scholarly journals Temporal dynamics of cerebellar and motor cortex physiological processes during motor skill learning

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
D. Spampinato ◽  
P. Celnik
Keyword(s):  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Temporal Dynamics ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Motor Skill Learning ◽  
Physiological Processes

scholarly journals Somatosensory changes associated with motor skill learning

2020 ◽  
Vol 123 (3) ◽  
pp. 1052-1062 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jasmine L. Mirdamadi ◽  
Hannah J. Block
Keyword(s):  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Motor Adaptation ◽  
Short Latency ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Motor Skill Learning ◽  
Short Latency Afferent Inhibition ◽  
Afferent Inhibition ◽  
Speed Accuracy ◽  
Somatosensory Function

Trial-and-error motor adaptation has been linked to somatosensory plasticity and shifts in proprioception (limb position sense). The role of sensory processing in motor skill learning is less understood. Unlike adaptation, skill learning involves the acquisition of new movement patterns in the absence of perturbation, with performance limited by the speed-accuracy trade-off. We investigated somatosensory changes during motor skill learning at the behavioral and neurophysiological levels. Twenty-eight healthy young adults practiced a maze-tracing task, guiding a robotic manipulandum through an irregular two-dimensional track featuring several abrupt turns. Practice occurred on days 1 and 2. Skill was assessed before practice on day 1 and again on day 3, with learning indicated by a shift in the speed-accuracy function between these assessments. Proprioceptive function was quantified with a passive two-alternative forced-choice task. In a subset of 15 participants, we measured short-latency afferent inhibition (SAI) to index somatosensory projections to motor cortex. We found that motor practice enhanced the speed-accuracy skill function ( F4,108 = 32.15, P < 0.001) and was associated with improved proprioceptive sensitivity at retention ( t22 = 24.75, P = 0.0031). Furthermore, SAI increased after training ( F1,14 = 5.41, P = 0.036). Interestingly, individuals with larger increases in SAI, reflecting enhanced somatosensory afference to motor cortex, demonstrated larger improvements in motor skill learning. These findings suggest that SAI may be an important functional mechanism for some aspect of motor skill learning. Further research is needed to test what parameters (task complexity, practice time, etc.) are specifically linked to somatosensory function. NEW & NOTEWORTHY Somatosensory processing has been implicated in motor adaptation, where performance recovers from a perturbation such as a force field. We investigated somatosensory function during motor skill learning, where a new motor pattern is acquired in the absence of perturbation. After skill practice, we found changes in proprioception and short-latency afferent inhibition (SAI), signifying somatosensory change at both the behavioral and neurophysiological levels. SAI may be an important functional mechanism by which individuals learn motor skills.

scholarly journals MeCP2 deletion impaired layer 2/3-dominant dynamic reorganization of cortical circuit during motor skill learning

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuanlei Yue ◽  
Pan Xu ◽  
Zhichao Liu ◽  
Zekai Chen ◽  
Juntao Su ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Rett Syndrome ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Procedural Learning ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Motor Skill Learning ◽  
Layer 2 ◽  
Cortical Circuit ◽  
Circuit Reorganization

AbstractMotor cortex displays remarkable plasticity during motor learning. However, it remains largely unknown how the highly dynamic motor cortical circuit reorganizes during reward-independent procedural learning at the populational level. Machine learning-based analysis of the neuronal events recorded with in vivo two-photon calcium imaging revealed procedural learning-induced circuit reorganization in superficial but not deep layers of the motor cortex while mice learned to run on a speed-controlled treadmill. Mice lacking Methyl-CpG-binding protein (MeCP2), an animal model for Rett Syndrome, exhibited impaired both procedural learning and dynamic circuit reorganization in layer 2/3, but not layer 5a. These results identify potential circuit mechanisms underlying motor skill learning disability caused by MeCP2 deletion and provide insight in developing therapies for Rett syndrome.

Primary motor cortex disinhibition during motor skill learning

2014 ◽  
Vol 112 (1) ◽  
pp. 156-164 ◽  
Author(s):  
James P. Coxon ◽  
Nicola M. Peat ◽  
Winston D. Byblow
Keyword(s):  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Motor Learning ◽  
Skill Acquisition ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Primary Motor Cortex ◽  
Brain Plasticity ◽  
Intracortical Inhibition ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Motor Skill Learning ◽  
Pinch Grip

Motor learning requires practice over a period of time and depends on brain plasticity, yet even for relatively simple movements, there are multiple practice strategies that can be used for skill acquisition. We investigated the role of intracortical inhibition in the primary motor cortex (M1) during motor skill learning. Event-related transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used to assess corticomotor excitability and inhibition thought to involve synaptic and extrasynaptic γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA). Short intracortical inhibition (SICI) was assessed using 1- and 2.5-ms interstimulus intervals (ISIs). Participants learned a novel, sequential pinch-grip task on a computer in either a repetitive or interleaved practice structure. Both practice structures showed equivalent levels of motor performance at the end of acquisition and at retention 1 wk later. There was a novel task-related modulation of 1-ms SICI. Repetitive practice elicited a greater reduction of 1- and 2.5-ms SICI, i.e., disinhibition, between rest and task acquisition, compared with interleaved practice. These novel findings support the use of a repetitive practice structure for motor learning because the associated effects within M1 have relevance for motor rehabilitation.

scholarly journals Circuit Changes in Motor Cortex During Motor Skill Learning

Neuroscience ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 368 ◽  
pp. 283-297 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew E. Papale ◽  
Bryan M. Hooks
Keyword(s):  
Motor Cortex ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Skill Learning ◽  
Motor Skill Learning
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