Time in the motor cortex: motor evoked potentials track foreperiod duration without concurrent movement

Jordan J. Wehrman*, Paul Sowman

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    3 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) allows for the monitoring of motor cortex dynamics in preparation for response. Using this method, it has previously been shown that motor evoked potentials (MEPs) are suppressed as a response approaches. In the current article, we applied TMS while participants either relaxed or contracted their first dorsal interosseous muscle. We varied the time at which TMS was applied, however, unlike previous studies, no participant response was required. Using this method, we provide evidence that MEPs systematically decrease with the duration of the trial, while inhibition is not similarly affected. Further, we found some evidence that MEPs are inversely proportional to the duration of the prior trial. These findings have ramifications for other research interested in the application of TMS, especially when used across multiple possible points in a trial. Further, this finding shows a role for the motor cortex in timing more broadly.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)85-89
    Number of pages5
    JournalNeuroscience Letters
    Volume698
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 17 Apr 2019

    Keywords

    • transcranial magnetic stimulation
    • response preparation
    • variable foreperiod
    • timing
    • motor evoked potentials
    • cortical silent period
    • inhibition
    • excitation
    • motor cortex

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