title: Altered cortical activation during action observation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patients: a parametric functional MRI study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate functional cerebral abnormalities in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) during action observation.
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty patients with ALS and 30 matched healthy controls underwent fMRI with an experimental paradigm while observing a video of repetitive flexion-extension of the fingers at three frequency levels or three complexity levels, alternated with periods of a static hand. A parametric analysis was applied to determine the effects of each of the two factors.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Action observation activated similar neural networks as the research on execution of action in the ALS patients and healthy subjects in several brain regions related to the mirror-neuron system (MNS). In the ALS patients, in particular, the dorsal lateral premotor cortex (dPMC), inferior parietal gyrus (IPG), and SMA, were more activated compared with the activation in the controls. Increased activation within the primary motor cortex (M1), dPMC, inferior frontal gyrus (IFG), and superior parietal gyrus (SPG) mainly correlated with hand movement frequency/complexity in the videos in the patients compared with controls.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings indicated an ongoing compensatory process occurring within the higher order motor-processing system of ALS patients, likely to overcome the loss of function.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  • Action observation activated similar core nodes of MNS in ALS and controls. • Increased activation within M1, dPMC, IFG and SPG mainly correlated with hand movement frequency/complexity. • Differences in patients and controls may be due to compensatory processes in ALS.
authors: Department of Radiology, Fudan University, Huashan Hospital, Shanghai, China.
authors: Haiqing
authors: H
authors: Li
authors: Yan
authors: Y
authors: Chen
authors: Yuxin
authors: Y
authors: Li
authors: Bo
authors: B
authors: Yin
authors: Weijun
authors: W
authors: Tang
authors: Xiangrong
authors: X
authors: Yu
authors: Weiyuan
authors: W
authors: Huang
authors: Daoying
authors: D
authors: Geng
authors: Biyun
authors: B
authors: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000690:Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001931:Brain Mapping / Q000379:methods*; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000503:physiopathology*; D005260:Female; D006225:Hand / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000502:physiology*