Genetic and MRI Biomarkers of Neuroplasticity Predict Aphasia Recovery and Phenotypes

What this Trial Is About

Aphasia, a language disorder often resulting from stroke, can cause serious challenges including social isolation and reduced quality of life. Recovery from aphasia varies widely among individuals and depends on the brain's ability to reorganize and repair itself through neuroplasticity at both network and molecular levels. This research aims to study genetic and brain network markers linked to neuroplasticity to better understand variations in aphasia recovery and to support future development of personalized treatments. Participants will engage in a behavioral pseudoword learning task where they view pairs of novel objects and hear names of one object, responding by identifying the correct item. This task includes multiple learning blocks with feedback and test blocks assessing immediate and retained learning. The study will measure genetic markers and brain connectivity through MRI to explore their connections with language recovery over time. During the study, participants will be assessed at several time points up to at least one year post-stroke. Evaluations include aphasia severity, semantic, phonological, noun and verb processing, pseudoword learning, and verbal learning. Researchers will use these measures alongside genetic and MRI data to understand recovery patterns. The study spans multiple months involving follow-up assessments to monitor progress and outcomes, with the goal of improving aphasia prognosis and treatment strategies.

Neuroplasticity Biomarkers in Aphasia