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A new US study suggests that a human brain has developed two internal neural clocks to help predict the future.
A two-person research team from the University of California, Berkeley, discovered that the brain had two systems of anticipation: one based on memories of past experiences and the On the rhythm. The study was published online in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
"Whether it's sports, music, speech or even attention, our study suggests that timing is not a unified process, but that There are two distinct ways to make temporal predictions and that these depend on different parts of the brain, "postdoctoral neuroscientist Assaf Breska, researcher and lead author of the study, said in a statement.
"Together, these brain systems allow us to exist not only in the moment, but also to actively anticipate the future," added neuroscientist and lead author Richard Ivry.
The researchers examined the anticipatory strengths and deficits of patients with Parkinson's disease and cerebellar degeneration. Sequences of red, white and green squares were shown in both groups.
They discovered that the first system, based on rhythm, is connected to the basal ganglia, while the second system, based on memories of past experiences, is connected to the cerebellum. Both parts of the brain are related to movement and cognition.
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"We show that patients with cerebellar degeneration have difficulty using non-rhythmic time signals, whereas patients with basal ganglia degeneration associated with Parkinson's disease are less effective in using rhythmic signals." said Ivry.
"Our findings suggest at least two different ways in which the brain has evolved to anticipate the future," Breska said. "A rhythm-based system is sensitive to the periodic events of the world inherent in speech and music. And an interval system provides a more general anticipation capability, sensitive to temporal regularities even in the absence of a rhythmic signal. "
For Breska, their results allowed people with Parkinson's disease and cerebellar degeneration to find non-pharmaceutical solutions for neurological sync deficits. These fixes include computer brain training games and smartphone apps, deep brain stimulation and environmental design changes.
"Our study identifies not only the anticipatory contexts in which these neurological patients are altered, but also the contexts in which they have no difficulty, suggesting that we could modify their environments to facilitate their interaction with the world. face their symptoms. Explained Breska.
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