Abstract
As a visual art form, Chinese calligraphic handwriting (CCH) has been found to correlate with certain brain activity and to induce functional connectivity reorganization of the brain. This study investigated the effect of long-term CCH training on brain functional plasticity as assessed with network measures. With the resting-state fMRI data from 31 participants with at least five years of CCH training and 40 controls, we constructed brain functional networks, examined group differences at both the whole brain and modular levels, and correlated the topological characteristics with calligraphy skills. We found that, compared to the control group, the CCH group showed shorter characteristic path lengths and higher local efficiency in certain brain areas in the frontal and parietal cortices, limbic system, basal ganglia, and thalamus. Moreover, these network measures in the cingulate cortex, caudate nucleus, and thalamus were associated with CCH performance (i.e., copying and creating skills). These results suggest that long-term CCH training has a positive effect on the topological characteristics of brain networks.
Highlights
Chinese calligraphic handwriting (CCH) is a 3000-year-old art form
We found that the cingulate cortex, caudate nucleus and thalamus were the core brain areas that showed both group differences between the CCH and control groups and significant correlations with calligraphy skills within the CCH group (Table 6)
The current study explored the effect the long-term experience with CCH on brain network efficiency assessed with parameters based on graph theory
Summary
Chinese calligraphic handwriting (CCH) is a 3000-year-old art form. To master CCH skills requires years of intensive practice that involves sensory perception, motor skills, as well as multiple cognitive and emotional elements [1, 2]. In addition to the traditional univariate neuroimaging methods such as voxel-based morphometry (VBM) and resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) used in the studies mentioned above, researchers have recently paid attention to brain connectivity networks or modular organization. Given our previous findings of CCH training’s effects on the RSFC of certain brain areas [8], we hypothesized long-term CCH practicing would have an effect on the topological parameters of the resting-state brain network, including the frontal and parietal cortices, basal ganglia, and PCC. We explored the long-term CCH training’s effect on the topological characteristics of the whole brain and four specific modules. These modules were selected because of their relevance to visual processing (Module I), sensorimotor functions (Module II), and DMN (Module III), all of which are involved in CCH. Within the CCH group, we further investigated the relationship between global and local network measures and calligraphy skills
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