Assembly of neural circuits during development. This program aims to understand how nerve cells wire up accurately during development. Specifically, the program will determine how neuronal connections are established in the retina to produce a sensory structure essential for vision. The program will also generate innovative tools for watching in live animals, the making and breaking of connections during normal and abnormal development. Discoveries will not only significantly increase our knowle ....Assembly of neural circuits during development. This program aims to understand how nerve cells wire up accurately during development. Specifically, the program will determine how neuronal connections are established in the retina to produce a sensory structure essential for vision. The program will also generate innovative tools for watching in live animals, the making and breaking of connections during normal and abnormal development. Discoveries will not only significantly increase our knowledge base of how the nervous system develops or degenerates, but the results will provide crucial information for future studies based on genetic approaches, drug therapies and bioengineering technology to repair the injured nervous system.Read moreRead less
Processing of social communication calls in primate auditory cortex. This research will advance our understanding of the brain mechanisms involved in perception of sound. This will help to understand disorders of speech and hearing following brain damage and may assist in efforts to develop better hearing aids, as well as other speech recognition technologies. In addition, we will develop a primate for studying processing of sound in the brain that will be useful in future research to develop ....Processing of social communication calls in primate auditory cortex. This research will advance our understanding of the brain mechanisms involved in perception of sound. This will help to understand disorders of speech and hearing following brain damage and may assist in efforts to develop better hearing aids, as well as other speech recognition technologies. In addition, we will develop a primate for studying processing of sound in the brain that will be useful in future research to develop improved cochlear implants.Read moreRead less
Harnessing non-invasive brain stimulation to improve language function in healthy and pathological ageing. This project will examine how the ability of the ageing brain to process language can be improved by non-invasive brain stimulation. The findings have the potential to reveal new ways to treat language impairments in ageing-associated brain injury and disease.
Stuttering in childhood: Patterns of recovery and persistence. This project will benefit the 1 in 20 Australian children who stutter and their families. We will learn for the first time how stuttering impacts on child development in the early school years and document the relationship between stuttering and other childhood conditions. The study will produce much needed information about recovery from stuttering and stuttering persistence. Therefore new knowledge will result to inform the scienti ....Stuttering in childhood: Patterns of recovery and persistence. This project will benefit the 1 in 20 Australian children who stutter and their families. We will learn for the first time how stuttering impacts on child development in the early school years and document the relationship between stuttering and other childhood conditions. The study will produce much needed information about recovery from stuttering and stuttering persistence. Therefore new knowledge will result to inform the scientific community and provide professionals and families with much needed evidence-based information about stuttering progression. Together this information will inform intervention approaches and help direct resources to those children who need them most. Read moreRead less
A study of early stuttering. Stuttering affects 1 in 20 Australian children. Stuttering disrupts and prevents normal verbal communication, significantly interferes with social interaction and can affect the attainment of educational and occupational potential. Australia leads the world in stuttering research. This innovative study will document the onset of stuttering and describe its progression, an area that is not well described or understood. This project will contribute new knowledge about ....A study of early stuttering. Stuttering affects 1 in 20 Australian children. Stuttering disrupts and prevents normal verbal communication, significantly interferes with social interaction and can affect the attainment of educational and occupational potential. Australia leads the world in stuttering research. This innovative study will document the onset of stuttering and describe its progression, an area that is not well described or understood. This project will contribute new knowledge about the onset of stuttering thereby benefiting children worldwide and their families. It will inform clinical practice and improve the evidence underpinning the advice given to parents of children who stutter.Read moreRead less
Centre For Research Excellence In Childhood Language
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,485,324.00
Summary
Although most children acquire speech and language skills comparatively effortlessly, it has become increasingly apparent that many do not. More importantly, this sizeable group accounts for great subsequent population health, social and economic burden. Research in the field has been underfunded and fragmented, resulting in evidence gaps, limited capacity, and disparate guidance for policy-makers. We will address these issues, acting as a vehicle and an ongoing catalyst for internationally-comp ....Although most children acquire speech and language skills comparatively effortlessly, it has become increasingly apparent that many do not. More importantly, this sizeable group accounts for great subsequent population health, social and economic burden. Research in the field has been underfunded and fragmented, resulting in evidence gaps, limited capacity, and disparate guidance for policy-makers. We will address these issues, acting as a vehicle and an ongoing catalyst for internationally-competitive research.Read moreRead less
How does dopamine modulate adult new word learning? Stroke is a chronic disease of increasing prevalence with increasing age. There is a critical need to develop more effective treatments of communication disorders in this population. One way of achieving this is to combine certain drugs with language therapy. Through studying how these drugs influence language, this research will provide vital knowledge for developing effective forms of pharmacotherapy for adults with language disorders after b ....How does dopamine modulate adult new word learning? Stroke is a chronic disease of increasing prevalence with increasing age. There is a critical need to develop more effective treatments of communication disorders in this population. One way of achieving this is to combine certain drugs with language therapy. Through studying how these drugs influence language, this research will provide vital knowledge for developing effective forms of pharmacotherapy for adults with language disorders after brain injury. More effective language rehabilitation can have direct positive consequences on the ability to regain and maintain employment and social relationships after stroke or brain injury and will address the large and growing social and economic cost to the nation.Read moreRead less
A functional imaging study of semantic processing modulated by dopamine. The role of dopamine in language processing is largely unknown, despite emerging evidence that dopaminergic alterations can modulate language in schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease, and healthy individuals. The research aims to reveal the neural and behavioural correlates of dopaminergic modulation of semantic processing using neuroimaging in healthy individuals who have ingested levodopa. It is hypothesised that levodopa wi ....A functional imaging study of semantic processing modulated by dopamine. The role of dopamine in language processing is largely unknown, despite emerging evidence that dopaminergic alterations can modulate language in schizophrenia, Parkinson's disease, and healthy individuals. The research aims to reveal the neural and behavioural correlates of dopaminergic modulation of semantic processing using neuroimaging in healthy individuals who have ingested levodopa. It is hypothesised that levodopa will modulate brain activity under circumstances where there is heightened semantic competition, consistent with a contemporary theory of dopaminergic cognitive control. The expected outcome of the research is an increased understanding of the interactions between dopamine, the language faculty, and associated neural systems.Read moreRead less
Towards direct imaging of neuronal currents with MRI. This project aims to develop novel neuronal current magnetic resonance imaging (nc-MRI) methods that harness the oscillatory behaviour of neuronal magnetic fields. Current methods of detecting neuronal activity in the living human brain have limited spatial and temporal resolution. Use of nc-MRI aims to overcome these limitations by imaging the effects on the MRI signal of small transient magnetic fields associated with neuronal activity. Sig ....Towards direct imaging of neuronal currents with MRI. This project aims to develop novel neuronal current magnetic resonance imaging (nc-MRI) methods that harness the oscillatory behaviour of neuronal magnetic fields. Current methods of detecting neuronal activity in the living human brain have limited spatial and temporal resolution. Use of nc-MRI aims to overcome these limitations by imaging the effects on the MRI signal of small transient magnetic fields associated with neuronal activity. Signal-to-noise ratio is at the limits of detectability using current imaging systems and nc-MRI is yet to be convincingly demonstrated. An integrated framework for simulating nc-MRI in the visual cortex is expected to be developed.Read moreRead less
The role of synapse development in cognitive disorder. In humans, intellectual disability occurs when nerve cells in the brain fail to connect. The project examines fundamental molecular processes involved in synapse development of neurons. The use of insect models provides a generalised biological template to understand how synaptic molecules contribute to behaviours that underlie cognitive disorder.