Music and the social br ain
In this thesis we investigated the neurobiological foundat ions of musicality in dementia and its relationship with social cogni tion, focusing on behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The first part examines hearing func tion, given its importance for musicality and its role as a risk fact or for dementia. We found that age-related hearing loss was linked to cognitive decline and, in younger-old adults, to amyloid pathology� �suggesting age-specific mechanisms connecting hearing-loss to dement ia. Next, a case study showed that neurodegeneration can alter audito ry experiences. In the second part we examined clinical and anatomica l associations of musicality and social cognition. Using a meta-analy tic approach, we found that brain regions involved in music perceptio n overlap with those for social cognition and atrophy profiles in fro ntotemporal dementia, particularly within the salience, semantic appr aisal, and ventral language network. We found that many bvFTD patient s showed changes in music appreciation, especially musicophilia. Musi cal training and regular listening were associated with better social functioning in bvFTD, including improved perspective-taking, empathy and fewer behavioural problems. Next, we used validated musicality m etrics and found impairments in tempo recognition and music emotion r ecognition in bvFTD, but not in AD. We found that brain regions invol ved in musicality overlapped with those for social cognition. Finally , using functional MRI we showed that bvFTD and AD patients process m usic differently, with altered activity in regions such as the supple mentary motor area and caudate nucleus. Overall, our findings suggest that musicality and music processing differ in bvFTD and AD, and tha t music may be a valuable tool for understanding and assessing social cognition in dementia.
More information on the thesis< /p> DESCRIPTION: In this thesis we investigated the neurobiological founda tions of musicality in dementia and its relationship with social cogn ition, focusing on behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia (bvFTD ) and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The first part examines hearing fun ction, given its importance for musicality and its role as a risk fac tor for dementia. We found that age-related hearing loss was linked t o cognitive decline and, in younger-old adults, to amyloid pathology� ��suggesting age-specific mechanisms connecting hearing-loss to demen tia. Next, a case study showed that neurodegeneration can alter audit ory experiences. In the second part we examined clinical and anatomic al associations of musicality and social cognition. Using a meta-anal ytic approach, we found that brain regions involved in music percepti on overlap with those for social cognition and atrophy profiles in fr ontotemporal dementia, particularly within the salience, semantic app raisal, and ventral language network. We found that many bvFTD patien ts showed changes in music appreciation, especially musicophilia. Mus ical training and regular listening were associated with better socia l functioning in bvFTD, including improved perspective-taking, empath y and fewer behavioural problems. Next, we used validated musicality metrics and found impairments in tempo recognition and music emotion recognition in bvFTD, but not in AD. We found that brain regions invo lved in musicality overlapped with those for social cognition. Finall y, using functional MRI we showed that bvFTD and AD patients process music differently, with altered activity in regions such as the suppl ementary motor area and caudate nucleus. Overall, our findings sugges t that musicality and music processing differ in bvFTD and AD, and th at music may be a valuable tool for understanding and assessing socia l cognition in dementia. More information on the thesis Music and the social brain END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR