The role of plastic changes in the motor cortex and spinal cord for motor learning

TY - ABST

T1 - The role of plastic changes in the motor cortex and spinal cord for motor learning

AU - Nielsen, Jens Bo

AU - Lundbye-Jensen, Jesper

N1 - CURIS 2010 5200 080 Volumne: 198

PY - 2010

Y1 - 2010

N2 - Adaptive changes of the efficacy of neural circuitries at different sites of the central nervous system is the basis of acquisition of new motor skills. Non-invasive human imaging and electrophysiological experiments have demonstrated that the primary motor cortex and spinal cord circuitries are key players in the early stages of skill acquisition and consolidation of motor learning. Expansion of the cortical representation of the trained muscles, changes in corticomuscular coupling and changes in stretch reflex activity are thus all markers of neuroplastic changes accompanying early skill acquisition. We have shown in recent experiments that sensory feedback from the active muscles play a surprisingly specific role at this stage of learning. Following motor skill training, repeated activation of sensory afferents from the muscle that has been involved in a previous training session, interfered with any improvement in task performance obtained during the training session, whereas activation of sensory afferents from other muscles that were not involved in the task had no effect. Similarly, training of a motor task involving a specific movement direction and muscle group completely abolished the consolidation of increased performance of a different previously trained task involving the same movement direction and muscle group, whereas training of other muscles had no effect. This emphasizes the role of specific sensory error signals in the acquisition of new motor skills and illustrates the functional importance of the primary motor cortex, corticospinal tract and spinal cord in the establishment of early motor memory.

AB - Adaptive changes of the efficacy of neural circuitries at different sites of the central nervous system is the basis of acquisition of new motor skills. Non-invasive human imaging and electrophysiological experiments have demonstrated that the primary motor cortex and spinal cord circuitries are key players in the early stages of skill acquisition and consolidation of motor learning. Expansion of the cortical representation of the trained muscles, changes in corticomuscular coupling and changes in stretch reflex activity are thus all markers of neuroplastic changes accompanying early skill acquisition. We have shown in recent experiments that sensory feedback from the active muscles play a surprisingly specific role at this stage of learning. Following motor skill training, repeated activation of sensory afferents from the muscle that has been involved in a previous training session, interfered with any improvement in task performance obtained during the training session, whereas activation of sensory afferents from other muscles that were not involved in the task had no effect. Similarly, training of a motor task involving a specific movement direction and muscle group completely abolished the consolidation of increased performance of a different previously trained task involving the same movement direction and muscle group, whereas training of other muscles had no effect. This emphasizes the role of specific sensory error signals in the acquisition of new motor skills and illustrates the functional importance of the primary motor cortex, corticospinal tract and spinal cord in the establishment of early motor memory.

KW - Faculty of Science

M3 - Conference abstract in journal

SN - 1748-1708

SP - 19

EP - 20

JO - Acta Physiologica

JF - Acta Physiologica

IS - Suppl. 677

T2 - Joint Meeting of the Scandinavian and German Physiological Societies

Y2 - 27 March 2010 through 30 March 2010

ER -