Shared and unique functional connectivity underpinning rapid naming and character reading in Chinese

Abstract

Although a few neuroimaging studies have examined the role of rapid automatized naming in reading, they have all been conducted in alphabetic orthographies and have focused on brain activation. The present study investigated the shared and unique functional and effective connectivity of Chinese character naming with alphanumeric (digits) and non-alphanumeric (objects) RAN in 20 Chinese university students by using fMRI. Compared to RAN objects, character naming recruited an additional connection between the visual word form area and the left superior temporal gyrus. Compared to RAN digits, character naming recruited more connections between the language-related regions in the right hemisphere. Character naming had similar connections in the language-related regions with RAN digits and in the right hemisphere with RAN objects. These results support the notion that RAN is a “microcosm” of reading and integrates neural resources involved in object identification and naming.