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. 2023 May 9;33(10):6291-6298.
doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhac504.

Grasp-specific high-frequency broadband mirror neuron activity during reach-and-grasp movements in humans

Alexander M Dreyer  1 , Leo Michalke  1 , Anat Perry  2 , Edward F Chang  3 , Jack J Lin  4 , Robert T Knight  5 , Jochem W Rieger  1
Affiliations

Grasp-specific high-frequency broadband mirror neuron activity during reach-and-grasp movements in humans

Alexander M Dreyer et al. Cereb Cortex. .

Abstract

Broadly congruent mirror neurons, responding to any grasp movement, and strictly congruent mirror neurons, responding only to specific grasp movements, have been reported in single-cell studies with primates. Delineating grasp properties in humans is essential to understand the human mirror neuron system with implications for behavior and social cognition. We analyzed electrocorticography data from a natural reach-and-grasp movement observation and delayed imitation task with 3 different natural grasp types of everyday objects. We focused on the classification of grasp types from high-frequency broadband mirror activation patterns found in classic mirror system areas, including sensorimotor, supplementary motor, inferior frontal, and parietal cortices. Classification of grasp types was successful during movement observation and execution intervals but not during movement retention. Our grasp type classification from combined and single mirror electrodes provides evidence for grasp-congruent activity in the human mirror neuron system potentially arising from strictly congruent mirror neurons.

Keywords: ECoG; decoding; mirror neurons; motor.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
A) Trial overview: Each trial starts with a auditory cue, followed by a video showing a reach-and-grasp movement during which subjects have to remember an object and grasp types which they imitate after a retention period. B) Object-specific grasp types.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Electrode locations for all subjects on individual anatomy. Electrode colors denote significant HFA modulations: black—not significant; red—significant during movement observation; green—significant during movement retention; blue—significant during movement execution; yellow—significant during movement observation and execution (mirror electrodes); and white—significant during movement observation, retention, and execution.
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Subset of electrodes from all subjects transformed to a standard brain that showed significant HFA modulations during movement observation and execution as well as significant grasp type classification performance in either condition.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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