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Corticostriatal Regulation of Language Functions
David A Copland1,2, Sonia Brownsett3,4, Kartik Iyer5
1School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Queensland Aphasia Research Centre and UQ Centre for Clinical Research, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia. d.copland@uq.edu.au.
Neuropsychology Review
|May 13, 2021
Summary
Corticostriatal circuits regulate language by managing uncertainty and conflict, influencing selection, sequencing, and cognitive control during language tasks. This role is dynamic, adapting to varying cognitive demands and recruiting specific neural circuits.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Cognitive Science
- Linguistics
Background:
- The precise involvement of corticostriatal circuits in language processing remains largely undefined.
- Existing research offers fragmented insights into their function across language learning, syntax, and controlled language tasks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and synthesize evidence implicating corticostriatal circuits in diverse language functions.
- To elucidate the domain-general regulatory role of these circuits in language operations.
Main Methods:
- Comprehensive review of neuroimaging studies in healthy subjects.
- Analysis of research on populations with subcortical dysfunction.
- Inclusion of pharmacological and brain stimulation studies.
Main Results:
- Converging evidence suggests a domain-general regulatory function for corticostriatal systems in language.
- The striatum's role appears linked to managing uncertainty and conflict, necessitating selection, sequencing, and cognitive control.
- This function is dynamic, varying with the level of cognitive control required and recruiting specific corticostriatal circuits.
Conclusions:
- Corticostriatal circuits play a crucial, domain-general regulatory role in language operations.
- Their function is rooted in the striatum's broader role in cognitive control, particularly in managing uncertainty and conflict.
- The recruitment of specific corticostriatal circuits is hierarchical and dependent on task-specific cognitive demands.
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