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Updated: Dec 24, 2025
11:18
Quantifying Learning in Young Infants: Tracking Leg Actions During a Discovery-learning Task
Published on: June 1, 2015
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Distinct locomotor precursors in newborn babies
Francesca Sylos-Labini1, Valentina La Scaleia1, Germana Cappellini1,2
1Laboratory of Neuromotor Physiology, Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico Fondazione Santa Lucia, 00179 Rome, Italy.
Summary
Newborns exhibit distinct kicking and stepping movement patterns. Mature locomotion develops through combining kicking patterns with stepping synergies, influenced by sensory feedback and experience.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Motor Control
Background:
- Mature locomotion relies on modular spinal drives and muscle synergies.
- The developmental origins of these locomotor modules, and their reliance on experience versus intrinsic programming, are not fully understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the development of neuromuscular modules for locomotion.
- To differentiate between spontaneous kicking and weight-bearing stepping at birth and track the development of stepping in infants.
Main Methods:
- Comparison of neuromuscular modules in spontaneous kicking and weight-bearing stepping in neonates.
- Longitudinal tracking of ground-stepping development in infants aged 4 to 48 months.
Main Results:
- Neonatal kicking displayed numerous temporal patterns but lacked stable muscle synergies.
- Neonatal ground-stepping showed fewer temporal patterns but organized into stable synergies.
- Postnatally, the number of temporal patterns in stepping increased progressively after 6 months, reaching adult levels after independent walking was established.
Conclusions:
- Locomotor modules at birth differ between kicking and stepping, suggesting dynamic neural reconfiguration based on sensory feedback.
- Mature locomotor modules likely emerge from a combination of extensive kicking patterns and the synergistic organization refined through weight-bearing stepping experiences.
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