PLASTICITY OF LANGUAGE NETWORKS IN CHILDHOOD EPILEPSY

这个子项目是许多研究子项目中利用 资源由NIH/NCRR资助的中心拨款提供。子项目和 调查员(PI)可能从NIH的另一个来源获得了主要资金， 并因此可以在其他清晰的条目中表示。列出的机构是 该中心不一定是调查人员的机构。 这项研究的总体目标是证明定位相关的癫痫导致儿童在语言发育的关键时期语言功能的重组。有关儿童语言系统发育和可塑性的知识将在某种程度上获得，即语言功能的正常神经网络中断可能是癫痫所致。与头部创伤和中风等急性和有限的神经元损伤不同，癫痫是一个持续但发作性神经元损伤的慢性过程。此外，可以在疾病过程开始时识别和评估患者，以便可以评估和监测神经元的反应和可塑性程度。第二个目标是使用功能成像方法来识别大脑中能够维持“重组”语言功能的区域。本研究的目的是1)确定慢性局部性癫痫儿童是否具有与正常儿童不同的语言组织；2)新发局部性癫痫儿童是否具有不同于正常儿童的语言组织；3)检验非典型语言组织的范围和位置与癫痫发病年龄的关系。

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. The over-arching goal of this study is to demonstrate that localization related epilepsy causes reorganization of language function in children during periods critical for language development. Knowledge of language systems development and plasticity in children will be gained to the extent that disruptions in normal neural networks for language function may be attributable to epilepsy. Unlike acute and limited neuronal insults, such as head trauma and stroke, epilepsy is a chronic process with continuing but paroxysmal neuronal injury. Furthermore, patients may be identified and evaluated at the outset of the disease process so that the neuronal responses and degree of plasticity may be assessed and monitored. A secondary goal is to use functional imaging methods to identify the brain regions that can sustain "reorganized" language function. The objectives of this study are to determine 1) whether children with chronic localization related epilepsy have different language organization than normal children; 2) whether children with new onset localization related epilepsy have different language organization than normal children; and 3) examine the association between extent and location of atypical language organization and age of seizure onset.