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Updated: Mar 15, 2026

Frame-by-Frame Video Analysis of Idiosyncratic Reach-to-Grasp Movements in Humans
Published on: January 15, 2018
Grasp-Based Functional Coupling Between Reach- and Grasp-Related Components of Forelimb Muscle Activity
Shashwati Geed1,2,3, Peter L E van Kan1
1a Department of Kinesiology , University of Wisconsin-Madison , Wisconsin.
None:
How are appropriate combinations of forelimb muscles selected during reach-to-grasp movements in the presence of neuromotor redundancy and important task-related constraints? The authors tested whether grasp type or target location preferentially influence the selection and synergistic coupling between forelimb muscles during reach-to-grasp movements. Factor analysis applied to 14-20 forelimb electromyograms recorded from monkeys performing reach-to-grasp tasks revealed 4-6 muscle components that showed transport/preshape- or grasp-related features. Weighting coefficients of transport/preshape-related components demonstrated strongest similarities for reaches that shared the same grasp type rather than the same target location. Scaling coefficients of transport/preshape- and grasp-related components showed invariant temporal coupling. Thus, grasp type influenced strongly both transport/preshape- and grasp-related muscle components, giving rise to grasp-based functional coupling between forelimb muscles.
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