The role of the Supplementary Motor Area in time processing

计时机制的神经基础（0.1-100秒范围）是许多争论的主题。我们假设补充运动区（SMA），一个涉及重要多巴胺能通路的主要皮层结构，以“累加器模型”所描述的方式支持持续时间编码。我们将使用经颅磁刺激（TMS）在SMA上测试健康受试者的运动和知觉计时任务，并将其与因多巴胺能功能障碍而计时表现受损的帕金森病患者进行比较。我们期望经颅磁刺激抑制效应能够诱导可预测的性能趋势，为蓄能器模型和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.