by Dr Marianne Latinus, Researcher in Cognitive Neuroscience, Imaging Brain & Neuropsychiatry unit (iBraiN), Université de Tours, France

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

Autism spectrum disorder is a neurodevelopmental condition characterised by differences in social communication and interaction, together with restricted and repetitive patterns of behaviour and interests.

Voice lies at the intersection of these core dimensions. It is a key tool for social communication, while also reflecting patterns of behaviour that may be atypical in autism. This has made voice perception and production a central focus of Dr Latinus’s research.

In this talk, Dr Latinus will take the audience from voice to language through a series of studies on autistic communication. She will begin by showing how acoustic features of the voice can contribute to the diagnosis of autism. She will then explore how the autistic brain processes vocal sounds, presenting findings from EEG studies of voice perception.

Finally, Dr Latinus will discuss recent work on receptive and expressive language, highlighting the diversity of language profiles in autistic children and what these profiles can reveal about communication in autism.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER

Dr Marianne Latinus is an INSERM researcher in cognitive neuroscience at the Imaging Brain & Neuropsychiatry unit, iBraiN U1253 at Université de Tours, France.

Her research focuses on the neurophysiological mechanisms underlying sensory and social information processing, particularly voice perception and individual sensory profiles in autism spectrum disorder.

Dr Latinus combines experimental psychology with eye-tracking, EEG, and functional MRI to study how the brain processes socially relevant sensory signals.