BIGGIO , Monica

: Manual dexterity is referred to as the skill to perform fine motor movements and it has been assumed to be associated to the cognitive domain, as well as the sensorimotor one. In this work, we investigated with functional near-infrared spectroscopy the cortical activations elicited by the execution of the 9-HPT, i.e., a standard test...

The aim of the present study was to test whether the peripersonal space (PPS), defined as the portion of the space immediately surrounding the body, is modulated by the long-term motor experience with a specific tool in a sportsmen population. To this end, we evaluated, by means of a multisensory integration paradigm, how tennis players and...

Amputees with phantom limb sometimes report vivid experiences of moving their phantom. Is phantom movement only "imaginary", or, instead, it has physiological properties comparable to those pertaining to real movements? To answer this question, we took advantage of the intermanual transfer of sequence learning, occurring when one hand motor...

Brainstem dysfunctions are very common in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and are a critical predictive factor for future disability. Brainstem functionality can be explored with blink reflexes, subcortical responses consisting in a blink following a peripheral stimulation. Some reflexes are already employed in clinical practice, such as Trigeminal...

Social distancing norms have been promoted after the COVID-19 pandemic. In this work, we tested interpersonal space (IPS) in 107 subjects through a reaching-comfort distance estimation task. In the main experiment, subjects had to estimate the comfort and reach space between an avatar wearing or not wearing a face mask. We found that IPS was...

Motor learning via physical practice leads to long-term potentiation (LTP)-like plasticity in motor cortex (M1) and temporary occlusion of additional LTP-like plasticity. Motor learning can be achieved through simulation of movement, namely motor imagery (MI). When combined with electrical stimulation, MI influenced M1 excitability to a larger...

Significance: Motion artifacts are a notorious challenge in the functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) field. However, little is known about how to deal with them in resting-state data. Aim: We assessed the impact of motion artifact correction approaches on assessing functional connectivity, using semi-simulated datasets with different...

Aim of this study was to assess whether the ability to predict the temporal outcome of a sport action was influenced by the sensorimotor skills previously acquired during a specific sport training. Four groups, each of 30 subjects, were enrolled in this study; subjects of three groups practiced different sports disciplines (i.e., swimming,...

The ability to predict the weight of objects is important for skilled and dexterous manipulation during activities of daily living. The observation of other people moving objects might represent an important source of information on object features and help to plan the correct motor interaction with it. In aging, an impaired ability to evaluate...

Time-of-day is rarely considered during experimental protocols investigating motor behavior and neural activity. The goal of this work was to investigate differences in functional cortical connectivity at rest linked to the time of the day using functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS). Since resting-state brain is shown to be a succession...

This study aimed to investigate the role of sensorimotor expertise in evaluating relative weight of a lifted object during the observation of a sport-specific gesture, namely the deadlift. Fifty-six participants, assigned to three groups according to their experience in weight lifting, powerlifters, CrossFit & REG; practitioners and naive...

Background: Peripersonal Space (PS) is represented as the immediate area surrounding an individual. The extent of PS changes in relation to several factors, including emotional states, type of relationship or psychopathology. Attachment anxiety has an impact on the social adaptability of peripersonal space and anxiety and fear are associated...