Neural Correlates of Action Perception: Brain Structure, Function, and Behavior

描述（由申请人提供）：拟议的研究将比较猕猴、黑猩猩和人类镜像系统中的行为、功能性大脑反应和解剖连接。镜像系统被认为是动作理解的基础，它允许个体模仿他人的动作，就好像他们正在执行这些动作一样。然而，一些尚未解决的问题限制了镜像系统与人类社会认知的联系。首先，猕猴镜像系统的结果在很大程度上被复制。其次，猕猴和人类结果之间的等效性尚不清楚，因为它们涉及不同的方法。第三，猕猴和人类的镜像系统反应不同，只有人类的镜像系统对不涉及物体的动作做出反应。第四，猕猴缺乏一些与人类镜像系统有关的行为，最明显的是模仿。这项提案将解决前两个问题，通过验证基本的猕猴镜像系统的研究结果，使用的方法与人类使用的方法相媲美。它将通过直接调查镜像系统反应和连接在灵长类物种之间的差异来解决后两个问题。主要的假设是，通过增加与其他大脑网络的连接，镜像系统反应特性的进化扩展允许这些细胞对更广泛的观察刺激做出反应，从而模拟更广泛的刺激。将使用行为任务、体内功能性神经成像和结构扩散张量成像的组合来检验这一假设。目的1将采用18F-FDG正电子发射断层扫描比较猕猴和黑猩猩在有物体和无物体的情况下执行和观察动作的神经相关性。目标1还将获得每个受试者模仿能力的行为指标。目标2将使用扩散张量成像来比较连接猕猴、黑猩猩和人类镜像系统组成部分的白色物质通路。将目标1中获得的行为和功能脑反应与目标2中获得的解剖结果进行比较。通过这种方式，模仿能力的物种和个体差异可以与大脑反应和解剖连接的差异联系起来。 公共卫生相关性：像自闭症和精神分裂症这样的疾病会影响社交技能，比如将感知到的面部表情与内部情绪状态联系起来的能力，以及从观察到的行为中推断目标和意图的能力。这些疾病似乎是人类独有的，它们所影响的能力在人类中发展到了其他灵长类动物所没有的程度。由于这些能力反映了最近的功能进化变化，因此识别解剖学中潜在的进化变化可以定位这些疾病的潜在病灶。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The proposed research will compare behavior, functional brain responses, and anatomical connectivity in the mirror system in macaques, chimpanzees, and humans. The mirror system is thought to underlie action understanding by allowing individuals to simulate others' actions as if they were performing them. However, several unresolved issues limit the extent to which the mirror system can be linked to human social cognition. First, macaque mirror system results are largely replicated. Second, the equivalence between macaque and human results is unclear because they involve different methodologies. Third, macaque and human mirror system responses differ, with only the human mirror system responding to actions that do not involve objects. Fourth, macaques lack some behaviors which have been linked to the mirror system in humans, most notably imitation. This proposal will address the first two issues by validating basic macaque mirror system findings using a methodology comparable to those used in humans. It will address the second two issues by directly investigating how mirror system responses and connectivity differ among primate species. The main hypothesis is that an evolved broadening in mirror system response properties, via increased connectivity with other brain networks, allowed these cells to respond to, and thus simulate, a wider variety of observed stimuli. This hypothesis will be tested using a combination of behavioral tasks, in vivo functional neuroimaging, and structural diffusion tensor imaging. Aim 1 will employ 18F-FDG positron emission tomography to compare the neural correlates of the execution and observation of actions with and without objects in macaques and chimpanzees. Aim 1 will also procure behavioral indices of imitation ability in each subject. Aim 2 will use diffusion tensor imaging to compare white matter pathways linking the components of the mirror system in macaques, chimpanzees, and humans. The behavioral and functional brain responses obtained in Aim 1 will be compared to the anatomical results obtained in Aim 2. In this way, species and individual differences in imitation ability can be linked to differences in brain responses and anatomical connectivity. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: Disorders like autism and schizophrenia affect social skills like the ability to link perceived facial expressions to internal emotional states and the ability to infer goals and intentions from observed actions. These disorders appear to be uniquely human, and the abilities they affect are developed in humans to an extent not seen in other primates. Because these abilities reflect a recent evolutionary change in function, identification of the underlying evolutionary changes in anatomy can locate potential foci for these diseases.