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Updated: Jun 24, 2026
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Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation
Published on: December 31, 2013
Relationship between activity in human primary motor cortex during action observation and the mirror neuron system
James M Kilner1, Jennifer L Marchant, Chris D Frith
1The Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, London, London, United Kingdom. j.kilner@fil.ion.ucl.ac.uk
Plos One
|March 18, 2009
Summary
Beta cortical oscillations attenuate when observing actions, suggesting a human mirror neuron system. This brain activity modulation depends on the observed movement
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Motor control
- Brain activity
Background:
- Beta cortical oscillations are modulated during action observation, proposed as evidence for the human mirror neuron system (MNS).
- The influence of viewpoint on this neural modulation remains underexplored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how the viewpoint of an observed action modulates beta cortical oscillations.
- To determine if observed movement side or hand drives beta oscillation changes.
Main Methods:
- Subjects observed videos of arm movements performed by an actor.
- Electroencephalography (EEG) was used to measure beta cortical oscillations.
Main Results:
- Significant modulation of beta oscillations was observed over left and right sensorimotor cortices during action observation.
- The attenuation pattern was primarily driven by the side of the screen where the movement occurred, not the specific hand involved.
Conclusions:
- The viewpoint, specifically the screen location of the observed action, influences beta oscillation modulation.
- Findings align with mirror neuron properties reported in primate F5, suggesting similar mechanisms in humans.
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