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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 1, 2026

Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation

Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation

Published on: January 1, 2014

Activity in Primary Motor Cortex Related to Visual Feedback.

Steven B Suway¹, Andrew B Schwartz²

¹Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA; Center for the Neural Basis of Cognition, Carnegie Mellon University and University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA.

|December 19, 2019

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Neural modulation in primate motor cortex shows temporal epochs. These epochs are driven by behavior, particularly visual feedback during reaching movements.

Keywords:

motor cortex neural coding reaching visual feedback visuomotor rotation

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Last Updated: Jul 1, 2026

Corticospinal Excitability Modulation During Action Observation

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Published on: January 1, 2014

Force and Position Control in Humans - The Role of Augmented Feedback

Force and Position Control in Humans - The Role of Augmented Feedback

Published on: June 19, 2016

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

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

Published on: September 11, 2017

Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Motor Control
Primate Studies

Background:

Neural modulation in the motor cortex is complex.
Reaching movements involve intricate temporal patterns of neural activity.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate if temporal epochs in motor cortical modulation are driven by behavioral events.
To understand the role of visual feedback in shaping neural activity during reaching.

Main Methods:

Monkeys performed center-out reaching tasks with and without visuomotor rotation.
Single-unit recordings were used to analyze neural activity.
Visual feedback was manipulated by removing it before movement initiation.

Main Results:

Neural modulation during reaching could be separated into discrete temporal epochs.
Adaptation to visuomotor rotation affected specific temporal components of neural responses.
Adaptation-sensitive neural components at the end of movement were reduced or absent without visual feedback.

Conclusions:

Temporal structure in motor cortical activity is significantly driven by behavioral demands.
A distinct temporal component of motor cortical activity is directly related to the presence of visual feedback.