Abstract
Signed languages such as American Sign Language (ASL) are natural languages that are formally similar to spoken languages, and thus present an opportunity to examine the effects of language structure and modality on the neural organization for language. Native learners of spoken languages show predominantly left-lateralized patterns of neural activation for language processing, whereas native learners of ASL show extensive right hemisphere (RH) and LH activation. We demonstrate that the RH angular gyrus is active during ASL processing only in native signers (hearing, ASL-English bilinguals) but not in those who acquired ASL after puberty (hearing, native English speakers). This is the first demonstration of a 'sensitive' or 'critical' period for language in an RH structure. This has implications for language acquisition and for understanding age-related changes in neuroplasticity more generally.
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by NIH NIDCD DC00128 (H.J.N.), NIDCD R29 DCO3099 (D.C.), an NSERC (Canada) PGS (A.J.N.) and a Charles A. Dana Foundation grant (D.B.). We are grateful to the following people for their help in this project: R. Balaban for providing us with access to the MRI facilities at the NIH NHLBI; V. Clark and A. Braun for subject recruiting and screening; A. Tomann and M. Baker for help with data collection; T. Mitchell and D. Waligura for help with data analysis.
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Newman, A., Bavelier, D., Corina, D. et al. A critical period for right hemisphere recruitment in American Sign Language processing. Nat Neurosci 5, 76–80 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn775
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nn775
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