Abstract
The present study addressed whether motor memory acquired earlier in life through specific training can be maintained through later life with further training. To this end, the present study focused on the training effect of a specific ballet practice and investigated the spinally mediated stretch reflex responses of the soleus muscle in ballet dancers of upper‐middle to old age (60.6 ± 5.4 years old) with experience levels of 28.4 ± 7.4 years (“older ballet” group). Comparisons were conducted with a group of young ballet dancers (“young ballet” group) and groups of both young and older individuals without weekly participation in physical activities (“young sedentary” and “older sedentary” groups). The results revealed natural age‐dependent changes, with reflex responses being larger in older sedentary than in young sedentary individuals. A training‐induced effect was also observed, with responses being smaller in ballet dancers than in sedentary groups of the same age. Furthermore, the responses were surprisingly smaller in the older ballet dancers than in the young sedentary group, at an equivalent level to that of the young ballet dancers. The influence of training, therefore, overcame the natural age‐dependent changes. On the other hand, the onset latencies of the responses showed a solely age‐dependent trend. Taken together, the present is the first to demonstrate that the motor memories in the spinal cord acquired through specific ballet training earlier in life can be maintained and carried forward in later life through further weekly participation in the same training.
Highlights
Our results show a significant age-dependency in that the amplitude of the stretch reflex response was significantly larger in the older group than in the young group in a comparison between subject groups that did not participate in ballet practice
The results were dependent on participation in ballet practice, with responses being smaller in subjects who participated in ballet practice than in those who did not when comparisons were made between subject groups of similar ages
The capability of the motor system to reduce stretch reflex responses, through presynaptic inhibition, has been demonstrated to be attenuated in the elderly (Baudary et al, 2009; Butchart et al, 1993; Earles et al, 2001; Koceja & Mynark, 2000), the present results suggested that specific motor memories acquired earlier in life can be maintained and carried forward later through weekly participation in the same specific training
Summary
Stretch reflex responses evoked in the plantarflexor soleus muscle were recorded. Regarding the stretch reflex responses (Figure 2b), there was a significant main effect both for the subject group (F = 6.549, df = 3, p = .001) and the stretch velocity (F = 43.778, df = 3, p < .001) and an interaction between the two (F = 2.251, df = 9, p = .025). Post-hoc comparisons revealed that the mean amplitude in both dancer groups (young and older) was always smaller than that in the older sedentary groups, for all stretch velocities (p = .004 (100 deg/s), p = .002 (200 deg/s), p = .004 (300 deg/s), and p = .003. Two-way ANOVA revealed a significant main effect both for the subject group (F = 3.316, df = 3, p = .032) and the stretch velocity.
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