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Related Concept Videos

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex01:14

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

The cerebral cortex, the brain's outermost layer, is pivotal in processing complex cognitive tasks, emotions, and various sensory inputs and executing voluntary motor activities. This intricate structure is divided into three primary functional areas: the motor areas, sensory areas, and association areas.
Motor Areas
The motor areas located in the frontal lobe are central to controlling voluntary movements. This region is further subdivided into the primary motor cortex and the premotor cortex.
Somatosensation01:33

Somatosensation

The somatosensory system relays sensory information from the skin, mucous membranes, limbs, and joints. Somatosensation is more familiarly known as the sense of touch. A typical somatosensory pathway includes three types of long neurons: primary, secondary, and tertiary. Primary neurons have cell bodies located near the spinal cord in groups of neurons called dorsal root ganglia. The sensory neurons of ganglia innervate designated areas of skin called dermatomes.
Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex01:23

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

The somatosensory cortex in the parietal lobes is crucial for interpreting sensory data such as touch, temperature, and proprioception. The somatosensory cortex, situated in the parietal lobes, plays a vital role in interpreting sensory information like touch, temperature, and proprioception—awareness of body position. This specialized brain region features an organized structure wherein neurons at the top primarily process sensations originating from the lower body. In contrast, those at the...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 5, 2026

Real-time Video Projection in an MRI for Characterization of Neural Correlates Associated with Mirror Therapy for Phantom Limb Pain
11:29

Real-time Video Projection in an MRI for Characterization of Neural Correlates Associated with Mirror Therapy for Phantom Limb Pain

Published on: April 20, 2019

Misconceptions about mirror-induced motor cortex activation.

Peter Praamstra1, Laura Torney, Christian J Rawle

  • 1Behavioural Brain Sciences Centre, School of Psychology, University of Birmingham, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK. p.praamstra@bham.ac.uk

Cerebral Cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)
|January 14, 2011
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Recent studies suggested mirror viewing reversed motor cortex activation, but this study refutes that claim. We found subtle motor cortical activity, not a reversal, when observing self-produced movements in a mirror.

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Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Motor Control
  • Neuroplasticity

Background:

  • Action observation typically activates the contralateral motor cortex.
  • Recent studies claimed mirror viewing of self-produced movements induced ipsilateral motor cortex activation, implying a reversal.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the claim of reversed contralateral and ipsilateral motor cortex activation under mirror viewing conditions.
  • To re-evaluate motor cortical activity during observation of self-produced movements using an improved experimental design.

Main Methods:

  • Participants observed their own hand movements reflected in a mirror.
  • Electrophysiological recordings (e.g., TMS-EMG) were used to measure motor cortex activity.
  • An improved experimental design addressed potential methodological limitations of previous studies.

Main Results:

  • The study refutes the claim of a complete reversal of contralateral and ipsilateral motor cortex activation.
  • Methodological limitations in prior work were identified as the cause of the reported reversal.
  • Subtle, but not reversed, patterns of motor cortical activity were confirmed under mirrored viewing conditions.

Conclusions:

  • The previously reported reversal of motor cortex activation during mirror viewing of self-produced movements is physiologically implausible and methodologically unsound.
  • Mirror viewing of self-produced movements does induce motor cortical activity, but not a reversal of the typical activation patterns.
  • Further research is needed to understand the nuanced mechanisms of motor cortical engagement during self-observation.