Periodic and Aperiodic EEG Features as Potential Markers of Developmental Dyslexia

Chiara Turri, Giuseppe Di Dona, Alessia Santoni, Denisa Adina Zamfira, Laura Franchin, David Melcher, Luca Ronconi

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Developmental Dyslexia (DD) is a neurobiological condition affecting the ability to read fluently and/or accurately. Analyzing resting-state electroencephalographic (EEG) activity in DD may provide a deeper characterization of the underlying pathophysiology and possible biomarkers. So far, studies investigating resting-state activity in DD provided limited evidence and did not consider the aperiodic component of the power spectrum. In the present study, adults with (n = 26) and without DD (n = 31) underwent a reading skills assessment and resting-state EEG to investigate potential alterations in aperiodic activity, their impact on the periodic counterpart and reading performance. In parieto-occipital channels, DD participants showed a significantly different aperiodic activity as indexed by a flatter and lower power spectrum. These aperiodic measures were significantly related to text reading time, suggesting a link with individual differences in reading difficulties. In the beta band, the DD group showed significantly decreased aperiodic-adjusted power compared to typical readers, which was significantly correlated to word reading accuracy. Overall, here we provide evidence showing alterations of the endogenous aperiodic activity in DD participants consistently with the increased neural noise hypothesis. In addition, we confirm alterations of endogenous beta rhythms, which are discussed in terms of their potential link with magnocellular-dorsal stream deficit.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number1607
JournalBiomedicines
Volume11
Issue number6
DOIs
StatePublished - Jun 2023

Keywords

  • EEG
  • alpha rhythm
  • beta rhythm
  • cortical excitability
  • developmental dyslexia
  • neurodevelopmental disorder
  • reading
  • reading disorder
  • signal-to-noise ratio
  • specific learning disorder

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Medicine (miscellaneous)
  • General Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

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