Movement‐related neuromagnetic fields in preschool age children

Abstract

We examined sensorimotor brain activity associated with voluntary movements in preschool children using a customized pediatric magnetoencephalographic system. A videogame-like task was used to generate self-initiated right or left index finger movements in 17 healthy right-handed subjects (8 females, ages 3.2-4.8 years). We successfully identified spatiotemporal patterns of movement-related brain activity in 15/17 children using beamformer source analysis and surrogate MRI spatial normalization. Readiness fields in the contralateral sensorimotor cortex began ∼0.5 s prior to movement onset (motor field, MF), followed by transient movement-evoked fields (MEFs), similar to that observed during self-paced movements in adults, but slightly delayed and with inverted source polarities. We also observed modulation of mu (8-12 Hz) and beta (15-30 Hz) oscillations in sensorimotor cortex with movement, but with different timing and a stronger frequency band coupling compared to that observed in adults. Adult-like high-frequency (70-80 Hz) gamma bursts were detected at movement onset. All children showed activation of the right superior temporal gyrus that was independent of the side of movement, a response that has not been reported in adults. These results provide new insights into the development of movement-related brain function, for an age group in which no previous data exist. The results show that children under 5 years of age have markedly different patterns of movement-related brain activity in comparison to older children and adults, and indicate that significant maturational changes occur in the sensorimotor system between the preschool years and later childhood.

Handbook of Early Childhood Special Education

“…In a study of 12-to 18-month-old infants, Travis et al ( 2011 ) found evidence of adult-like patterns of left-lateralized frontotemporal activation during lexical-semantic processing, suggesting that this region supports word learning from infancy. Contrary to the adult-like activation patterns observed in relation to language processing among young children, sensory-motor behavior performed during MEG evinces activation patterns which signifi cantly differ from those seen in older children and adults (Cheyne, Jobst, Tesan, Crain, & Johnson, 2014 …”

Cortical Mechanisms of Tongue Sensorimotor Functions in Humans: A Review of the Magnetoencephalography Approach

“…The authors concluded that these findings may indicate that children exhibit decreased motor cortical inhibition relative to adolescents and adults. In addition, Cheyne et al (2014) reported that the transition between immature and adult-like cortical responses associated with motor tasks occurs between 3–5 and 8 years old, as preschool children under 5 years old exhibited significantly different patterns of MRCFs associated with self-initiated index finger movement in comparison to older children and adults.…”

Age-related differences in the motor planning of a lower leg target matching task

“…The grey matter changes are presumed to be related to the synaptic pruning that is associated with the optimization of the neuronal groups that comprise the sensorimotor cortices. Recent investigations have also shown that children have less prominent changes in the sensorimotor cortical oscillations at the beta frequency (15–30 Hz) during the motor planning period and may recruit compensatory cortical areas when formulating a motor plan (Cheyne, Jobst, Tesan, Crain, & Johnson, 2014; Pangelinan, Kagerer, Momen, Hatfield, & Clark, 2011; Wilson et al, 2010). Further interrogation of the relationship between the cortical dynamics while performing a leg target matching task may provide unique insight on why children tend to take longer to plan, have greater errors and take longer to match a given target.…”