The role of the Supplementary Motor Area in time processing

计时机制（0.1- 100秒范围）的神经基础是许多争论的主题。我们假设，补充运动区（SMA），一个主要的皮质结构，涉及重要的多巴胺能通路，对着持续时间编码的方式所描述的“累加器模型”。在SMA上使用经颅磁刺激（TMS），我们将测试健康受试者的运动和知觉计时任务，与帕金森病患者的计时性能受损，由于多巴胺能功能障碍。我们期望TMS抑制效应诱导可预测的性能趋势，为累加器模型和SMA在时序中的关键作用提供支持。

The neural bases of timing mechanisms (0.1-100s range) are the subject of much debate. We hypothesise that the Supplementary Motor Area (SMA), a major cortical structure involving important dopaminergic pathways, subtends duration encoding, in the way depicted by the 'accumulator model'. Using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) over the SMA, we will test healthy subjects in motor and perceptual timing tasks, compared to Parkinson's disease patients whose timing performance is impaired due to dopaminergic dysfunction. We expect TMS inhibitory effects to induce predictable performance trends, providing support for the accumulator model and the key role of the SMA in timing.