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Behmer LP. Mu-ERD reflects action understanding, but the effect is small. Brain Res 2024; 1832:148854. [PMID: 38493572 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2024.148854] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/14/2023] [Revised: 03/05/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/19/2024]
Abstract
Since the mid-2000's, many researchers have provided evidence that mu-ERD measured at the motor cortex may reflect the collective activation of upstream brain regions associated with the human mirror system during action observation paradigms; however, several recent papers have called these findings into question. Our study represents an effort to address these criticisms. In our study, participants watched videos in which the type of grip an actor used to grasp a coffee mug either conveyed the goal with 100 % certainty (unambiguous-goal trials), or offered no predictive information (ambiguous-goal trials). If mu-ERD indexes action understanding, then we predicted that mu-ERD should increase while participants watched the actor grasp the mug for unambiguous-goal trials, but not for ambiguous-goal trials. During the intervals where participants watched the actor execute the goal, mu-ERD for unambiguous-goal trials should remain steady, whereas mu-ERD for ambiguous-goal trials should now increase. Conversely, if mu-ERD does not index action understanding, and instead reflects general motor processes associated with action (such as the activation of population vectors in M1 or planning processes), then mu-ERD should show no difference across conditions. Across most comparisons, we found that mu-ERD mostly reflected general motor processes; however, there was a small effect when participants overserved unambiguous-goal trials while watching the actor execute the goal suggesting that mu-ERD does reflect mirroring, but the effect is small.
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Chiappini E, Turrini S, Zanon M, Marangon M, Borgomaneri S, Avenanti A. Driving Hebbian plasticity over ventral premotor-motor projections transiently enhances motor resonance. Brain Stimul 2024; 17:211-220. [PMID: 38387557 DOI: 10.1016/j.brs.2024.02.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2023] [Revised: 12/23/2023] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Making sense of others' actions relies on the activation of an action observation network (AON), which maps visual information about observed actions onto the observer's motor system. This motor resonance process manifests in the primary motor cortex (M1) as increased corticospinal excitability finely tuned to the muscles engaged in the observed action. Motor resonance in M1 is facilitated by projections from higher-order AON regions. However, whether manipulating the strength of AON-to-M1 connectivity affects motor resonance remains unclear. METHODS We used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in 48 healthy humans. Cortico-cortical paired associative stimulation (ccPAS) was administered over M1 and the ventral premotor cortex (PMv), a key AON node, to induce spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP) in the pathway connecting them. Single-pulse TMS assessed motor resonance during action observation. RESULTS Before ccPAS, action observation increased corticospinal excitability in the muscles corresponding to the observed movements, reflecting motor resonance in M1. Notably, ccPAS aimed at strengthening projections from PMv to M1 (PMv→M1) induced short-term enhancement of motor resonance. The enhancement specifically occurred with the ccPAS configuration consistent with forward PMv→M1 projections and dissipated 20 min post-stimulation; ccPAS administered in the reverse order (M1→PMv) and sham stimulation did not affect motor resonance. CONCLUSIONS These findings provide the first evidence that inducing STDP to strengthen PMv input to M1 neurons causally enhances muscle-specific motor resonance in M1. Our study sheds light on the plastic mechanisms that shape AON functionality and demonstrates that exogenous manipulation of AON connectivity can influence basic mirror mechanisms that underlie social perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emilio Chiappini
- Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, University of Vienna, 1010, Vienna, Austria; Centro Studi e Ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Dipartimento di Psicologia "Renzo Canestrari", Campus di Cesena, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, 47521, Cesena, Italy; Department of Psychology and Neurosciences, Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors (IfADo), 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
| | - Sonia Turrini
- Centro Studi e Ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Dipartimento di Psicologia "Renzo Canestrari", Campus di Cesena, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, 47521, Cesena, Italy; Precision Neuroscience & Neuromodulation Program, Gordon Center for Medical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital & Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 02114, United States
| | - Marco Zanon
- Centro Studi e Ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Dipartimento di Psicologia "Renzo Canestrari", Campus di Cesena, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, 47521, Cesena, Italy; Neuroscience Area, International School for Advanced Studies (SISSA), 34136, Trieste, Italy
| | - Mattia Marangon
- Centro Studi e Ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Dipartimento di Psicologia "Renzo Canestrari", Campus di Cesena, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, 47521, Cesena, Italy; Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Biomedicina e Scienze del Movimento, Sezione di Fisiologia e Psicologia, Università di Verona, 37124, Verona, Italy
| | - Sara Borgomaneri
- Centro Studi e Ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Dipartimento di Psicologia "Renzo Canestrari", Campus di Cesena, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, 47521, Cesena, Italy
| | - Alessio Avenanti
- Centro Studi e Ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Dipartimento di Psicologia "Renzo Canestrari", Campus di Cesena, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, 47521, Cesena, Italy; Centro de Investigación en Neuropsicología y Neurociencias Cognitivas (CINPSI Neurocog), Universidad Católica Del Maule, 346000, Talca, Chile.
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Botta A, Zhao M, Samogin J, Pelosin E, Bonassi G, Lagravinese G, Mantini D, Avenanti A, Avanzino L. Early modulations of neural oscillations during the processing of emotional body language. Psychophysiology 2024; 61:e14436. [PMID: 37681463 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Revised: 08/01/2023] [Accepted: 08/24/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023]
Abstract
The processing of threat-related emotional body language (EBL) has been shown to engage sensorimotor cortical areas early on and induce freezing in the observers' motor system, particularly when observing fearful EBL. To provide insights into the interplay between somatosensory and motor areas during observation of EBL, here, we used high-density electroencephalography (hd-EEG) in healthy humans while they observed EBL stimuli involving fearful and neutral expressions. To capture early sensorimotor brain response, we focused on P100 fronto-central event-related potentials (ERPs) and event-related desynchronization/synchronization (ERD/ERS) in the mu-alpha (8-13 Hz) and lower beta (13-20 Hz) bands over the primary motor (M1) and somatosensory (S1) cortices. Source-level ERP and ERD/ERS analyses were conducted using eLORETA. Results revealed higher P100 amplitudes in motor and premotor channels for 'Neutral' compared with 'Fear'. Additionally, analysis of ERD/ERS showed increased beta band desynchronization in M1 for 'Neutral', and the opposite pattern in S1. Source-level estimation showed significant differences between conditions mainly observed in the beta band over sensorimotor areas. These findings provide high-temporal resolution evidence suggesting that seeing fearful EBL induces early activation of somatosensory areas, which in turn could suppress M1 activity. These findings highlight early dynamics within the observer's sensorimotor system and hint at a sensorimotor mechanism supporting freezing during the processing of EBL.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mingqi Zhao
- Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Jessica Samogin
- Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Elisa Pelosin
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, and Maternal Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - Gaia Bonassi
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, and Maternal Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - Giovanna Lagravinese
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
- Department of Neuroscience, Rehabilitation, Ophthalmology, Genetics, and Maternal Child Health (DINOGMI), University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
| | - Dante Mantini
- Movement Control and Neuroplasticity Research Group, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Alessio Avenanti
- Centro studi e ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Dipartimento di Psicologia "Renzo Canestrari", Campus Cesena, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, Cesena, Italy
- Centro de Investigación en Neuropsicología y Neurociencias Cognitivas, Universidad Católica del Maule, Talca, Chile
| | - Laura Avanzino
- IRCCS Ospedale Policlinico San Martino, Genoa, Italy
- Department of Experimental Medicine (DIMES), Section of Human Physiology, University of Genoa, Genoa, Italy
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Spaccasassi C, Cenka K, Petkovic S, Avenanti A. Sense of agency predicts severity of moral judgments. Front Psychol 2023; 13:1070742. [PMID: 36817371 PMCID: PMC9932714 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1070742] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Sense of Agency (SoA) refers to the awareness of being the agent of our own actions. A key feature of SoA relies on the perceived temporal compression between our own actions and their sensory consequences, a phenomenon known as "Intentional Binding." Prior studies have linked SoA to the sense of responsibility for our own actions. However, it is unclear whether SoA predicts the way we judge the actions of others - including judgments of morally wrong actions like harming others. To address this issue, we ran an on-line pilot experiment where participants underwent two different tasks designed to tap into SoA and moral cognition. SoA was measured using the Intentional Binding task which allowed us to obtain both implicit (Intentional Binding) and explicit (Agency Rating) measures of SoA. Moral cognition was assessed by asking the same participants to evaluate videoclips where an agent could deliberately or inadvertently cause suffering to a victim (Intentional vs. Accidental Harm) compared with Neutral scenarios. Results showed a significant relation between both implicit and explicit measures of SoA and moral evaluation of the Accidental Harm scenarios, with stronger SoA predicting stricter moral judgments. These findings suggest that our capacity to feel in control of our actions predicts the way we judge others' actions, with stronger feelings of responsibility over our own actions predicting the severity of our moral evaluations of other actions. This was particularly true in ambiguous scenarios characterized by an incongruency between an apparently innocent intention and a negative action outcome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Spaccasassi
- Centre for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, Cesena, Italy,*Correspondence: Chiara Spaccasassi, ;
| | - Kamela Cenka
- Centre for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, Cesena, Italy
| | - Stella Petkovic
- Centre for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, Cesena, Italy,"Sapienza" University of Rome and CLN2S@SAPIENZA, Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Rome, Italy
| | - Alessio Avenanti
- Centre for Studies and Research in Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychology, Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna, Cesena, Italy,Centro de Investigación en Neuropsicología y Neurosciencias Cognitivas, Universidad Católica Del Maule, Talca, Chile
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Syrov N, Bredikhin D, Yakovlev L, Miroshnikov A, Kaplan A. Mu-desynchronization, N400 and corticospinal excitability during observation of natural and anatomically unnatural finger movements. Front Hum Neurosci 2022; 16:973229. [PMID: 36118966 PMCID: PMC9480608 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.973229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The action observation networks (AON) (or the mirror neuron system) are the neural underpinnings of visuomotor integration and play an important role in motor control. Besides, one of the main functions of the human mirror neuron system is recognition of observed actions and the prediction of its outcome through the comparison with the internal mental motor representation. Previous studies focused on the human mirror neurons (MNs) activation during object-oriented movements observation, therefore intransitive movements observation effects on MNs activity remains relatively little-studied. Moreover, the dependence of MNs activation on the biomechanical characteristics of observed movement and their biological plausibility remained highly underexplored. In this study we proposed that naturalness of observed intransitive movement can modulate the MNs activity. Event-related desynchronization (ERD) of sensorimotor electroencephalography (EEG) rhythms, N400 event-related potentials (ERPs) component and corticospinal excitability were investigated in twenty healthy volunteers during observation of simple non-transitive finger flexion that might be either biomechanically natural or unnatural when finger wriggled out toward the dorsal side of palm. We showed that both natural and unnatural movements caused mu/beta-desynchronization, which gradually increased during the flexion phase and returned to baseline while observation of extension. Desynchronization of the mu-rhythm was significantly higher during observation of the natural movements. At the same time, beta-rhythm was not found to be sensitive to the action naturalness. Also, observation of unnatural movements caused an increased amplitude of the N400 component registered in the centro-parietal regions. We suggest that the sensitivity of N400 to intransitive action observation with no explicit semantic context might imply the broader role of N400 sources within AON. Surprisingly, no changes in corticospinal excitability were found. This lack of excitability modulation by action observation could be related with dependence of the M1 activity on the observed movement phase.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nikolay Syrov
- Baltic Center for Artificial Intelligence and Neurotechnology, Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia
- V. Zelman Center for Neurobiology and Brain Restoration, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Moscow, Russia
- *Correspondence: Nikolay Syrov,
| | - Dimitri Bredikhin
- Department of Human and Animal Physiology, Faculty of Biology, M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Cognition and Decision Making, National Research University Higher School of Economics, Moscow, Russia
| | - Lev Yakovlev
- Baltic Center for Artificial Intelligence and Neurotechnology, Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia
- V. Zelman Center for Neurobiology and Brain Restoration, Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, Moscow, Russia
| | - Andrei Miroshnikov
- Baltic Center for Artificial Intelligence and Neurotechnology, Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia
| | - Alexander Kaplan
- Baltic Center for Artificial Intelligence and Neurotechnology, Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kaliningrad, Russia
- Department of Human and Animal Physiology, Faculty of Biology, M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
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