Posterior parietal cortex predicts upcoming movement in dynamic sensorimotor control

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022 Mar 29;119(13):e2118903119. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2118903119. Epub 2022 Mar 21.

Abstract

SignificanceMost studies in sensorimotor neurophysiology have utilized reactive movements to stationary goals pre-defined by sensory cues, but this approach is fundamentally incapable of determining whether the observed neural activity reflects current sensory stimuli or predicts future movements. In the present study, we recorded single-neuron activity from behaving monkeys engaged in a dynamic, flexible, stimulus-response contingency task that enabled us to distinguish activity co-varying with sensory inflow from that co-varying with motor outflow in the posterior parietal cortex.

Keywords: manual interception; monkey; reaching; sensorimotor control; single-unit activity.

MeSH terms

  • Cues
  • Movement* / physiology
  • Neurons / physiology
  • Parietal Lobe* / physiology
  • Psychomotor Performance / physiology