The role of the Frontal Aslant tract in bilingual language control

Abstract

In the present study, we investigated the microstructural properties of the right and left Frontal Aslant tract (FAT) in relation to bilingualism and language modality by comparing a group of unimodal bilinguals (i.e., bilinguals proficient in two spoken languages) and a group of bimodal bilinguals (i.e., bilinguals proficient in a spoken and a signed language). We found that the microstructural properties of the left FAT were related to the performance in semantic fluency in the second language (L2), either signed or spoken. Additionally, only for bimodal bilinguals, the microstructural properties of the right FAT were related to picture naming performance in the first spoken language (L1). No significant effects on performance were found in a language comprehension task. Overall, the results suggest that the FAT plays a significant role in language production in bilinguals. The left FAT appears to be involved primarily during the use of spoken or signed L2, while the right FAT appears to be involved in handling the competition of the signed L2 language while speaking L1.