Distinct parallel activation and interaction between dorsal and ventral pathways during phonological and semantic processing: A cTBS‐fMRI study

Successful visual word recognition requires the integration of phonological and semantic information, which is supported by the dorsal and ventral pathways in the brain. However, the functional specialization or interaction of these pathways during phonological and semantic processing remains unclear. Previous research has been limited by its dependence on correlational functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) results or causal validation using patient populations, which are susceptible to confounds such as plasticity and lesion characteristics. To address this, the present study employed continuous theta‐burst stimulation combined with fMRI in a within‐subject design to assess rapid adaptation in regional activity and functional connectivity of the dorsal and ventral pathways during phonological and semantic tasks. This assessment followed the precise inhibition of the left inferior parietal lobule and anterior temporal lobe in the dorsal and ventral pathways, respectively. Our results reveal that both the dorsal and ventral pathways were activated during phonological and semantic processing, while the adaptation activation and interactive network were modulated by the task type and inhibited region. The two pathways exhibited interconnectivity in phonological processing, and disruption of either pathway led to rapid adaptation across both pathways. In contrast, only the ventral pathway exhibited connectivity in semantic processing, and disruption of this pathway alone resulted in adaptive effects primarily in the ventral pathway. These findings provide essential evidence supporting the interactive theory, phonological information processing in particular, potentially providing meaningful implications for clinical populations. Our continuous theta‐burst stimulation (cTBS)‐functional magnetic resonance imaging study comprehensively elucidated the functional specificity and interaction of dorsal and ventral pathways during phonological and semantic processing. cTBS was applied to the left inferior parietal lobule (dorsal), anterior temporal lobe (ventral), and sham (baseline). Both dual pathways activated during phonological and semantic processing but exhibited distinct interactions.