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Somatosensation

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.

Motor and Sensory Areas of the Cortex

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....

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association Areas of the Cortex

Association areas are regions of the cerebral cortex that do not have a specific sensory or motor function. Instead, they integrate and interpret information from various sources to enable higher cognitive processes such as memory, learning, and decision-making. Some key association areas include the following:
Prefrontal Association Area: This area is located in the frontal lobe and is involved in planning, decision-making, and moderating social behavior. It connects with primary motor areas,...

Hierarchy of Motor Control

Hierarchy of Motor Control

The hierarchy of motor control refers to the different levels of organization and processing involved in controlling movement in the body. These levels range from higher cortical areas involved in planning and decision-making to lower spinal cord reflexes that respond automatically to external stimuli.

Direct Motor Pathways

Direct Motor Pathways

The direct motor pathways, also known as the pyramidal tracts, are a group of neural pathways that originate in the brain and descend through the spinal cord. They control the voluntary movement of the body. There are two major direct motor pathways: the corticospinal and the corticobulbar tracts.
The corticospinal tract is responsible for the voluntary movement of the limbs and trunk. It originates in the cerebral cortex of the brain and descends through the cerebrum's internal capsule and...

Somatosensory, Motor, and Association Cortex

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...

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 20, 2026

Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation

Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation

Published on: December 31, 2013

Goal or movement? Action representation within the primary motor cortex.

Andrea Cavallo¹, Giulia Bucchioni, Umberto Castiello

¹Department of Psychology, Centre for Cognitive Science, University of Torino, Via Po 14, 10123, Torino, Italy.

The European Journal of Neuroscience

|August 22, 2013

Summary

Action observation involves both movement goals and specific movements. This study shows the brain processes action goals early and movement details later during observation, suggesting distinct processing stages.

Keywords:

action observation goal coding human motor facilitation reach to grasp movement transcranial magnetic stimulation

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Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation

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Published on: December 31, 2013

Intracortical Inhibition Within the Primary Motor Cortex Can Be Modulated by Changing the Focus of Attention

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Measuring and Manipulating Functionally Specific Neural Pathways in the Human Motor System with Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Measuring and Manipulating Functionally Specific Neural Pathways in the Human Motor System with Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation

Published on: February 23, 2020

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Motor Control
Cognitive Psychology

Background:

Cortico-spinal system facilitation during action observation is known.
Debate exists on whether this facilitation represents movement replication or action goals.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate if action observation facilitates motor cortex activity based on movement goals or specific movement details.
To differentiate between goal-level and movement-level coding during action observation.

Main Methods:

Used transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to record motor evoked potentials (MEPs) from hand muscles in 22 healthy participants.
Participants observed hand grasping a bottle under manipulated conditions: movement type (precision vs. whole-hand grip), situational context (barrier present/absent), and TMS timing (movement onset vs. object contact).

Main Results:

At movement onset, MEPs reflected the motor program needed for the action goal within the situational context.
During later stages of observation (approaching contact), MEPs showed modulation related to the specific observed movement type.
Evidence suggests a shift from goal-based to movement-based processing during action observation.

Conclusions:

Goal coding and movement coding are not mutually exclusive but likely represent different processing stages in action observation.
The findings contribute to understanding how the brain represents and processes observed actions.