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Related Experiment Videos

Hemispheric threshold differences for motor evoked potentials produced by magnetic coil stimulation.

R A Macdonell1, B E Shapiro, K H Chiappa

  • 1Clinical Neurophysiology Laboratory, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston 02114.

Neurology
|September 1, 1991
PubMed
Summary

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Left brain hemisphere motor pathways are more easily activated than the right, especially for hand muscles like the abductor digiti minimi (ADM). This hemispheric difference in motor cortex excitability is linked to handedness.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Motor Control
  • Human Physiology

Background:

  • Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive technique used to probe the excitability of the motor cortex.
  • Motor pathways exhibit hemisphericAsymmetries, but the precise mechanisms and their relation to handedness require further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate hemispheric differences in motor cortex excitability using TMS.
  • To explore the relationship between these asymmetries and individual handedness.

Main Methods:

  • A brief monophasic pulse was delivered via an electromagnetic coil to preferentially activate motor pathways in each hemisphere.
  • The minimum stimulus intensity (threshold) to evoke compound muscle action potentials in the contralateral abductor digiti minimi (ADM) and biceps muscles was recorded.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Participants' handedness was assessed using a standard handedness index.

    • Main Results:

    • The left hemisphere exhibited a significantly lower motor threshold for the ADM muscle compared to the right hemisphere.
    • Motor thresholds for the biceps muscle were higher than for the ADM muscle, with no significant side-to-side difference.
    • Individuals with a weaker preference for right-hand use showed greater hemispheric differences in ADM motor thresholds.

    Conclusions:

    • The findings suggest an asymmetry in corticomotoneuronal connections, with a greater projection to the motor neuron pool of right-hand muscles from the left hemisphere.
    • This asymmetry likely underlies the observed lower motor threshold in the left hemisphere for hand muscles.
    • Hemispheric excitability differences in motor pathways are influenced by individual handedness.