title: Neural changes in the primate brain correlated with the evolution of complex motor skills.
abstract: Complex motor skills of eventual benefit can be learned after considerable trial and error. What do structural brain changes that accompany such effortful long-term learning tell us about the mechanisms for developing innovative behavior? Using MRI, we monitored brain structure before, during and after four marmosets learnt to use a rake, over a long period of 10-13 months. Throughout learning, improvements in dexterity and visuo-motor co-ordination correlated with increased volume in the lateral extrastriate cortex. During late learning, when the most complex behavior was maintained by sustained motivation to acquire the skill, the volume of the nucleus accumbens increased. These findings reflect the motivational state required to learn, and show accelerated function in higher visual cortex that is consistent with neurocognitive divergence across a spectrum of primate species.
authors: Advanced Research Centers, Keio University, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan.|Laboratory for Symbolic Cognitive Development, RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors: Y
authors: Y
authors: Yamazaki
authors: Department of Physiology, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan.|Central Institute for Experimental Animals, 3-25-12 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa 210-0821, Japan.
authors: K
authors: K
authors: Hikishima
authors: Laboratory for Symbolic Cognitive Development, RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Saiki
authors: Laboratory for Symbolic Cognitive Development, RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors: M
authors: M
authors: Inada
authors: Department of Physiology, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan.|Central Institute for Experimental Animals, 3-25-12 Tonomachi, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa 210-0821, Japan.
authors: E
authors: E
authors: Sasaki
authors: Sobell Department of Motor Neuroscience and Movement Disorders, UCL Institute of Neurology, London WC1N 3BG, UK.
authors: R N
authors: RN
authors: Lemon
authors: Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London WC1N3BG, UK.
authors: C J
authors: CJ
authors: Price
authors: Department of Physiology, Keio University School of Medicine, 35 Shinanomachi, Shinjuku-ku, Tokyo 160-8582, Japan.|Laboratory for Marmoset Neural Architecture, RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors: H
authors: H
authors: Okano
authors: Laboratory for Symbolic Cognitive Development, RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Iriki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002144:Callithrix; D005260:Female; D066128:Gray Matter / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology; D007858:Learning; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009044:Motor Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology; D009048:Motor Skills; D009714:Nucleus Accumbens / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D053001:Tool Use Behavior; D014793:Visual Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000502:physiology