title: Mapping the flow of information within the putative mirror neuron system during gesture observation.
abstract: The putative mirror neuron system may either function as a strict feed-forward system or as a dynamic control system. A strict feed-forward system would predict that action observation leads to a predominantly temporal→parietal→premotor flow of information in which a visual representation is transformed into motor-programs which contribute to action understanding. Instead, a dynamic feedback control system would predict that the reverse direction of information flow predominates because of a combination of inhibitory forward and excitatory inverse models. Here we test which of these conflicting predictions best matches the information flow within the putative mirror neuron system (pMNS) and between the pMNS and the rest of the brain during the observation of comparatively long naturalistic stretches of communicative gestures. We used Granger causality to test the dominant direction of influence. Our results fit the predictions of the dynamic feedback control system: we found predominantly an information flow within the pMNS from premotor to parietal and middle temporal cortices. This is more pronounced during an active guessing task than while passively reviewing the same gestures. In particular, the ventral premotor cortex sends significantly more information to other pMNS areas than it receives during active guessing than during passive observation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen. Antonius Deusinglaan 2, 9713 AW Groningen, The Netherlands. Electronic address: m.b.schippers@med.umcg.nl.
authors.forename: Marleen B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Schippers
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, University Medical Center Groningen, University of Groningen. Antonius Deusinglaan 2, 9713 AW Groningen, The Netherlands; Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, an institute of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, Meibergdreef 47, 1105 BA Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Keysers
mesh_terms: D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D001931:Brain Mapping; D005868:Gestures; D006801:Humans; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000502:physiology*; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D014796:Visual Perception / Q000502:physiology*