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Schuster BA, Sowden S, Rybicki AJ, Fraser DS, Press C, Hickman L, Holland P, Cook JL. Disruption of dopamine D2/D3 system function impairs the human ability to understand the mental states of other people. PLoS Biol 2024; 22:e3002652. [PMID: 38870319 PMCID: PMC11175582 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002652] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 05/01/2024] [Indexed: 06/15/2024] Open
Abstract
Difficulties in reasoning about others' mental states (i.e., mentalising/Theory of Mind) are highly prevalent among disorders featuring dopamine dysfunctions (e.g., Parkinson's disease) and significantly affect individuals' quality of life. However, due to multiple confounding factors inherent to existing patient studies, currently little is known about whether these sociocognitive symptoms originate from aberrant dopamine signalling or from psychosocial changes unrelated to dopamine. The present study, therefore, investigated the role of dopamine in modulating mentalising in a sample of healthy volunteers. We used a double-blind, placebo-controlled procedure to test the effect of the D2/D3 antagonist haloperidol on mental state attribution, using an adaptation of the Heider and Simmel (1944) animations task. On 2 separate days, once after receiving 2.5 mg haloperidol and once after receiving placebo, 33 healthy adult participants viewed and labelled short videos of 2 triangles depicting mental state (involving mentalistic interaction wherein 1 triangle intends to cause or act upon a particular mental state in the other, e.g., surprising) and non-mental state (involving reciprocal interaction without the intention to cause/act upon the other triangle's mental state, e.g., following) interactions. Using Bayesian mixed effects models, we observed that haloperidol decreased accuracy in labelling both mental and non-mental state animations. Our secondary analyses suggest that dopamine modulates inference from mental and non-mental state animations via independent mechanisms, pointing towards 2 putative pathways underlying the dopaminergic modulation of mental state attribution: action representation and a shared mechanism supporting mentalising and emotion recognition. We conclude that dopaminergic pathways impact Theory of Mind, at least indirectly. Our results have implications for the neurochemical basis of sociocognitive difficulties in patients with dopamine dysfunctions and generate new hypotheses about the specific dopamine-mediated mechanisms underlying social cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bianca A Schuster
- Centre for Human Brain Health and School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- Department of Cognition, Emotion, and Methods in Psychology, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Sophie Sowden
- Centre for Human Brain Health and School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Alicia J Rybicki
- Centre for Human Brain Health and School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Dagmar S Fraser
- Centre for Human Brain Health and School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
| | - Clare Press
- Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck University of London, London, United Kingdom
- Wellcome Centre for Human Neuroimaging, UCL, London, United Kingdom
| | - Lydia Hickman
- Centre for Human Brain Health and School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
- MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Peter Holland
- Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jennifer L Cook
- Centre for Human Brain Health and School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
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2
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Casartelli L, Maronati C, Cavallo A. From neural noise to co-adaptability: Rethinking the multifaceted architecture of motor variability. Phys Life Rev 2023; 47:245-263. [PMID: 37976727 DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2023.10.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
In the last decade, the source and the functional meaning of motor variability have attracted considerable attention in behavioral and brain sciences. This construct classically combined different levels of description, variable internal robustness or coherence, and multifaceted operational meanings. We provide here a comprehensive review of the literature with the primary aim of building a precise lexicon that goes beyond the generic and monolithic use of motor variability. In the pars destruens of the work, we model three domains of motor variability related to peculiar computational elements that influence fluctuations in motor outputs. Each domain is in turn characterized by multiple sub-domains. We begin with the domains of noise and differentiation. However, the main contribution of our model concerns the domain of adaptability, which refers to variation within the same exact motor representation. In particular, we use the terms learning and (social)fitting to specify the portions of motor variability that depend on our propensity to learn and on our largely constitutive propensity to be influenced by external factors. A particular focus is on motor variability in the context of the sub-domain named co-adaptability. Further groundbreaking challenges arise in the modeling of motor variability. Therefore, in a separate pars construens, we attempt to characterize these challenges, addressing both theoretical and experimental aspects as well as potential clinical implications for neurorehabilitation. All in all, our work suggests that motor variability is neither simply detrimental nor beneficial, and that studying its fluctuations can provide meaningful insights for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luca Casartelli
- Theoretical and Cognitive Neuroscience Unit, Scientific Institute IRCCS E. MEDEA, Italy
| | - Camilla Maronati
- Move'n'Brains Lab, Department of Psychology, Università degli Studi di Torino, Italy
| | - Andrea Cavallo
- Move'n'Brains Lab, Department of Psychology, Università degli Studi di Torino, Italy; C'MoN Unit, Fondazione Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, Genova, Italy.
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3
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Bosco A, Filippini M, Borra D, Kirchner EA, Fattori P. Depth and direction effects in the prediction of static and shifted reaching goals from kinematics. Sci Rep 2023; 13:13115. [PMID: 37573413 PMCID: PMC10423273 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-40127-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 08/04/2023] [Indexed: 08/14/2023] Open
Abstract
The kinematic parameters of reach-to-grasp movements are modulated by action intentions. However, when an unexpected change in visual target goal during reaching execution occurs, it is still unknown whether the action intention changes with target goal modification and which is the temporal structure of the target goal prediction. We recorded the kinematics of the pointing finger and wrist during the execution of reaching movements in 23 naïve volunteers where the targets could be located at different directions and depths with respect to the body. During the movement execution, the targets could remain static for the entire duration of movement or shifted, with different timings, to another position. We performed temporal decoding of the final goals and of the intermediate trajectory from the past kinematics exploiting a recurrent neural network. We observed a progressive increase of the classification performance from the onset to the end of movement in both horizontal and sagittal dimensions, as well as in decoding shifted targets. The classification accuracy in decoding horizontal targets was higher than the classification accuracy of sagittal targets. These results are useful for establishing how human and artificial agents could take advantage from the observed kinematics to optimize their cooperation in three-dimensional space.
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Affiliation(s)
- A Bosco
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
- Alma Mater Research Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
| | - M Filippini
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- Alma Mater Research Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - D Borra
- Department of Electrical, Electronic and Information Engineering, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
| | - E A Kirchner
- Department of Electrical Engineering and Information Technology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Duisburg, Germany
- Robotics Innovation Center, German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence GmbH, Kaiserslautern, Germany
| | - P Fattori
- Department of Biomedical and Neuromotor Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
- Alma Mater Research Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
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4
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Bazzini MC, Nuara A, Branchini G, De Marco D, Ferrari L, Lanini MC, Paolini S, Scalona E, Avanzini P, Fabbri-Destro M. The capacity of action observation to drag the trainees' motor pattern toward the observed model. Sci Rep 2023; 13:9107. [PMID: 37277395 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-35664-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Accepted: 05/22/2023] [Indexed: 06/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Action Observation Training (AOT) promotes the acquisition of motor abilities. However, while the cortical modulations associated with the AOT efficacy are well known, few studies investigated the AOT peripheral neural correlates and whether their dynamics move towards the observed model during the training. We administered seventy-two participants (randomized into AOT and Control groups) with training for learning to grasp marbles with chopsticks. Execution practice was preceded by an observation session, in which AOT participants observed an expert performing the task, whereas controls observed landscape videos. Behavioral indices were measured, and three hand muscles' electromyographic (EMG) activity was recorded and compared with the expert. Behaviorally, both groups improved during the training, with AOT outperforming controls. The EMG trainee-model similarity also increased during the training, but only for the AOT group. When combining behavioral and EMG similarity findings, no global relationship emerged; however, behavioral improvements were "locally" predicted by the similarity gain in muscles and action phases more related to the specific motor act. These findings reveal that AOT plays a magnetic role in motor learning, attracting the trainee's motor pattern toward the observed model and paving the way for developing online monitoring tools and neurofeedback protocols.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Chiara Bazzini
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Arturo Nuara
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Giulio Branchini
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Doriana De Marco
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Laura Ferrari
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- School of Advanced Studies, Università di Camerino, Camerino, Italy
| | - Maria Chiara Lanini
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Simone Paolini
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Emilia Scalona
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- Dipartimento Specialità Medico-Chirurgiche, Scienze Radiologiche e Sanità Pubblica (DSMC), Università degli Studi di Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | - Pietro Avanzini
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- Istituto Clinico Humanitas, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Milan, Italy
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Paolini S, Bazzini MC, Rossini M, De Marco D, Nuara A, Presti P, Scalona E, Avanzini P, Fabbri-Destro M. Kicking in or kicking out? The role of the individual motor expertise in predicting the outcome of rugby actions. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1122236. [PMID: 36935992 PMCID: PMC10020490 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1122236] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 02/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
In sports, understanding others' actions represents a fundamental skill that allows players to predict the outcome of teammates' and opponents' actions and counteract them properly. While it is well known that motor expertise sets better premises for predicting the result of an observed sports action, it remains untested whether this principle applies to a team where players cover different positions that imply different motor repertoires. To test this hypothesis, we selected rugby as a paradigmatic example in which only one or two players out of 22 train and perform placed kicks. We administered a placed kick outcome prediction task to three groups of participants, namely, rugby kickers, rugby non-kickers, and controls, thus spanning over different combinations of motor expertise and visual experience. Kickers outperformed both their non-kicking teammates and controls in overall prediction accuracy. We documented how the viewpoint of observation, the expertise of the observed kicker, and the position of the kick on the court influenced the prediction performance across the three groups. Finally, we revealed that within rugby players, the degree of motor expertise (but not the visual experience) causally affects accuracy, and such a result stands even after accounting for the level of visual experience. These findings extend the role of motor expertise in decoding and predicting others' behaviors to sports teammates, among which every member is equipped with a position-specific motor repertoire, advocating for new motor training procedures combining the gestures to-be-performed with those to-be-faced.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Paolini
- Department of Surgery and Medicine, University of Parma, Parma, Italy
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Parma, Italy
| | - Maria Chiara Bazzini
- Department of Surgery and Medicine, University of Parma, Parma, Italy
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Parma, Italy
| | | | - Doriana De Marco
- Department of Surgery and Medicine, University of Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Arturo Nuara
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Parma, Italy
| | - Paolo Presti
- Department of Surgery and Medicine, University of Parma, Parma, Italy
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Parma, Italy
| | - Emilia Scalona
- Department of Medical and Surgical Specialties, Radiological Sciences and Public Health (DSMC), University of Brescia, Brescia, Italy
| | - Pietro Avanzini
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Parma, Italy
- Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Milan, Italy
| | - Maddalena Fabbri-Destro
- Institute of Neuroscience, National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Parma, Italy
- *Correspondence: Maddalena Fabbri-Destro,
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Temporiti F, Ruspi A, De Leo D, Ugolini A, Grappiolo G, Avanzini P, Rizzolatti G, Gatti R. Action Observation and Motor Imagery administered the day before surgery enhance functional recovery in patients after total hip arthroplasty: A randomized controlled trial. Clin Rehabil 2022; 36:1613-1622. [PMID: 35892135 DOI: 10.1177/02692155221116820] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of Action Observation and Motor Imagery administered the day before surgery on functional recovery in patients after total hip arthroplasty. DESIGN Randomised controlled trial. SETTING Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Milan, Italy. PARTICIPANTS Eighty inpatients with end-stage hip osteoarthritis undergoing total hip arthroplasty. INTERVENTIONS All patients followed a standardized postoperative rehabilitation program. Experimental group (AO + MI) performed two 12-minute Action Observation and Motor Imagery sessions on the preoperative day, whereas control group underwent usual care consisting of education without any additional preoperative activity. OUTCOME MEASURES A blinded physiotherapist assessed participants for functional mobility (Timed Up and Go - TUG) (primary outcome), maximum walking speed (10-Meter Walk Test - 10MWT), pain (Numeric Pain Rating Scale - NPRS) and fear of movement (Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia - TSK) the day before and at four days after surgery. RESULTS No between-group differences were found at baseline. Although TUG and 10MWT worsened in both groups (p < 0.001), better TUG was found for AO + MI group at four days (mean difference -5.8 s, 95% confidence interval from -11.3 to -0.3 s, p = 0.039). NPRS (p < 0.001) and TSK (p = 0.036 for AO + MI group, p = 0.003 for control group) improved after surgery without between-group differences. CONCLUSIONS Patients undergoing Action Observation and Motor Imagery on the day before surgery showed less functional decline than control group in the first days after total hip arthroplasty. This intervention may contribute to a safer discharge with higher functional abilities in patients hospitalized for total hip arthroplasty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federico Temporiti
- Physiotherapy Unit, 9268Humanitas Clinical and Research Center - IRCCS, Rozzano, Milan, Italy.,Department of Biomedical Sciences, 437807Humanitas University, Pieve Emanuele, Milan, Italy
| | - Alessandra Ruspi
- Physiotherapy Unit, 9268Humanitas Clinical and Research Center - IRCCS, Rozzano, Milan, Italy
| | - Davide De Leo
- Physiotherapy Unit, 9268Humanitas Clinical and Research Center - IRCCS, Rozzano, Milan, Italy
| | - Alberto Ugolini
- Physiotherapy Unit, 9268Humanitas Clinical and Research Center - IRCCS, Rozzano, Milan, Italy
| | - Guido Grappiolo
- Hip and Knee Orthopedic Surgery Department, 9268Humanitas Clinical and Research Center - IRCCS, Rozzano, Milan, Italy
| | - Pietro Avanzini
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
| | - Giacomo Rizzolatti
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
| | - Roberto Gatti
- Physiotherapy Unit, 9268Humanitas Clinical and Research Center - IRCCS, Rozzano, Milan, Italy.,Department of Biomedical Sciences, 437807Humanitas University, Pieve Emanuele, Milan, Italy
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7
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Bazzini MC, Nuara A, Scalona E, De Marco D, Rizzolatti G, Avanzini P, Fabbri-Destro M. The Proactive Synergy Between Action Observation and Execution in the Acquisition of New Motor Skills. Front Hum Neurosci 2022; 16:793849. [PMID: 35399362 PMCID: PMC8986982 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2022.793849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 02/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Motor learning can be defined as a process that leads to relatively permanent changes in motor behavior through repeated interactions with the environment. Different strategies can be adopted to achieve motor learning: movements can be overtly practiced leading to an amelioration of motor performance; alternatively, covert strategies (e.g., action observation) can promote neuroplastic changes in the motor system even in the absence of real movement execution. However, whether a training regularly alternating action observation and execution (i.e., Action Observation Training, AOT) may surpass the pure motor practice (MP) and observational learning (OL) remains to be established. To address this issue, we enrolled 54 subjects requiring them to learn tying nautical knots via one out of three types of training (AOT, MP, OL) with the scope to investigate which element mostly contributes to motor learning. We evaluated the overall improvement of each group, along with the predictive role that neuropsychological indexes exert on each treatment outcome. The AOT group exhibited the highest performance improvement (42%), indicating that the regular alternation between observation and execution biases participants toward a better performance. The reiteration of this sequence provides an incremental, adjunct value that super-adds onto the efficacy of motor practice or observational learning in isolation (42% > 25% + 10%, i.e., OL + MP). These findings extend the use of the AOT from clinical and rehabilitative contexts to daily routines requiring the learning and perfectioning of new motor skills such as sports training, music, and occupational activities requiring fine motor control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Chiara Bazzini
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Arturo Nuara
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
| | - Emilia Scalona
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
| | - Doriana De Marco
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
| | - Giacomo Rizzolatti
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- Dipartimento di Medicina e Chirurgia, Università degli Studi di Parma, Parma, Italy
| | - Pietro Avanzini
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
- Istituto Clinico Humanitas, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Milan, Italy
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8
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Kinematics and observer-animator kinematic similarity predict mental state attribution from Heider-Simmel style animations. Sci Rep 2021; 11:18266. [PMID: 34521902 PMCID: PMC8440512 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-97660-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2021] [Accepted: 08/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The ability to ascribe mental states, such as beliefs or desires to oneself and other individuals forms an integral part of everyday social interaction. Animations tasks, in which observers watch videos of interacting triangles, have been extensively used to test mental state attribution in a variety of clinical populations. Compared to control participants, individuals with clinical conditions such as autism typically offer less appropriate mental state descriptions of such videos. Recent research suggests that stimulus kinematics and movement similarity (between the video and the observer) may contribute to mental state attribution difficulties. Here we present a novel adaptation of the animations task, suitable to track and compare animation generator and -observer kinematics. Using this task and a population-derived stimulus database, we confirmed the hypotheses that an animation’s jerk and jerk similarity between observer and animator significantly contribute to the correct identification of an animation. By employing random forest analysis to explore other stimulus characteristics, we reveal that other indices of movement similarity, including acceleration- and rotation-based similarity, also predict performance. Our results highlight the importance of movement similarity between observer and animator and raise new questions about reasons why some clinical populations exhibit difficulties with this task.
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Betti S, Finisguerra A, Amoruso L, Urgesi C. Contextual Priors Guide Perception and Motor Responses to Observed Actions. Cereb Cortex 2021; 32:608-625. [PMID: 34297809 DOI: 10.1093/cercor/bhab241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2021] [Revised: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 06/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
In everyday-life scenarios, prior expectations provided by the context in which actions are embedded support action prediction. However, it is still unclear how newly learned action-context associations can drive our perception and motor responses. To fill this gap, we measured behavioral (Experiment 1) and motor responses (Experiment 2) during two tasks requiring the prediction of occluded actions or geometrical shapes. Each task consisted of an implicit probabilistic learning and a test phase. During learning, we exposed participants to videos showing specific associations between a contextual cue and a particular action or shape. During the test phase, videos were earlier occluded to reduce the amount of sensorial information and induce participants to use the implicitly learned action/shape-context associations for disambiguation. Results showed that reliable contextual cues made participants more accurate in identifying the unfolding action or shape. Importantly, motor responses were modulated by contextual probability during action, but not shape prediction. Particularly, in conditions of perceptual uncertainty the motor system coded for the most probable action based on contextual informativeness, regardless of action kinematics. These findings suggest that contextual priors can shape motor responses to action observation beyond mere kinematics mapping.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonia Betti
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Languages and Literatures, Communication, Education and Society, University of Udine, 33100 Udine, Italy.,Department of General Psychology, University of Padova, 35131 Padova, Italy
| | | | - Lucia Amoruso
- BCBL, Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language, 20009 Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain.,IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, 48009 Bilbao, Spain
| | - Cosimo Urgesi
- Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Languages and Literatures, Communication, Education and Society, University of Udine, 33100 Udine, Italy.,Scientific Institute, IRCCS E. Medea, 33037 Pasian di Prato, Udine, Italy
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10
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Zardi A, Carlotti EG, Pontremoli A, Morese R. Dancing in Your Head: An Interdisciplinary Review. Front Psychol 2021; 12:649121. [PMID: 34002113 PMCID: PMC8123236 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.649121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The aim of this review is to highlight the most relevant contributions on dance in neuroscientific research. Neuroscience has analyzed the mirror system through neuroimaging techniques, testing its role in imitative learning, in the recognition of other people's emotions and especially in the understanding of the motor behavior of others. This review analyses the literature related to five general areas: (I) breakthrough studies on the mirror system, and subsequent studies on its involvement in the prediction, the execution, the control of movement, and in the process of "embodied simulation" within the intersubjective relationship; (II) research focused on investigating the neural networks in action observation, and the neural correlates of motor expertise highlighted by comparative studies on different dance styles; (III) studies dealing with the viewer's experience of dance according to specific dance repertoires, which revealed the relevance of choreographic choices for aesthetic appreciation; (IV) studies focused on dance as an aesthetic experience, where both the emotional and the cultural dimension play a significant role, and whose investigation paves the way to further progress both in empirical and in phenomenological research methodologies; (V) collaboration-based experiments, in which neuroscientists and choreographers developed expertise-related questions, especially focusing on the multiple phenomena that underlie motor imagery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Zardi
- Department of Humanities, School of Human Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | | | - Alessandro Pontremoli
- Department of Humanities, School of Human Sciences, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Rosalba Morese
- Faculty of Communication, Culture and Society, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano, Switzerland
- Faculty of Biomedical Sciences, Institute of Public Health, Università della Svizzera Italiana, Lugano, Switzerland
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11
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Rizzolatti G, Fabbri-Destro M, Nuara A, Gatti R, Avanzini P. The role of mirror mechanism in the recovery, maintenance, and acquisition of motor abilities. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 127:404-423. [PMID: 33910057 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.04.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2020] [Revised: 03/12/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
While it is well documented that the motor system is more than a mere implementer of motor actions, the possible applications of its cognitive side are still under-exploited, often remaining as poorly organized evidence. Here, we will collect evidence showing the value of action observation treatment (AOT) in the recovery of impaired motor abilities for a vast number of clinical conditions, spanning from traumatological patients to brain injuries and neurodegenerative diseases. Alongside, we will discuss the use of AOT in the maintenance of appropriate motor behavior in subjects at risk for events with dramatic physical consequences, like fall prevention in elderly people or injury prevention in sports. Finally, we will report that AOT can help to tune existing motor competencies in fields requiring precise motor control. We will connect all these diverse dots into the neurophysiological scenario offered by decades of research on the human mirror mechanism, discussing the potentialities for individualization. Empowered by modern technologies, AOT can impact individuals' safety and quality of life across the whole lifespan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giacomo Rizzolatti
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy
| | | | - Arturo Nuara
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy; Università di Modena e Reggio Emilia, Dipartimento di Scienze Biomediche, Metaboliche, e Neuroscienze, Modena, Italy
| | - Roberto Gatti
- Istituto Clinico Humanitas, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Rozzano, Milan, Italy
| | - Pietro Avanzini
- Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Neuroscienze, Parma, Italy; Istituto Clinico Humanitas, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center, Rozzano, Milan, Italy.
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Neurotypical individuals fail to understand action vitality form in children with autism spectrum disorder. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:27712-27718. [PMID: 33087573 PMCID: PMC7959533 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2011311117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Action vitality forms are highly pervasive aspects of daily life and have been widely assumed to be critical for basic social interactions. Previous evidence indicates that ASD children express their own vitality forms in a way that is motorically dissimilar to TD children. Here we demonstrate that this motor dissimilarity prevents neurotypical adults from recognizing vitality forms, when observing ASD children acting gently or rudely. Although ASD children differentiate these vitality forms, neurotypical adults were remarkably inaccurate in identifying them. This indicates that difficulty in social interaction for ASD individuals should not be entirely ascribed to their lack of understanding others, as standardly assumed. The failure of neurotypical individuals to understand them plays a critical role too. Any defects of sociality in individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are standardly explained in terms of those individuals’ putative impairments in a variety of cognitive functions. Recently, however, the need for a bidirectional approach to social interaction has been emphasized. Such an approach highlights differences in basic ways of acting between ASD and neurotypical individuals which would prevent them from understanding each other. Here we pursue this approach by focusing on basic action features reflecting the agent’s mood and affective states. These are action features Stern named “vitality forms,” and which are widely assumed to substantiate core social interactions [D. N. Stern, The Interpersonal World of the Infant (1985); D. N. Stern, Forms of Vitality Exploring Dynamic Experience in Psychology, Arts, Psychotherapy, and Development (2010)]. Previously we demonstrated that, although ASD and typically developing (TD) children alike differentiate vitality forms when performing actions, ASD children express them in a way that is motorically dissimilar to TD children. To assess whether this motor dissimilarity may have consequences for vitality form recognition, we asked neurotypical participants to identify the vitality form of different types of action performed by ASD or TD children. We found that participants exhibited remarkable inaccuracy in identifying ASD children’s vitality forms. Interestingly, their performance did not benefit from information feedback. This indicates that how people act matters for understanding others and for being understood by them. Because vitality forms pervade every aspect of daily life, our findings promise to open the way to a deeper comprehension of the bidirectional difficulties for both ASD and neurotypical individuals in interacting with one another.
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Temporiti F, Adamo P, Cavalli E, Gatti R. Efficacy and Characteristics of the Stimuli of Action Observation Therapy in Subjects With Parkinson's Disease: A Systematic Review. Front Neurol 2020; 11:808. [PMID: 32903559 PMCID: PMC7438447 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2020.00808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2020] [Accepted: 06/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Background: The discovery of the Mirror Neuron System has promoted the development of Action Observation Therapy (AOT) to improve motor and functional abilities in patients with Parkinson's disease (PD). This innovative approach involves observing video-clips showing motor contents, which may vary across the studies influencing AOT efficacy. To date, no studies have systematically summarized the effects of AOT in patients with PD on motor and functional outcomes, underlining the characteristics of visual stimuli in relation to their efficacy. Objectives: To describe the potential benefits of AOT in patients with PD and discuss the characteristics of visual stimuli used in clinical studies in relation to their efficacy. Methods: A systematic literature search was carried out using MEDLINE via PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, and PEDro, from inception until March 2020. Randomized controlled trials that investigated the effects of AOT on motor and functional recovery in patients with PD were included. Two independent reviewers appraised the records for inclusion, assessed the methodological quality, and extracted the following data: number and characteristics of participants, features and posology of the treatments, outcome measures at each follow-up, and main results. Findings were aggregated into a quantitative synthesis (mean difference and 95% confidence interval) for each time point. Results: Overall, 7 studies (189 participants) with a mean PEDro score of 6.1 (range: 4–8) points were selected. Included studies revealed AOT as effective in improving walking ability and typical motor signs (i.e., freezing of gait and bradykinesia) in patients with PD. Moreover, when this approach incorporated ecological auditory stimuli, changes to functional abilities and quality of life were also induced, which persisted up to 3 months after treatment. However, included studies adopted AOT stimuli with heterogeneous posology (from a single session to 8 weeks) and characteristics of motor contents might be responsible for different motor and functional recovery (person-related and viewing perspectives, transitive or intransitive actions, healthy subjects or patients, and association or not with imitation). Conclusions: AOT leads to improvements in motor and functional abilities in patients with PD and the characteristics of visual stimuli may play a role in determining AOT effects, deserving further investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Federico Temporiti
- Physiotherapy Unit, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center-IRCCS, Milan, Italy.,Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, Milan, Italy
| | - Paola Adamo
- Physiotherapy Unit, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center-IRCCS, Milan, Italy
| | - Emanuele Cavalli
- Physiotherapy Unit, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center-IRCCS, Milan, Italy
| | - Roberto Gatti
- Physiotherapy Unit, Humanitas Clinical and Research Center-IRCCS, Milan, Italy.,Department of Biomedical Sciences, Humanitas University, Milan, Italy
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