Study of Brain Control of Speech in Adults With and Without Speech Disorders, Including Stuttering and Dyslexia

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying how different feedback systems in the brain work together to control speech. This study involves adults aged 18 to 50, including people who stutter, those with dyslexia, and individuals with typical speech and reading skills. The goal is to understand how speech motor skills vary among individuals and how brain differences may contribute to speech conditions like stuttering and dyslexia. Participants undergo various speech tasks where the sounds they hear or movements of their jaw or larynx are briefly changed. They are divided into two groups receiving transcranial current stimulation tCS targeting different brain regions during speech tasks. Each participant also completes an MRI scan to examine brain structure and connectivity. The study includes behavioral sessions with unpredictable and sustained auditory feedback perturbations and somatosensory perturbations. Throughout the study, participants complete speech motor control tests and brain imaging sessions. Researchers measure reflexive and adaptive compensatory responses during speech tasks, along with assessments of stuttering, dyslexia severity, intelligence, vocabulary, and brain region characteristics. The study aims to link brain differences to speech motor control and includes safety monitoring for all procedures. Participation spans multiple sessions involving behavioral tests, brain stimulation, and MRI scans.

Investigating Individual Differences in Speech Motor Skills in Neurotypical Speakers and Persons With Disordered Speech