The parietal opercular auditory-sensorimotor network in musicians: A resting-state fMRI study

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Auditory Perception
• Motor Control

Background:

• Auditory-sensorimotor coupling is essential for musical performance, relying on auditory and somatosensory feedback.
• The parietal operculum (PO) is implicated as a crucial connector hub linking auditory, somatosensory, and motor cortical regions.
• Previous research indicates opercular activation during music engagement.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate differences in the parietal operculum (PO) functional connectivity network between musicians and non-musicians.
• To determine if musicians exhibit altered connectivity within the PO network, particularly concerning auditory and sensorimotor areas.

Main Methods:

• Resting-state functional connectivity analysis was employed.
• The study examined PO connectivity with Heschl's gyrus (HG), planum temporale (PT), precentral gyrus (preCG), and postcentral gyrus (postCG).
• Participants included 35 musicians and 35 non-musicians.

Main Results:

• Musicians demonstrated increased functional connectivity in the left PO with ipsilateral auditory (HG, PT) and sensorimotor (preCG, postCG) areas.
• Musicians showed enhanced functional connectivity in the right PO with contralateral auditory (HG) and sensorimotor (preCG, postCG) areas, and ipsilateral postCG.
• No significant differences were found in direct functional connectivity between auditory (HG/PT) and sensorimotor (preCG/postCG) areas between groups.

Conclusions:

• The parietal operculum (PO) network exhibits enhanced functional connectivity with auditory and sensorimotor regions in musicians compared to non-musicians.
• This enhanced PO network connectivity in musicians likely facilitates musical performance by integrating multimodal sensory information.
• The PO network is proposed to mediate auditory-sensorimotor control, crucial for modulating musical output.