Dataset Information

Reach-to-grasp movements in Macaca fascicularis monkeys: the Isochrony Principle at work.

ABSTRACT: Humans show a spontaneous tendency to increase the velocity of their movements depending on the linear extent of their trajectory in order to keep execution time approximately constant. Termed the isochrony principle, this compensatory mechanism refers to the observation that the velocity of voluntary movements increases proportionally with their linear extension. Although there is a wealth of psychophysical data regarding isochrony in humans, there is none regarding non-human primates. The present study attempts to fill that gap by investigating reach-to-grasp movement kinematics in free-ranging macaques. Video footage of monkeys grasping objects located at different distances was analyzed frame-by-frame using digitalization techniques. The amplitude of arm peak velocity was found to be correlated with the distance to be covered, and total movement duration remained invariant although target distances varied. Like in humans, the "isochrony principle" seems to be operative as there is a gearing down/up of movement velocity that is proportional to the distance to be covered in order to allow for a relatively constant movement duration. Based on a centrally generated temporal template, this mode of motor programming could be functional in macaques given the high speed and great instability of posture and joint kinematics characterizing their actions. The data presented here take research in the field of comparative motor control a step forward as they are based on precise measurements of spontaneous grasping movements by animals living/acting in their natural environment.

SUBMITTER: Sartori L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3592261 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Reach-to-grasp movements in Macaca fascicularis monkeys: the Isochrony Principle at work.

Sartori Luisa L Camperio-Ciani Andrea A Bulgheroni Maria M Castiello Umberto U

Frontiers in psychology 20130308

Humans show a spontaneous tendency to increase the velocity of their movements depending on the linear extent of their trajectory in order to keep execution time approximately constant. Termed the isochrony principle, this compensatory mechanism refers to the observation that the velocity of voluntary movements increases proportionally with their linear extension. Although there is a wealth of psychophysical data regarding isochrony in humans, there is none regarding non-human primates. The pres ...[more]

PMID: 23658547

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Project description:Reaching and grasping (prehension) is one of the earliest developing motor skills in humans, but continued prehension development in childhood and adolescence enables the performance of increasingly complex manual tasks. In individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) atypical unimanual reaching and grasping has been reported, but to date, no studies have investigated discrete bimanual movements. We examined unimanual and bimanual reach to grasp tasks in youth with ASD to better understand how motor performance might change with increasing complexity. Twenty youth with ASD (10.1 ± 2.4 years) and 17 youth with typical development (TD) (9.6 ± 2.6 years) were instructed to reach and grasp cubes that became illuminated. Participants were asked to reach out with the right and/or left hands to grasp and lift targets located at near (18 cm) and/or far (28 cm) distances. For the unimanual (simplest) condition, participants grasped one illuminated cube (with either the left or right hand). For the bimanual conditions, participants grasped two illuminated cubes located at the same distance from the start position (bimanual symmetric condition) or two illuminated cubes located at different distances (bimanual asymmetric condition). Significant interactions among diagnostic group, task complexity, and age were found for initiation time (IT) and movement time (MT). Specifically, the older children in both groups initiated and performed their movements faster in the unimanual condition than in the bimanual conditions, although the older children with ASD produced slower ITs and MTs compared to typically developing peers across all three conditions. Surprisingly, the younger children with ASD had similar ITs and MTs as their peers for the unimanual condition but did not considerably slow these times to adjust for the complexity of the bimanual tasks. We hypothesize that they chose to re-use the motor plans that were generated for the unimanual trials rather than generate more appropriate motor plans for the bimanual tasks. An atypical spatiotemporal relationship between MT and peak aperture (PA) was also found in the ASD group. Together, our results suggest deficits in motor planning that result in subtle effects on performance in younger children with ASD that become more pronounced with age.

Dataset Information

Reach-to-grasp movements in Macaca fascicularis monkeys: the Isochrony Principle at work.

Publications

Reach-to-grasp movements in Macaca fascicularis monkeys: the Isochrony Principle at work.

Similar Datasets

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