THE IMPORTANCE OF BILINGUAL AND CROSS-LINGUISTIC STUDIES IN DEMENTIA
Linguistics Special Lecture Series 2023 No.1

Dr. Jessica de Leon
Assistant Professor
UCSF Memory and Aging Center (MAC)

28 January 2023 | Saturday | 10:00 AM

The lecture will be livestreamed on:
Facebook Live: UP Department of Linguistics
YouTube: http://bit.ly/UPLinguisticsYT

ABSTRACT
In this lecture, Dr. de Leon will discuss the role of bilingualism in cognitive and brain resilience, using studies from across the spectrum of healthy aging and dementia. She will highlight the need for cross-linguistic studies to better inform the neuroanatomical correlates of language and improve dementia diagnosis in diverse populations, using primary progressive aphasia as a disease model. Lastly, she will present preliminary data from the development of a speech and language cognitive battery for Tagalog speakers.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Dr. Jessica de Leon received her B.A. at Johns Hopkins University, where she studied neuroscience and Spanish. She completed her medical degree, neurology residency and behavioral neurology fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. de Leon is currently an assistant professor at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center (MAC), where she provides care for patients with cognitive impairment and dementia. She serves as the principal investigator of a study on how bilingualism, language typology and genetics affect the symptoms, neuroimaging, and progression of neurodegenerative disorders. She leads MAC outreach efforts to the Filipino community in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Moderator:
Asst. Prof. Francisco C. Rosario, Jr.