Disentangling motor control processes in the basal ganglia using high-resolution fMRI in a 3T scanner

Abstract

Event Abstract Back to Event Disentangling motor control processes in the basal ganglia using high-resolution fMRI in a 3T scanner Megan E. Campbell1*, Jeff Bednark1* and Ross Cunnington1 1 The Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Australia Our ability to interact with the environment is mediated by motor control processes that are largely controlled by basal ganglia-thalamo-cortico circuits (Alexander, 1986). However, our understanding of how specific motor control processes are represented in the intricate circuitry of the basal ganglia is poorly understood. Thus, using high-resolution fMRI (1.5x1.5mm) we investigated whether two fundamental motor control processes, the sequential structure and the temporal rhythm of movements, could be independently identified within the basal ganglia. Participants made short button-press responses to visual cues over three conditions: Simple, Complex-Rhythm and Complex-Sequence. At the cortical level our results revealed that partially independent cortical networks mediated motor sequencing and motor rhythm. A fronto-parietal network was more active for motor sequencing and the supplementary motor area was more active for motor rhythm. The application of high-resolution fMRI revealed that bilateral activation across the putamen, caudate and thalamus was common to all movement conditions. Crucially, we found that while the two complex movement conditions activated common portions of the putamen and thalamus; motor rhythm selectively activated regions of the basal ganglia to a greater degree. Specifically, motor rhythm had greater activation in dorsomedial portions of the right putamen and dorsolateral portions of the right caudate (see figure 1). This activation is consistent the with known role of the putamen in general timing processes (Draganski, 2008) and ordinal aspects of motor sequencing (Ferrandez, 2003). Moreover, additional recruitment of the caudate in the rhthym condition given its role in executive control circuits may reflect the greater need for executive control processes for co-ordination of rhythmic timing. In conclusion, our results demonstrate how high-resolution fMRI can help unravel the intricate circuitry of the basal ganglia mediating motor control. Figure 1 Acknowledgements This experiment was conducted by the first author, under the supervision of Associate Professor Cunnington, in partial completion of the Masters of Neuroscience program (Higher Research Degree) at the QBI, through The University of Queensland). References Alexander, G. E., Delong, M. R., & Strick, P. L. (1986). Parallel organization of functionally segregated circuits link basal ganglia and cortex. Annual Review of Neuroscience, 9, 357-381. Draganski, B., Kherif, F., Kloeppel, S., Cook, P. A., Alexander, D. C., Parker, G. J. M., Deichmann, R., Ashburner, J., & Frackowiak, R. S. J. (2008). Evidence for segregated and integrative connectivity patterns in the human basal ganglia. Journal of Neuroscience, 28, 7143-7152. Ferrandez, A. M., Hugueville, L., Lehericy, S., Poline, J. B., Marsault, C., & Pouthas, V. (2003). Basal ganglia and supplementary motor area subtend duration perception: an fMRI study. Neuroimage, 19, 1532-1544. Keywords: Basal Ganglia, Thalamus, motor control, fMRI BOLD, basal ganglia-thalamo-cortico circuits Conference: ACNS-2012 Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference, Brisbane, Australia, 29 Nov - 2 Dec, 2012. Presentation Type: Poster Presentation Topic: Motor Citation: Campbell ME, Bednark J and Cunnington R (2012). Disentangling motor control processes in the basal ganglia using high-resolution fMRI in a 3T scanner. Conference Abstract: ACNS-2012 Australasian Cognitive Neuroscience Conference. doi: 10.3389/conf.fnhum.2012.208.00023 Copyright: The abstracts in this collection have not been subject to any Frontiers peer review or checks, and are not endorsed by Frontiers. They are made available through the Frontiers publishing platform as a service to conference organizers and presenters. The copyright in the individual abstracts is owned by the author of each abstract or his/her employer unless otherwise stated. Each abstract, as well as the collection of abstracts, are published under a Creative Commons CC-BY 4.0 (attribution) licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and may thus be reproduced, translated, adapted and be the subject of derivative works provided the authors and Frontiers are attributed. For Frontiers’ terms and conditions please see https://www.frontiersin.org/legal/terms-and-conditions. Received: 12 Oct 2012; Published Online: 07 Nov 2012. * Correspondence: Ms. Megan E Campbell, The Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia, megan.ej.campbell@uq.edu.au Dr. Jeff Bednark, The Queensland Brain Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia, j.g.bednark@gmail.com Login Required This action requires you to be registered with Frontiers and logged in. To register or login click here. Abstract Info Abstract The Authors in Frontiers Megan E Campbell Jeff Bednark Ross Cunnington Google Megan E Campbell Jeff Bednark Ross Cunnington Google Scholar Megan E Campbell Jeff Bednark Ross Cunnington PubMed Megan E Campbell Jeff Bednark Ross Cunnington Related Article in Frontiers Google Scholar PubMed Abstract Close Back to top Javascript is disabled. Please enable Javascript in your browser settings in order to see all the content on this page.