In this study, we used fcMRI (functional connectivity MRI)
to extract differential brain responses when Japanese native
speakers interpret English sentences as compared to Japanese
sentences of the same meaning. In particular, we focused on
coordination between language areas associated with the other
task-positive or task-negative networks. Furthermore, we
examined individual differences in language ability, using the
TOEIC score, to explore correlations between language
proficiency and neural responses among subjects.
As a result, it was suggested that both the DMN (default
mode network), which shares some overlapping regions with
the semantic network, and the SN (salience network) might
play an important role in English comprehension for Japanese
native speakers. In addition, English proficiency was
correlated with the strength of connectivity between the right
pars triangularis, which is the homologous region of Broca’s
area, and the Wernicke's area, which is also a well-established
language area located in the left superior temporal cortex.
However, compared to the subjects with low TOEIC scores,
the latter linguistic area in the brains of high-scoring subjects
transferred its hub role to the more anterior part of the same
area. Our data indicate that the bilateral networks consisting
of the right pars triangularis and the left superior temporal
cortex are crucial to semantic processing for second language
learners.
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