Biomedical subjects

G J van Boxtel

Publications and source records attributed to G J van Boxtel.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2001

Wait and see.

Anticipatory behavior is aimed at goals that can be reached in the near future. Underlying this behavior are neurophysiological processes, which realize a setting of brain structures involved in the future perception, information processing and action. Anticipatory behavior is accompanied by slow brain potentials, which are generated in the cerebral cortex. They are known as the readiness potential (RP), the contingent negative variation (CNV) and the stimulus preceding negativity (SPN). The RP reflects the timing of a future voluntary movement. The CNV reflects the preparation of a signaled movement and the simultaneous anticipatory attention for the imperative stimulus. The SPN reflects partly the anticipatory attention for the upcoming stimulus. Although these slow potentials are generated in the cortex, the paper shows that a subcortical input from basal ganglia, and in the case of the RP also from the cerebellum, is a necessary condition for their emergence. Slow cortical potentials are the result of concerted activity in a number of cerebral networks, in which the thalamus forms a crucial node. It is suggested that the reticular nucleus of the thalamus plays a pivotal role in anticipatory attention.

Attention↗

PubMed2001

A psychophysiological analysis of inhibitory motor control in the stop-signal paradigm.

We examined two potential inhibitory mechanisms for stopping a motor response. Participants performed a standard visual two-choice task in which visual stop signals and no-go signals were presented on a small proportion of the trials. Psychophysiological measures were taken during task performance to examine the time course of response activation and inhibition. The results were consistent with a horse race model previously proposed to account for data obtained using a stop-signal paradigm. The pattern of psychophysiological responses was similar on stop-signal and no-go trials suggesting that the same mechanism may initiate inhibitory control in both situations. We found a distinct frontal brain wave suggesting that inhibitory motor control is instigated from the frontal cortex. The results are best explained in terms of a single, centrally located inhibition mechanism. Results are discussed in terms of current neurophysiological knowledge.

Adult↗

PubMed1999

Inhibitory motor control in stop paradigms: review and reinterpretation of neural mechanisms.

What is the neurophysiological locus of inhibition when preparation for a manual response is countermanded? This paper evaluates data and models that pertain to inhibitory mechanisms operating in stop paradigms. In a model of De Jong, Coles and Logan (1995), (Strategies and mechanisms in nonselective and selective inhibitory motor control. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Perception and Performance, 21, 3, 498-511), a mechanism for nonselective inhibition operates peripheral to the motor cortex, while a selective mechanism operates at a central cortical level. We argue, however, that a peripheral mechanism of inhibition is incorrectly inferred from inhibition data available to date. Neurophysiological and psychophysiological data suggest that inhibitory processes always involve the cortex, and inhibitory effects are exerted upstream from the primary motor cortex. The prefrontal cortex and basal ganglia are candidate agents of response inhibition, whereas possible sites of inhibition are the thalamus and motor cortex.

Cerebral Cortex↗

PubMed1998

Digital archival and exchange of events in a simple format for polygraphic recordings with application in event related potential studies.

This paper describes a simple method of event encoding as an extension to a previously defined standard format, the European Data Format (EDF). The specification ensures full backward compatibility with the existing definition. By using this extension, the format can be used to store both continuous recordings and selected epochs of recordings. The encoding is performed in a channel of event-codes or in a pseudo-channel for annotations. Standardisation of event encoding is discussed. Decoding of events or annotations from the extended format is implemented at the application level. Existing programs that do not support the new encoding scheme still operate correctly and can simply ignore the new channels in processing 'extended' data files. The event encoding is also compatible with EDF's capability to encode channels of different sampling frequency.

Data Interpretation, Statistical↗

PubMed1994

Motor and non-motor components of the Contingent Negative Variation.

To study the contribution of the Stimulus-Preceding Negativity (SPN) to the late wave of the Contingent Negative Variation (CNV), negativity was recorded preceding an instruction stimulus (S1), an instruction stimulus to which a motor response was required (S2) and a stimulus that transmitted Knowledge of Results (KR). All recorded negativities showed a centro-parietal maximum. The pre-instruction negativities tended to be larger over the left hemisphere, while a right hemisphere preponderance was found for the pre-KR negativity. Unlike the pre-S1 negativity, the pre-KR negativity may depend on affective-motivational processes. The pre-S1 negativity was small and influenced by factors other than the instruction at S1. It is concluded that the SPN contributes to the late CNV, but that this contribution was relatively small.

Adult↗

PubMed1994

Motor and non-motor aspects of slow brain potentials.

In order to study motor and non-motor aspects of the contingent negative variation (CNV), fifteen right-handed subjects were asked to perform tightly controlled responses in a WS-S1-S2 paradigm. WS was a non-informative warning signal; S1 and S2 provided information about the response required at S2. This information was either delivered before a block of trials (Simple), at S1 (Precued), or at S2 (Choice). Negativity was larger prior to the informative than to the non-informative stimulus, suggesting the presence of a component called stimulus-preceding negativity (SPN). This finding supported the hypothesis that the late CNV consists of a readiness potential and an SPN. The scalp distribution of the SPN was different before S1 and before S2. The significance of these components is discussed in terms of motor preparation, stimulus anticipation and energetical processes.

Adult↗