Neural oscillations track natural but not artificial fast speech: Novel insights from speech-brain coupling using MEG
Ana Sofía Hincapié Casas,
Tarek Lajnef,
Annalisa Pascarella,
Hélène Guiraud-Vinatea,
Hannu Laaksonen,
Dimitri Bayle,
Karim Jerbi,
Véronique Boulenger
Affiliations
Ana Sofía Hincapié Casas
Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience Lab, Psychology Department, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec H2V 2S9, Canada; Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3A 2B4, Canada
Tarek Lajnef
Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience Lab, Psychology Department, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec H2V 2S9, Canada
Annalisa Pascarella
Institute for Applied Mathematics Mauro Picone, National Research Council, Roma 00185, Italy
Hélène Guiraud-Vinatea
Dynamics of Language laboratory, UMR5596 CNRS/University of Lyon, Lyon 69007, France
Hannu Laaksonen
Dynamics of Language laboratory, UMR5596 CNRS/University of Lyon, Lyon 69007, France; Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, DyCog team, INSERM U1028 / CNRS UMR5292, Bron 69500, France
Dimitri Bayle
LICAE Lab, UPL, Paris Nanterre University, Nanterre 92000, France
Karim Jerbi
Cognitive and Computational Neuroscience Lab, Psychology Department, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec H2V 2S9, Canada; Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, DyCog team, INSERM U1028 / CNRS UMR5292, Bron 69500, France; MILA (Québec Artificial Intelligence Institute), QC H2S 3H1 Montréal, Québec, Canada; MEG Center, University of Montreal, Montreal, Quebec H2V 2S9, Canada
Véronique Boulenger
Dynamics of Language laboratory, UMR5596 CNRS/University of Lyon, Lyon 69007, France; Corresponding author.
Neural oscillations contribute to speech parsing via cortical tracking of hierarchical linguistic structures, including syllable rate. While the properties of neural entrainment have been largely probed with speech stimuli at either normal or artificially accelerated rates, the important case of natural fast speech has been largely overlooked. Using magnetoencephalography, we found that listening to naturally-produced speech was associated with cortico-acoustic coupling, both at normal (∼6 syllables/s) and fast (∼9 syllables/s) rates, with a corresponding shift in peak entrainment frequency. Interestingly, time-compressed sentences did not yield such coupling, despite being generated at the same rate as the natural fast sentences. Additionally, neural activity in right motor cortex exhibited stronger tuning to natural fast rather than to artificially accelerated speech, and showed evidence for stronger phase-coupling with left temporo-parietal and motor areas. These findings are highly relevant for our understanding of the role played by auditory and motor cortex oscillations in the perception of naturally produced speech.
