Abstract
To achieve a volitional goal, we need to execute multiple movements in a specific temporal order. After repetitive performance of a particular sequence of movements, we are able to memorize and execute the whole sequence without external guidance. Where and how in the brain do we store information necessary for the orderly performance of multiple movements? We have found a group of cells in the cerebral cortex of monkeys whose activity is exclusively related to a sequence of multiple movements performed in a particular order. Such cellular activity exists in the supplementary motor area1,2, but not in the primary motor cortex3,4. We propose that these cells contribute a signal about the order of forthcoming multiple movements, and are useful for planning and coding of several movements ahead.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Wiesendanger, M. Rev. Physiol. Biochem. Pharmacol. 103, 1–59 (1986).
Tanji, J. Neurosci. Res. 19, 251–268 (1994).
Porter, R. & Lemon, R. Corticospinal Function and Voluntary Movement (Clarendon, Oxford, 1993).
Passingham, R. E. The Frontal Lobes and Voluntary Action (Oxford University Press, Oxford, 1993).
Luppino, G., Matelli, M., Camarda, R. M. & Rizzolatti, G. J. comp. Neurol. 311, 463–482 (1991).
Matsuzaka, Y., Aizawa, H. & Tanji, J. J. Neurophysiol. 68, 653–662 (1992).
Brinkman, C. & Porter, R. J. Neurophysiol. 42, 681–709 (1979).
Tanji, J. & Kurata, K. J. Neurophysiol. 48, 633–653 (1982).
Crutcher, M. D. & Alexander, G. E. J. Neurophysiol. 64, 151–163 (1990).
Chen, D., Hyland, B., Maier, V., Palmeri, A. & Wiesendanger, M. Somatosens. Motor Res. 8, 27–44 (1991).
Ikeda, A., Lüders, H. O., Burgess, R. C. & Shibasaki, H. Brain 115, 1017–1043 (1992).
Colebatch, J. G., Deiber, M.-P., Passingham, R. E., Friston, K. J. & Frackowiak, R. S. J. J. Neurophysiol. 65, 1392–1401 (1991).
Matelli, M. et al. Neuroreport 4, 1295–1298 (1993).
Deecke, L., Grözinger, B. & Kornhuber, H. H. Biol. Cybern. 23, 99–119 (1976).
Orgogozo, J. M. & Larsen, B. Science 206, 847–850 (1979).
Roland, P. E., Larsen, B., Lassen, N. A. & Skinhøj, E. J. Neurophysiol. 43, 118–136 (1980).
Tanji, J. & Kurata, K. J. Neurophysiol. 53, 129–141 (1985).
Tanji, J., Okano, K. & Sato, K. C. Nature 327, 618–620 (1987).
Lang, W., Obrig, H., Lindinger, G., Cheyne, D. & Deecke, L. Expl Brain Res. 79, 504–514 (1990).
Mushiake, H., Inase, M. & Tanji, J. J. Neurophysiol. 66, 705–718 (1991).
Deiber, M.-P. et al. Expl Brain Res. 84, 393–402 (1991).
Laplane, D., Talairach, J., Meininger, V., Bancaud, J. & Orgogozo, J. M. J. Neurol. Sci. 34, 301–314 (1977).
Dick, J. P. R., Benecke, R., Rothwell, J. C., Day, B. L. & Marsden, C. D. Movement Disorders 1, 255–266 (1986).
Brinkman, C. J. Neurosci. 4, 918–929 (1984).
Halsband, U., Ito, N., Tanji, J. & Freund, H.-J. Brain 116, 243–266 (1993).
Rizzolatti, G. et al. Expl Brain Res. 82, 337–350 (1990).
Tanji, J., Okano, K. & Sato, K. C. J. Neurophysiol. 60, 325–343 (1988).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tanji, J., Shima, K. Role for supplementary motor area cells in planning several movements ahead. Nature 371, 413–416 (1994). https://doi.org/10.1038/371413a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/371413a0
- Springer Nature Limited
This article is cited by
-
Dissociating the contributions of sensorimotor striatum to automatic and visually guided motor sequences
Nature Neuroscience (2023)
-
Beta rhythmicity in human motor cortex reflects neural population coupling that modulates subsequent finger coordination stability
Communications Biology (2022)
-
Cingulate-motor circuits update rule representations for sequential choice decisions
Nature Communications (2022)
-
Loneliness inside of the brain: evidence from a large dataset of resting-state fMRI in young adult
Scientific Reports (2022)
-
Mental construction of object symbols from meaningless elements by Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata)
Scientific Reports (2022)