While many studies have focused on identifying the neural and behavioral characteristics of decoding-based reading disorder (RD, aka developmental dyslexia), the etiology of RD remains largely unknown and understudied. Because the brain plays an intermediate role between genetic factors and behavioral outcomes, it is promising to address causality from a neural perspective. In the current, Part I of the two-part review, we discuss neuroimaging approaches to addressing the causality issue and review the results of studies that have employed these approaches. We assume that if a neural signature were associated with RD etiology, it would (a) manifest across comparisons in different languages, (b) be experience independent and appear in comparisons between RD and reading-matched controls, (c) be present both pre- and post-intervention, (d) be found in at-risk, pre-reading children and (e) be associated with genetic risk. We discuss each of these five characteristics in turn and summarize the studies that have examined each of them. The available literature provides evidence that anomalies in left temporo-parietal cortex, and possibly occipito-temporal cortex, may be closely related to the etiology of RD. Improved understanding of the etiology of RD can help improve the accuracy of early detection and enable targeted intervention of cognitive processes that are amenable to change, leading to improved outcomes in at-risk or affected populations.

中文翻译：

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阅读障碍的神经生物学基础第一部分：病因学研究


虽然许多研究都集中于识别基于解码的阅读障碍（RD，又名发育性阅读障碍）的神经和行为特征，但 RD 的病因在很大程度上仍然未知且未被充分研究。由于大脑在遗传因素和行为结果之间发挥着中间作用，因此有望从神经角度解决因果关系。在当前的两部分综述的第一部分中，我们讨论了解决因果关系问题的神经影像学方法，并回顾了采用这些方法的研究结果。我们假设，如果神经特征与 RD 病因学相关，那么它会（a）在不同语言的比较中表现出来，（b）与经验无关，并出现在 RD 和阅读匹配对照之间的比较中，（c）在两者之前都存在- 以及干预后，(d) 在处于危险中的阅读前儿童中发现，并且 (e) 与遗传风险相关。我们依次讨论这五个特征，并总结对每个特征进行检验的研究。现有文献提供的证据表明，左颞顶叶皮层（可能还有枕颞叶皮层）的异常可能与 RD 的病因密切相关。加深对 RD 病因的了解有助于提高早期检测的准确性，并能够对易于改变的认知过程进行有针对性的干预，从而改善高危或受影响人群的结果。