Turrini Sonia, Fiori Francesca, Arcara Giorgio, Romei Vincenzo, di Pellegrino Giuseppe, Avenanti Alessio
Centro studi e ricerche in Neuroscienze Cognitive, Dipartimento di Psicologia "Renzo Canestrari," Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna Campus di Cesena, 47521 Cesena, Italy.
NeXT: Neurophysiology and Neuroengineering of Human-Technology Interaction Research Unit, Campus Bio-Medico University, 00128 Rome, Italy.
Sci Adv. 2025 May 16;11(20):eadu4098. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adu4098. Epub 2025 May 14.
Arbitrary visuomotor mapping (AVMM) showcases the brain's ability to link sensory inputs with actions. The ventral premotor cortex (PMv) is proposed as central to sensorimotor transformations, relaying descending motor commands through the primary motor cortex (M1). However, direct evidence of this pathway's involvement in AVMM remains elusive. In four experiments, we used cortico-cortical paired associative stimulation (ccPAS) to enhance (ccPAS) or inhibit (ccPAS) PMv-to-M1 connectivity via Hebbian plasticity. Leveraging state-dependent properties of transcranial magnetic stimulation, we targeted function-specific visuomotor neurons within the pathway, testing their physiological/behavioral relevance to AVMM. State-dependent ccPAS, applied during motor responses to target visual cues, enhanced neurophysiological and behavioral indices of AVMM, while ccPAS had an opposite influence, with the effects being more pronounced for target relative to control visual cues. These results highlight the plasticity and causal role of spatially overlapping but functionally specific neural populations within the PMv-M1 pathway in AVMM and suggest state-dependent ccPAS as a tool for targeted modulation of visuomotor pathways.
任意视觉运动映射（AVMM）展示了大脑将感觉输入与动作联系起来的能力。腹侧运动前皮层（PMv）被认为是感觉运动转换的核心，通过初级运动皮层（M1）传递下行运动指令。然而，这条通路参与AVMM的直接证据仍然难以捉摸。在四项实验中，我们使用皮层-皮层配对联想刺激（ccPAS）通过赫布可塑性增强（ccPAS）或抑制（ccPAS）PMv到M1的连接。利用经颅磁刺激的状态依赖特性，我们针对该通路内功能特异性的视觉运动神经元，测试它们与AVMM的生理/行为相关性。在对目标视觉线索的运动反应期间施加状态依赖的ccPAS，增强了AVMM的神经生理和行为指标，而ccPAS则产生相反的影响，相对于对照视觉线索，对目标的影响更为明显。这些结果突出了PMv-M1通路内空间重叠但功能特异性的神经群体在AVMM中的可塑性和因果作用，并表明状态依赖的ccPAS作为一种对视觉运动通路进行靶向调节的工具。
