Cortical field potentials preceding visually initiated hand movements and cerebellar actions in the monkey

Summary

Cortical field potentials preceding hand movements initiated by a visual stimulus were recorded with chronically implanted electrodes in premotor, motor and somatosensory cortices of monkeys, and the influences of cerebellar hemispherectomy on cortical potentials as well as reaction time of movements were examined.

As reported previously, early surface-positive, depth-negative (2.5–3 mm depth from the cortical surface) premovement potentials emerged at about 40 ms latency after onset of the light stimulus bilaterally in premotor and forelimb motor areas. Early potentials in the forelimb motor area contralateral to the moving hand were followed at about 120 ms latency by surface-negative, depth-positive late premovement potentials which are considered to be mainly composed of superficial thalamo-cortical (T-C) responses.

Unilateral hemispherectomy of the cerebellum contralateral to the motor area immediately eliminated the surface-negative, depth-positive potentials. Reaction time from onset of the light stimulus to the hand movement was prolonged by 90–250 ms after cerebellar hemispherectomy. If the dentate and interpositus nuclei were also lesioned, disappearance of the late potentials and delay of the movement continued for many months. However, if the interpositus was spared, there was earlier recovery of reaction time with simultaneous reappearance of the late premovement potentials in the motor cortex.

The conclusion is drawn that the cerebellar hemisphere (neocerebellum) activates the motor cortex via superficial T-C projections and participates directly in the initiation of reaction movements in response to an external stimulus.