title: A critical speed for gating of tactile detection during voluntary movement.
abstract: This study addressed the paradoxical observation that movement is essential for tactile exploration, and yet is accompanied by movement-related gating or suppression of tactile detection. Knowing that tactile gating covaries with the speed of movement (faster movements, more gating), we hypothesized that there would be no tactile gating at slower speeds of movement, corresponding to speeds commonly used during tactile exploration (<200 mm/s). Subjects (n = 21) detected the presence or absence of a weak electrical stimulus applied to the skin of the right middle finger during two conditions: rest and active elbow extension. Movement speed was systematically varied from 50 to ~1,000 mm/s. No subject showed evidence of tactile gating at the slowest speed tested, 50 mm/s (rest versus movement), but all subjects showed decreased detection at one or more higher speeds. For each subject, we calculated the critical speed, corresponding to the speed at which detection fell to 0.5 (chance). The mean critical speed was 472 mm/s and >200 mm/s in almost all subjects (19/21). This result is consistent with our hypothesis that subjects optimize the speed of movement during tactile exploration to avoid speeds associated with tactile gating. This strategy thus maximizes the quality of the tactile feedback generated during tactile search and improves perception.
authors: Groupe de Recherche sur le Système Nerveux Central (GRSNC), Département de Physiologie, Faculté de Médecine, Université de Montréal, PO Box 6128, Succursale Centre Ville, Montreal, QC, H3C 3J7, Canada.
authors: Anita
authors: A
authors: Cybulska-Klosowicz
authors: El-Mehdi
authors: el-M
authors: Meftah
authors: Mélissa
authors: M
authors: Raby
authors: Marie-Line
authors: ML
authors: Lemieux
authors: C Elaine
authors: CE
authors: Chapman
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009068:Movement / Q000502:physiology*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*; D011930:Reaction Time / Q000502:physiology*; D055139:Sensory Gating / Q000502:physiology*; D055698:Touch Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014836:Volition / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult