Brain Advance Access published online on August 25, 2004
Brain, doi:10.1093/brain/awh288
© 2004 by Guarantors of Brain
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1 The Krembil Neuroscience Centre and Toronto Western Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Division of Neurology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: robert.chen{at}uhn.on.ca.
Summary Cortical areas participating in the preparation of voluntary movements have been studied extensively. There is emerging evidence that subcortical structures, particularly the basal ganglia, also contribute to movement preparation. The thalamus is connected to both the basal ganglia and the cerebellar pathways, but its role in movement preparation has not been studied extensively in humans. We studied seven patients who underwent deep brain stimulation (DBS) electrode implantation in the thalamus for treatment of tremor (six patients) and myoclonus-dystonia (one patient). We recorded from the DBS contacts and scalp simultaneously, while patients performed self-paced wrist extension movements. Post-surgical MRI was used for precise localization of the DBS contacts in six patients. Back-averaging of the scalp recordings showed a slow negative movement-related potential (MRP) in all patients (onset 1846 ± 189 ms prior to electromyography onset), whereas DBS electrode recordings showed pre-movement MRP in five out of seven patients. The thalamic MRP preceded both contralateral and ipsilateral wrist movements. There was no significant difference between the onset time of thalamic MRP (-2116 ± 607 ms) and cortical MRP. Neither the scalp nor the thalamus showed pre-movement potentials with passive wrist extensions in two patients. In four patients with postoperative MRI who had thalamic MRP, the maximum amplitude or phase reversal occurred at contacts located in the ventral lateral nucleus. Frequency analysis was performed in the five patients with thalamic MRP. The medial frontocentral scalp contacts and the thalamic contacts with maximum MRP amplitude showed two discrete frequency bands in the
Revised July 15, 2004
Accepted July 17, 2004
Article
Involvement of human thalamus in the preparation of self-paced movement
2 The Krembil Neuroscience Centre and Toronto Western Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
3 The Krembil Neuroscience Centre and Toronto Western Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; Division of Neurosurgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Abstract 
(mean peak 9 Hz) and 
(mean peak 17 Hz) range. Both frequency bands showed pre-movement event-related desynchronization (ERD). In the grand average, and ERD in the scalp and ERD in the thalamus began 2.5-2.8 s prior to the onset of movement. However, the thalamic ERD began considerably later, at 1.2 s before EMG onset. The band showed cortico-thalamic coherence from the beginning of the baseline period until 
0.5 s before the onset of movement. There was no cortico-thalamic coherence in the band. Our findings suggest that the cerebellar thalamus is involved early in the process of movement preparation. Different cortico-subcortical circuits may mediate and oscillations. During movement preparation, the motor thalamus and the supplementary motor area predominantly interact in the band.
CiteULike 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us What's this?
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  J. Purzner, G. O. Paradiso, D. Cunic, J. A. Saint-Cyr, T. Hoque, A. M. Lozano, A. E. Lang, E. Moro, M. Hodaie, F. Mazzella, et al. Involvement of the Basal Ganglia and Cerebellar Motor Pathways in the Preparation of Self-Initiated and Externally Triggered Movements in Humans J. Neurosci., May 30, 2007; 27(22): 6029 - 6036. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. Fan, R. Kolster, J. Ghajar, M. Suh, R. T. Knight, R. Sarkar, and B. D. McCandliss Response Anticipation and Response Conflict: An Event-Related Potential and Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study J. Neurosci., February 28, 2007; 27(9): 2272 - 2282. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
K. J. Miller, E. C. Leuthardt, G. Schalk, R. P. N. Rao, N. R. Anderson, D. W. Moran, J. W. Miller, and J. G. Ojemann Spectral Changes in Cortical Surface Potentials during Motor Movement J. Neurosci., February 28, 2007; 27(9): 2424 - 2432. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. Sarnthein and D. Jeanmonod High Thalamocortical Theta Coherence in Patients with Parkinson's Disease J. Neurosci., January 3, 2007; 27(1): 124 - 131. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
T. Gilbertson, E. Lalo, L. Doyle, V. Di Lazzaro, B. Cioni, and P. Brown Existing Motor State Is Favored at the Expense of New Movement during 13-35 Hz Oscillatory Synchrony in the Human Corticospinal System J. Neurosci., August 24, 2005; 25(34): 7771 - 7779. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 Does the Thalamus Contribute to Preparation for Voluntary Movement? Journal Watch Neurology, April 7, 2005; 2005(407): 3 - 3. [Full Text]
|
|