PROJECT SUMMARY
The cerebellum has long been thought to solely process motor information. Yet, there is a growing literature
that points to the role of the cerebellum in cognition and emotion. Individuals with cerebellar lesions can have
deficits in executive functioning, emotion processing, language, and social cognition. Multiple neuropsychiatric
disorders, including autism spectrum disorder and dyslexia, have been linked to abnormal cerebellar
processing. Numerous functional magnetic resonance imaging studies have shown neural responses in the
cerebellum related to a host of non-motor tasks. These findings provide evidence that the cerebellum is
involved in a range of non-motor tasks. The focus of this grant proposal is to investigate cerebellar functions in
a subcomponent of language: syntax.
Computational models suggest that the cerebellum is involved in detecting sequential structure and in
generating predictions about what will come next. Both of these functions are essential for syntax. Interestingly,
case studies have reported agrammatism following cerebellar lesions. In this grant proposal, I will use
functional MRI and dynamic causal modeling to investigate the cerebellum’s role in syntax and verbal working
memory and to investigate the extended functional network that underlies these functions. Syntax will be
compared to verbal working memory because a large body of research suggests an important role of the
cerebellum in working memory, and there is some overlap in the processing demands of syntax and working
memory. Thus, it is important to parse these functions apart. The training plan for this proposal includes
training in functional MRI design and analysis by experts in syntax and the cerebellum. It also includes training
on dynamic causal modeling, a modeling technique used to compare causal models of brain function. Dynamic
causal modeling will allow us to directly test theories on the cerebellum’s connectivity with the cerebrum. These
findings will provide insight into the cerebellum’s mechanistic role in syntax. With this better understanding, a
new framework can be developed for linguistic processes that have long been nebulously linked to cerebellar
function.