Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28560333›Full record

ArticleScience advances2017

Learning to read alters cortico-subcortical cross-talk in the visual system of illiterates.

Michael A Skeide, Uttam Kumar, Ramesh K Mishra, Viveka N Tripathi, Anupam Guleria, Jay P Singh, Frank Eisner, Falk Huettig

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Science advances, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 20 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
20citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
6.7field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

20 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 90 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. In vivo parcellation of the human superior colliculus from brain-wide probabilistic connectivity.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2025
    Article
  4. Article
  5. The Role of Visual Factors in Dyslexia.Journal of cognition · 2023
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Review
  9. Article
  10. Article
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Article
  16. Article
  17. Education and Health: Redrawing the Preston Curve.Population and development review · 2018
    Article
  18. The evolution of the capacity for language: the ecological context and adaptive value of a process of cognitive hijacking.Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences · 2018
    Review
  19. Article
  20. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 6 institutions in 3 countries.

Michael A SkeideDepartment of Neuropsychology, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences, Stephanstrasse 1a, 04103 Leipzig, Germany.
Uttam KumarCentre of Biomedical Research, Raibareli Road, 226014 Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.
Ramesh K MishraUniversity of Hyderabad, Prof. C.R. Rao Road, Gachibowli, 500046 Hyderabad, Telangana, India.
Viveka N TripathiCentre for Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Allahabad, University Road, Old Katra, 211002 Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India.ORCID 0000-0001-5952-048X
Anupam GuleriaCentre of Biomedical Research, Raibareli Road, 226014 Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India.ORCID 0000-0002-4158-2241
Jay P SinghCentre for Behavioural and Cognitive Sciences, University of Allahabad, University Road, Old Katra, 211002 Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India.ORCID 0000-0002-5685-8124
Frank EisnerDonders Institute, Radboud University, Montessorilaan 3, 6525 HR Nijmegen, Netherlands.
Falk HuettigPsychology of Language Department, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Wundtlaan 1, 6525 XD Nijmegen, Netherlands.
Centre of Biomedical Research · INUniversity of Allahabad · INMax Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences · DEMax Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics · NLRadboud University Nijmegen · NLUniversity of Hyderabad · IN

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Learning to read is known to result in a reorganization of the developing cerebral cortex. In this longitudinal resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging study in illiterate adults, we show that only 6 months of literacy training can lead to neuroplastic changes in the mature brain. We observed that literacy-induced neuroplasticity is not confined to the cortex but increases the functional connectivity between the occipital lobe and subcortical areas in the midbrain and the thalamus. Individual rates of connectivity increase were significantly related to the individual decoding skill gains. These findings crucially complement current neurobiological concepts of normal and impaired literacy acquisition.

Indexed as

AdultBrain MappingFemaleHumansMagnetic Resonance ImagingMaleNeuronal PlasticityReadingVisual Cortexdyslexiafunctional connectivityilliteratespulvinar nucleusreadingresting-state fMRIsuperior colliculusvisual system

Identifiers

PMID28560333
PMCPMC5443643
OpenAlexW2610426529

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.