Abstract
Long term video game players (VGPs) exhibit superior visual and motor skills compared with non-video game control subjects (NVGCs). However, the neural basis underlying the enhanced behavioral performance remains largely unknown. To clarify this issue, the present study compared the whiter matter integrity within the corticospinal tracts (CST), the superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF), the inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF), and the inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF) between the VGPs and the NVGCs using diffusion tensor imaging. Compared with the NVGCs, voxel-wise comparisons revealed significantly higher fractional anisotropy (FA) values in some regions within the left CST, left SLF, bilateral ILF, and IFOF in VGPs. Furthermore, higher FA values in the left CST at the level of cerebral peduncle predicted a faster response in visual attention tasks. These results suggest that higher white matter integrity in the motor and higher-tier visual pathways is associated with long-term video game playing, which may contribute to the understanding on how video game play influences motor and visual performance.
Highlights
Video game playing has become ubiquitous entertainment today and is popular among the youth
Higher fractional anisotropy (FA) values in the left corticospinal tracts (CST) at the level of cerebral peduncle predicted a faster response in visual attention tasks. These results suggest that higher white matter integrity in the motor and higher-tier visual pathways is associated with long-term video game playing, which may contribute to the understanding on how video game play influences motor and visual performance
There were four clusters within the visual pathway that demonstrated significantly higher FA values in video game players (VGPs) than in non-video game control subjects (NVGCs) (P < 0.01, corrected; Figure 3), including one cluster located in the frontal region of the left superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF), two clusters located in the temporal and occipital region of the left inferior longitudinal fasciculus (ILF)/inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus (IFOF); and one cluster located in the temporal region of the right ILF/IFOF
Summary
Video game playing has become ubiquitous entertainment today and is popular among the youth. It is reported that the duration of video game play is significantly associated with the gray matter volume of the entorhinal cortex, hippocampus occipital lobe (Assaf and Pasternak, 2008), and the thickness of the left frontal cortex (Kuhn et al, 2014b). In addition to these positive effects, the duration of action-based role-playing is associated with atrophy of the entorhinal cortex (Kuhn and Gallinat, 2013). Studies focused on the reorganization of white matter (WM) pathway in VGPs remains scarce
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