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Updated: Jun 16, 2026

Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation
Published on: December 31, 2013
Semantics in the motor system: motor-cortical Beta oscillations reflect semantic knowledge of end-postures for object
Michiel van Elk1, Hein T van Schie, Ruby van den Heuvel
1Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen Nijmegen, Netherlands.
Abstract:
In the present EEG study we investigated whether semantic knowledge for object use is represented in motor-related brain areas. Subjects were required to perform actions with everyday objects and to maintain either a meaningful or a meaningless end posture with the object. Analysis of the EEG data focused on the beta-frequency band, as previous studies have indicated that the maintenance of a posture is reflected in stronger beta-oscillations. Time frequency analysis indicated that the execution of actions resulting in a meaningless compared to a meaningful end posture was accompanied by a stronger beta-desynchronization towards the end of the movement and a stronger subsequent beta-rebound after posture-onset. The effect in the beta-frequency band was localized to premotor, parietal and medial frontal areas and could not be attributed to differences in timing or movement complexity between meaningful and meaningless actions. Together these findings directly show that the motor system is differentially activated during the execution and maintenance of semantically correct or incorrect end postures. This suggests that semantic object knowledge is indeed represented in motor-related brain areas, organized around specific end postures associated with the use of objects.
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