Compensatory Motor Network Connectivity is Associated with Motor Sequence Learning after Subcortical Stroke.

Compensatory Motor Network Connectivity is Associated with Motor Sequence Learning after Subcortical Stroke. Behav Brain Res. 2015 Mar 7; Authors: Wadden KP, Woodward TS, Metzak PD, Lavigne KM, Lakhani B, Auriat AM, Boyd LA Abstract Following stroke, functional networks reorganize and the brain demonstrates widespread alterations in cortical activity. Implicit motor learning is preserved after stroke. However the manner in which brain reorganization occurs, and how it supports behaviour within the damaged brain remains unclear. In this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study, we evaluated whole brain patterns of functional connectivity during the performance of an implicit tracking task at baseline and retention, following 5 days of practice. Following motor practice, a significant difference in connectivity within a motor network, consisting of bihemispheric activation of the sensory and motor cortices, parietal lobules, cerebellar and occipital lobules, was observed at retention. Healthy subjects demonstrated greater activity within this motor network during sequence learning compared to random practice. The stroke group did not show the same level of functional network integration, presumably due to the heterogeneity of functional reorganization following stroke. In a secondary analysis, a binary mask of the functional network activated from the aforementioned whole brain analyses was created to assess within-network co...
Source: Behavioural Brain Research - Category: Neurology Authors: Tags: Behav Brain Res Source Type: research