RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Preserved motor representations after paralysis
JF bioRxiv
FD Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
SP 2021.10.07.463105
DO 10.1101/2021.10.07.463105
A1 Charles Guan
A1 Tyson Aflalo
A1 Carey Y. Zhang
A1 Emily R. Rosario
A1 Nader Pouratian
A1 Richard A. Andersen
YR 2021
UL http://biorxiv.org/content/early/2021/10/09/2021.10.07.463105.abstract
AB Neural plasticity allows us to learn skills and incorporate new experiences. What happens when our lived experiences fundamentally change, such as after a severe injury? To address this question, we analyzed intracortical population activity in a tetraplegic adult as she controlled a virtual hand through a brain-computer interface (BCI). By attempting to move her fingers, she could accurately drive the corresponding virtual fingers. Neural activity during finger movements exhibited robust representational structure and dynamics that matched the representational structure, previously identified in able-bodied individuals. The finger representational structure was consistent during extended use, even though the structure contributed to BCI decoding errors. Our results suggest that motor representations are remarkably stable, even after complete paralysis. BCIs re-engage these preserved representations to restore lost motor functions.Competing Interest StatementThe authors have declared no competing interest.