Temporal dynamics of cortical representation for action
Open accessAbstract
Brain-imaging studies have shown that the human Broca's region and precentral motor cortex are activated both during execution of hand actions and during observation of similar actions performed by other individuals. We aimed to clarify the temporal dynamics of this cortical activation by neuromagnetic recordings during execution, on-line imitation, and observation of right-hand reaching movements that ended with a precision pinch of the tip of a manipulandum. During execution, the left inferior frontal cortex [Brodmann's area (BA) 44] was activated first (peak ≈250 ms before the pinching); this activation was followed within 100–200 ms by activation in the left primary motor area (BA4) and 150–250 ms later in the right BA4. During imitation and observation, the sequence was otherwise similar, but it started from the left occipital cortex (BA19). Activation was always strongest during action imitation. Only the occipital activation was detected when the subject observed the experimenter reaching his hand without pinching. These results suggest that the left BA44 is the orchestrator of the human “mirror neuron system” and is strongly involved in action imitation. The mirror system matches action observation and execution and probably contributes to our understanding of actions made by others.
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- Authors
- Nishitani, N., & Hari, R.
- Affiliations
- Brain Research Unit, Low Temperature Laboratory, Helsinki University of Technology, P.O. Box 2200, FIN-02015 HUT, Espoo, Finland
- ORCID
- Hari, R.
- Venue
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
- Publisher
- National Academy of Sciences
- Published
- 2000-01-18
- Volume
- 97
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 913-918
- ISSN
- 0027-8424 (ISSN-L)
- 1091-6490
- PMC
- PMC15430
- OpenAlex
- W2135396112
- Cited by
- 625
- References
- 1
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 15 · 2024: 25 · 2023: 19 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 26 · 2017: 14 · 2016: 12 · 2015: 24 · 2014: 30 · 2013: 16 · 2012: 24
- FWCI
- 32.38
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Action Observation and Synchronization
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Motor Control and Adaptation
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Tactile and Sensory Interactions
- Keywords
- mirror neuron system, action observation, action imitation, Broca's area, primary motor cortex, inferior frontal cortex, occipital cortex, reaching movements, motor execution
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory, Female, Frontal Lobe, Humans, Functional Laterality, Male, Motor Cortex, Occipital Lobe, Psychomotor Performance, Reaction Time, Temporal Lobe, Time Factors, Magnetoencephalography
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