AI Article Synopsis
- - The study investigates how limb amputation combined with intensive motor practice affects the brain's sensorimotor cortex, focusing on a Paralympic long jumper with a below-knee amputation who trained using a prosthesis.
- - Findings show that this athlete activated both sides of the sensorimotor cortex more than healthy long jumpers during knee muscle contractions with his prosthetic leg, indicating unique brain adaptations due to his training and limb loss.
- - The results highlight the brain's ability to reorganize itself functionally after significant changes like amputation and extensive training, suggesting that motor rehabilitation can lead to significant cortical plasticity.
Article Abstract
Functional plasticity of the sensorimotor cortex occurs following motor practice, as well as after limb amputation. However, the joint effect of limb amputation and intensive, long-term motor practice on cortical plasticity remains unclear. Here, we recorded brain activity during unilateral contraction of the hip, knee, and ankle joint muscles from a long jump Paralympic gold medalist with a unilateral below-knee amputation (Amputee Long Jumper, ALJ). He used the amputated leg with a prosthesis for take-off. Under similar conditions to the ALJ, we also recorded brain activity from healthy long jumpers (HLJ) and non-athletes with a below-knee amputation. During a rhythmic isometric contraction of knee extensor muscles with the take-off/prosthetic leg, the ALJ activated not only the contralateral primary sensorimotor cortex (M1/S1), but also the ipsilateral M1/S1. In addition, this ipsilateral M1/S1 activation was significantly greater than that seen in the HLJ. However, we did not find any significant differences between the ALJ and HLJ in M1/S1 activation during knee muscle contraction in the non-take-off/intact leg, nor during hip muscle contraction on either side. Region of interest analysis revealed that the ALJ exhibited a greater difference in M1/S1 activity and activated areas ipsilateral to the movement side between the take-off/prosthetic and non-take-off/intact legs during knee muscle contraction compared with the other two groups. However, difference in activity in M1/S1 contralateral to the movement side did not differ across groups. These results suggest that a combination of below-knee amputation and intensive, prolonged long jump training using a prosthesis (i.e. fine knee joint control) induced an expansion of the functional representation of the take-off/prosthetic leg in the ipsilateral M1/S1 in a muscle-specific manner. These results provide novel insights into the potential for substantial cortical plasticity with an extensive motor rehabilitation program.
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|---|---|
| http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6525316 | PMC |
| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.nicl.2019.101847 | DOI Listing |
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