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NCT Number: NCT06467305

Speech Motor Learning and Retention (Aim 1)

The overall goal of this research is to test a new model of speech motor learning, whose central hypothesis is that learning and retention are associated with plasticity not only in motor areas of the brain but in auditory and somatosensory regions as well. The strategy for the proposed research is to identify individual brain areas that contribute causally to retention by disrupting their activity with transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Investigators will also use functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) which will enable identification of circuit-level activity which predicts either learning or retention of new movements, and hence test the specific contributions of candidate sensory and motor zones. In other studies, investigators will record sensory and motor evoked potentials over the course of learning to determine the temporal order in which individual sensory and cortical motor regions contribute. The goal here is to identify brain areas in which learning-related plasticity occurs first and which among these areas predict subsequent learning.

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Key information

Conditions

Speech Behavior Communication Verbal Behavior

Age range

18 year–40 year

Sex eligibility

All sexes

Study type

Interventional

Phase

Not applicable

Primary location

Yale Child Study Center

New Haven, Connecticut, 06520, United States

Location status: Recruiting

About this study

The focus of this registration is Aim 1. The work in Specific Aim 1 involves tests of speech motor memory retention following disruption of left hemisphere brain activity in either auditory, somatosensory or motor cortex or to a control site (hand area motor cortex right hemisphere). Continuous theta-burst stimulation (cTBS) is delivered following adaptation to altered auditory feedback to assess its effects on the retention of new learning. In the adaptation task, participants read Harvard Sentences aloud, which are presented on a computer monitor. Vocal output is altered in real-time and played back to participants through headphones. Tests of retention are conducted 24 hours later.

The Speech Motor Learning and Retention Master Protocol has uniqueID 2000037622.

Who can participate

Healthy volunteers accepted: Yes

Only the study team can determine whether someone qualifies for participation.

Inclusion criteria

  • Fluent English speakers
  • Right-handed
  • Normal hearing
  • No speech disorder or reading disability

Exclusion criteria

  • Cardiac pacemaker
  • Aneurysm clip
  • Heart or Vascular clip
  • Prosthetic valve
  • Metal implants
  • Metal in brain, skull, or spinal cord
  • Implanted neurostimulator
  • Medication infusion device
  • Cochlear implant or tinnitus (ringing in ears)
  • Personal and/or family history of epilepsy or other neurological disorders or history of head concussion
  • Psychoactive medications
  • Pregnancy

Treatment and study plan

continuous theta-burst stimulation (cTBS)

Device

Non-invasive brain stimulation, evoked potentials and fMRI will be used to identify brain regions involved in speech motor learning and retention.

Adaptation

Behavioral

Auditory adaptation in speech

Primary outcomes

  1. Speech motor learning

    Time frame: Performance as measured at the end of learning (30 minute session)

    Audapter software will be used to alter the first and second formant frequencies of the spoken words and this is played back to subjects through headphones. Subjects will be tested both with unaltered feedback and with abruptly introduced frequency shifts.The change in the first (F1) and second format frequency (F2) values will be assessed using Praat.

  2. Retention of learning

    Time frame: 24 hours after learning (re-test lasts 30 minutes)

    The retention of adaptation to altered auditory feedback (and relearning) will be quantified in terms of F1 and F2 frequency shifts (relative to pre-training baseline). Larger values indicate more complete relearning or retention.

Study contacts

Contact information is provided by the study sponsor or research team.

David Ostry

CONTACT

[email protected]

2038656163

Sponsors and collaborators

Lead sponsor

Yale University

Other

Collaborators

  • National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD)

Registry information

Official study title

Sensorimotor Basis of Speech Motor Learning and Retention

Important dates

Study start
2024
Primary completion
2028
Study completion
2029
First posted
Jun 21, 2024
Registry last updated
Feb 19, 2026

OpenTrials presents study information sourced from ClinicalTrials.gov. The official registry record should be consulted for the latest information.

View the official ClinicalTrials.gov record (opens in a new tab)

This listing is for discovery and informational purposes only. It is not medical advice, does not guarantee that a study is recruiting, and does not determine eligibility. Contact the study team and a qualified healthcare professional when considering participation.

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