Movement-related desynchronization of alpha rhythms is lower in athletes than non-athletes: a high-resolution EEG study.
OBJECTIVE
The "neural efficiency" hypothesis posits that neural activity is reduced in experts. Here we tested the hypothesis that compared with non-athletes, elite athletes are characterized by a reduced cortical activation during simple voluntary movement and that this is reflected by the modulation of dominant alpha rhythms (8-12 Hz).


METHODS
EEG data (56 channels; EB-Neuro) were continuously recorded in the following right-handed subjects: 10 elite karate athletes and 12 non-athletes. During the EEG recordings, they performed brisk voluntary wrist extensions of the right or left hand (right movement and left movement). The EEG cortical sources were estimated by standardized low-resolution brain electromagnetic tomography (sLORETA) freeware. With reference to a baseline period, the power decrease of alpha rhythms during the motor preparation and execution indexed the cortical activation (event-related desynchronization, ERD).


RESULTS
During both preparation and execution of the right movements, the low- (about 8-10 Hz) and high-frequency alpha ERD (about 10-12 Hz) was lower in amplitude in primary motor area, in lateral and medial premotor areas in the elite karate athletes than in the non-athletes. For the left movement, only the high-frequency alpha ERD during the motor execution was lower in the elite karate athletes than in the non-athletes.


CONCLUSIONS
These results confirmed that compared with non-athletes, elite athletes are characterized by a reduced cortical activation during simple voluntary movement.


CONCLUSIONS
Cortical alpha rhythms are implicated in the "neural efficiency" of athletes' motor systems.
Del Percio
Claudio
C
Dipartimento di Fisiologia e Farmacologia, Università "Sapienza", Roma, Italy.
Infarinato
Francesco
F
Iacoboni
Marco
M
Marzano
Nicola
N
Soricelli
Andrea
A
Aschieri
Pierluigi
P
Eusebi
Fabrizio
F
Babiloni
Claudio
C
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000513:Alpha Rhythm; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D056352:Athletes; D001931:Brain Mapping; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D004569:Electroencephalography; D004576:Electromyography / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology; D055815:Young Adult