Migration of Motor Pool Activity in the Spinal Cord Reflects Body Mechanics in Human Locomotion
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During the evolution of bipedal modes of locomotion, a sequential rostrocaudal activation of trunk muscles due to the undulatory body movements was replaced by more complex and discrete bursts of activity. Nevertheless, the capacity for segmental rhythmogenesis and the rostrocaudal propagation of spinal cord activity has been conserved. In humans, motoneurons of different muscles are arranged in columns, with a specific grouping of muscles at any given segmental level. The muscle patterns of locomotor activity and the biomechanics of the body center of mass have been studied extensively, but their interrelationship remains poorly understood. Here we mapped the electromyographic activity recorded from 30 bilateral leg muscles onto the spinal cord in approximate rostrocaudal locations of the motoneuron pools during walking and running in humans. We found that the rostrocaudal displacements of the center of bilateral motoneuron activity mirrored the changes in the energy due to the center-of-body mass motion. The results suggest that biomechanical mechanisms of locomotion, such as the inverted pendulum in walking and the pogo-stick bouncing in running, may be tightly correlated with specific modes of progression of motor pool activity rostrocaudally in the spinal cord.
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Walking involves well-defined sequences of muscle activation patterns that support weight acceptance, propulsion and swing of the left and right lower limbs, and these sequences coincide with activation of motor pools located within well-segregated regions of the lumbosacral spinal cord.
“Walking involves well-defined sequences of muscle activation patterns that support weight acceptance, propulsion and swing of the left and right lower limbs. These sequences coincide with the activation of motor pools located within well-segregated regions of the lumbosacral spinal cord4,27.”
From Walking naturally after spinal cord injury using a brain–spine interface (2023) · cites this paper as [27]
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“These sequences coincide with the activation of motor pools located within well-segregated regions of the lumbosacral spinal cord 4,27 .”
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Self-citationSmooth changes in the EMG patterns during gait transitions under body weight unloading
Labini, F. S., Ivanenko, Y. P., Cappellini, G., Gravano, S., & Lacquaniti, F. (2011) · Journal of Neurophysiology · doi:10.1152/jn.00160.2011 · Cited by 37 · see citing works
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- Authors
- Cappellini, G., Ivanenko, Y. P., Dominici, N., Poppele, R. E., & Lacquaniti, F.
- Affiliations
- Fondazione Santa Lucia (IT)
- University of Minnesota (US)
- University of Rome Tor Vergata (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Ivanenko, Yuri P.
- Venue
- Journal of Neurophysiology
- Publisher
- American Physiological Society
- Published
- 2010-12
- Volume
- 104
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 3064-3073
- ISSN
- 0022-3077 (ISSN-L)
- 1522-1598
- OpenAlex
- W1986065617
- Cited by
- 61
- References
- 37
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 2 · 2016: 5 · 2015: 2 · 2014: 10 · 2013: 4 · 2012: 2
- FWCI
- 1.89
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- hdl.handle.net
- Licence
- other-oa
- Locations
- Journal of Neurophysiology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Cineca Institutional Research Information System (Tor Vergata University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- VU Research Portal (submittedVersion)
- Data Archiving and Networked Services (DANS) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Muscle activation and electromyography studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Motor Control and Adaptation
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Robotic Locomotion and Control
- Keywords
- human locomotion, walking, running, center-of-mass motion, body mechanics, inverted pendulum, spinal locomotor circuits
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Algorithms, Anthropometry, Biomechanical Phenomena, Electromyography, Gait, Humans, Leg, Male, Middle Aged, Motor Neurons, Nerve Net, Running, Spinal Cord, Walking
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