical aging and neurodegenerative disorders besides AD. We examined this assumption by comparing different aspects of SF and LF performance in older adults with and without dementia, and identifying which verbal fluency measures most clearly distinguish AD from typical aging. Verbal fluency data were compared from 109 individuals with AD and 66 typically aging adults. Correct items, clusters, and errors were analyzed using both raw counts and proportions. Regression analyses examined Task-by-Group interactions and the impact of demographic variables on verbal fluency measures. ROC analyses examined the sensitivity and specificity of the different outcome measures. In regressions, interactions were found for raw but not proportional data, indicating that different group patterns were driven largely by the number of correct items produced. Similarly, in ROC analyses, raw SF totals showed stronger discriminability between groups than either raw discrepancy scores (SF-LF) or discrepancy ratios (SF/LF). Age and cognitive status (MMSE) were the strongest individual predictors of performance. Findings suggest that AD entails quantitative declines in verbal fluency, but qualitatively similar patterns of performance relative to typically aging adults. Thus, SF declines in AD seem to be at least partially attributable to an exaggeration of the underlying mechanisms common to typical aging, and do not necessarily implicate semantic disintegration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean K Gordon
- Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
| | - Haoxuan Chen
- Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA
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Lin MC, Chih YC. Application of the Semantic Fluency Test in the Screening of Mandarin-Chinese-Speaking Older Adults with Mild Dementia of the Alzheimer Type. Behav Sci (Basel) 2023; 13:635. [PMID: 37622775 PMCID: PMC10451810 DOI: 10.3390/bs13080635] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2023] [Revised: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Semantic fluency tests have been widely used as a screening test for dementia of Alzheimer type. However, few studies have explored the application of semantic fluency tests in Mandarin Chinese speakers. This study aimed to explore the feasibility of using different semantic fluency test categories to distinguish between older adults without cognitive impairments and those with dementia of Alzheimer type in Taiwan. A total of 58 healthy older adults and 54 individuals with dementia of Alzheimer type were recruited. Semantic categories of "animals", "fruits", "vegetables", "birds", "means of transportations" and "musical instruments" were administered to participants. The scores from two groups of participants for each category were analyzed. Significant differences in the test scores of each category between two groups of participants were found. The results also revealed that the variables related to whether the participant had dementia, gender, age, and years of schooling significantly influenced the semantic fluency scores for each category. Among all the demographic characteristic of participants, the diagnosis of dementia was the most determining factor. Furthermore, this study proposed optimal cutoff points and calculated the AUC for various test durations (i.e., 30 s, 45 s and 60 s) and semantic categories in the semantic fluency test, which may serve as a reference that would help clinical personnel distinguish between older adults without cognitive impairments and those with dementia of Alzheimer type in Taiwan.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Yu-Chun Chih
- Department of Speech Language Pathology and Audiology, Chung Shan Medical University, Taichung 402, Taiwan;
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Mancano M, Papagno C. Concrete and Abstract Concepts in Primary Progressive Aphasia and Alzheimer's Disease: A Scoping Review. Brain Sci 2023; 13:765. [PMID: 37239237 PMCID: PMC10216362 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci13050765] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2023] [Revised: 04/28/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The concreteness effect (CE), namely a better performance with concrete compared to abstract concepts, is a constant feature in healthy people, and it usually increases in persons with aphasia (PWA). However, a reversal of the CE has been reported in patients affected by the semantic variant of Primary Progressive Aphasia (svPPA), a neurodegenerative disease characterized by anterior temporal lobe (ATL) atrophy. The present scoping review aims at identifying the extent of evidence regarding the abstract/concrete contrast in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and svPPA and associated brain atrophy. Five online databases were searched up to January 2023 to identify papers where both concrete and abstract concepts were investigated. Thirty-one papers were selected and showed that while in patients with AD, concrete words were better processes than abstract ones, in most svPPA patients, there was a reversal of the CE, with five studies correlating the size of this effect with ATL atrophy. Furthermore, the reversal of CE was associated with category-specific impairments (living things) and with a selective deficit of social words. Future work is needed to disentangle the role of specific portions of the ATL in concept representation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina Mancano
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38068 Rovereto, Italy;
| | - Costanza Papagno
- Center for Mind/Brain Sciences, University of Trento, 38068 Rovereto, Italy;
- CISMed Interdepartmental Center for Medical Sciences, University of Trento, 38122 Trento, Italy
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12
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Sejunaite K, Gaucher F, Lanza C, Riepe MW. Clock Drawing Test: Types of Errors and Accuracy in Early Cognitive Screening. J Alzheimers Dis 2023; 95:1597-1608. [PMID: 37718798 DOI: 10.3233/jad-230110] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/19/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Clock Drawing Test (CDT) is a commonly used screening tool for cognitive disorders, known for its ease of administration and scoring. Despite frequent use by clinicians, CDT is criticized for its poor predictive value in mild cases of impairment. OBJECTIVE To evaluate CDT as a screening tool for early stage of cognitive impairment in biomarker-verified Alzheimer's disease (AD) and depressive disorder (DD). METHODS We analyzed CDT of 172 patients with verified AD, 70 patients with DD, in whom neurodegenerative disorder was excluded using cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers, and 58 healthy older adults. CDT was scored using the semi-quantitative (Shulman) and itemized criteria (adapted from Mendez). RESULTS Logistic regression showed that for both DD and AD patients with high Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores (27 and above) the significant predicting variable is uneven number spacing. As MMSE deteriorates (24-26 points), an additional error of setting clock hands is predictive of the disease. In the low MMSE condition, CDT showed an acceptable discrimination for AD (AUC itemized 0.740, Shulman 0.741) and DD (AUC itemized 0.827, Shulman 0.739) using both scoring methods. In the high MMSE condition, discrimination rates were acceptable using itemized scoring but poor using Shulman scoring for both AD (AUC itemized 0.707, Shulman 0.677) and DD (AUC itemized 0.755, Shulman 0.667) groups. CONCLUSION Ideally, modern diagnostic process should take place before the cognitive performance drops beneath the healthy range. This makes CDT of little use when screening patients with very mild cognitive deficits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karolina Sejunaite
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychfapy II Mental Health & Old Age Psychiatry, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Frederic Gaucher
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychfapy II Mental Health & Old Age Psychiatry, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Claudia Lanza
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychfapy II Mental Health & Old Age Psychiatry, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
| | - Matthias W Riepe
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychfapy II Mental Health & Old Age Psychiatry, Ulm University, Ulm, Germany
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Wang R, Kuang C, Guo C, Chen Y, Li C, Matsumura Y, Ishimaru M, Van Pelt AJ, Chen F. Automatic Detection of Putative Mild Cognitive Impairment from Speech Acoustic Features in Mandarin-Speaking Elders. J Alzheimers Dis 2023; 95:901-914. [PMID: 37638439 DOI: 10.3233/jad-230373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND To date, the reliable detection of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) remains a significant challenge for clinicians. Very few studies investigated the sensitivity of acoustic features in detecting Mandarin-speaking elders at risk for MCI, defined as "putative MCI" (pMCI). OBJECTIVE This study sought to investigate the possibility of using automatically extracted speech acoustic features to detect elderly people with pMCI and reveal the potential acoustic markers of cognitive decline at an early stage. METHODS Forty-one older adults with pMCI and 41 healthy elderly controls completed four reading tasks (syllable utterance, tongue twister, diadochokinesis, and short sentence reading), from which acoustic features were extracted automatically to train machine learning classifiers. Correlation analysis was employed to evaluate the relationship between classifier predictions and participants' cognitive ability measured by Mini-Mental State Examination 2. RESULTS Classification results revealed that some temporal features (e.g., speech rate, utterance duration, and the number of silent pauses), spectral features (e.g., variability of F1 and F2), and energy features (e.g., SD of peak intensity and SD of intensity range) were effective predictors of pMCI. The best classification result was achieved in the Random Forest classifier (accuracy = 0.81, AUC = 0.81). Correlation analysis uncovered a strong negative correlation between participants' cognitive test scores and the probability estimates of pMCI in the Random Forest classifier, and a modest negative correlation in the Support Vector Machine classifier. CONCLUSIONS The automatic acoustic analysis of speech could provide a promising non-invasive way to assess and monitor the early cognitive decline in Mandarin-speaking elders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rumi Wang
- Rehabilitation Medicine Department, Speech and Language Pathology Therapy Section, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | - Chen Kuang
- School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University, Hunan, China
| | - Chengyu Guo
- School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University, Hunan, China
| | - Yong Chen
- Laboratory of Food Oral Processing, School of Food Science & Biotechnology, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Canyang Li
- Rehabilitation Medicine Department, Speech and Language Pathology Therapy Section, The Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University, Changsha, Hunan, China
| | | | | | - Alice J Van Pelt
- Section of Gastroenterology, Edward Hines, Jr. VA Hospital, Hines, IL, USA
- Division of Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine, Maywood, IL, USA
| | - Fei Chen
- School of Foreign Languages, Hunan University, Hunan, China
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14
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Wang Y, Yang K, Fu P, Zheng X, Yang H, Zhou Q, Ma W, Wang P. The Ability to Use Contextual Information in Object and Scene Recognition in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment. J Alzheimers Dis 2023; 95:945-963. [PMID: 37638431 DOI: 10.3233/jad-221132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/29/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The ability to understand and make use of object-scene relationships are critical for object and scene recognition. OBJECTIVE The current study assessed whether patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), possibly in the preclinical phase of Alzheimer's disease, exhibited impairment in processing contextual information in scene and object recognition. METHODS In Experiment 1, subjects viewed images of foreground objects in either semantic consistent or inconsistent scenes under no time pressure, and they verbally reported the names of foreground objects and backgrounds. Experiment 2 replicated Experiment 1, except that subjects were required to name scene first. Experiment 3 examined object and scene recognition accuracy baselines, recognition difficulty, familiarity with objects/scenes, and object-scene consistency judgements. RESULTS There were contextual consistency effects on scene recognition for MCI and healthy subjects, regardless of response sequence. Scenes were recognized more accurately under the consistent condition than the inconsistent condition. Additionally, MCI patients were more susceptible to incongruent contextual information, possibly due to inhibitory deficits or over-dependence on semantic knowledge. However, no significant differences between MCI and healthy subjects were observed in consistency judgement, recognition accuracy, recognition difficulty and familiarity rating, suggesting no significant impairment in object and scene knowledge among MCI subjects. CONCLUSIONS The study indicates that MCI patients retain relatively intact contextual processing ability but may exhibit inhibitory deficits or over-reliance on semantic knowledge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaqi Wang
- School of Foreign Languages and Literature, Shandong University, Jinan, China
- Center for Language Science, Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Kai Yang
- School of Foreign Languages and Literature, Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Pengrui Fu
- Department of Neurology, The Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Xiaolei Zheng
- Department of Neurology, The Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Hui Yang
- Department of Neurology, The Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Qingbo Zhou
- Department of Neurology, The Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Wen Ma
- School of Foreign Languages and Literature, Shandong University, Jinan, China
- Center for Language Science, Shandong University, Jinan, China
| | - Ping Wang
- Center for Language Science, Shandong University, Jinan, China
- Department of Neurology, The Second Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China
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15
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Olmos-Villaseñor R, Sepulveda-Silva C, Julio-Ramos T, Fuentes-Lopez E, Toloza-Ramirez D, Santibañez RA, Copland DA, Mendez-Orellana C. Phonological and Semantic Fluency in Alzheimer's Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. J Alzheimers Dis 2023; 95:1-12. [PMID: 37482994 PMCID: PMC10578227 DOI: 10.3233/jad-221272] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/21/2023] [Indexed: 07/25/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Semantic and Phonological fluency (SF and PF) are routinely evaluated in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). There are disagreements in the literature regarding which fluency task is more affected while developing AD. Most studies focus on SF assessment, given its connection with the temporoparietal amnesic system. PF is less reported, it is related to working memory, which is also impaired in probable and diagnosed AD. Differentiating between performance on these tasks might be informative in early AD diagnosis, providing an accurate linguistic profile. OBJECTIVE Compare SF and PF performance in healthy volunteers, volunteers with probable AD, and patients with AD diagnosis, considering the heterogeneity of age, gender, and educational level variables. METHODS A total of 8 studies were included for meta-analysis, reaching a sample size of 1,270 individuals (568 patients diagnosed with AD, 340 with probable AD diagnosis, and 362 healthy volunteers). RESULTS The three groups consistently performed better on SF than PF. When progressing to a diagnosis of AD, we observed a significant difference in SF and PF performance across our 3 groups of interest (p = 0.04). The age variable explained a proportion of this difference in task performance across the groups, and as age increases, both tasks equally worsen. CONCLUSION The performance of SF and PF might play a differential role in early AD diagnosis. These tasks rely on partially different neural bases of language processing. They are thus worth exploring independently in diagnosing normal aging and its transition to pathological stages, including probable and diagnosed AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rocio Olmos-Villaseñor
- Speech and Language Therapy School, Health Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Laboratory of Language Rehabilitation and Stimulation (LARES), Speech and Language Therapy School, Health Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Consuelo Sepulveda-Silva
- Speech and Language Therapy School, Health Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Laboratory of Language Rehabilitation and Stimulation (LARES), Speech and Language Therapy School, Health Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Teresa Julio-Ramos
- Laboratory of Language Rehabilitation and Stimulation (LARES), Speech and Language Therapy School, Health Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - Eduardo Fuentes-Lopez
- Speech and Language Therapy School, Health Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
| | - David Toloza-Ramirez
- Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences Institute, School of Speech Therapy, Faculty of Rehabilitation Sciences, Universidad Andres Bello, Santiago, Chile
| | - Rodrigo A. Santibañez
- Neurology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Neurology Service, Complejo Asistencial Doctor Sótero del Río, Santiago, Chile
| | - David A. Copland
- Queensland Aphasia Research Centre, School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Carolina Mendez-Orellana
- Speech and Language Therapy School, Health Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
- Laboratory of Language Rehabilitation and Stimulation (LARES), Speech and Language Therapy School, Health Sciences Department, Faculty of Medicine, Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile, Santiago, Chile
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Cejudo JC, Samaniego M, Almeria M, Castrillo S, Medina L, Gil D. Ikos Test: New Tool for the Assessment of Semantic Knowledge in Early Alzheimer Disease. J Alzheimers Dis 2022; 90:151-160. [DOI: 10.3233/jad-220516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Background: Semantic memory (SM) constitutes a cognitive system that is seriously affected by Alzheimer’s disease (AD). There are several tests for assessing SM, but a tool is needed to assess AD in the early stages of the illness. Objective: The study aimed to create, validate, and normalize a new test to assess SM, called the Ikos test, for AD and early AD in clinical practice. Methods: 62 healthy adults as a control group (CG), 62 AD, and 60 amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) subdivided into a group that progresses to AD, and another group that does not progress to AD were selected. The internal consistency (IC), the construct validity (CV), and reliability between raters and the test-retest were analyzed. We used the Bayesian approach to establish the accuracy of the diagnosis of the Ikos test in AD and early AD. Results: IC showed a Kuder-Richardson index of r = 0.945. The CV between the Ikos test and Pyramids and Palm Trees; Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC) index was 0.897. The Kappa index was between 0.865 and 0.912, and the ICC index was 0.873 for the test-retest reliability. The Area Under the Curve was 0.981, sensitivity (SE) was 0.95, and specificity (SP) was 0.96 in AD/CG. In contrast, in the MCI-AD/CG group, SE = 0.77 and SP = 0.80. Conclusion: The Ikos test accomplishes the criteria of validity and reliability with high correlation indexes. Therefore, it can be considered a valid, reliable, and easily applicable tool for SM assessment in diagnosing AD and the early stages of clinical disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan Carlos Cejudo
- Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Unit, Hospital Sagrat Cor. Hermanas Hospitalarias, Martorell, (Barcelona), Spain
| | - Melissa Samaniego
- Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Unit, Hospital Sagrat Cor. Hermanas Hospitalarias, Martorell, (Barcelona), Spain
| | - Marta Almeria
- Cognition and Behavior Unit, Department of Neurology, Hospital Universitari Mútua Terrassa, Terrassa(Barcelona), Spain
- Department of Medicine, Autonomous University of Barcelona, (Barcelona), Spain
| | - Susana Castrillo
- RGG Sant Roc (DGPS), Drets Socials Dep, Generalitat de Catalunya, Spain
| | - Lidia Medina
- Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Unit. Hospital Atenció Intermedia MutuamGüell, EAPS Mutuam Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Domènec Gil
- Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Unit, Hospital Sagrat Cor. Hermanas Hospitalarias, Martorell, (Barcelona), Spain
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Karalı FS, Maviş İ, Cinar N. Comparison of language and narrative features of individuals among amnestic mild cognitive impairment and healthy adults. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-022-03669-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
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18
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Almeida VN, Radanovic M. Semantic processing and neurobiology in Alzheimer's disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment. Neuropsychologia 2022; 174:108337. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2022.108337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2022] [Revised: 07/17/2022] [Accepted: 07/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Cho S, Cousins KAQ, Shellikeri S, Ash S, Irwin DJ, Liberman MY, Grossman M, Nevler N. Lexical and Acoustic Speech Features Relating to Alzheimer Disease Pathology. Neurology 2022; 99:e313-e322. [PMID: 35487701 PMCID: PMC9421771 DOI: 10.1212/wnl.0000000000200581] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES We compared digital speech and language features of patients with amnestic Alzheimer disease (aAD) or logopenic variant primary progressive aphasia (lvPPA) in a biologically confirmed cohort and related these features to neuropsychiatric test scores and CSF analytes. METHODS We included patients with aAD or lvPPA with CSF (phosphorylated tau ([p-tau]/β-amyloid [Aβ] ≥0.09, and total tau/Aβ ≥0.34) or autopsy confirmation of AD pathology and age-matched healthy controls (HC) recruited at the Frontotemporal Degeneration Center of the University of Pennsylvania for a cross-sectional study. We extracted speech and language variables with automated lexical and acoustic pipelines from participants' oral picture descriptions. We compared the groups and correlated distinct features with clinical ratings and CSF p-tau levels. RESULTS We examined patients with aAD (n = 44; age 62 ± 8 years; 24 women; Mini-Mental State Examination [MMSE] score 21.1 ± 4.8) or lvPPA (n = 21; age 64.1 ± 8.2 years; 11 women; MMSE score 23.0 ± 4.2) and HC (n = 28; age 65.9 ± 5.9 years, 15 women; MMSE score 29 ± 1). Patients with lvPPA produced fewer verbs (10.5 ± 2.3; p = 0.001) and adjectives (2.7 ± 1.3, p = 0.019) and more fillers (7.4 ± 3.9; p = 0.022) with lower lexical diversity (0.84 ± 0.1; p = 0.05) and higher pause rate (54.2 ± 19.2; p = 0.015) than individuals with aAD (verbs 12.5 ± 2; adjectives 3.8 ± 2; fillers 4.9 ± 4.5; lexical diversity 0.87 ± 0.1; pause rate 45.3 ± 12.8). Both groups showed some shared language impairments compared with HC. Word frequency (MMSE score: β = -1.6, p = 0.009; Boston Naming Test [BNT] score: β = -4.36, p < 0.001), adverbs (MMSE score: β = -1.9, p = 0.003; BNT score: β = -2.41, p = 0.041), pause rate (MMSE score: β = -1.21, p = 0.041; BNT score: β = -2.09, p = 0.041), and word length (MMSE score: β = 1.75, p = 0.001; BNT score: β = 2.94, p = 0.003) were significantly correlated with both MMSE and BNT scores, but other measures were not correlated with MMSE and/or BNT score. Prepositions (r = -0.36, p = 0.019), nouns (r = -0.31, p = 0.047), speech segment duration (r = -0.33, p = 0.032), word frequency (r = 0.33, p = 0.036), and pause rate (r = 0.34, p = 0.026) were correlated with patients' CSF p-tau levels. DISCUSSION Our measures captured language and speech differences between the 2 phenotypes that traditional language-based clinical assessments failed to identify. This work demonstrates the potential of natural speech in reflecting underlying variants with AD pathology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sunghye Cho
- From the Linguistic Data Consortium (S.C., M.Y.L.) and Department of Neurology (K.A.Q.C., S.S., S.A., D.J.I., M.G., N.N.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.
| | - Katheryn Alexandra Quilico Cousins
- From the Linguistic Data Consortium (S.C., M.Y.L.) and Department of Neurology (K.A.Q.C., S.S., S.A., D.J.I., M.G., N.N.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Sanjana Shellikeri
- From the Linguistic Data Consortium (S.C., M.Y.L.) and Department of Neurology (K.A.Q.C., S.S., S.A., D.J.I., M.G., N.N.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Sharon Ash
- From the Linguistic Data Consortium (S.C., M.Y.L.) and Department of Neurology (K.A.Q.C., S.S., S.A., D.J.I., M.G., N.N.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - David John Irwin
- From the Linguistic Data Consortium (S.C., M.Y.L.) and Department of Neurology (K.A.Q.C., S.S., S.A., D.J.I., M.G., N.N.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Mark Yoffe Liberman
- From the Linguistic Data Consortium (S.C., M.Y.L.) and Department of Neurology (K.A.Q.C., S.S., S.A., D.J.I., M.G., N.N.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Murray Grossman
- From the Linguistic Data Consortium (S.C., M.Y.L.) and Department of Neurology (K.A.Q.C., S.S., S.A., D.J.I., M.G., N.N.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
| | - Naomi Nevler
- From the Linguistic Data Consortium (S.C., M.Y.L.) and Department of Neurology (K.A.Q.C., S.S., S.A., D.J.I., M.G., N.N.), University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia
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Cimminella F, D'Innocenzo G, Sala SD, Iavarone A, Musella C, Coco MI. Preserved Extra-Foveal Processing of Object Semantics in Alzheimer's Disease. J Geriatr Psychiatry Neurol 2022; 35:418-433. [PMID: 34044661 DOI: 10.1177/08919887211016056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients underperform on a range of tasks requiring semantic processing, but it is unclear whether this impairment is due to a generalised loss of semantic knowledge or to issues in accessing and selecting such information from memory. The objective of this eye-tracking visual search study was to determine whether semantic expectancy mechanisms known to support object recognition in healthy adults are preserved in AD patients. Furthermore, as AD patients are often reported to be impaired in accessing information in extra-foveal vision, we investigated whether that was also the case in our study. Twenty AD patients and 20 age-matched controls searched for a target object among an array of distractors presented extra-foveally. The distractors were either semantically related or unrelated to the target (e.g., a car in an array with other vehicles or kitchen items). Results showed that semantically related objects were detected with more difficulty than semantically unrelated objects by both groups, but more markedly by the AD group. Participants looked earlier and for longer at the critical objects when these were semantically unrelated to the distractors. Our findings show that AD patients can process the semantics of objects and access it in extra-foveal vision. This suggests that their impairments in semantic processing may reflect difficulties in accessing semantic information rather than a generalised loss of semantic memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Cimminella
- Human Cognitive Neuroscience, Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.,Laboratory of Experimental Psychology, Suor Orsola Benincasa University, Naples, Italy
| | | | - Sergio Della Sala
- Human Cognitive Neuroscience, Psychology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | | | - Caterina Musella
- Associazione Italiana Malattia d'Alzheimer (AIMA sezione Campania), Naples, Italy
| | - Moreno I Coco
- Faculdade de Psicologia, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.,School of Psychology, The University of East London, London, United Kingdom
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21
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Graph Theoretical Analysis of Semantic Fluency in Patients with Parkinson’s Disease. Behav Neurol 2022; 2022:6935263. [PMID: 35502419 PMCID: PMC9056264 DOI: 10.1155/2022/6935263] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Revised: 04/02/2022] [Accepted: 04/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Semantic fluency is the ability to name items from a given category within a limited time, which relies on semantic memory, working memory, and executive function. Semantic disfluency is a common problem in Parkinson's disease (PD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD). We demonstrated a graph theoretical analysis of semantic fluency in patients with PD (N = 86), patients with AD (N = 40), and healthy controls (HC, N = 88). All participants completed a standard animal fluency test. Their verbal responses were recorded, transcripted, and transformed into directed speech graphs. Patients with PD generated fewer correct words than HC and more correct words than patients with AD. Patients with PD showed higher density, shorter diameter, and shorter average shortest path length than HC, but lower density, longer diameter, and longer average shortest path length than patients with AD. It suggests that patients with PD produced relatively smaller and denser speech graphs. Moreover, in PD, the densities of speech graphs correlated with the severity of non-motor symptoms, but not the severity of motor symptoms. The graph theoretical analysis revealed new features of semantic disfluency in patients with PD.
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22
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A Comparison Between the Performances of Verbal and Nonverbal Fluency Tests in Discriminating Between Mild Cognitive Impairments and Alzheimer’s Disease Patients and Their Brain Morphological Correlates. Dement Neurocogn Disord 2022; 21:17-29. [PMID: 35154337 PMCID: PMC8811206 DOI: 10.12779/dnd.2022.21.1.17] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2021] [Revised: 11/28/2021] [Accepted: 12/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Background and Purpose Methods Results Conclusions
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23
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Riello M, Frangakis CE, Ficek B, Webster KT, Desmond JE, Faria AV, Hillis AE, Tsapkini K. Neural Correlates of Letter and Semantic Fluency in Primary Progressive Aphasia. Brain Sci 2021; 12:1. [PMID: 35053745 PMCID: PMC8773895 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12010001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2021] [Revised: 12/15/2021] [Accepted: 12/16/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Verbal fluency (VF) is an informative cognitive task. Lesion and functional imaging studies implicate distinct cerebral areas that support letter versus semantic fluency and the understanding of neural and cognitive mechanisms underlying task performance. Most lesion studies include chronic stroke patients. People with primary progressive aphasia (PPA) provide complementary evidence for lesion-deficit associations, as different brain areas are affected in stroke versus PPA. In the present study we sought to determine imaging, clinical and demographic correlates of VF in PPA. Thirty-five patients with PPA underwent an assessment with letter and category VF tasks, evaluation of clinical features and an MRI scan for volumetric analysis. We used stepwise regression models to determine which brain areas are associated with VF performance while acknowledging the independent contribution of clinical and demographic factors. Letter fluency was predominantly associated with language severity (R2 = 38%), and correlated with the volume of the left superior temporal regions (R2 = 12%) and the right dorsolateral prefrontal area (R2 = 5%). Semantic fluency was predominantly associated with dementia severity (R2 = 47%) and correlated with the volume of the left inferior temporal gyrus (R2 = 7%). No other variables were significantly associated with performance in the two VF tasks. We concluded that, independently of disease severity, letter fluency is significantly associated with the volume of frontal and temporal areas whereas semantic fluency is associated mainly with the volume of temporal areas. Furthermore, our findings indicated that clinical severity plays a critical role in explaining VF performance in PPA, compared to the other clinical and demographic factors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marianna Riello
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; (M.R.); (B.F.); (K.T.W.); (J.E.D.); (A.E.H.)
| | - Constantine E. Frangakis
- Department of Biostatistics, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD 21227, USA;
- Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21227, USA;
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21227, USA
| | - Bronte Ficek
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; (M.R.); (B.F.); (K.T.W.); (J.E.D.); (A.E.H.)
| | - Kimberly T. Webster
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; (M.R.); (B.F.); (K.T.W.); (J.E.D.); (A.E.H.)
- Department of Otolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21227, USA
| | - John E. Desmond
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; (M.R.); (B.F.); (K.T.W.); (J.E.D.); (A.E.H.)
| | - Andreia V. Faria
- Department of Radiology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21227, USA;
| | - Argye E. Hillis
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; (M.R.); (B.F.); (K.T.W.); (J.E.D.); (A.E.H.)
- Department of Cognitive Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
- Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Kyrana Tsapkini
- Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA; (M.R.); (B.F.); (K.T.W.); (J.E.D.); (A.E.H.)
- Department of Cognitive Science, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
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Scheffel L, Duffy JR, Strand EA, Josephs KA. Word Fluency Test Performance in Primary Progressive Aphasia and Primary Progressive Apraxia of Speech. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY 2021; 30:2635-2642. [PMID: 34674540 PMCID: PMC9132020 DOI: 10.1044/2021_ajslp-21-00058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2021] [Revised: 05/21/2021] [Accepted: 07/15/2021] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Purpose This study compared performance on three-word fluency measures among individuals with primary progressive aphasia (PPA) and primary progressive apraxia of speech (PPAOS), and examined the relationship between word fluency and other measures of language and speech. Method This study included 106 adults with PPA and 30 adults with PPAOS. PPA participants were divided into three clinical subgroups: semantic (svPPA), logopenic (lvPPA), and nonfluent/agrammatic with or without apraxia of speech (nfPPA). Category fluency, letter fluency, and action/verb fluency tasks were administered to all participants. Results The four clinical groups performed abnormally on the word fluency measures, although not to a degree that represented high sensitivity to their PPA or PPAOS diagnosis. All PPA subgroups produced fewer words compared to individuals with PPAOS on all word fluency measures. Moderate correlations were found between word fluency and aphasia severity and naming performance in some of the clinical groups. Conclusions Word fluency measures are often challenging for individuals with PPA and PPAOS, but they are not of equal difficulty, with letter fluency being the most difficult. Differences among word fluency tests also vary to some degree as a function of the clinical group in question, with least impairment in PPAOS. However, the findings of this study do not support statistically significant differences in word fluency task performance among the PPA subgroups. Correlations suggest that word fluency performance in PPA is at least partly related to aphasia severity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucia Scheffel
- Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders, University of Nebraska at Omaha
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25
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Wing EA, D'Angelo MC, Gilboa A, Ryan JD. The Role of the Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex and Basal Forebrain in Relational Memory and Inference. J Cogn Neurosci 2021; 33:1976-1989. [PMID: 34375419 DOI: 10.1162/jocn_a_01722] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
The ventromedial prefrontal cortex (vmPFC) is involved in diverse cognitive operations, from inhibitory control to processing of semantic schemas. When accompanied by damage to the basal forebrain, vmPFC lesions can also impair relational memory, the ability to form and recall relations among items. Impairments in establishing direct relations among items (e.g., A is related to B, B is related to C) can also hinder the transitive processing of indirect relationships (e.g., inferring that A and C are related through direct relations that each contain B). Past work has found that transitive inference improves when the direct relations are organized within an existing knowledge structure, or schema. This type of semantic support is most effective for individuals whose relational memory deficits are mild (e.g., healthy age-related decline) rather than pronounced (e.g., hippocampal amnesia, amnestic mild cognitive impairment). Given that vmPFC damage can produce both relational memory and schema processing deficits, such damage may pose a particular challenge in establishing the type of relational structure required for transitive inference, even when supported by preexisting knowledge. To examine this idea, we tested individuals with lesions to the mPFC on multiple conditions that varied in pre-experimental semantic support and explored the extent to which they could identify both previously studied (direct) and novel transitive (indirect) relations. Most of the mPFC cases showed marked transitive inference deficits and even showed impaired knowledge of preexisting, direct, semantic relations, consistent with disruptions to schema-related processes. However, one case with more dorsal mPFC damage showed preserved ability to identify direct relations and make novel inferences, particularly when pre-experimental knowledge could be used to support performance. These results suggest that damage to the mPFC and basal forebrain can impede establishment of ad hoc relational schemas upon which transitive inference is based, but that appealing to prior knowledge may still be useful for those neurological cases that have some degree of preserved relational memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik A Wing
- The Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest, Toronto, Canada
| | | | - Asaf Gilboa
- The Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest, Toronto, Canada.,University of Toronto, Canada
| | - Jennifer D Ryan
- The Rotman Research Institute, Baycrest, Toronto, Canada.,University of Toronto, Canada
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26
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Qi X, Nizamutdinov D, Berman MH, Dougal G, Chazot PL, Wu E, Stevens AB, Yi SS, Huang JH. Gender Differences of Dementia in Response to Intensive Self-Administered Transcranial and Intraocular Near-Infrared Stimulation. Cureus 2021; 13:e16188. [PMID: 34262831 PMCID: PMC8260213 DOI: 10.7759/cureus.16188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Transcranial near-infrared (tNIR) stimulation was proven to be a safe, reliable, and effective treatment for cognitive and behavioral symptoms of dementia. Dementia patients of different genders differ in terms of gross anatomy, biochemistry, genetic profile, clinical presentations, and socio-psychological status. Studies of the tNIR effect on dementia have thus far been gender-neutral, with dementia subjects being grouped based on diagnoses or dementia severity. This trial hereby investigated how dementia subjects of different sex respond to tNIR treatment. Methods A total of 60 patient-caregiver dyads were enrolled and randomized to this double-blind, sham-controlled clinical trial. The tNIR light has a wavelength of 1,060 nm to 1,080 nm and was delivered via a photobiomodulation (PBM) unit. The active PBM unit emits near-infrared (NIR) light while the sham unit does not. The treatment consists of a six-minute tNIR light stimulation session twice daily for eight weeks. Neuropsychological assessments conducted at baseline (week 0) and endline (week 8) were compared within the female and male group and between different sex, respectively. Results Over the course of treatment, active-arm female subjects had a 20.2% improvement in Mini‐Mental State Exam (MMSE) (mean 4.8 points increase, p < 0.001) and active-arm male cohort had 19.3% improvement (p < 0.001). Control-arm female subjects had a 6.5% improvement in MMSE (mean 1.5 points increase, p < 0.03) and control-arm male subjects had 5.9% improvement (p = 0.35) with no significant differences in the mean MMSE between female and male subjects in both arms respectively. Other comparison of assessments including Clock Copying and Drawing Test, Logical Memory Test - immediate and delayed recall yielded nominal but not statistically significant differences. No significant differences were observed in the mean MMSE between female and male subjects in both arms respectively before treatment implementation (active arm, p = 0.12; control arm, p = 0.50) at week 0, or after treatment completion (active arm, p = 0.11; control arm, p = 0.74) at week 8. Conclusion Despite differences between female and male dementia subjects, the response to tNIR light stimulation does not demonstrate gender-based differences. Further studies are warranted to refine the tNIR treatment protocol for subjects suffering from dementia or dementia-related symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoming Qi
- Neurosurgery, Baylor Scott & White Health, Temple, USA
| | | | | | - Gordon Dougal
- Chief Executive Officer, Maculume Limited, Spennymoor, GBR
| | | | - Erxi Wu
- Neurosurgery, Baylor Scott & White Health, Temple, USA
| | - Alan B Stevens
- Gerontology, Baylor Scott & White Health Research Institute, Temple, USA
| | - S Stephen Yi
- Oncology, The University of Texas at Austin, Dell Medical School, Austin, USA
| | - Jason H Huang
- Neurosurgery, Baylor Scott & White Medical Center, Temple, USA
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27
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Marra C, Piccininni C, Masone Iacobucci G, Caprara A, Gainotti G, Costantini EM, Callea A, Venneri A, Quaranta D. Semantic Memory as an Early Cognitive Marker of Alzheimer's Disease: Role of Category and Phonological Verbal Fluency Tasks. J Alzheimers Dis 2021; 81:619-627. [PMID: 33814440 DOI: 10.3233/jad-201452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The assessment of semantic memory may be a useful marker to identify individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) who will progress to Alzheimer's disease (AD) in the early stages of the disease. OBJECTIVE The aim of this five-year follow-up longitudinal study is to assess whether semantic assessment could predict progression in MCI. METHODS A population of MCI (N = 251); mild (N = 178) and moderate AD (N = 114); and a sample of healthy participants (HP; N = 262) was investigated. The five-year follow-up of the MCI group was completed by 178 patients. Semantic and episodic memory measures were used, including a measure of the discrepancy between categorical and phonological verbal fluency, the semantic-phonological delta (SPD). The main outcome was the progression of MCI due to AD to dementia. RESULTS A general linear model showed a significant effect of diagnosis on SPD (Wilks' Lambda = 0.591; p < 0.001). The estimated marginal means were -0.91 (SE = 0.185) in HP, -1.83 (SE = 0.187) in MCI, -1.16 (SE = 0.218) in mild AD, and -1.02 (SE = 0.275) in moderate AD. Post-hoc comparisons showed a significant difference between MCI and HP (p < 0.001). The follow-up was completed by 178 MCI individuals. SPD in MCI patients who progress to dementia was significantly lower than in MCI that will not progress (p = 0.003). Together with the Mini-Mental State Examination, the SPD was the only measure with a significant predicting effect at the five-years follow-up (p = 0.016). CONCLUSION The SPD indicates the impairment of semantic memory in individuals with underlying AD at the MCI early stage, reflecting the early involvement of perirhinal and entorhinal cortices in the earliest stages of AD neuropathological process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camillo Marra
- Memory Clinic, Department of Science of Elderly, Neuroscience, Head and Neck and Orthopaedics, Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli, IRCCS, Rome, Italy.,Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy
| | - Chiara Piccininni
- Memory Clinic, Department of Science of Elderly, Neuroscience, Head and Neck and Orthopaedics, Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Alessia Caprara
- Psychological Unit, Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Guido Gainotti
- Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy
| | - Emanuele Maria Costantini
- Neurology Unit, Department of Science of Elderly, Neuroscience, Head and Neck and Orthopaedics, Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Antonio Callea
- Neurology Unit, Department of Science of Elderly, Neuroscience, Head and Neck and Orthopaedics, Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Annalena Venneri
- Department of Neuroscience, Sheffield University, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Davide Quaranta
- Neurology Unit, Department of Science of Elderly, Neuroscience, Head and Neck and Orthopaedics, Fondazione Policlinico A. Gemelli, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
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28
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Cho S, Nevler N, Ash S, Shellikeri S, Irwin DJ, Massimo L, Rascovsky K, Olm C, Grossman M, Liberman M. Automated analysis of lexical features in frontotemporal degeneration. Cortex 2021; 137:215-231. [PMID: 33640853 PMCID: PMC8044033 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2021.01.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2020] [Revised: 07/26/2020] [Accepted: 01/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
We implemented an automated analysis of lexical aspects of semi-structured speech produced by healthy elderly controls (n = 37) and three patient groups with frontotemporal degeneration (FTD): behavioral variant FTD (n = 74), semantic variant primary progressive aphasia (svPPA, n = 42), and nonfluent/agrammatic PPA (naPPA, n = 22). Based on previous findings, we hypothesized that the three patient groups and controls would differ in the counts of part-of-speech (POS) categories and several lexical measures. With a natural language processing program, we automatically tagged POS categories of all words produced during a picture description task. We further counted the number of wh-words, and we rated nouns for abstractness, ambiguity, frequency, familiarity, and age of acquisition. We also computed the cross-entropy estimation, where low cross-entropy indicates high predictability, and lexical diversity for each description. We validated a subset of the POS data that were automatically tagged with the Google Universal POS scheme using gold-standard POS data tagged by a linguist, and we found that the POS categories from our automated methods were more than 90% accurate. For svPPA patients, we found fewer unique nouns than in naPPA and more pronouns and wh-words than in the other groups. We also found high abstractness, ambiguity, frequency, and familiarity for nouns and the lowest cross-entropy estimation among all groups. These measures were associated with cortical thinning in the left temporal lobe. In naPPA patients, we found increased speech errors and partial words compared to controls, and these impairments were associated with cortical thinning in the left middle frontal gyrus. bvFTD patients' adjective production was decreased compared to controls and was correlated with their apathy scores. Their adjective production was associated with cortical thinning in the dorsolateral frontal and orbitofrontal gyri. Our results demonstrate distinct language profiles in subgroups of FTD patients and validate our automated method of analyzing FTD patients' speech.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sunghye Cho
- Linguistic Data Consortium, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
| | - Naomi Nevler
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Sharon Ash
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Sanjana Shellikeri
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - David J Irwin
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Lauren Massimo
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Katya Rascovsky
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Christopher Olm
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Radiology and Penn Image Computing and Science Laboratory, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Murray Grossman
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Mark Liberman
- Linguistic Data Consortium, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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29
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Nakhla MZ, Banuelos D, Pagán C, Gavarrete Olvera A, Razani J. Differences between episodic and semantic memory in predicting observation-based activities of daily living in mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease. APPLIED NEUROPSYCHOLOGY-ADULT 2021; 29:1499-1510. [PMID: 33689539 DOI: 10.1080/23279095.2021.1893172] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) can often progress into Alzheimer's Disease (AD). Research suggests that decline in episodic memory and semantic memory, as well as functional abilities, can be sensitive in predicting disease progression. This study aimed to (a) investigate episodic and semantic memory performance differences between AD and MCI, (b) determine if memory performance predicts observation-based activities of daily living (ADLs), and (c) explore whether semantic memory mediates the relationship between episodic memory and ADLs. Fifty-eight AD, 53 MCI, and 72 healthy control participants were administered the Rey-O, California Verbal Learning Test, Animal Fluency Test, Boston Naming Test, and Direct Assessment of Functional Status (DAFS). The results revealed, first, that AD participants performed significantly lower than the MCI participants across semantic memory and episodic memory tasks, with the exception of the Boston Naming Test. Second, hierarchical-stepwise regression analyses found that semantic memory significantly predicted DAFS orientation, communication, and financial skills in AD, but episodic memory predicted shopping skills. Furthermore, semantic memory significantly predicted DAFS transportation skills in AD and MCI. Third, within the overall sample, semantic memory mediated the relationship between episodic memory and ADLs. Taken together, the findings suggest decline in semantic memory (as measured by confrontational naming and category fluency) and episodic memory (as measured by list and complex visual design learning and recall) may lead to decline in different and specific aspects of functional abilities in AD and MCI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Z Nakhla
- SDSU/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, San Diego, CA, USA.,Department of Psychology, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA
| | - Dayana Banuelos
- Department of Psychology, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA
| | - Carolyn Pagán
- Department of Psychology, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA.,Department of Psychology, Queens College at the City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
| | - Alice Gavarrete Olvera
- Department of Psychology, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA.,Department of Psychology, Queens College at the City University of New York, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jill Razani
- Department of Psychology, California State University, Northridge, CA, USA
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30
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Macoir J, Chagnon A, Hudon C, Lavoie M, Wilson MA. TDQ-30-A New Color Picture-Naming Test for the Diagnostic of Mild Anomia: Validation and Normative Data in Quebec French Adults and Elderly. Arch Clin Neuropsychol 2021; 36:267-280. [PMID: 31792492 DOI: 10.1093/arclin/acz048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2019] [Revised: 07/18/2019] [Accepted: 08/19/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVE A reduction in lexical access is observed in normal aging and a few studies also showed that this ability is affected in individuals with subjective cognitive decline. Lexical access is also affected very early in mild cognitive impairment as well as in major neurocognitive disorders. The detection of word-finding difficulties in the earliest stages of pathological aging is particularly difficult because symptoms are often subtle or mild. Therefore, mild anomia is underdiagnosed, mainly due to the lack of sensitivity of naming tests. In this article, we present the TDQ-30, a new picture-naming test designed to detect mild word-finding deficits in adults and elderly people. METHOD The article comprises three studies aiming at the development of the test (Study 1), the establishment of its validity and reliability (Study 2), and finally, the production of normative data for French-speaking adults and elderly people from Quebec (Study 3). RESULTS The results showed that the TDQ-30 has good convergent validity. Also, the TDQ-30 distinguished the performance of healthy controls from those of participants with mild cognitive impairment, Alzheimer's disease, and post-stroke aphasia. This suggests good discriminant validity. Finally, this study provides normative data computed from a study sample composed of 227 participants aged 50 years and over. CONCLUSIONS The TDQ-30 has the potential to become a valuable picture-naming test for the diagnosis of mild anomia associated with pathological aging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joël Macoir
- Département de réadaptation, Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, G1V 0A6, Québec (QC), Canada.,Centre de recherche CERVO - Brain Research Centre, G1J 2G3, Québec (QC), Canada
| | - Andréanne Chagnon
- Département de réadaptation, Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, G1V 0A6, Québec (QC), Canada
| | - Carol Hudon
- Centre de recherche CERVO - Brain Research Centre, G1J 2G3, Québec (QC), Canada.,École de psychologie, Faculté des sciences sociales, Université Laval, G1V 0A6, Québec (QC), Canada
| | - Monica Lavoie
- Département de réadaptation, Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, G1V 0A6, Québec (QC), Canada.,Centre de recherche CERVO - Brain Research Centre, G1J 2G3, Québec (QC), Canada
| | - Maximiliano A Wilson
- Département de réadaptation, Faculté de médecine, Université Laval, G1V 0A6, Québec (QC), Canada.,Centre de recherche CERVO - Brain Research Centre, G1J 2G3, Québec (QC), Canada
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31
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Shah Z, Sawalha J, Tasnim M, Qi SA, Stroulia E, Greiner R. Learning Language and Acoustic Models for Identifying Alzheimer’s Dementia From Speech. FRONTIERS IN COMPUTER SCIENCE 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/fcomp.2021.624659] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Alzheimer’s dementia (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative illness that manifests in a gradual decline of cognitive function. Early identification of AD is essential for managing the ensuing cognitive deficits, which may lead to a better prognostic outcome. Speech data can serve as a window into cognitive functioning and can be used to screen for early signs of AD. This paper describes methods for learning models using speech samples from the DementiaBank database, for identifying which subjects have Alzheimer’s dementia. We consider two machine learning tasks: 1) binary classification to distinguish patients from healthy controls, and 2) regression to estimate each subject’s Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score. To develop models that can use acoustic and/or language features, we explore a variety of dimension reduction techniques, training algorithms, and fusion strategies. Our best performing classification model, using language features with dimension reduction and regularized logistic regression, achieves an accuracy of 85.4% on a held-out test set. On the regression task, a linear regression model trained on a reduced set of language features achieves a root mean square error (RMSE) of 5.62 on the test set. These results demonstrate the promise of using machine learning for detecting cognitive decline from speech in AD patients.
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32
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A network psychometric approach to neurocognition in early Alzheimer's disease. Cortex 2021; 137:61-73. [PMID: 33607345 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2021.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2020] [Revised: 08/06/2020] [Accepted: 01/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
In a typical pattern of Alzheimer's disease onset, episodic memory decline is predominant while decline in other neurocognitive domains is subsidiary or absent. Such descriptions refer to relationships between neurocognitive domains as well as deficits within domains. However, the former relationships are rarely statistically modelled. This study used psychometric network analysis to model relationships between neurocognitive variables in cognitive normality (CN), amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), and early Alzheimer's disease (eAD). Gaussian graphical models with extended Bayesian information criterion graphical lasso model selection and regularisation were used to estimate network models of neurocognitive and demographic variables in CN (n = 229), aMCI (n = 395), and eAD (n = 191) groups. The edge density, network strength and structure, centrality, and individual links of the network models were explored. Results indicated that while global strength did not differ, network structures differed across CN and eAD and aMCI and eAD groups, suggesting neurocognitive reorganisation across the eAD continuum. Episodic memory variables were most central (i.e., influential) in the aMCI network model, whereas processing speed and fluency variables were most central in the eAD network model. Additionally, putative clusters of memory, language and semantic variables, and attention, processing speed and working memory variables arose in the models for the clinical groups. This exploratory study shows how psychometric network analysis can be used to model the relationships between neurocognitive variables across the eAD continuum and to generate hypotheses for future (dis)confirmatory research.
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33
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Cho S, Nevler N, Ash S, Shellikeri S, Irwin DJ, Massimo L, Rascovsky K, Olm C, Grossman M, Liberman M. Automated analysis of lexical features in Frontotemporal Degeneration. MEDRXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR HEALTH SCIENCES 2020:2020.09.10.20192054. [PMID: 33173922 PMCID: PMC7654918 DOI: 10.1101/2020.09.10.20192054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
We implemented an automated analysis of lexical aspects of semi-structured speech produced by healthy elderly controls (n=37) and three patient groups with frontotemporal degeneration (FTD): behavioral variant FTD (n=74), semantic variant primary progressive aphasia (svPPA, n=42), and nonfluent/agrammatic PPA (naPPA, n=22). Based on previous findings, we hypothesized that the three patient groups and controls would differ in the counts of part-of-speech (POS) categories and several lexical measures. With a natural language processing program, we automatically tagged POS categories of all words produced during a picture description task. We further counted the number of wh -words, and we rated nouns for abstractness, ambiguity, frequency, familiarity, and age of acquisition. We also computed the cross-entropy estimation, which is a measure of word predictability, and lexical diversity for each description. We validated a subset of the POS data that were automatically tagged with the Google Universal POS scheme using gold-standard POS data tagged by a linguist, and we found that the POS categories from our automated methods were more than 90% accurate. For svPPA patients, we found fewer unique nouns than in naPPA and more pronouns and wh -words than in the other groups. We also found high abstractness, ambiguity, frequency, and familiarity for nouns and the lowest cross-entropy estimation among all groups. These measures were associated with cortical thinning in the left temporal lobe. In naPPA patients, we found increased speech errors and partial words compared to controls, and these impairments were associated with cortical thinning in the left middle frontal gyrus. bvFTD patients' adjective production was decreased compared to controls and was correlated with their apathy scores. Their adjective production was associated with cortical thinning in the dorsolateral frontal and orbitofrontal gyri. Our results demonstrate distinct language profiles in subgroups of FTD patients and validate our automated method of analyzing FTD patients' speech.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sunghye Cho
- Linguistic Data Consortium, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Naomi Nevler
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Sharon Ash
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Sanjana Shellikeri
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - David J. Irwin
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Lauren Massimo
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Katya Rascovsky
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Christopher Olm
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
- Department of Radiology and Penn Image Computing and Science Laboratory, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Murray Grossman
- Department of Neurology and Penn Frontotemporal Degeneration Center, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Mark Liberman
- Linguistic Data Consortium, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
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34
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Mazzon G, Ajčević M, Cattaruzza T, Menichelli A, Guerriero M, Capitanio S, Pesavento V, Dore F, Sorbi S, Manganotti P, Marini A. Connected Speech Deficit as an Early Hallmark of CSF-defined Alzheimer's Disease and Correlation with Cerebral Hypoperfusion Pattern. Curr Alzheimer Res 2020; 16:483-494. [PMID: 31057108 DOI: 10.2174/1567205016666190506141733] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2018] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Diagnosis of prodromal Alzheimer's disease (AD) still represents a hot topic and there is a growing interest for the detection of early and non-invasive biomarkers. Although progressive episodic memory impairment is the typical predominant feature of AD, communicative difficulties can be already present at the early stages of the disease. OBJECTIVE This study investigated the narrative discourse production deficit as a hallmark of CSFdefined prodromal AD and its correlation with cerebral hypoperfusion pattern. METHODS Narrative assessment with a multilevel procedure for discourse analysis was conducted on 28 subjects with Mild Cognitive Impairment (15 MCI due to AD; 13 MCI non-AD) and 28 healthy controls. The diagnostic workup included CSF AD biomarkers. Cerebral hypoperfusion pattern was identified by SPECT image processing. RESULTS The results showed that the discourse analysis of global coherence and lexical informativeness indexes allowed to identify MCI due to AD from MCI non-AD and healthy subjects. These findings allow to hypothesize that the loss of narrative efficacy could be a possible early clinical hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. Furthermore, a significant correlation of global coherence and lexical informativeness reduction with the SPECT hypoperfusion was found in the dorsal aspect of the anterior part of the left inferior frontal gyrus, supporting the hypothesis that this area has a significant role in communicative efficacy, and in particular, in semantic selection executive control. CONCLUSION This study contributes to the understanding of the neural networks for language processing and their involvement in prodromal Alzheimer's disease. It also suggests an easy and sensitive tool for clinical practice that can help identifying individuals with prodromal Alzheimer's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giulia Mazzon
- Clinical Unit of Neurology, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Health Sciences, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Miloš Ajčević
- Clinical Unit of Neurology, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Health Sciences, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy.,NEUROFARBA Department, Neuroscience Section, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Tatiana Cattaruzza
- Clinical Unit of Neurology, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Health Sciences, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Alina Menichelli
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Neuropsychology Unit, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Michele Guerriero
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Neuropsychology Unit, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Selene Capitanio
- Unit of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Valentina Pesavento
- Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Neuropsychology Unit, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Franca Dore
- Unit of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Sandro Sorbi
- NEUROFARBA Department, Neuroscience Section, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.,IRCCS Fondazione Don Carlo Gnocchi, Florence, Italy
| | - Paolo Manganotti
- Clinical Unit of Neurology, Department of Medicine, Surgery and Health Sciences, University Hospital and Health Services of Trieste, University of Trieste, Trieste, Italy
| | - Andrea Marini
- Department of Language and Literatures, Communication, Education and Society, University of Udine, Udine, Italy.,Claudiana - Landesfachhochschule für Gesundheitsberufe, Bozen, Italy
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35
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Joubert S, Gardy L, Didic M, Rouleau I, Barbeau EJ. A Meta-Analysis of Semantic Memory in Mild Cognitive Impairment. Neuropsychol Rev 2020; 31:221-232. [PMID: 32815030 DOI: 10.1007/s11065-020-09453-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2020] [Accepted: 08/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Accumulating evidence over the past decade suggests that semantic deficits represent a consistent feature of Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). A meta-analysis was performed to examine if semantic deficits are consistently found in patients with MCI. Studies meeting all inclusion criteria were selected for the current meta-analysis. An effect size and a weight were calculated for each study. A random effect model was performed to assess the overall difference in semantic performances between MCI patients and healthy subjects. 22 studies (476 healthy participants, 476 MCI patients, mean Mini Mental Status Examination of the MCI patients: 27.05 ± 0.58) were included in the meta-analysis. Results indicate that MCI patients systematically performed significantly worse than healthy matched controls in terms of overall semantic performance (mean effect size of 1.02; 95% CI [0.80; 1.24]). Semantic deficits are a key feature of MCI. Semantic tests should be incorporated in routine clinical assessments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sven Joubert
- Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), 4545 Queen-Mary Road, Montreal, QC, H3W1W5, Canada.
- Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada.
| | - Ludovic Gardy
- Université de Toulouse, UPS, Centre de Recherche Cerveau et Cognition, Toulouse, France
- CerCo, CNRS UMR 5549, Toulouse, France
| | - Mira Didic
- APHM, Timone, Service de Neurologie et de Neuropsychologie, Hôpital Timone Adultes, Marseille, France
- Aix Marseille Univ, INSERM, INS, Inst Neurosci Syst, Marseille, France
| | - Isabelle Rouleau
- Département de Psychologie, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Emmanuel J Barbeau
- Université de Toulouse, UPS, Centre de Recherche Cerveau et Cognition, Toulouse, France
- CerCo, CNRS UMR 5549, Toulouse, France
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36
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Kilecioğlu E, Raman I, Raman E. The influence of age of acquisition on recall and recognition in Alzheimer's patients and healthy ageing controls in Turkish. APPLIED NEUROPSYCHOLOGY. ADULT 2020; 29:617-626. [PMID: 32749164 DOI: 10.1080/23279095.2020.1796668] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
The current study set out to examine the influence of AoA on word recall and recognition tasks in 30 Alzheimer's patients and 28 healthy ageing control group. Each participant was presented with 20 words that critically varied on AoA. A subtest of WAIS-R was employed to establish the vocabulary capacity of participants together with the Mini-Mental State Examination. The pattern of results showed that healthy ageing adults outperformed Alzheimer's patients in recall and recognition tasks and that overall early acquired words had an advantage over late acquired words. The results have implications for developing assessment tools and are discussed within the current theories of age of acquisition and the impact of the neurodegenerative loss of memory in Alzheimer's disease on lexicosemantic processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elçin Kilecioğlu
- Department of Cognitive Science, Yeditepe University, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Ilhan Raman
- Department of Psychology, Middlesex University, London, UK
| | - Evren Raman
- Department of Psychology, Brunel University, London, UK
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37
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Guglielmi V, Quaranta D, Mega I, Costantini EM, Carrarini C, Innocenti A, Marra C. Semantic Priming in Mild Cognitive Impairment and Healthy Subjects: Effect of Different Time of Presentation of Word-Pairs. J Pers Med 2020; 10:jpm10030057. [PMID: 32610563 PMCID: PMC7564260 DOI: 10.3390/jpm10030057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2020] [Revised: 06/22/2020] [Accepted: 06/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/22/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Semantic memory is impaired in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Twomain hypotheses about this finding are debated and refer to the degradation of stored knowledgeversus the impairment of semantic access mechanisms. The aim of our study is to evaluate semanticimpairment in MCI versus healthy subjects (HS) by an experiment evaluating semantic priming. METHODS We enrolled 27 MCI and 20 HS. MCI group were divided, according to follow up, intoconverters-MCI and non converters-MCI. The semantic task consisted of 108 pairs of words, 54 ofwhich were semantically associated. Stimuli were presented 250 or 900 ms later the appearance ofthe target in a randomized manner. Data were analyzed using factorial ANOVA. RESULTS Both HSand MCI answered more quickly for word than for non-word at both stimulus onset asynchrony(SOA) intervals. At 250 ms, both MCI and HS experienced a shorter time of response for relatedwordthan for unrelated words (priming effect), while only the converters-MCI subgroup lost thepriming effect. Further, we observed a rather larger Cohen's d effect size in non converters-MCIthan in converters-MCI. CONCLUSION Our data, and in particular the absence of a semantic primingeffect in converters-MCI, could reflect the impairment of semantic knowledge rather than theaccessibility of semantic stores in MCI individuals that progress to dementia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valeria Guglielmi
- Neurology Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Agostino Gemelli-IRCCS, 00168 Rome, Italy;
| | - Davide Quaranta
- Neurology Unit, Fondazione Policlinico Agostino Gemelli-IRCCS, 00168 Rome, Italy;
- Correspondence:
| | - Ilaria Mega
- Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, 00168 Rome, Italy; (I.M.); (E.M.C.); (C.C.); (A.I.); (C.M.)
| | - Emanuele Maria Costantini
- Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, 00168 Rome, Italy; (I.M.); (E.M.C.); (C.C.); (A.I.); (C.M.)
| | - Claudia Carrarini
- Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, 00168 Rome, Italy; (I.M.); (E.M.C.); (C.C.); (A.I.); (C.M.)
| | - Alice Innocenti
- Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, 00168 Rome, Italy; (I.M.); (E.M.C.); (C.C.); (A.I.); (C.M.)
| | - Camillo Marra
- Department of Neuroscience, Catholic University of Sacred Heart, 00168 Rome, Italy; (I.M.); (E.M.C.); (C.C.); (A.I.); (C.M.)
- Memory Clinic, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario Agostino Gemelli-IRCCS, 00168 Rome, Italy
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de Mendonça A, Cardoso S, Maroco J, Guerreiro M, Carmo JC. The update of semantic memories in amnestic mild cognitive impairment. J Neuropsychol 2020; 15 Suppl 1:27-40. [PMID: 32542952 DOI: 10.1111/jnp.12217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2019] [Revised: 04/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
It is still controversial to what extent neocortical consolidated memories are susceptible of change by processes of reconsolidation and transformation throughout experience, and whether the medial temporal lobes are necessary for this update of semantic consolidated memories, as they are for episodic remembering. We hypothesize that patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) who have deficits in episodic memory may also have difficulties in updating information on added new features of objects. Sixteen participants with aMCI and 20 healthy control participants performed a semantic word-to-picture task, in which they were asked to identify as belonging to a given semantic category NEW objects, that have incorporated novel features, as well as OLD items, semantically and visually SIMILAR items and UNRELATED items. Patients with aMCI made a greater percentage of errors than healthy controls. Participants globally made greater percentages of errors in difficult types of items, namely NEW and SIMILAR, as compared to easier ones, OLD and UNRELATED. Importantly, an item by diagnostic group interaction effect was observed, and post hoc analysis showed that patients with aMCI made a higher percentage of errors than controls in NEW items only. In conclusion, patients with aMCI had a particular difficulty in identifying the NEW items of the word-to-picture task as compared to the control participants, supporting the concept of a flexible and dynamic conceptual knowledge system, involving the update of semantic memories and the integration of new attributes in a constant transformation process, which is impaired in these patients.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - João Maroco
- Instituto Superior de Psicologia Aplicada, Lisboa, Portugal
| | | | - Joana C Carmo
- Faculdade de Psicologia, Universidade de Lisboa, Portugal
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Taler V, Monetta L, Sheppard C, Ohman A. Semantic Function in Mild Cognitive Impairment. Front Psychol 2020; 10:3041. [PMID: 32038404 PMCID: PMC6987430 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.03041] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2019] [Accepted: 12/23/2019] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
It is well-established that semantic deficits are observed in mild cognitive impairment (MCI). However, the extent of impairment in different aspects of semantic function remains unclear, and may be influenced by the tasks used to assess performance. In the present study, people with MCI and cognitively healthy older adults completed a series of tasks assessing lexical access, retrieval, and recognition of semantic information, using different input and output modalities. Control participants outperformed people with MCI in almost all tasks, with the greatest deficits observed in picture naming tasks. This finding is interpreted as reflecting greater deficits in lexical access and/or access to the phonological and orthographic lexicon, and less severe deficits in retrieval and recognition of semantic feature and associative knowledge. In a subset of tasks, relatively greater impairment was also observed in biological compared to man-made items. From a clinical perspective, these results suggest that, while it is preferable that a full semantic battery be included in neuropsychological assessment, in cases where shorter testing time is necessary, picture naming is the task most likely to reveal deficits in people with MCI.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vanessa Taler
- School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.,Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada
| | - Laura Monetta
- Département de Réadaptation, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada.,Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire en Santé Mentale de Québec, Québec, QC, Canada
| | | | - Avery Ohman
- Bruyère Research Institute, Ottawa, ON, Canada.,Interdisciplinary School of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada
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40
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Frenzel S, Wittfeld K, Habes M, Klinger-König J, Bülow R, Völzke H, Grabe HJ. A Biomarker for Alzheimer's Disease Based on Patterns of Regional Brain Atrophy. Front Psychiatry 2020; 10:953. [PMID: 31992998 PMCID: PMC6970941 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00953] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2019] [Accepted: 12/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction: It has been shown that Alzheimer's disease (AD) is accompanied by marked structural brain changes that can be detected several years before clinical diagnosis via structural magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. In this study, we developed a structural MR-based biomarker for in vivo detection of AD using a supervised machine learning approach. Based on an individual's pattern of brain atrophy a continuous AD score is assigned which measures the similarity with brain atrophy patterns seen in clinical cases of AD. Methods: The underlying statistical model was trained with MR scans of patients and healthy controls from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI-1 screening). Validation was performed within ADNI-1 and in an independent patient sample from the Open Access Series of Imaging Studies (OASIS-1). In addition, our analyses included data from a large general population sample of the Study of Health in Pomerania (SHIP-Trend). Results: Based on the proposed AD score we were able to differentiate patients from healthy controls in ADNI-1 and OASIS-1 with an accuracy of 89% (AUC = 95%) and 87% (AUC = 93%), respectively. Moreover, we found the AD score to be significantly associated with cognitive functioning as assessed by the Mini-Mental State Examination in the OASIS-1 sample after correcting for diagnosis, age, sex, age·sex, and total intracranial volume (Cohen's f2 = 0.13). Additional analyses showed that the prediction accuracy of AD status based on both the AD score and the MMSE score is significantly higher than when using just one of them. In SHIP-Trend we found the AD score to be weakly but significantly associated with a test of verbal memory consisting of an immediate and a delayed word list recall (again after correcting for age, sex, age·sex, and total intracranial volume, Cohen's f2 = 0.009). This association was mainly driven by the immediate recall performance. Discussion: In summary, our proposed biomarker well differentiated between patients and healthy controls in an independent test sample. It was associated with measures of cognitive functioning both in a patient sample and a general population sample. Our approach might be useful for defining robust MR-based biomarkers for other neurodegenerative diseases, too.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan Frenzel
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Katharina Wittfeld
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Greifswald, Germany
| | - Mohamad Habes
- Center for Biomedical Image Computing and Analytics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, United States
| | - Johanna Klinger-König
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Robin Bülow
- Institute of Diagnostic Radiology and Neuroradiology, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Henry Völzke
- Institute for Community Medicine, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
| | - Hans Jörgen Grabe
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Medicine Greifswald, Greifswald, Germany
- German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Greifswald, Germany
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Quaranta D, Piccininni C, Caprara A, Malandrino A, Gainotti G, Marra C. Semantic Relations in a Categorical Verbal Fluency Test: An Exploratory Investigation in Mild Cognitive Impairment. Front Psychol 2019; 10:2797. [PMID: 31920840 PMCID: PMC6927990 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2019] [Accepted: 11/27/2019] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Categorical verbal fluency tests (CFT) are commonly used to assess the integrity of semantic memory in individuals with brain damage. Persons with Dementia of the Alzheimer's Type display a reduced output on CFT, and a similar pattern has been reported in persons with amnesic Mild Cognitive Impairment (aMCI). The aims of the present study were to assess whether the semantic relations between lexical entries produced on a categorical fluency test were different between healthy persons and those with aMCI, and whether this difference was more pronounced in individuals who converted to dementia during a 3-year follow-up period. Methods We recruited 34 individuals with aMCI and 29 matched healthy persons. During the follow-up period, 10 individuals converted to Dementia (aMCI-conv). Two measures assessing semantic relations between consecutively produced word pairs (Path length and Extended Gloss Overlap) were obtained from the Wordnet database. Results The number of word pairs analyzed among the healthy participants (HP) and persons with aMCI were 498 (birds: 262; pieces of furniture: 236) and 395 (birds: 174; pieces of furniture: 221), respectively. Path length was lower in aMCI-conv than in HP (p = 0.035), but no differences were found between stable aMCI and HP, and between aMCI-stable and aMCI-conv. The ANOVA for lexical entries belonging to the "birds" category showed a significant effect of group (F = 5.630; p = 0.004); the post hoc analysis showed a significant difference between HP and aMCI-conv (p = 0.003). The "pieces of furniture" category was significantly affected by group (F = 4.107; p = 0.017); the post hoc test showed significant differences between aMCI-conv and healthy individuals (p = 0.049), and between aMCI-conv and stable aMCI (p = 0.001). Discussion Individuals with aMCI who convert to dementia show a deterioration in the semantic relations between lexical entries, produced on a CFT. This phenomenon may be interpreted as a marker of a very early disruption of semantic memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Davide Quaranta
- Area of Neuroscience, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Chiara Piccininni
- Institute of Neurology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy
| | - Alessia Caprara
- Area of Neuroscience, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Alessia Malandrino
- Area of Neuroscience, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Guido Gainotti
- Institute of Neurology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy.,Department of Clinical and Behavioral Neurology, IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy
| | - Camillo Marra
- Area of Neuroscience, Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS, Rome, Italy.,Institute of Neurology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy
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García-Herranz S, Díaz-Mardomingo MC, Venero C, Peraita H. Accuracy of verbal fluency tests in the discrimination of mild cognitive impairment and probable Alzheimer's disease in older Spanish monolingual individuals. AGING NEUROPSYCHOLOGY AND COGNITION 2019; 27:826-840. [PMID: 31822214 DOI: 10.1080/13825585.2019.1698710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The main objetive was to analyze the accuracy of different verbal fluency tests (VFTs) in discriminating cognitively healthy subjects from individuals with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and probable Alzheimer's disease (AD) in a cohort of older Spanish speaking adults. As a result, we aimed to identify the VFT that best predicts conversion from MCI to probable AD. 287 subjects: 170 controls (HC), 90 stable MCI and 27 patients with MCI that evolved into probable AD (MCI-AD) were assessed with a neuropsychological battery test and five VFTs. The animal fluency test produced the best differentiation of HC from MCI (p < .001), of HC from MCI-AD (p < .001) and of MCI from MCI-AD converters (p < .001), with sensitivities 98.8%, 98.8% and 75.6%, respectively. Logistic regression showed that the animal fluency test (p < 0.001) appears to be the most useful and neuropsychological VFT to predict conversion to probable dementia.
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Affiliation(s)
- S García-Herranz
- Department of Basic Psychology II, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia , Madrid, Spain.,Instituto Mixto de Investigación-Escuela Nacional de Sanidad (IMIENS) , Madrid, Spain
| | - M C Díaz-Mardomingo
- Instituto Mixto de Investigación-Escuela Nacional de Sanidad (IMIENS) , Madrid, Spain.,Department of Basic Psychology I, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia , Madrid, Spain
| | - C Venero
- Instituto Mixto de Investigación-Escuela Nacional de Sanidad (IMIENS) , Madrid, Spain.,Department of Psychobiology, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia , Madrid, Spain
| | - H Peraita
- Department of Basic Psychology I, Universidad Nacional de Educación a Distancia , Madrid, Spain
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43
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Rahul DR, Joseph Ponniah R. Language impairment in primary progressive aphasia and other neurodegenerative diseases. J Genet 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s12041-019-1139-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
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Symbol Comprehension in Patients With Alzheimer Disease Dementia, Mild Cognitive Impairment, and Major Depressive Disorder. Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord 2019; 34:85-93. [DOI: 10.1097/wad.0000000000000347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Slegers A, Filiou RP, Montembeault M, Brambati SM. Connected Speech Features from Picture Description in Alzheimer's Disease: A Systematic Review. J Alzheimers Dis 2019; 65:519-542. [PMID: 30103314 DOI: 10.3233/jad-170881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The language changes that occur over the course of Alzheimer's disease (AD) can impact communication abilities and have profound functional consequences. Picture description tasks can be used to approximate everyday communication abilities of AD patients. As various methods and variables have been studied over the years, current knowledge about the most affected features of AD discourse in the context of picture descriptions is difficult to summarize. This systematic review aims to provide researchers with an overview of the most common areas of impairment in AD discourse as they appear in picture description tasks. Based on the 44 articles fulfilling inclusion criteria, our findings reflect a multidimensional pattern of changes in the production (speech rate), syntactic (length of utterance), lexical (word-frequency and use of pronouns), fluency (repetitions and word-finding difficulties), semantic (information units), and discourse (efficiency) domains. We discuss our findings in the light of current research and point to potential scientific and clinical uses of picture description tasks in the context of AD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Antoine Slegers
- Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada.,Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Renée-Pier Filiou
- Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada.,Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Maxime Montembeault
- Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada.,Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
| | - Simona Maria Brambati
- Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada.,Centre de Recherche de l'Institut Universitaire de Gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), CIUSSS du Centre-Sud-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada
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Merck C, Noël A, Jamet E, Robert M, Hou C, Salmon A, Belliard S, Kalénine S. Identification of taxonomic and thematic relationships: Do the two semantic systems have the same status in semantic dementia? J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2019; 41:946-964. [PMID: 31305211 DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2019.1641186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Introduction: Disequilibrium between the taxonomic and thematic semantic systems was previously hypothesized in participants with semantic dementia (SD), without rigorously assessing their ability to identify the two types of semantic relationships. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to directly compare the ability of 10 participants with SD, 10 participants with Alzheimer's disease (AD), and 20 controls to identify thematic versus taxonomic relationships. Methods: Participants performed an explicit forced-choice picture-matching task in which they had to determine which of two pictures of choice was semantically related to the target picture. Target pictures could display natural or artifact objects. Each target was presented once with a taxonomically related picture and once with a thematically related picture. Results: Analyses of correct thematic and taxonomic matches as a function of target domain showed that the performance of the two groups of patients differed in the taxonomic conditions but not in the thematic conditions, demonstrating a relative preservation of thematic knowledge in SD. Additional correlation analyses further indicated that the particular status of thematic relationships in SD was even stronger for artifact concepts. Conclusions: Results provide evidence of the heterogeneous nature of semantic knowledge disruption in SD, and could be regarded as being consistent with the existence of two neuroanatomically and functionally distinct semantic systems. Results further stress the relevance of performing a more detailed and complete assessment of semantic performance in participants with SD, in order to capture the impaired but also preserved aspects of their knowledge.
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Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Merck
- Service de neurologie, CMRR Haute Bretagne, CHU Pontchaillou , Rennes , France.,Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, PSL Research University, EPHE, INSERM, U1077, CHU de Caen, Neuropsychologie et Imagerie de la Mémoire Humaine , Caen , France
| | - Audrey Noël
- Université Rennes 2, Laboratoire de Psychologie: Cognition, Comportement et Communication (EA 1285, laboratoire LP3C) , Rennes , France
| | - Eric Jamet
- Université Rennes 2, Laboratoire de Psychologie: Cognition, Comportement et Communication (EA 1285, laboratoire LP3C) , Rennes , France
| | - Maxime Robert
- Université Rennes 2, Laboratoire de Psychologie: Cognition, Comportement et Communication (EA 1285, laboratoire LP3C) , Rennes , France
| | - Camille Hou
- Service de neurologie, CMRR Haute Bretagne, CHU Pontchaillou , Rennes , France
| | - Anne Salmon
- Service de neurologie, CMRR Haute Bretagne, CHU Pontchaillou , Rennes , France
| | - Serge Belliard
- Service de neurologie, CMRR Haute Bretagne, CHU Pontchaillou , Rennes , France.,Normandie Univ, UNICAEN, PSL Research University, EPHE, INSERM, U1077, CHU de Caen, Neuropsychologie et Imagerie de la Mémoire Humaine , Caen , France
| | - Solène Kalénine
- Univ. Lille, CNRS, CHU Lille, UMR 9193 - SCALab - Sciences Cognitives et Sciences Affectives , Lille , France
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Clustering and Switching Patterns in Semantic Fluency and Their Relationship to Working Memory in Mild Cognitive Impairment. Dement Neurocogn Disord 2019; 18:47-61. [PMID: 31297135 PMCID: PMC6609534 DOI: 10.12779/dnd.2019.18.2.47] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2019] [Revised: 04/02/2019] [Accepted: 04/08/2019] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Background and Purpose Semantic verbal fluency test is a neuropsychological assessment that can sensitively detect neuropathological changes. Considering its multifactorial features tapping various cognitive domains such as semantic memory, executive function, and working memory, it is necessary to examine verbal fluency performance in association with underlying cognitive functions. The objective of the current study was to investigate semantic fluency patterns of people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) based on clustering and switching and their relationship with working memory. Methods Twenty-six individuals with MCI and 23 normal elderly adults participated in this study. A semantic verbal fluency test (animal version) was administered and the performance was analyzed using the following measures: number of correct words, cluster size, and number of switches. Scores of digit forward (DF) and backward span tasks were employed as working memory measures. Results Analyses of variance revealed significant group differences in the numbers of correct words and switches. Multivariate logistic regression and receiver-operating characteristic analyses showed that the number of switches more sensitively distinguished MCI existence than the number of correct words. Stepwise linear regression analysis showed that DF task and age significantly predicted the number of correct words while only the DF task significantly predicted the number of switches. Conclusions Decrement in semantic verbal fluency in MCI seems to be associated with impaired switching abilities. Working memory capacity might serve as the underlying cognitive factor related to decreased verbal fluency in MCI.
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Effects of morphological family on word recognition in normal aging, mild cognitive impairment, and Alzheimer's disease. Cortex 2019; 116:91-103. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2018.10.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2017] [Revised: 07/21/2018] [Accepted: 10/31/2018] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
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49
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Chen MS, Chen WR, Lee HM. Memory Performance of People with Different Dementia Severity for Different Semantic Hierarchies. Exp Aging Res 2019; 45:266-281. [DOI: 10.1080/0361073x.2019.1609157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Min-Sheng Chen
- Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Douliou, Yunlin, Taiwan, R.O.C
| | - Wei-Ru Chen
- Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Douliou, Yunlin, Taiwan, R.O.C
| | - Hao-Ming Lee
- Department of Industrial Engineering and Management, National Yunlin University of Science and Technology, Douliou, Yunlin, Taiwan, R.O.C
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Komeili M, Pou-Prom C, Liaqat D, Fraser KC, Yancheva M, Rudzicz F. Talk2Me: Automated linguistic data collection for personal assessment. PLoS One 2019; 14:e0212342. [PMID: 30917120 PMCID: PMC6436678 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0212342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2018] [Accepted: 01/31/2019] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Language is one the earliest capacities affected by cognitive change. To monitor that change longitudinally, we have developed a web portal for remote linguistic data acquisition, called Talk2Me, consisting of a variety of tasks. In order to facilitate research in different aspects of language, we provide baselines including the relations between different scoring functions within and across tasks. These data can be used to augment studies that require a normative model; for example, we provide baseline classification results in identifying dementia. These data are released publicly along with a comprehensive open-source package for extracting approximately two thousand lexico-syntactic, acoustic, and semantic features. This package can be applied arbitrarily to studies that include linguistic data. To our knowledge, this is the most comprehensive publicly available software for extracting linguistic features. The software includes scoring functions for different tasks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Majid Komeili
- School of Computer Science, Carleton University, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Chloé Pou-Prom
- Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, Saint Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Daniyal Liaqat
- Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Computer Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | | | | | - Frank Rudzicz
- Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, Saint Michael’s Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Vector Institute for Artificial Intelligence, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Computer Science, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- Surgical Safety Technologies, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
- * E-mail:
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