The Positive Effect of Moderate-Intensity Exercise on the Mirror Neuron System: An fNIRS Study.

Zebo Xu,Jin Li,Xiao-Hui Hou,Ming-Qiang Xiang,Min Hu,Zi-Rong Wang

doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2019.00986

Abstract

A growing number of studies have reported the beneficial effect of exercise on human social behavior. The mirror neuron system (MNS) plays a critical role in a variety of social behaviors from imitation to empathy. However, neuroimaging investigations into the effects of exercise on the MNS remain unexplored. To address this question, our study determined the effect of moderate-intensity exercise on the MNS using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Specifically, 23 right-handed young individuals were asked to perform a table-setting task that included action execution and action observation before and after a 25-min exercise session on a cycle ergometer at moderate intensity (65% VO2peak). The control condition was the same task performed without exercise. Cortical hemodynamic changes in the four primary brain regions of the MNS were monitored with fNIRS, using a modified probe configuration that covered all four MNS regions in the left hemisphere. We used a region of interest (ROI)-based group analysis to determine which regions were activated during action execution and action observation. Following a session of moderate-intensity exercise, we found a significant increase in activation in all four MNS regions, namely the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), premotor cortex (PMC), superior parietal lobule (SPL), and rostral inferior parietal lobule (IPL). This result indicated a positive effect of exercise on the MNS, specifically that moderate-intensity exercise could activate the MNS.

Highlights

In the past decade, there have been many studies investigating the effect of exercise on the brain
According to the spatial map of the 23 subjects in the pre-exp condition and pre-ctrl condition, we found that channels 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, and 13, which mainly belong to inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) (BA44/45), premotor cortex (PMC) (BA6), and rostral inferior parietal lobule (IPL) (BA40), were activated during both action execution and observation (p < 0.05, FDR-corrected)
We found that four brain regions, namely the IFG (BA44/45), PMC (BA6), superior parietal lobule (SPL) (BA7), and the rostral IPL (BA40) were significantly activated during action observation and execution in the post-exp condition (p < 0.05, FDR-corrected) except SPL (BA7) during action execution

Summary

Introduction

There have been many studies investigating the effect of exercise on the brain. There is increasing evidence showing that exercise is beneficial for cognitive performance (Hillman et al, 2003; Yanagisawa et al, 2010), improves memory acquisition (Winter et al, 2007), prevents cognitive dysfunction in Parkinson’s disease (David et al, 2015), and improves social behavior in adolescents with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) (Kamp et al, 2014) and in children with autism (Pan, 2010). Human social behaviors in the brain are mainly controlled by the amygdala, orbitofrontal cortex (OFC), and the mirror neuron system (MNS) regions (Rizzolatti et al, 2001; Adolphs, 2003). The effect of exercise on the MNS remains in question

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Conclusion