Exploring the interaction of reading and attention through connectivity with the frontal-eye-field

Attentional processes are crucial to ensure successful reading, and theories of dyslexia propose that dysfunctional attention networks may contribute to the observed reading deficits. The goals of this study were to localize a region of the frontal-eye-field (FEF) involved in both reading and attention and examine its connectivity with regions in the reading and attention networks, given the known role of the FEF in attentional processes and theorized role in reading. In Experiment 1, we revisited the results of our previous hybrid reading and attention study (Ekstrand, Neudorf, Kress, & Borowsky., 2019). We observed a significant reading × attention interaction in BOLD intensity in the FEF, specifically the ventrolateral portion of Brodmann’s Area 6 (A6vl). In Experiment 2, we used Human Connectome Project diffusion tensor imaging data to examine the connectivity profile of the FEF-A6vl. We observed high communicability between the A6vl and basal ganglia (which plays a role in rhythm during syllabic processing). These connections support tract clusters which terminated in the cerebellar Crus I/II (which play roles in eye movements and semantics) and cerebral superior parietal lobule (which plays a role in attentional orienting and phonetic decoding). The results of this study elucidate the reading × attention interaction in the FEF-A6vl, and may have implications for developing treatments to improve reading in individuals with dyslexia.