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RESEARCH PRODUCT
The role of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in implicit procedural learning.
Alvaro Pascual-leoneAlvaro Pascual-leoneMark HallettJordan GrafmanEric M. Wassermannsubject
Serial reaction timeAdultSupplementary motor areaGeneral Neurosciencemedicine.medical_treatmentPrefrontal CortexDorsolateralSerial LearningTranscranial magnetic stimulationDorsolateral prefrontal cortexmedicine.anatomical_structureElectromagnetic FieldsMotor SkillsPhysical StimulationmedicineReaction TimeHumansLearningCuesNerve NetPrefrontal cortexPsychologyConsumer neuroscienceNeuroscienceMotor cortexdescription
We studied the role of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in procedural learning. Normal subjects completed several blocks of a serial reaction time task using only one hand without or with concurrent non-invasive repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation. To disrupt their function transiently, stimulation was applied at low intensity over the supplementary motor area or over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex contralateral or ipsilateral to the hand used for the test. Stimulation to the contralateral dorsolateral prefrontal cortex markedly impaired procedural implicit learning, as documented by the lack of significant change in response times during the task. Stimulation over the other areas did not interfere with learning. These results support the notion of a critical role of contralateral dorsolateral prefrontal structures in learning of motor sequences.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996-01-01 | Experimental brain research |