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Brain–Computer Interfaces - Index of

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Dynamics <strong>of</strong> Sensorimotor Oscillations in a Motor Task 55<br />

Fig. 6 Time-frequency maps (upper panel) and topoplots (lower panel) <strong>of</strong> the beta rebound in a<br />

foot motor imagery task. For each subject, the dominant frequency <strong>of</strong> the beta rebound and the<br />

latency until its maximum are indicated. For all subjects, the beta rebound (ERS) is located around<br />

the vertex electrode Cz. The subjects started imagery at second 3 and stopped at the end <strong>of</strong> the<br />

trials at second 7. This figure is modified from [10]<br />

Studies that applied TMS during self-paced movement or median nerve stimulation<br />

showed that the excitability <strong>of</strong> motor cortex neurons was significantly reduced<br />

in the first second after termination <strong>of</strong> movement and stimulation, respectively [65].<br />

This suggests that the beta rebound might represent a deactivated or inhibited cortical<br />

state. Experiments with periodic electrical median nerve stimulation (e.g. in<br />

interstimulus intervals <strong>of</strong> 1.5 s) and evaluation <strong>of</strong> the beta rebound further support<br />

this hypothesis. Cube manipulation with one hand during nerve stimulation<br />

suppressed the beta rebound in MEG [66] and EEG [67]. Sensorimotor cortex<br />

activation, such as by cube manipulation, is not only accompanied by an intense<br />

outflow from the motor cortex to the hand muscles, but also by an afferent flow<br />

from mechanic and proprioreceptors (neurons that detect touch) to the somatosensory<br />

cortex. The activation <strong>of</strong> the sensorimotor cortex could compensate for the<br />

short-lasting decrease <strong>of</strong> motor cortex excitability in response to electrical nerve<br />

stimulation and suppress the beta rebound.<br />

7 Short-Lived Brain States<br />

Research in both neuroscience and BCIs may benefit from studying short-lived brain<br />

states. A short-lived brain state is a stimulus induced activation pattern detectable<br />

through electrical potential (or magnetic field) recordings and last for fractions<br />

<strong>of</strong> 1 s. One example is the “matching process” hypothesis [68] stating that the motor<br />

cortex is engaged in the chain <strong>of</strong> events triggered by the appearance <strong>of</strong> the target<br />

as early as 60–80 ms after stimulus onset, leading to the aimed movement. Other<br />

examples are the short-lasting, somatotopically-specific ERD patterns induced by a<br />

cue stimulus indicating the type <strong>of</strong> motor imagery to be performed within the next<br />

seconds.

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