Typical and Atypical Development of Functional Connectivity in the Face Network.
Extensive studies have demonstrated that face recognition performance does not reach adult levels until adolescence. However, there is no consensus on whether such prolonged improvement stems from development of general cognitive factors or face-specific mechanisms. Here, we used behavioral experiments and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to evaluate these two hypotheses. With a large cohort of children (n = 379), we found that the ability of face-specific recognition in humans increased with age throughout childhood and into late adolescence in both face memory and face perception. Neurally, to circumvent the potential problem of age differences in task performance, attention, or cognitive strategies in task-state fMRI studies, we measured the resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) between the occipital face area (OFA) and fusiform face area (FFA) in human brain and found that the OFA-FFA RSFC increased until 11-13 years of age. Moreover, the OFA-FFA RSFC was selectively impaired in adults with developmental prosopagnosia (DP). In contrast, no age-related changes or differences between DP and normal adults were observed for RSFCs in the object system. Finally, the OFA-FFA RSFC matured earlier than face selectivity in either the OFA or FFA. These results suggest the critical role of the OFA-FFA RSFC in the development of face recognition. Together, our findings support the hypothesis that prolonged development of face recognition is face specific, not domain general.
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, and.
Yiying
Y
Song
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research.
Qi
Q
Zhu
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research.
Jingguang
J
Li
State Key Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience and Learning and IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Center for Collaboration and Innovation in Brain and Learning Sciences, and.
Xu
X
Wang
School of Psychology, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China liujia@bnu.edu.cn.
Jia
J
Liu
D000293:Adolescent; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005145:Face; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008568:Memory / Q000502:physiology; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000502:physiology*; D009778:Occipital Lobe / Q000502:physiology; D020238:Prosopagnosia / Q000503:physiopathology; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D021641:Recognition, Psychology / Q000502:physiology*; D012146:Rest / Q000502:physiology; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult
development; developmental prosopagnosia; face recognition; fusiform face area; occipital face area; resting-state functional connectivity