NIH R01 · 2025
Neural basis of Braille literacy in blind adults and children
PROJECT SUMMARY The current project examines the neural basis of Braille reading in proficient congenitally blind adults, late blind readers with varying degrees of proficiency and blind children learning to read, using fMRI and high-density diffusion imaging (dMRI). These studies of Braille literacy provide insights into human brain plasticity and the neural basis of culture. Reading changes the anatomy and function of the human brain. In sighted people, reading experience enhances anatomical pathways within and across visual and language networks. Sighted readers develop a ‘visual word form area’ (VWFA) in lateral ventral occipito-temporal cortex (lVOT), tuned to letters and words.…
From the public funding record at NIH RePORTER. Describes the funded project, not the reviews below.