bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Developmental Programming by High Fructose Decreases Phosphorylation Efficiency in Aging Offspring Brain Mitochondria, Correlating with Enhanced UCP5 Expression
Authors: Mortensen Ole H , Larsen Lea H , Ørstrup Laura KH , Hansen Lillian HL , Grunnet Niels , Quistorff Bjørn
Published: April 2014

Fructose has recently been observed to affect brain metabolism and cognitive function in adults. Yet, possible late-onset effects by gestational fructose exposure have not been examined. We evaluated mitochondrial function in the brain of aging (15 months) male offspring of Fischer F344 rat dams fed a high-fructose diet (50% energy from fructose) during gestation and lactation. Maternal fructose exposure caused a significantly lower body weight of the offspring throughout life after weaning, while birth weight, litter size, and body fat percentage were unaffected. Isolated brain mitochondria displayed a significantly increased state 3 respiration of 8%, with the substrate combinations malate/pyruvate, malate/pyruvate/succinate, and malate/pyruvate/succinate/rotenone, as well as a significant decrease in the P/O2 ratio, compared with the control. Uncoupling protein 5 (UCP5) protein levels increased in the fructose group compared with the control ( P = 0.03) and both UCP5 mRNA and protein levels were inversely correlated with the P/O2 ratio ( P = 0.008 and 0.03, respectively), suggesting that UCP5 may have a role in the observed decreased phosphorylation efficiency. In conclusion, maternal high-fructose diet during gestation and lactation has long-term effects (fetal programming) on brain mitochondrial function in aging rats, which appears to be linked to an increase in UCP5 protein levels.
Hacking on decoy-state quantum key distribution system with partial phase randomization
Authors: Sun Shi-Hai , Jiang Mu-Sheng , Ma Xiang-Chun , Li Chun-Yan , Liang Lin-Mei
Published: April 2014

Quantum key distribution (QKD) provides means for unconditional secure key transmission between two distant parties. However, in practical implementations, it suffers from quantum hacking due to device imperfections. Here we propose a hybrid measurement attack, with only linear optics, homodyne detection and single photon detection, to the widely used vacuum + weak decoy state QKD system when the phase of source is partially randomized. Our analysis shows that, in some parameter regimes, the proposed attack would result in an entanglement breaking channel but still be able to trick the legitimate users to believe they have transmitted secure keys. That is, the eavesdropper is able to steal all the key information without discovered by the users. Thus, our proposal reveals that partial phase randomization is not sufficient to guarantee the security of phase-encoding QKD systems with weak coherent states.
Molecular weight sensing properties of ionic liquid-polymer composite films: theory and experiment
Authors: Regmi Bishnu P. , Speller Nicholas C. , Anderson Michael J. , Brutus Jean Olivier , Merid Yonathan , Das Susmita , El-Zahab Bilal , Hayes Daniel J. , Murray Kermit K. , Warner Isiah M.
Published: April 2014

Simultaneous measurements of two output signals from an ionic liquid–polymer composite-based QCM sensor provide molecular weight information on vapor analytes.
DNA hybridization detection with 100 zM sensitivity using piezoelectric plate sensors with an improved noise-reduction algorithm
Authors: Kirimli Ceyhun E. , Shih Wei-Heng , Shih Wan Y.
Published: April 2014

We have examined real-time,in situhybridization detection of target DNA (tDNA) in a buffer solution and in urine using 8 μm-thick lead magnesium niobate–lead titanate (PMN–PT) piezoelectric plate sensors (PEPSs) with improved 3-mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane (MPS) insulation and a new multiple-parabola (>50) resonance peak position fitting algorithm.
Controlling leucine-zipper partner recognition in cells through modification of a–g interactions
Authors: Azuma Yusuke , Kükenshöner Tim , Ma Guangyong , Yasunaga Jun-ichiro , Imanishi Miki , Tanaka Gen , Nakase Ikuhiko , Maruno Takahiro , Kobayashi Yuji , Arndt Katja M. , Matsuoka Masao , Futaki Shiroh
Published: April 2014

By focusing on the a–g interactions, successful design and selection were accomplished to obtain a leucine-zipper segment that discriminates the appropriate partner.
The rapid detection of microRNA based on p19-enhanced fluorescence polarization
Authors: He Yuan-Chen , Yin Bin-Cheng , Jiang Lihua , Ye Bang-Ce
Published: April 2014

Viaa molecular caliper p19 protein, we have developed an amplified fluorescence polarization method for rapid microRNA detection.
Synthesis of orderly nanoporous aluminophosphate and zirconium phosphate materials and their catalytic applications
Authors: Sreenivasulu Peta , Viswanadham Nagabhatla , Sharma Trymbkesh , Sreedhar B.
Published: April 2014

Amorphous alumino phosphate (AP) and zirconium phosphate (ZP) materials possessing ordered nanoporosity (5–6 nm) have been successfully synthesized and explored for O- and C-alkylation reactions of phenol respectively.
The OPEP protein model: from single molecules, amyloid formation, crowding and hydrodynamics to DNA/RNA systems
Authors: Sterpone Fabio , Melchionna Simone , Tuffery Pierre , Pasquali Samuela , Mousseau Normand , Cragnolini Tristan , Chebaro Yassmine , St-Pierre Jean-Francois , Kalimeri Maria , Barducci Alessandro , Laurin Yoann , Tek Alex , Baaden Marc , Nguyen Phuong Hoang , Derreumaux Philippe
Published: April 2014

The OPEP coarse-grained protein model has been applied to a wide range of applications since its first release 15 years ago.
Photonic light trapping in self-organized all-oxide microspheroids impacts photoelectrochemical water splitting
Authors: Boudoire Florent , Toth Rita , Heier Jakob , Braun Artur , Constable Edwin C.
Published: April 2014

A SEM picture of the microspheroids (tilted), scheme depicting the vesicle templated sol–gel process and squared normalized electric field intensity distribution inside the microspheroid calculated by finite-difference time-domain simulation.
Responsive polymer–fluorescent carbon nanoparticle hybrid nanogels for optical temperature sensing, near-infrared light-responsive drug release, and tumor cell imaging
Authors: Wang Hui , Ke Fuyou , Mararenko Anton , Wei Zengyan , Banerjee Probal , Zhou Shuiqin
Published: April 2014

The paper demonstrates the synthesis of carbon-based responsive hybrid nanogels and their applications including sensing, cell imaging and drug delivery.
Effects of nanostructure geometry on nanoimprinted polymer photovoltaics
Authors: Yang Yi , Mielczarek Kamil , Aryal Mukti , Zakhidov Anvar , Hu Walter
Published: April 2014

We demonstrate the effects of nanostructure geometry on the nanoimprint induced poly(3-hexylthiophene-2,5-diyl) (P3HT) chain alignment and solar cell performance.
DFT studies for the evaluation of amine functionalized polystyrene adsorbents for selective adsorption of carbon dioxide
Authors: Madyal Rupa Shantamal , Arora Jyotsna Sudhir
Published: April 2014

The current study provides molecular-level insights into the CO2–amine functionalized polystyrene complexes, enabling design of newer CO2 selective adsorbents.
Growth of γ-Fe2O3 nanosheet arrays on graphene for electromagnetic absorption applications
Authors: Ren Yulan , Zhu Chunling , Qi Lihong , Gao Hong , Chen Yujin
Published: April 2014

A new strategy was developed to grow γ-Fe2O3 nanosheet arrays on graphene sheets, showing excellent electromagnetic wave absorption properties with a lightweight characteristic.
Nano–micro structure of functionalized boron nitride and aluminum oxide for epoxy composites with enhanced thermal conductivity and breakdown strength
Authors: Fang Lijun , Wu Chao , Qian Rong , Xie Liyuan , Yang Ke , Jiang Pingkai
Published: April 2014

Nano-micro structure of modified 2-D and 0-D ceramic fillers is designed for epoxy with high thermal conductivity and breakdown strength.
The interaction between lead sulfide nano-dendrites and Saccharomyce cerevisiae is involved in nanotoxicity
Authors: Yu Qilin , Sun Meiqing , Wang Yu , Li Mingchun , Liu Lu
Published: April 2014

Interaction between PbS nano-dendrites and yeast cells lead to degradation of dendrites, cell wall damage and ROS accumulation.
A FRET-based ‘off–on’ molecular switch: an effective design strategy for the selective detection of nanomolar Al3+ ions in aqueous media
Authors: Sen Buddhadeb , Pal Siddhartha , Lohar Somenath , Mukherjee Manjira , Mandal Sushil Kumar , Khuda-Bukhsh Anisur Rahman , Chattopadhyay Pabitra
Published: April 2014

A FRET-based ratiometric chemosensor (L1) is highly selective for Al3+ ions (as low as 6.19 × 10−9 M) and could be used to acquire images of Al3+ ions in living cells.
Practical synthesis of water-soluble organic nanoparticles with a single reactive group and a functional carrier scaffold
Authors: Bai Yugang , Xing Hang , Vincil Gretchen A. , Lee Jennifer , Henderson Essence J. , Lu Yi , Lemcoff N. Gabriel , Zimmerman Steven C.
Published: April 2014

A practical synthesis of biocompatible organic nanoparticles with a reactive group and a functional carrier scaffold was developed.
Enhanced red upconversion luminescence by codoping Ce3+ in β-NaY(Gd0.4)F4:Yb3+/Ho3+ nanocrystals
Authors: Gao Wei , Zheng Hairong , Han Qingyan , He Enjie , Gao Fangqi , Wang Ruibo
Published: April 2014

The UC fluorescence emission and tuning from Ce3+ codoped β-NaY(Gd0.4)F4:Yb3+/Ho3+ nanocrystals.
A Longitudinal Study of Very Young Children's Vowel Production
Authors: McGowan Rebecca W. , McGowan Richard S. , Denny Margaret , Nittrouer Susan
Published: April 2014

Purpose

Ecologically realistic, spontaneous, adult-directed, longitudinal speech data of young children were described by acoustic analyses.

Method

The first 2 formant frequencies of vowels produced by 6 children from different American English dialect regions were analyzed from ages 18 to 48 months. The vowels were from largely conversational contexts and were classified according to dictionary pronunciation.

Results

Within-subject formant frequency variability remained relatively constant for the span of ages studied. It was often difficult to detect overall decreases in the first 2 formant frequencies between ages 30 and 48 months. A study of the movement of the corner vowels with respect to the vowel centroid showed that the shape of the vowel space remained qualitatively constant from 30 through 48 months.

Conclusions

The shape of the vowel space is established early in life. Some aspects of regional dialect were observed in some of the subjects at 42 months of age. The present study adds to the existing data on the development of vowel spaces by describing ecologically realistic speech.
Vowel Acoustics in Dysarthria: Mapping to Perception
Authors: Lansford Kaitlin L. , Liss Julie M.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The aim of the present report was to explore whether vowel metrics, demonstrated to distinguish dysarthric and healthy speech in a companion article (Lansford & Liss, 2014), are able to predict human perceptual performance.

Method

Vowel metrics derived from vowels embedded in phrases produced by 45 speakers with dysarthria were compared with orthographic transcriptions of these phrases collected from 120 healthy listeners. First, correlation and stepwise multiple regressions were conducted to identify acoustic metrics that had predictive value for perceptual measures. Next, discriminant function analysis misclassifications were compared with listeners' misperceptions to examine more directly the perceptual consequences of degraded vowel acoustics.

Results

Several moderate correlative relationships were found between acoustic metrics and perceptual measures, with predictive models accounting for 18%–75% of the variance in measures of intelligibility and vowel accuracy. Results of the second analysis showed that listeners better identified acoustically distinctive vowel tokens. In addition, the level of agreement between misclassified-to-misperceived vowel tokens supports some specificity of degraded acoustic profiles on the resulting percept.

Conclusion

Results provide evidence that degraded vowel acoustics have some effect on human perceptual performance, even in the presence of extravowel variables that naturally exert influence in phrase perception.
Children's Perception of Speech Produced in a Two-Talker Background
Authors: Baker Mallory , Buss Emily , Jacks Adam , Taylor Crystal , Leibold Lori J.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

This study evaluated the degree to which children benefit from the acoustic modifications made by talkers when they produce speech in noise.

Method

A repeated measures design compared the speech perception performance of children (5–11 years) and adults in a 2-talker masker. Target speech was produced in a 2-talker background or in quiet. In Experiment 1, recognition with the 2 target sets was assessed using an adaptive spondee identification procedure. In Experiment 2, the benefit of speech produced in a 2-talker background was assessed using an open-set, monosyllabic word recognition task at a fixed signal-to-noise ratio (SNR).

Results

Children performed more poorly than adults, regardless of whether the target speech was produced in quiet or in a 2-talker background. A small improvement in the SNR required to identify spondees was observed for both children and adults using speech produced in a 2-talker background (Experiment 1). Similarly, average open-set word recognition scores were 11 percentage points higher for both age groups using speech produced in a 2-talker background compared with quiet (Experiment 2).

Conclusion

The results indicate that children can use the acoustic modifications of speech produced in a 2-talker background to improve masked speech perception, as previously demonstrated for adults.
Cultural and Demographic Factors Influencing Noise Exposure Estimates From Use of Portable Listening Devices in an Urban Environment
Authors: Fligor Brian J. , Levey Sandra , Levey Tania
Published: April 2014

Purpose

This study examined listening levels and duration of portable listening devices (PLDs) used by people with diversity of ethnicity, education, music genre, and PLD manufacturer. The goal was to estimate participants’ PLD noise exposure and identify factors influencing user behavior.

Method

This study measured listening levels of 160 adults in 2 New York City locations: (a) a quiet college campus and (b) Union Square, a busy interchange. Participants completed a questionnaire regarding demographics and PLD use. Ordinary least squares regression was used to explore the significance of demographic and behavioral factors.

Results

Average listening level was 94.1 dBA, with 99 of 160 (61.9%) and 92 of 159 (57.5%) exceeding daily (L
A8hn
) and weekly (L
Awkn
) recommended exposure limit, respectively. African American participants listened at the highest average levels (99.8 dBA).

Conclusions

A majority of PLD users exceeded recommended exposure levels. Factors significant for higher exposure were ethnicity and age; factors not significantly associated with exposure were gender, education, location, awareness of possible association between PLD use and noise-induced hearing loss, mode of transportation, device manufacturer, and music genre. Efforts to effect behavior changes to lessen noise-induced hearing loss risk from PLD use should be sensitive to the cultural differences within the targeted population.
Intelligibility of American English Vowels and Consonants Spoken by International Students in the United States
Authors: Jin Su-Hyun , Liu Chang
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to examine the intelligibility of English consonants and vowels produced by Chinese-native (CN), and Korean-native (KN) students enrolled in American universities.

Method

16 English-native (EN), 32 CN, and 32 KN speakers participated in this study. The intelligibility of 16 American English consonants and 16 vowels spoken by native and nonnative speakers of English was evaluated by EN listeners. All nonnative speakers also completed a survey of their language backgrounds.

Results

Although the intelligibility of consonants and diphthongs for nonnative speakers was comparable to that of native speakers, the intelligibility of monophthongs was significantly lower for CN and KN speakers than for EN speakers. Sociolinguistic factors such as the age of arrival in the United States and daily use of English, as well as a linguistic factor, difference in vowel space between native (L1) and nonnative (L2) language, partially contributed to vowel intelligibility for CN and KN groups. There was no significant correlation between the length of U.S. residency and phoneme intelligibility.

Conclusion

Results indicated that the major difficulty in phonemic production in English for Chinese and Korean speakers is with vowels rather than consonants. This might be useful for developing training methods to improve English intelligibility for foreign students in the United States.
Validating Models of Clinical Word Recognition Tests for Spanish/English Bilinguals
Authors: Shi Lu-Feng
Published: April 2014

Purpose

Shi and Sánchez (2010) developed models to predict the optimal test language for evaluating Spanish/English (S/E) bilinguals' word recognition. The current study intended to validate their conclusions in a separate bilingual listener sample.

Method

Seventy normal-hearing S/E bilinguals varying in language profile were included. Participants were presented with English monosyllabic and Spanish bisyllabic words in quiet and in speech-spectrum noise (+6 and 0 dB SNR). Relative success on the 2 tests was indicated by the difference in
z
score for each test.

Results

The current group of participants was comparable to participants in Shi and Sánchez (2010) in regard to their language background and test performance. Previously developed models fit current data well. Age of English acquisition (AOA
E
) yielded more consistent models across test conditions than language dominance (LD). New models incorporating average proficiency rating (across domains) and relative proficiency rating (across languages) yielded best prediction.

Conclusions

Shi and Sánchez's (2010) models incorporating key linguistic variables (AOA
E
, LD, and average/relative proficiency ratings) can help clinicians predict bilingual clients' relative success in word recognition in Spanish versus English. These models are appropriate for current clinical work with S/E bilinguals in metropolitan areas similar to New York City.
Auditory Neuropathy Spectrum Disorder: A Review
Authors: Norrix Linda W. , Velenovsky David S.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

Auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder, or ANSD, can be a confusing diagnosis to physicians, clinicians, those diagnosed, and parents of children diagnosed with the condition. The purpose of this review is to provide the reader with an understanding of the disorder, the limitations in current tools to determine site(s) of lesion, and management techniques.

Method

This article is a review of what is known about ANSD. It includes descriptions of assessment tools, causes of ANSD, and patient management techniques.

Conclusions

This review is a guide to audiologists, speech-language pathologists, and early interventionists who work with individuals diagnosed with ANSD and/or their families. It highlights the need for more precise tools to describe the disorder in order to facilitate decisions about interventions and lead to better predictions of outcome.
Children's Auditory Working Memory Performance in Degraded Listening Conditions
Authors: Osman Homira , Sullivan Jessica R.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The objectives of this study were to determine (a) whether school-age children with typical hearing demonstrate poorer auditory working memory performance in multitalker babble at degraded signal-to-noise ratios than in quiet; and (b) whether the amount of cognitive demand of the task contributed to differences in performance in noise. It was hypothesized that stressing the working memory system with the presence of noise would impede working memory processes in real time and result in poorer working memory performance in degraded conditions.

Method

Twenty children with typical hearing between 8 and 10 years old were tested using 4 auditory working memory tasks (Forward Digit Recall, Backward Digit Recall, Listening Recall Primary, and Listening Recall Secondary). Stimuli were from the standardized Working Memory Test Battery for Children. Each task was administered in quiet and in 4-talker babble noise at 0 dB and −5 dB signal-to-noise ratios.

Results

Children's auditory working memory performance was systematically decreased in the presence of multitalker babble noise compared with quiet. Differences between low-complexity and high-complexity tasks were observed, with children performing more poorly on tasks with greater storage and processing demands. There was no interaction between noise and complexity of task. All tasks were negatively impacted similarly by the addition of noise.

Conclusions

Auditory working memory performance was negatively impacted by the presence of multitalker babble noise. Regardless of complexity of task, noise had a similar effect on performance. These findings suggest that the addition of noise inhibits auditory working memory processes in real time for school-age children.
Manual Signing in Adults With Intellectual Disability: Influence of Sign Characteristics on Functional Sign Vocabulary
Authors: Meuris Kristien , Maes Bea , De Meyer Anne-Marie , Zink Inge
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of sign characteristics in a key word signing (KWS) system on the functional use of those signs by adults with intellectual disability (ID).

Method

All 507 signs from a Flemish KWS system were characterized in terms of phonological, iconic, and referential characteristics. Phonological and referential characteristics were assigned to the signs by speech-language pathologists. The iconicity (i.e., transparency, guessing the meaning of the sign; and translucency, rating on a 6-point scale) of the signs were tested in 467 students. Sign functionality was studied in 119 adults with ID (mean mental age of 50.54 months) by means of a questionnaire, filled out by a support worker.

Results

A generalized linear model with a negative binomial distribution (with log-link) showed that semantic category was the factor with the strongest influence on sign functionality, with grammatical class, referential concreteness, and translucency also playing a part. No sign phonological characteristics were found to be of significant influence on sign use.

Conclusion

The meaning of a sign is the most important factor regarding its functionality (i.e., whether a sign is used in everyday communication). Phonological characteristics seem only of minor importance.
Lexical Characteristics of Expressive Vocabulary in Toddlers With Autism Spectrum Disorder
Authors: Kover Sara T. , Ellis Weismer Susan
Published: April 2014

Purpose

Vocabulary is a domain of particular challenge for many children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Recent research has drawn attention to ways in which lexical characteristics relate to vocabulary acquisition. The current study tested the hypothesis that lexical characteristics account for variability in vocabulary size of young children with ASD, applying the extended statistical learning theory of vocabulary delay in late talkers (Stokes, Kern, & Dos Santos, 2012) to toddlers with ASD.

Method

Parents reported the words produced by toddlers with ASD (
n
= 57; age 21–37 months) or toddlers without ASD (
n
= 41; age 22–26 months) on the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories. The average phonological neighborhood density, word frequency, and word length of each toddler's lexicon were calculated. These lexical characteristics served as predictors of vocabulary size.

Results

Findings differed for toddlers with and without ASD and according to subsamples. Word length was the most consistent predictor of vocabulary size for toddlers with ASD.

Conclusions

Distinct relationships between lexical characteristics and vocabulary size were observed for toddlers with and without ASD. Experimental studies on distributional cues to vocabulary acquisition are needed to inform what is known about mechanisms of learning in neurodevelopmental disorders.

Supplemental Material

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.14963607
BE, DO, and Modal Auxiliaries of 3-Year-Old African American English Speakers
Authors: Newkirk-Turner Brandi L. , Oetting Janna B. , Stockman Ida J.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

This study examined African American English–speaking children's use of BE, DO, and modal auxiliaries.

Method

The data were based on language samples obtained from 48 three-year-olds. Analyses examined rates of marking by auxiliary type, auxiliary surface form, succeeding element, and syntactic construction and by a number of child variables.

Results

The children produced 3 different types of marking (mainstream overt, nonmainstream overt, zero) for auxiliaries, and the distribution of these markings varied by auxiliary type. The children's nonmainstream dialect densities were related to their marking of BE and DO but not modals. Marking of BE was influenced by its surface form and the succeeding verbal element, and marking of BE and DO was influenced by syntactic construction.

Conclusions

Results extend previous studies by showing dialect-specific effects for children's use of auxiliaries and by showing these effects to vary by auxiliary type and children's nonmainstream dialect densities. Some aspects of the children's auxiliary systems (i.e., pattern of marking across auxiliaries and effects of syntactic construction) were also consistent with what has been documented for children who speak other dialects of English. These findings show dialect-specific and dialect-universal aspects of African American English to be present early in children's acquisition of auxiliaries.
Production and Processing of Subject–Verb Agreement in Monolingual Dutch Children With Specific Language Impairment
Authors: Blom Elma , Vasić Nada , de Jong Jan
Published: April 2014

Purpose

In this study, the authors investigated whether errors with subject–verb agreement in monolingual Dutch children with specific language impairment (SLI) are influenced by verb phonology. In addition, the productive and receptive abilities of Dutch acquiring children with SLI regarding agreement inflection were compared.

Method

An SLI group (6–8 years old), an age-matched group with typical development, and a language-matched, younger, typically developing (TD) group participated in the study. Using an elicitation task, the authors tested use of third person singular inflection after verbs that ended in obstruents (plosive, fricative) or nonobstruents (sonorant). The authors used a self-paced listening task to test sensitivity to subject–verb agreement violations.

Results

Omission was more frequent after obstruents than nonobstruents; the younger TD group used inflection less often after plosives than fricatives, unlike the SLI group. The SLI group did not detect subject–verb agreement violations if the ungrammatical structure contained a frequent error (omission), but if the ungrammatical structure contained an infrequent error (substitution), subject–verb agreement violations were noticed.

Conclusions

The use of agreement inflection by children with TD or SLI is affected by verb phonology. Differential effects in the 2 groups are consistent with a delayed development in Dutch SLI. Parallels between productive and receptive abilities point to weak lexical agreement inflection representations in Dutch SLI.
Learning of Grammar-Like Visual Sequences by Adults With and Without Language-Learning Disabilities
Authors: Aguilar Jessica M. , Plante Elena
Published: April 2014

Purpose

Two studies examined learning of grammar-like visual sequences to determine whether a general deficit in statistical learning characterizes this population. Furthermore, we tested the hypothesis that difficulty in sustaining attention during the learning task might account for differences in statistical learning.

Method

In Study 1, adults with normal language (NL) or language-learning disability (LLD) were familiarized with the visual artificial grammar and then tested using items that conformed or deviated from the grammar. In Study 2, a 2nd sample of adults with NL and LLD were presented auditory word pairs with weak semantic associations (e.g.,groom+clean) along with the visual learning task. Participants were instructed to attend to visual sequences and to ignore the auditory stimuli. Incidental encoding of these words would indicate reduced attention to the primary task.

Results

In Studies 1 and 2, both groups demonstrated learning and generalization of the artificial grammar. In Study 2, neither the NL nor the LLD group appeared to encode the words presented during the learning phase.

Conclusion

The results argue against a general deficit in statistical learning for individuals with LLD and demonstrate that both NL and LLD learners can ignore extraneous auditory stimuli during visual learning.
Online Learning From Input Versus Offline Memory Evolution in Adult Word Learning: Effects of Neighborhood Density and Phonologically Related Practice
Authors: Storkel Holly L. , Bontempo Daniel E. , Pak Natalie S.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

In this study, the authors investigated adult word learning to determine how neighborhood density and practice across phonologically related training sets influence online learning from input during training versus offline memory evolution during no-training gaps.

Method

Sixty-one adults were randomly assigned to learn low- or high-density nonwords. Within each density condition, participants were trained on one set of words and then were trained on a second set of words, consisting of phonological neighbors of the first set. Learning was measured in a picture-naming test. Data were analyzed using multilevel modeling and spline regression.

Results

Steep learning during input was observed, with new words from dense neighborhoods and new words that were neighbors of recently learned words (i.e., second-set words) being learned better than other words. In terms of memory evolution, large and significant forgetting was observed during 1-week gaps in training. Effects of density and practice during memory evolution were opposite of those during input. Specifically, forgetting was greater for high-density and second-set words than for low-density and first-set words.

Conclusion

High phonological similarity, regardless of source (i.e., known words or recent training), appears to facilitate online learning from input but seems to impede offline memory evolution.

Supplemental Material

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.6170462
Decreased Sensitivity to Long-Distance Dependencies in Children With a History of Specific Language Impairment: Electrophysiological Evidence
Authors: Purdy J. D. , Leonard Laurence B. , Weber-Fox Christine , Kaganovich Natalya
Published: April 2014

Purpose

One possible source of tense and agreement limitations in children with specific language impairment (SLI) is a weakness in appreciating structural dependencies that occur in many sentences in the input. This possibility was tested in the present study.

Method

Children with a history of SLI (H-SLI;
n
= 12;
M
= 9;7 [years;months]) and typically developing same-age peers (TD;
n
= 12;
M
= 9;7) listened to and made grammaticality judgments about grammatical and ungrammatical sentences involving either a local agreement error (e.g., “Every night they
talks
on the phone”) or a long-distance finiteness error (e.g., “He makes the quiet boy
talks
a little louder”). Electrophysiological (ERP) and behavioral (accuracy) measures were obtained.

Results

Local agreement errors elicited the expected anterior negativity and P600 components in both groups of children. However, relative to the TD group, the P600 effect for the long-distance finiteness errors was delayed, reduced in amplitude, and shorter in duration for the H-SLI group. The children's grammaticality judgments were consistent with the ERP findings.

Conclusion

Children with H-SLI seem to be relatively insensitive to the finiteness constraints that matrix verbs place on subject–verb clauses that appear later in the sentence.
Children With a History of SLI Show Reduced Sensitivity to Audiovisual Temporal Asynchrony: An ERP Study
Authors: Kaganovich Natalya , Schumaker Jennifer , Leonard Laurence B. , Gustafson Dana , Macias Danielle
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The authors examined whether school-age children with a history of specific language impairment (H-SLI), their peers with typical development (TD), and adults differ in sensitivity to audiovisual temporal asynchrony and whether such difference stems from the sensory encoding of audiovisual information.

Method

Fifteen H-SLI children, 15 TD children, and 15 adults judged whether a flashed explosion-shaped figure and a 2-kHz pure tone occurred simultaneously. The stimuli were presented at 0-, 100-, 200-, 300-, 400-, and 500-ms temporal offsets. This task was combined with EEG recordings.

Results

H-SLI children were profoundly less sensitive to temporal separations between auditory and visual modalities compared with their TD peers. Those H-SLI children who performed better at simultaneity judgment also had higher language aptitude. TD children were less accurate than adults, revealing a remarkably prolonged developmental course of the audiovisual temporal discrimination. Analysis of early event-related potential components suggested that poor sensory encoding was not a key factor in H-SLI children's reduced sensitivity to audiovisual asynchrony.

Conclusions

Audiovisual temporal discrimination is impaired in H-SLI children and is still immature during mid-childhood in TD children. The present findings highlight the need for further evaluation of the role of atypical audiovisual processing in the development of SLI.
Individual Differences in Language Ability Are Related to Variation in Word Recognition, Not Speech Perception: Evidence From Eye Movements
Authors: McMurray Bob , Munson Cheyenne , Tomblin J. Bruce
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The authors examined speech perception deficits associated with individual differences in language ability, contrasting auditory, phonological, or lexical accounts by asking whether lexical competition is differentially sensitive to fine-grained acoustic variation.

Method

Adolescents with a range of language abilities (
N
= 74, including 35 impaired) participated in an experiment based on McMurray, Tanenhaus, and Aslin (2002). Participants heard tokens from six 9-step voice onset time (VOT) continua spanning 2 words (
beach/peach, beak/peak,
etc.) while viewing a screen containing pictures of those words and 2 unrelated objects. Participants selected the referent while eye movements to each picture were monitored as a measure of lexical activation. Fixations were examined as a function of both VOT and language ability.

Results

Eye movements were sensitive to within-category VOT differences: As VOT approached the boundary, listeners made more fixations to the competing word. This did not interact with language ability, suggesting that language impairment is not associated with differential auditory sensitivity or phonetic categorization. Listeners with poorer language skills showed heightened competitors fixations overall, suggesting a deficit in lexical processes.

Conclusion

Language impairment may be better characterized by a deficit in lexical competition (inability to suppress competing words), rather than differences in phonological categorization or auditory abilities.

Supplemental Material

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.14963586
Spatiotemporal Analysis of High-Speed Videolaryngoscopic Imaging of Organic Pathologies in Males
Authors: Bohr Christopher , Kräck Angelika , Dubrovskiy Denis , Eysholdt Ulrich , Svec Jan , Psychogios Georgios , Ziethe Anke , Döllinger Michael
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The aim of this study was to identify parameters that would differentiate healthy from pathological organic-based vocal fold vibrations to emphasize clinical usefulness of high-speed imaging.

Method

Fifty-five men (
M
age = 36 years,
SD
= 20 years) were examined and separated into 4 groups: 1 healthy (26 individuals) and 3 pathological (10 individuals with contact granuloma, 12 with polyps, and 7 with cysts). Vocal fold vibrations were recorded using a high-speed camera during sustained phonation. Twenty objective glottal area waveform and 24 phonovibrogram parameters representing spatiotemporal characteristics were analyzed. Statistical group comparisons were performed to document spatiotemporal changes for organic lesions that cannot be determined visually. To look for specific pattern profiles within organic lesions, the authors performed linear discriminant analysis.

Results

Thirteen parameters showed significant differences between the healthy group and at least 1 pathological group. The differences occurred more in temporal than in spatial parameters. Contact granuloma showed the fewest statistical differences (3 parameters), followed by cysts (9 parameters), and polyps (10 parameters). Linear discriminant analysis achieved accuracy performance of 76% (all groups separated) and 82% (healthy vs. pathological).

Conclusion

The results suggest that for males, the differences between healthy voices and organic voice disorders may be more pronounced within temporal characteristics that cannot be visually detected without high-speed imaging.
Speech Compensation for Time-Scale-Modified Auditory Feedback
Authors: Ogane Rintaro , Honda Masaaki
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to examine speech compensation in response to time-scale-modified auditory feedback during the transition of the semivowel for a target utterance of /ija/.

Method

Each utterance session consisted of 10 control trials in the normal feedback condition followed by 20 perturbed trials in the modified auditory feedback condition and 10 return trials in the normal feedback condition. The authors examined speech compensation and the aftereffect in terms of 3 acoustic features: the maximum velocities on the (a) F1 and (b) F2 trajectories (VF1 and VF2) and (c) the F1–F2 onset time difference (TD) during the transition. They also conducted a syllable perception test on the feedback speech.

Results

Speech compensation was observed in VF1, VF2, and TD. The magnitudes of speech compensation in VF1 and TD monotonically increased as the amount of the time-scale perturbation increased. The amount of speech compensation increased as the phonemic perception change increased.

Conclusions

Speech compensation for time-scale-modified auditory feedback is carried out primarily by changing VF1 and secondarily by adjusting VF2 and TD. Furthermore, it is activated primarily by detecting the speed change in altered feedback speech and secondarily by detecting the phonemic categorical change.
Assessing Articulatory Speed Performance as a Potential Factor of Slowed Speech in Older Adults
Authors: Mefferd Antje S. , Corder Erin E.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

To improve our understanding about the underlying factors of aging-related speaking rate decline, the authors sought to determine if lip and jaw speeds are physiologically constrained in older adults.

Method

Thirty-six females—10 young adults (ages 22–27 years), 9 middle-aged adults (ages 45–55 years), 10 young-old adults (65–74 years), and 7 very old adults (ages 87–95 years)—completed metronome-paced syllable repetitions while moving the lower lip or jaw to a fixed target with each repetition. Metronome paces incrementally increased from 1.4 Hz to 6.7 Hz. Lip and jaw movements were tracked using a 3-dimensional motion capture system.

Results

Older adults' maximum percent increase in lip and jaw peak speed was comparable to or tended to be even greater than that of middle-aged and young adults. By contrast, lip and jaw stiffness, indexed by peak speed–displacement ratios, tended to decrease with age during fast and very fast repetition rates and were associated with mildly prolonged movement durations.

Conclusions

The findings suggest that lip and jaw speeds are not constrained in older adults. The trend of reduced stiffness during fast rates, however, suggests that fine-force regulation becomes difficult for older adults. Thus, older adults may implement reduced habitual speaking rates as a behavioral strategy to compensate for diminished articulatory control.
Autonomic Correlates of Speech Versus Nonspeech Tasks in Children and Adults
Authors: Arnold Hayley S. , MacPherson Megan K. , Smith Anne
Published: April 2014

Purpose

To assess autonomic arousal associated with speech and nonspeech tasks in school-age children and young adults.

Method

Measures of autonomic arousal (electrodermal level, electrodermal response amplitude, blood pulse volume, and heart rate) were recorded prior to, during, and after the performance of speech and nonspeech tasks by twenty 7- to 9-year-old children and twenty 18- to 22-year-old adults.

Results

Across age groups, autonomic arousal was higher for speech tasks compared with nonspeech tasks, based on peak electrodermal response amplitude and blood pulse volume. Children demonstrated greater relative arousal, based on heart rate and blood pulse volume, for nonspeech oral motor tasks than adults but showed similar mean arousal levels for speech tasks as adults. Children demonstrated sex differences in autonomic arousal; specifically, autonomic arousal remained high for school-age boys but not girls in a more complex open-ended narrative task that followed a simple sentence production task.

Conclusions

Speech tasks elicit greater autonomic arousal than nonspeech tasks, and children demonstrate greater autonomic arousal for nonspeech oral motor tasks than adults. Sex differences in autonomic arousal associated with speech tasks in school-age children are discussed relative to speech-language differences between boys and girls.
An In Vivo Study of Composite Microgels Based on Hyaluronic Acid and Gelatin for the Reconstruction of Surgically Injured Rat Vocal Folds
Authors: Coppoolse Jiska M. S. , Van Kooten T. G. , Heris Hossein K. , Mongeau Luc , Li Nicole Y. K. , Thibeault Susan L. , Pitaro Jacob , Akinpelu Olubunmi , Daniel Sam J.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The objective of this study was to investigate local injection with a hierarchically microstructured hyaluronic acid–gelatin (HA-Ge) hydrogel for the treatment of acute vocal fold injury using a rat model.

Method

Vocal fold stripping was performed unilaterally in 108 Sprague-Dawley rats. A volume of 25 μl saline (placebo controls), HA-bulk, or HA-Ge hydrogel was injected into the lamina propria (LP) 5 days after surgery. The vocal folds were harvested at 3, 14, and 28 days after injection and analyzed using hematoxylin and eosin staining and immunohistochemistry staining for macrophages, myofibroblasts, elastin, collagen type I, and collagen type III.

Results

The macrophage count was statistically significantly lower in the HA-Ge group than in the saline group (
p
< .05) at Day 28. Results suggested that the HA-Ge injection did not induce inflammatory or rejection response. Myofibroblast counts and elastin were statistically insignificant across treatment groups at all time points. Increased elastin deposition was qualitatively observed in both HA groups from Day 3 to Day 28, and not in the saline group. Significantly more elastin was observed in the HA-bulk group than in the uninjured group at Day 28. Significantly more collagen type I was observed in the HA-bulk and HA-Ge groups than in the saline group (
p
< .05) at Day 28. The collagen type I concentration in the HA-Ge and saline groups was found to be comparable to that in the uninjured controls at Day 28. The concentration of collagen type III in all treatment groups was similar to that in uninjured controls at Day 28.

Conclusion

Local HA-Ge and HA-bulk injections for acute injured vocal folds were biocompatible and did not induce adverse response.
Impact of Clear, Loud, and Slow Speech on Scaled Intelligibility and Speech Severity in Parkinson's Disease and Multiple Sclerosis
Authors: Tjaden Kris , Sussman Joan E. , Wilding Gregory E.
Published: April 2014

Purpose

The perceptual consequences of rate reduction, increased vocal intensity, and clear speech were studied in speakers with multiple sclerosis (MS), Parkinson's disease (PD), and healthy controls.

Method

Seventy-eight speakers read sentences in habitual, clear, loud, and slow conditions. Sentences were equated for peak amplitude and mixed with multitalker babble for presentation to listeners. Using a computerized visual analog scale, listeners judged intelligibility or speech severity as operationally defined in Sussman and Tjaden (2012).

Results

Loud and clear but not slow conditions improved intelligibility relative to the habitual condition. With the exception of the loud condition for the PD group, speech severity did not improve above habitual and was reduced relative to habitual in some instances. Intelligibility and speech severity were strongly related, but relationships for disordered speakers were weaker in clear and slow conditions versus habitual.

Conclusions

Both clear and loud speech show promise for improving intelligibility and maintaining or improving speech severity in multitalker babble for speakers with mild dysarthria secondary to MS or PD, at least as these perceptual constructs were defined and measured in this study. Although scaled intelligibility and speech severity overlap, the metrics further appear to have some separate value in documenting treatment-related speech changes.
Ventricular-Fold Dynamics in Human Phonation
Authors: Bailly Lucie , Bernardoni Nathalie Henrich , Müller Frank , Rohlfs Anna-Katharina , Hess Markus
Published: April 2014

Purpose

In this study, the authors aimed (a) to provide a classification of the ventricular-fold dynamics during voicing, (b) to study the aerodynamic impact of these motions on vocal-fold vibrations, and (c) to assess whether ventricular-fold oscillations could be sustained by aerodynamic coupling with the vocal folds.

Method

A 72-sample database of vocal gestures accompanying different acoustical events comprised high-speed cinematographic, audio, and electroglottographic recordings of 5 subjects. Combining the physiological correlates with a theoretical model of phonation, the vocal–ventricular aerodynamic interactions were investigated.

Results

A ventricular-fold motion is found during (de)crescendos, shout, throat singing, yodel, growls, and glides with transitions between registers. Three main types of dynamics are identified: slow nonoscillatory motion and fast oscillatory motion with aperiodical or periodical vibrations. These patterns accompany a change in voice quality, pitch, and/or intensity. Alterations of glottal-oscillatory amplitude, frequency, and contact were predicted. It is shown that a ventricular oscillation can be initiated and sustained by aerodynamic coupling with the vocal folds.

Conclusions

Vocal–ventricular aerodynamic interactions can alter, enhance, or suppress vocal-fold vibrations or leave them unchanged, depending on the ventricular-fold dynamics involved. Depending on its variation in time, a similar level of ventricular-fold adduction impacts the glottal vibratory magnitude and contact much differently.

Supplemental Material

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.6170456