Premovement neuronal activity

Premovement neuronal activity in neurophysiological literature refers to neuronal modulations that alter the rate at which neurons fire before a subject produces movement. Through experimentation with multiple animals, predominantly monkeys, it has been shown that several regions of the brain are particularly active and involved in initiation and preparation of movement. Two specific membrane potentials, the bereitschaftspotential, or the BP, and contingent negative variation, or the CNV, play a pivotal role in premovement neuronal activity. Both have been shown to be directly involved in planning and initiating movement. Multiple factors are involved with premovement neuronal activity including motor preparation, inhibition of motor response, programming of the target of movement, closed-looped and open-looped tasks, instructed delay periods, short-lead and long-lead changes, and mirror motor neurons. Premovement neuronal activity in neurophysiological literature refers to neuronal modulations that alter the rate at which neurons fire before a subject produces movement. Through experimentation with multiple animals, predominantly monkeys, it has been shown that several regions of the brain are particularly active and involved in initiation and preparation of movement. Two specific membrane potentials, the bereitschaftspotential, or the BP, and contingent negative variation, or the CNV, play a pivotal role in premovement neuronal activity. Both have been shown to be directly involved in planning and initiating movement. Multiple factors are involved with premovement neuronal activity including motor preparation, inhibition of motor response, programming of the target of movement, closed-looped and open-looped tasks, instructed delay periods, short-lead and long-lead changes, and mirror motor neurons. Research of pre-movement neuronal activity generally involves studying two different kinds of movement, movement in natural settings versus movement triggered by a sensory stimulus. These two types of movements are referred to with different nomenclature throughout different studies and literature on the topic of premovement neuronal activity. Voluntary movements are also known as self-timed, self-initiated, self-paced, and non-triggered movements. This type of movement is what generally occurs in natural settings, carried out independently of a sensory cue or external signal which would trigger or cause the movement to be performed . In contrast, movements that are carried out as a result of a sensory cue or stimulus, or reflex-reactions to external conditions or changes are called reactive movements, but also known as cued movements, stimulated movements, and externally triggered movements depending on the choice of a particular study. In one such study by Lee and Assad (2003), rhesus monkeys were trained to execute arm movement in response to a visual cue versus the same arm movement performed without any correlation to this external (visual) cue. This is one example of reactive movements in contrast to self-initiated movements. Subsequent studies of rates of neuronal firing in the respective types of movements are recorded in different areas of the brain in order to develop a more thorough understanding of premovement neuronal activity.