Cerebellar control of motor activation and cancellation in humans: an electrophysiological study. 2009

Y L Lo, and S Fook-Chong, and L L Chan, and W Y Ong
Department of Neurology, National Neuroscience Institute, Singapore General Hospital, Outram Road, Singapore. gnrlyl@sgh.com.sg

Execution of rapid ballistic movement is characterized by triphasic, alternating electromyographic bursts in agonist (AG) and antagonist (ANT) muscles. The ability to rapidly initiate movement and cancel ongoing action is a basic requirement for efficient control of motor function. Normal functioning of the cerebellum is necessary for the generation of AG and ANT muscle activity that should be both of appropriate magnitude and timing to control the dynamic phase of arm movements. We studied AG, ANT reaction time (RT), and RT differences in both motor activation (MA) and motor cancellation (MC) tasks, in response to an auditory stimulus. The results showed that right cerebellar transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) with a horizontally applied focal coil resulted in decreased AG RT and increased latency difference between AG RT and ANT RT (DIFF) in the ipsilateral upper limb during MC. No effect was apparent during sham stimulation, MA tasks, left upper limb recording, and other coil orientations. While the high correlation between AG and ANT RT suggests a close relationship in both MA and MC, significant DIFF changes point to an alteration of this relationship by TMS during MC. Although TMS resulted in significantly increased DIFF during MC tasks, this was not due to delayed ANT RT. This suggests that the short ANT burst observed invariably during MC may not be a cerebellum-generated response, but is derived from the cortical or subcortical level. The focal nature of our TMS coil and the horizontally effective orientation supports the hypothesis of interference with the parallel fiber system. Our findings contribute to the understanding of cerebellar neural networks involvement in movements, in particular, those pertaining to cessation of an ongoing action not previously addressed.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007839 Functional Laterality Behavioral manifestations of cerebral dominance in which there is preferential use and superior functioning of either the left or the right side, as in the preferred use of the right hand or right foot. Ambidexterity,Behavioral Laterality,Handedness,Laterality of Motor Control,Mirror Writing,Laterality, Behavioral,Laterality, Functional,Mirror Writings,Motor Control Laterality,Writing, Mirror,Writings, Mirror
D008279 Magnetic Resonance Imaging Non-invasive method of demonstrating internal anatomy based on the principle that atomic nuclei in a strong magnetic field absorb pulses of radiofrequency energy and emit them as radiowaves which can be reconstructed into computerized images. The concept includes proton spin tomographic techniques. Chemical Shift Imaging,MR Tomography,MRI Scans,MRI, Functional,Magnetic Resonance Image,Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Functional,Magnetization Transfer Contrast Imaging,NMR Imaging,NMR Tomography,Tomography, NMR,Tomography, Proton Spin,fMRI,Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging,Imaging, Chemical Shift,Proton Spin Tomography,Spin Echo Imaging,Steady-State Free Precession MRI,Tomography, MR,Zeugmatography,Chemical Shift Imagings,Echo Imaging, Spin,Echo Imagings, Spin,Functional MRI,Functional MRIs,Image, Magnetic Resonance,Imaging, Magnetic Resonance,Imaging, NMR,Imaging, Spin Echo,Imagings, Chemical Shift,Imagings, Spin Echo,MRI Scan,MRIs, Functional,Magnetic Resonance Images,Resonance Image, Magnetic,Scan, MRI,Scans, MRI,Shift Imaging, Chemical,Shift Imagings, Chemical,Spin Echo Imagings,Steady State Free Precession MRI
D008297 Male Males
D009068 Movement The act, process, or result of passing from one place or position to another. It differs from LOCOMOTION in that locomotion is restricted to the passing of the whole body from one place to another, while movement encompasses both locomotion but also a change of the position of the whole body or any of its parts. Movement may be used with reference to humans, vertebrate and invertebrate animals, and microorganisms. Differentiate also from MOTOR ACTIVITY, movement associated with behavior. Movements
D009119 Muscle Contraction A process leading to shortening and/or development of tension in muscle tissue. Muscle contraction occurs by a sliding filament mechanism whereby actin filaments slide inward among the myosin filaments. Inotropism,Muscular Contraction,Contraction, Muscle,Contraction, Muscular,Contractions, Muscle,Contractions, Muscular,Inotropisms,Muscle Contractions,Muscular Contractions
D011930 Reaction Time The time from the onset of a stimulus until a response is observed. Response Latency,Response Speed,Response Time,Latency, Response,Reaction Times,Response Latencies,Response Times,Speed, Response,Speeds, Response
D002531 Cerebellum The part of brain that lies behind the BRAIN STEM in the posterior base of skull (CRANIAL FOSSA, POSTERIOR). It is also known as the "little brain" with convolutions similar to those of CEREBRAL CORTEX, inner white matter, and deep cerebellar nuclei. Its function is to coordinate voluntary movements, maintain balance, and learn motor skills. Cerebella,Corpus Cerebelli,Parencephalon,Cerebellums,Parencephalons
D004576 Electromyography Recording of the changes in electric potential of muscle by means of surface or needle electrodes. Electromyogram,Surface Electromyography,Electromyograms,Electromyographies,Electromyographies, Surface,Electromyography, Surface,Surface Electromyographies
D006801 Humans Members of the species Homo sapiens. Homo sapiens,Man (Taxonomy),Human,Man, Modern,Modern Man
D000161 Acoustic Stimulation Use of sound to elicit a response in the nervous system. Auditory Stimulation,Stimulation, Acoustic,Stimulation, Auditory

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