Beta rhythmicity in human motor cortex reflects neural population coupling that modulates subsequent finger...

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Motor Control
• Human Behavior

Background:

• Human motor performance is influenced by intrinsic brain rhythms.
• Understanding the neural basis of bimanual coordination is crucial for motor control research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the role of pre-movement neural oscillations in regulating anti-phase bimanual coordination stability.
• To explore the influence of motor network dynamics on coordination performance.

Main Methods:

• Online estimation of pre-movement bi-hemispheric primary motor cortex (M1) phase synchrony using electroencephalography (EEG).
• Analysis of anti-phase bimanual tapping duration in relation to neural oscillations.
• Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) over the supplementary motor area (SMA) to assess cortical interaction.

Main Results:

• Lower M1-M1 phase synchrony in the beta-band preceded longer-duration anti-phase bimanual tapping.
• Inter-individual variability in tapping duration was linked to pre-movement M1-M1 synchrony and SMA spectral power.
• Sham-controlled rTMS confirmed the necessity of cortical interaction for maintaining anti-phase coordination.

Conclusions:

• Pre-movement cortical oscillatory coupling within the motor network significantly influences human bimanual coordination.
• These findings suggest that covert monitoring of preparatory neural dynamics could enable augmentation of human motor abilities.