Juan Jiang, Eiman Azim, Carl-Fredrik Ekerot, Bror Alstermark
Abstract
The impressive precision of mammalian limb movements relies on internal feedback pathways that convey information about ongoing motor output to cerebellar circuits. The spino-cerebellar tracts (SCT) in the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spinal cord have long been considered canonical neural substrates for the conveyance of internal feedback signals. Here we consider the distinct features of an indirect spino-cerebellar route, via the brainstem lateral reticular nucleus (LRN), and the implications of this pre-cerebellar "detour" for the execution and evolution of limb motor control. Both direct and indirect spino-cerebellar pathways signal spinal interneuronal activity to the cerebellum during movements, but evidence suggests that direct SCT neurons are mainly modulated by rhythmic activity, whereas the LRN also receives information from systems active during postural adjustment, reaching and grasping. Thus, while direct and indirect spino-cerebellar circuits can both be regarded as internal copy pathways, it seems likely that the direct system is principally dedicated to rhythmic motor acts like locomotion, while the indirect system also provides a means of pre-cerebellar integration relevant to the execution and coordination of dexterous limb movements.
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 5. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 21 September 2015.
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#7,119,728
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#333
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#76,582
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Outputs of similar age from Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience
#7
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Altmetric has tracked 25,374,917 research outputs across all sources so far. This one has received more attention than most of these and is in the 71st percentile.
So far Altmetric has tracked 1,463 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a little more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 7.0. This one has done well, scoring higher than 77% of its peers.
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We're also able to compare this research output to 48 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done well, scoring higher than 85% of its contemporaries.
