Integrated actions of masticatory muscles: Simultaneous EMG from eight intramuscular electrodes

In 29 normal persons with complete dental arches, the muscular activity of the temporalis, masseter, medial pterygoid, anterior belly of the digastric, mylohyoid and geniohyoid muscles was studied electromyographically with bipolar fine wire electrodes during various mandibular movements – both resisted and unresisted. Action potentials were recorded on FM magnetic tape and each experiment was also videotaped. Temporalis muscle was active during centric closing of the jaw with either contact of the teeth, or against resistance; during free lateral movements to the ipsilateral side, either against resistance or occlusal contact; during incisor gum chewing, molar gum chewing on ipsilateral or contralateral sides, during normal mastication; and during forceful centric occlusion. Activity occurred in the masseter and medial pterygoid muscles during the following movements: closing the jaw slowly either without occlusal contact or with occlusal contact and against resistance; free lateral movement to contralateral side, either against resistance or with occlusal contact; protraction of the jaw either without occlusal contact or with occlusal contact; swallowing either saliva or water; incisor gum chewing with either the ipsilateral or contralateral molars; normal mastication; and during forceful centric occlusion. Activity occurred in the digastric, mylohyoid and geniohyoid muscles during the following movements; opening of the jaw either slowly or maximally against resistance; closing the jaw against resistance; free lateral movement to ipsilateral and contralateral sides, either against resistance or with occlusal contact; protraction against resistance of the jaw either without or with occlusal contact; swallowing saliva and water; and protraction of the tongue. They work in antagonism (reciprocally) during gum chewing and normal mastication.     

A fronto-parietal network for chewing of gum: a study on human subjects with functional magnetic resonance imaging

The purpose of this study is to investigate human brain activity during mastication using fMRI. Twelve right-handed normal subjects performed two tasks: chewing of gum at their own pace, and imitating the movements of chewing gum. In order to reveal which areas of the brain are more strongly activated while chewing gum, we performed the conjunction analyses of gum chewing minus sham chewing with gum chewing minus rest. The common activity in the orofacial sensorimotor and premotor cortex was subtracted out since it was common to both tasks, but there were some differences in activity in some prefrontal and posterior parietal cortex areas. Our results suggest that a fronto-parietal network for mastication exists and may contribute to higher cognitive information processing.     

Electromyographical analysis of the masseter muscle in dentulous and partially toothless patients with temporomandibular joint disorders

This study had as objective to analyze with computerized electromyography the masseter muscles bilaterally in twenty individuals with temporomandibular joint dysfunction (DTM), being: the group I consisting of ten individuals with complete dentition and group II constituted by ten individuals with posterior dental absences; comparing nine clinical activities: rest before and after exercises, maximum habitual intercuspation (MIH), right and left laterality, forced centric occlusion, protrusion, bilateral molar bite and chewing. It was utilized the Electromyography K6I-Myotronics, with eight canals and surface silver electrodes. By means of the results analysis, we verified significant differences between the groups (p < 0.01), being group I, presented greater electromyographic activity (32.98 microvolts), than the group II (22.31 microvolts), suggesting that this individuals presented low muscular activity. The interaction between the groups and the clinical activities was significant (p < 0.01), as well as between the groups, clinical activities and muscles (p < 0.05). To clarify which amongst the relative averages the clinical activities were different, calculated the critical value of Tukey, being that rest before and after exercises, MIH, right and left laterality, presented averages with similar distributions, with values below of the values of Tukey, as well as forced centric occlusion, protrusion, bilateral molar bite and chewing presented higher values than Tukey. Based on this research's data, we concluded that the electromyographical analysis of the masseter muscles in Individuals with TMD, dentulous and with dental absence showed that individuals with TMD, dentulous or not, presented elevated muscular activity in rest position and individuals with TMD, dentulous, presented higher electromyographical activity than the individuals with TMD and lacking posterior teeth.     

Changes in cortical activation in craniomandibular disorders during splint therapy - a single subject fMRI study

There is some controversial discussion within the therapy of craniomandibular disorders (CMDs) about the mode of action of occlusal splints. Here we present a case report on one CMD-patient measuring cerebral activation changes with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) before and after therapy with a stabilization splint. Wearing the Michigan splint for 11 nights and partially days resulted in substantial pain relief and changes in occlusal movement performance. Cerebral activation during occlusion was decreased after therapy (PRE-POST) in bilateral sensorimotor regions but also additional areas such as left posterior insula, right superior temporal cortex and bilateral occipital lobe. During the first usage of the splint in the scanner (PRE) increased activation in the left dorsolateral prefrontal lobe (BA 9) was observed. After splint training occlusion with the splint compared to without a splint increasingly involved the left superior parietal lobe (BA 7, POST). Whereas BA 9 might be associated with increasing working memory load due to the manipulation with an unusual object, the BA 7 activation in the POST session might document increased sensorimotor interaction after getting used to the splint. Our findings indicate that wearing an occlusion splint triggers activation in parietal sensorimotor integration areas, also observed after long periods of sensorimotor training. These additional recourses might improve coordination and physiological handling of the masticatory system.     

舌侧金属加强杆种植覆盖义齿的三维有限元分析

目的 通过三维有限元分析方法探讨舌侧金属加强结构义齿基托设计对无牙下颌种植修复义齿的生物力学影响,为无牙颌修复治疗提供参考。方法 构建舌侧金属加强结构与无加强结构两种义齿基托设计的2颗种植体支持locator式覆盖义齿三维有限元模型,分别对后牙中央窝垂直施加150 N载荷、斜向施加150 N载荷以及对前牙垂直施加150 N载荷,模拟正中咬合、左右侧方咀嚼以及前牙切割食物时两种模型各组织的受力情况。结果 后牙及前牙垂直向加载时,两种义齿基托设计模型各组织受到的应力分布较为接近,所受最大应力差别在0~0.16 MPa之间;偏侧咀嚼时,未添加金属加强杆的义齿基托、种植体和黏骨膜应力集中范围,以及种植体、种植体周围骨最大受力明显大于添加金属加强杆模型,所受最大应力差别在0.59~2.99 MPa之间。结论 在义齿基托舌侧添加金属加强杆,可以起到应力分散的作用,或可在一定程度上减小骨吸收及基托折断的风险。     

三种改良人工牙修复全口义齿的稳定性及应力支撑

背景：改良牙合型是重度吸收牙槽嵴全口义齿修复的一种良好选择,其中线性牙合、舌向集中牙合及长正中牙合具有代表性。 目的：概述线性牙合、舌向集中牙合及长正中牙合3种改良牙合型的特点及其在全口义齿修复中的应用。 方法：计算机检索中国知识资源总库(中国期刊网)1985年1月至2011年11月、PubMed 数据库1965年1月至2011年11月与线性牙合型、舌向集中牙合型、长正中牙合型3种改良牙合型在全口义齿应用相关的文章。 结果与结论：线性牙合为单颌刃状牙一维接触,能尽可能减小侧向牙合力消除牙合干扰。舌向集中牙合比平面牙合美观,对于重度吸收牙槽嵴患者较解剖牙合型更稳定。长正中牙合型能满足患者长正中量的自然要求,以及无牙颌患者正中关系位至肌力闭合道终点位置之间无障碍的义齿设计要求。3种改良牙合型均能减小侧向牙合力,将牙合力集中于剩余牙槽嵴,有助于提高义齿稳定性和软硬组织的支持作用。     

Lateral asymmetry of eye movements in temporal lobe epileptic patients with unilateral foci.

Eye movements in response to visual stimuli (Benton Visual Retention Test) were examined in 22 temporal lobe epileptics (TLEs), 10 primary generalized epileptics (PGEs), and 20 normal controls. In the normal controls, the percent fixation time on the left peripheral figure was higher than that on the right peripheral figure, a tendency also found in the PGEs. In TLEs with right-sided foci, the percent fixation time on the left peripheral figure was higher than that on the right peripheral figure, the direction of asymmetry found in the normal controls and PGEs. However, when calculated as laterality indices (the degree of asymmetry) TLEs with right-sided foci were significantly more negative than those of both the normal controls and PGEs. In TLEs with left sided foci, the percent fixation time on the right peripheral figure tended to be higher than that on the left peripheral figure, an asymmetry which differed significantly from the normal controls, PGEs and the TLEs with right-sided foci. The results here showed that TLEs with unilateral foci had distinct eye movements which varied with the laterality of the lesion in the direction of functional overactivation of the epileptogenic hemisphere.     

Effects of chewing in working memory processing

It has been generally suggested that chewing produces an enhancing effect on cognitive performance-related aspects of memory by the test battery. Furthermore, recent studies have shown that chewing is associated with activation of various brain regions, including the prefrontal cortex. However, little is known about the relation between cognitive performances affected by chewing and the neuronal activity in specified regions in the brain. We therefore examined the effects of chewing on neuronal activities in the brain during a working memory task using fMRI. The subjects chewed gum, without odor and taste components, between continuously performed two- or three-back (n-back) working memory tasks. Chewing increased the BOLD signals in the middle frontal gyrus (Brodmann's areas 9 and 46) in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex during the n-back tasks. Furthermore, there were more prominent activations in the right premotor cortex, precuneus, thalamus, hippocampus and inferior parietal lobe during the n-back tasks after the chewing trial. These results suggest that chewing may accelerate or recover the process of working memory besides inducing improvement in the arousal level by the chewing motion.     

TeeTester与T-ScanⅢ咬合分析仪对正常牙合青年学生咬合力特征的比较

背景：TeeTester和T-ScanⅢ两种咬合分析仪在口腔临床各领域已被广泛应用,国内对两种仪器的使用尚未见到对比数据。 目的：应用TeeTester与T-ScanⅢ两种咬合分析仪研究正常牙合青年学生的咬合特征,并比较两系统咬合分析的差异。 方法：采用TeeTester咬合系统V3.2.0记录13例正常牙合受试者在牙尖交错位状态下的左右侧咬合力分布百分比、牙合力中心点位置、牙合力不对称指数、前牙咬合力占牙合力总值的百分比,采用T-ScanⅢV8.01咬合分析仪记录13例正常牙合受试者在ICP时的上述指标,并在25%,50%,75%,100%最大咬合力时的4个时段对上述各项指标进行分析。检测数据导入SPSS19.0软件进行统计。 结果与结论：①TeeTester与T-ScanⅢ两系统所测得的左右侧咬合力分布百分比差异均无显著性意义(P > 0.05)。②两系统所测得的所有受试者牙合力中心点绝大多数在规定灰圈内,且均位于前磨牙区。两系统所测得   牙合力中心点距中线的垂直距离、牙合力中心点偏移方向,差异均无显著性意义(P > 0.05)。③两系统所测得的牙合力不对称指数差异无显著性意义(P > 0.05)。④TeeTester所测得的前牙咬合力占总牙合力的百分比大于T-ScanⅢ所测结果,且在50%,75%,100%最大咬合力时差异有显著性意义(P < 0.05)。结果说明,①正常牙合者左右侧咬合基本平衡。②左右侧咬合力分布百分比、牙合力中心点、牙合力不对称指数可以作为临床上判断咬合是否正常的指标。③TeeTester与T-ScanⅢ在前牙咬合力占总牙合力百分比的测量方面存在差异,需要继续关注和研究。  中国组织工程研究杂志出版内容重点：组织构建;骨细胞;软骨细胞;细胞培养;成纤维细胞;血管内皮细胞;骨质疏松;组织工程     

Automatically Generating Subject-specific Functional Tooth Surfaces Using Virtual Mastication

High-accuracy geometrical models of a subject’s mandibular and maxillary teeth are combined with recordings of natural chewing trajectories of the same subject to obtain a subject-specific virtual model of mastication—the virtual masticator. The virtual masticator and a shape-optimization algorithm, which is based on removing collisions occurring between a generic maxillary tooth/teeth and the mandibular antagonists during mastication, is used to automatically reconstruct functional tooth surfaces. The process was tested using a chewing trajectory stemming from recordings made of an individual while eating elastic-type foods, a generic maxillary tooth, and the mandibular second molar of that individual. Comparing the obtained results with the actual tooth, the errors within the occlusal and functional regions of the the right second maxillary molar range between −90 and 200 μm and these errors do not change any more after three chewing cycles. These results indicate that a small number of chewing cycles is sufficient to remove occlusal interferences in the virtual tooth model. Such automatically reconstructed tooth surfaces can provide guidance during the design stage of dental fixed restorations manufactured using computer-aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM) systems and provide additional information for the design of dental implants or bridges.     

Spatio-temporal differences in brain oxygenation between movement execution and imagery: a multichannel near-infrared spectroscopy study.

Near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) was used to assess human motor-cortex oxygenation changes in response to self-paced movements as well as movement imagery. We used a 24 channel NIRS-system which allows non-invasive monitoring of cerebral oxygenation changes in the human brain induced by cortical activity. From previous studies it is known that motor imagery activates sensorimotor areas similar to those activated during execution of the same movement. Sixteen healthy subjects were recruited and the changes in concentration of oxygenated hemoglobin (oxy-Hb) and deoxygenated hemoglobin (deoxy-Hb) were examined during a simple right and left hand tapping task and during kinesthetic movement imagery. All subjects showed significant increases in oxy-Hb during both tasks compared to the resting period, but with different onset latencies of oxygenation. During left and right movement imagery, the oxy-Hb concentration increased about 2 s later compared to real movement execution. Furthermore, the oxygenation found was bilaterally represented for both tasks but with temporal differences. The present study reported new results concerning timing and topographical distribution of the hemodynamic response during motor imagery measured by near-infrared spectroscopy.     

Occlusal Development and Masseter Activity in Alpacas (Lama pacos)

Tooth eruption and the development of occlusion are significant ontogenetic changes in the masticatory apparatus of mammals. Here, we test the hypothesis that changes in masseter activity are correlated with increased occlusal contacts at major stages of dental development in the alpaca, Lama pacos. We compare electromyographic data from the superficial and deep masseter in infant and juvenile alpacas prior to and following m1 occlusion and from adults with full permanent dentitions. The pre‐m1 and post‐m1 occlusion groups exhibit similar masseter activity durations, chewing cycle durations, and with the exception of the balancing‐side deep masseter, similar timing differences between the jaw muscles. On average, the balancing‐side deep masseter fires significantly later in the post‐m1 occlusion group. The m2–m3 group exhibits significantly longer chewing cycle length and an even later firing balancing‐side deep masseter. Increased occlusion is also associated with an increase in the relative amount of working‐side superficial and deep masseter muscle activity when compared with the balancing side muscles. Although the development of occlusal relations in infant and juvenile alpacas are associated with minor changes in masseter activation patterns, additional molar occlusal contacts increase chewing cycle duration resulting in concomitant changes in masseter recruitment patterns. Currently, we cannot rule out that musculoskeletal development influences masseter activity as demonstrated in other mammals. However, the data presented here indicate that alpacas have a relatively delayed onset of the adult motor pattern that may be correlated with changes in occlusal relations due to tooth eruption. Anat Rec, 2010. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Cerebral areas processing swallowing and tongue movement are overlapping but distinct: a functional magnetic resonance imaging study

Although multiple regions of the cerebral cortex have been implicated in swallowing, the functional contributions of each brain area remain unclear. The present study sought to clarify the roles of these cortical foci in swallowing by comparing brain activation associated with voluntary saliva swallowing and voluntary tongue elevation. Fourteen healthy right-handed subjects were examined with single-event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) while laryngeal movements associated with swallowing and tongue movement were simultaneously recorded. Both swallowing and tongue elevation activated 1) the left lateral pericentral and anterior parietal cortex, and 2) the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and adjacent supplementary motor area (SMA), suggesting that these brain regions mediate processes shared by swallowing and tongue movement. Tongue elevation activated a larger total volume of cortex than swallowing, with significantly greater activation within the ACC, SMA, right precentral and postcentral gyri, premotor cortex, right putamen, and thalamus. Although a contrast analysis failed to identify activation foci specific to swallowing, superimposed activation maps suggested that the most lateral extent of the left pericentral and anterior parietal cortex, rostral ACC, precuneus, and right parietal operculum/insula were preferentially activated by swallowing. This finding suggests that these brain areas may mediate processes specific to swallowing. Approximately 60% of the subjects showed a strong functional lateralization of the postcentral gyrus toward the left hemisphere for swallowing, whereas 40% showed a similar activation bias for the tongue elevation task. This finding supports the view that the oral sensorimotor cortices within the left and right hemispheres are functionally nonequivalent.     

An Experimental Approach to Evaluate the Correspondence Between Wear Facet Position and Occlusal Movements

The position of dental wear facets depends on crown morphology, antagonistic relation, and occlusal movements. The correspondence between specific directions of movements and the position of wear facets cannot be easily evaluated in vivo and has never been tested experimentally. An experimental analysis was carried out to provide evidence that explicit occlusal movements are responsible for the spatial position of wears facets. Unworn dental stone replicas of modern human prosthetic molar were mounted in a physical dental articulator, and the upper dental arch was ground against the lowers to create a wear facet pattern. The relief guided movements were constrained sequentially by means of three different condyle box setups: (1) experienced‐based mean values for sagittal condyle inclination, lateroretrusion, Benett angle, and transversal condyle inclination were used; (2) pure retrusion and immediate side shift movements were added; (3) retrusion and immediate side shift were increased. Finally, the upper and lower first molars were surface scanned and macrowear facets were quantified in four wear stages. The results show that a wear facet pattern was created similar to what is seen on human molars in vivo occlusion. Some facets only developed if specific directions of movement were carried out. Therefore, we posit that an analysis of wear facet patterns is useful in recreating the individual occlusal movements. This information can be used not only to guide reproducible functional reconstructions of crown relief and dental arches but also to deduce jaw movements when, for example, isolated primate teeth are discovered in paleontological contexts. Anat Rec, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Bilateral electrodermal activity depressive patients

Integrated bilateral skin conductance response and reactive lateral eye movements were studied in 19 depressive patients and 14 normal subjects during visual and verbal tasks and tone habituation sequence. Distinct right-left differences between depressed and normal subjects in reactive lateral eye movements were revealed. Both endogenous and reactive derpession patients were classified as ‘left-movers’. Marked bilateral differenceswere observed in electrodermal activity (EDA) in patients during verbal and visual tasks. In endogenous depression EDA was higher on the left hand compared with the right under all the conditions studied (visual and verbal, and tone habituation sequence). In reactive depression EDA was higher on the left side during the verbal task and tone habituation sequence and on the right side in the visual task. Neither result in reactive depression group attained significance. The results are interpreted as a reflection of a different pathophysiology underlying reactive and endogenous depression.     

Using occlusal wear information and finite element analysis to investigate stress distributions in human molars

Simulations based on finite element analysis (FEA) have attracted increasing interest in dentistry and dental anthropology for evaluating the stress and strain distribution in teeth under occlusal loading conditions. Nonetheless, FEA is usually applied without considering changes in contacts between antagonistic teeth during the occlusal power stroke. In this contribution we show how occlusal information can be used to investigate the stress distribution with 3D FEA in lower first molars (M(1)). The antagonistic crowns M(1) and P(2)-M(1) of two dried modern human skulls were scanned by μCT in maximum intercuspation (centric occlusion) contact. A virtual analysis of the occlusal power stroke between M(1) and P(2)-M(1) was carried out in the Occlusal Fingerprint Analyser (OFA) software, and the occlusal trajectory path was recorded, while contact areas per time-step were visualized and quantified. Stress distribution of the M(1) in selected occlusal stages were analyzed in strand7, considering occlusal information taken from OFA results for individual loading direction and loading area. Our FEA results show that the stress pattern changes considerably during the power stroke, suggesting that wear facets have a crucial influence on the distribution of stress on the whole tooth. Grooves and fissures on the occlusal surface are seen as critical locations, as tensile stresses are concentrated at these features. Properly accounting for the power stroke kinematics of occluding teeth results in quite different results (less tensile stresses in the crown) than usual loading scenarios based on parallel forces to the long axis of the tooth. This leads to the conclusion that functional studies considering kinematics of teeth are important to understand biomechanics and interpret morphological adaptation of teeth.     

The generators of slow potentials obtained during verbal, pictorial and spatial tasks.

The purpose of this study was to test whether slow cortical electrical activity is specific to performance on verbal, pictorial and spatial tasks. Twenty-nine healthy subjects were required to compare pairs of visual stimuli separated by a delay of 2.5 s in a S1-S2 contingent negative variation-type paradigm. Slow potentials (SPs) were recorded by high-resolution EEG (123 channels) and their generators modeled by current density reconstruction using individual MRIs as source space models. Activity in each architectonic area of Brodmann was scored with respect to individual maximum current by a percentile method. Results showed a multifocal pattern of current density foci comprising the SP generators, including frontal and posterior cortices in all subjects, with the most active areas being common to the three tasks. In spite of the intersubject variability in the sets of active areas for each given task, a few cortical areas were observed to discriminate between tasks in a statistically significant way: the verbal task corresponded to stronger electrical activity in right area 45 than the other tasks; the spatial to weaker activity in right area 38 and left area 5 than the other tasks; the pictorial, compared to the spatial task, to stronger activity in left area 39; the verbal, compared to the spatial task, to stronger activity in left area 10, and compared to the pictorial, to weaker activity in right area 20. The present method of SP analysis may aid in the functional mapping of human association cortices in individual cases. We discuss our results emphasizing intersubject variability in cortical activity patterns and the possibility of finding more universal patterns.     

The influence of normal human ageing on automatic movements

There is evidence that aged normal subjects have more difficulty in achieving automaticity than young subjects. The underlying central neural mechanism for this phenomenon is unclear. In the present study, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to investigate the effect of normal ageing on automaticity. Aged healthy subjects were asked to practice self-initiated, self-paced, memorized sequential finger movements with different complexity until they could perform the tasks automatically. Automaticity was evaluated by having subjects perform a secondary task simultaneously with the sequential movements. Although it took more time, most aged subjects eventually performed the tasks automatically at the same level as the young subjects. Functional MRI results showed that, for both groups, sequential movements activated similar brain regions before and after automaticity was achieved. No additional activity was observed in the automatic condition. While performing automatic movements, aged subjects had greater activity in the bilateral anterior lobe of cerebellum, premotor area, parietal cortex, left prefrontal cortex, anterior cingulate, caudate nucleus and thalamus, and recruited more areas, including the pre-supplementary motor area and the bilateral posterior lobe of cerebellum, compared to young subjects. These results indicate that most healthy aged subjects can perform some complex motor tasks automatically. However, aged subjects appear to require more brain activity to perform automatically at the same level as young subjects. This appears to be the main reason why aged subjects have more difficulty in achieving automaticity.     

Jaw movements and muscle activity during mastication in growing rabbits

To investigate the biomechanical effects of juvenile growth changes in the rabbit masticatory apparatus a comparison was made of mastication in just-weaned and adult animals. Mandibular movements in two planes were registered by cineradiography. Masticatory muscle activity was recorded by fine-wire electromyography. The same pattern of unilateral mastication was present in the two ages. The most important changes in the jaw movements are 1) a decrease of jaw opening speed and chewing frequency and an increase in jaw opening time, 2) a decrease in maximum gape in soft food and an unaltered gape in small-particle hard food, and 3) an increase in lateral jaw excursion, mainly due to a more pronounced movement of the jaw to the balancing side (lingual phase). The contraction patterns were basically similar in the two ages. The higher chewing frequency in young animals was attained by a larger degree of overlap between opening and closing muscle activities. Young animals used relatively more EMG activity to chew hay, the hardest food. The changes in opening speed, gape, and chewing frequency are consistent with earlier predictions from the morphological changes, and so is the extra activity needed to chew hard food. The increase in lateral excursion was not predicted. It is suggested to be caused by cheek teeth wear, making possible smooth occlusal guidance of the jaw at the balancing side. Some of the changes in juvenile morphology can be viewed as adaptations to a changing diet.     

The neural basis of motor sequencing: an fMRI study of healthy subjects

The present study used functional MRI to clarify the brain regions activated during a series of motor sequencing tasks in healthy volunteers. Ten subjects were scanned while performing three soft signs tasks ranging from simple (PT: palm tapping), moderate (PS: pronation/supination) to complex movements (FEP: fist-edge-palm). The FEP task induced significant activations within the cortical networks including bilateral sensorimotor, SMA, left parietal, and right cerebellum, but no activation in the prefrontal area. Moreover, the percentage signal changes within the left sensorimotor, left thalamus and right cerebellum showed an increase in activation with task complexity. The present findings challenge the traditional belief that FEP was a task for frontal lobe function but suggest that successful performance of more complex neurological soft sign tasks like FEP requires the participation of more brain areas than simple motor sequencing and coordination task like PS and PT. These also provide the empirical data on the neural basis of neurological soft signs for further study in other clinical group like schizophrenia in the near future.