Language can be defined as the system through which man communicates his ideas and feelings, whether through speech, writing or other conventional signs. Language is one of the most important tools for the human species, being enhanced throughout the evolutionary process and considered a high power technology in the construction, use and transmission and perpetuation of consciousness between individuals through communication. Knowing this great importance of language, it is essential to understand the neurophysiological mechanisms related to language processing for a possible intervention in cases of pathological disorders that involve deficits in communication and the potentialization of communication itself. Thus, language processing is the way humans use words to communicate ideas and feelings, and how these communications are processed and understood. Language processing is considered to be a uniquely human skill that is not produced with the same grammatical understanding or systematicity, even in primate relatives closest to the human being.
Language Studies
With studies using invasive electrophysiology methods in monkeys and also noninvasive techniques such as fMRI, PET, MEG, and EEG in humans associating different sound stimuli with brain topographic activity, it was possible to identify two brain pathways responsible for language processing. According to these works, there are two pathways that connect the auditory cortex, located in the upper temporal lobe, to the frontal cortex, where each pathway plays different linguistic roles.
The ventral auditory flow pathway is responsible for sound recognition (when we hear something, such as a tone, a noise, or a word for example), so it is known as the "what" auditory pathway. The auditory dorsal flow pathway in humans and nonhuman primates is responsible for sound localization and is therefore known as the "where" auditory pathway. In humans, this pathway (especially in the left hemisphere) is also responsible for speech production, speech repetition, lip-reading, phonological working memory, and long-term memory.
Language Processing in the Brain
According to the language evolution model, processing occurs from "where" to "what". Still, after this type of processing, after reaching the frontal cortex, these sounds may generate some kind of reaction or specific feelings, depending on the individual's life context. In addition, other areas such as the occipital cortex, responsible for vision, also have projected pathways to the frontal cortex involved with language processing, which in this case is related to reading.
Knowing how we receive and process some kind of sound, how does the process of externalizing the communication of the individual through speech or writing? According to some studies, words are perceived through a specialized word reception center (Wernicke area) which is located at the left temporoparietal junction. This region along with the frontal cortex is also responsible for word comprehension and sentence articulation. As we saw in the blog "Neuronal Activation in text Processing", it is in the frontal lobe that most activity happens when individuals are exposed to phrases with correct semantics, ie phrases that make sense. Both regions then project to a center. speech production area (Broca area) which is located in the lower-left frontal gyrus. In addition, areas related to motor planning and execution are also recruited if communication mode is written.
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Rodrigo Oliveira
