Biomarkers of Rhythmic Communication: Integrating Foundational and Translational Approaches

Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville TN

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY Every instance of human auditory communication is structured by rhythm and timing. Across many species, the temporal organization of sound patterns is essential for communication, suggesting that genetic architecture for rhythm could have been a basic component in the evolution of humans? capacity for speech and language. Although a growing literature points to the contribution of rhythm sensitivity to childhood language acquisition, mainstream models of communication sciences and disorders have not to date taken inter-individual differences in rhythm traits into account. Furthermore, little is known about biomarkers of rhythm that are needed for rigorous exploration of the clinical use of music to improve health. This New Innovator award thus proposes to characterize biomarkers of human rhythm traits at multiple levels (genome, neural oscillations, behavioral, and familial) in order to deepen understanding of the role of rhythm sensitivity in language acquisition. Building on the PI?s prior interdisciplinary research showing shared neural resources for rhythm and language processing, this award mobilizes a series of innovative studies that test the transformative hypothesis that rhythm is a biological root of modern language and communication skills. Study 1 utilizes a large-scale genomic investigation of the rhythm phenotype to obtain the first knowledge of the genetic architecture of human rhythm skills. Study 2 proposes a longitudinal study examining EEG biomarkers of rhythm sensitivity in infants and behavioral assessments of familial rhythm skills as predictors of childhood language acquisition. This work carries the potential to discover prodromal markers of language impairment in much younger ages than are currently being identified with available screening methods. This approach could shift paradigms by facilitating the identification of millions of children with susceptibility to language impairment and opening up an earlier developmental window for new combinations of rhythm-based and traditional language intervention. Study 3 is a translational proof-of-concept study, testing a causal impact of short-term exposure to musical rhythms on language performance in school-aged children with language impairment. These high-risk, high-reward studies may result in crucial groundwork for future clinical and translational precision-health applications of genetic, neural and behavioral markers of impaired rhythm as a risk factor for communication disorders and rhythmic activities to bolster language acquisition. By advancing knowledge of the powerful yet underappreciated role of rhythm in communication, this proposal responds directly to the NIH Director?s New Innovator Program?s mission to support early stage investigators with a bold and innovative program of research that may have an exceptionally high impact. Moreover, this body of research proposes a creative solution to the NIH Sound Health Initiative?s call to expand knowledge of how music cognition involves brain circuitry that could be harnessed for health and wellness applications.