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H Boecker

Publications and source records attributed to H Boecker.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Gender dependent rate of metabolism of the opioid receptor-PET ligand [18F]fluoroethyldiprenorphine.

AIM: The morphinane-derivate 6-O-(2-[(18)F]fluoroethyl)-6-O-desmethyldiprenorphine ([(18)F]FDPN) is a nonselective opioid receptor ligand currently used in positron emission tomography (PET). Correction for plasma metabolites of the arterial input function is necessary for quantitative measurements of [(18)F]FDPN binding. A study was undertaken to investigate if there are gender dependent differences in the rate of metabolism of [(18)F]FDPN. METHODS: The rate of metabolism of [(18)F]FDPN was mathematically quantified by fitting a bi-exponential function to each individual's dynamic metabolite data. RESULTS: No statistically significant gender differences were found for age, weight, body mass index or dose. However, significant differences (p < 0.01) in two of the four kinetic parameters describing the rate of metabolism were found between the two groups, with women metabolizing [(18)F]FDPN faster than men. These differences were found in the contribution of the fast and slow kinetic components of the model describing the distribution of radioactive species in plasma, indicating a higher rate of enzyme-dependent degradation of [(18)F]FDPN in women than in men. CONCLUSION: The findings reinforce the need for individualized metabolite correction during [(18)F]FDPN-PET scans and also indicate that in certain cases, grouping according to gender could be performed in order to minimize methodological errors of the input function prior to kinetic analyses.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Force level independent representations of predictive grip force-load force coupling: a PET activation study.

The existence of forward internal models is a fundamental principle in theories of predictive motor control. There are indications that internal models are represented in the cerebellum. So far, no conclusive data exist on automated procedures involving predictive motor behavior. In particular, it is unknown whether single or multiple task-specific internal models handle the broad range of behavioral situations in which they occur. Using H2(15)O PET in eight subjects, we examined predictive motor control in an automated grip force-load force coupling task at three differing load force levels. In the experimental condition, subjects pulled a grasped object against an isometric resistance while simultaneously producing anticipatory grip forces. There were three control conditions (pull force isolated; grip force isolated; motor rest). A 2 x 2 factorial design was chosen to reveal the interaction effect of grip force-pull force coupling. The factors were pull force (with/without) and grip force (with/without). Grip and load forces were well matched between experimental and control conditions. Conjunction inference and interaction analyses identified force coupling related activity in the ipsilateral posterior cerebellum that was independent of force levels. Interaction effects were also identified in the anterior cingulate and frontal association regions, the right caudate nucleus, and the left lingual gyrus. These data demonstrate the existence of modular representations for predictive force coupling, with the ipsilateral cerebellum playing a major role. Moreover, the data implicate that the representations for predictive force control are applicable to a range of different environmental affordances.

Brain↗
PubMed2005

Transmodal sensorimotor networks during action observation in professional pianists.

Audiovisual perception and imitation are essential for musical learning and skill acquisition. We compared professional pianists to musically naive controls with fMRI while observing piano playing finger-hand movements and serial finger-thumb opposition movements both with and without synchronous piano sound. Pianists showed stronger activations within a fronto-parieto-temporal network while observing piano playing compared to controls and contrasted to perception of serial finger-thumb opposition movements. Observation of silent piano playing additionally recruited auditory areas in pianists. Perception of piano sounds coupled with serial finger-thumb opposition movements evoked increased activation within the sensorimotor network. This indicates specialization of multimodal auditory-sensorimotor systems within a fronto-parieto-temporal network by professional musical training. Musical ''language,'' which is acquired by observation and imitation, seems to be tightly coupled to this network in accord with an observation-execution system linking visual and auditory perception to motor performance.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Differential modulation of subcortical target and cortex during deep brain stimulation.

The combination of electrical deep brain stimulation (DBS) with functional imaging offers a unique model for tracing brain circuitry and for testing the modulatory potential of electrical stimulation on a neuronal network in vivo. We therefore applied parametric positron emission tomography (PET) analyses that allow characterization of rCBF responses as linear and nonlinear functions of the experimentally modulated stimulus (variable stimulator setting). In patients with electrodes in the thalamic ventrointermediate nucleus (VIM) for the treatment of essential tremor (ET) here we show that variations in voltage and frequency of thalamic stimulation have differential effects in a thalamo-cortical circuitry. Increasing stimulation amplitude was associated with a linear raise in rCBF at the thalamic stimulation site, but with a nonlinear rCBF response in the primary sensorimotor cortex (M1/S1). The reverse pattern in rCBF changes was observed with increasing stimulation frequency. These results indicate close connectivity between the stimulated nucleus (VIM) and primary sensorimotor cortex. Likewise, stimulation parameter-specific modulation occurs at this simple interface between an electrical and a cerebral system and suggests that the scope of DBS extends beyond an ablation-like on-off effect: DBS could rather allow a gradual tuning of activity within a neuronal circuit.

Aged↗
PubMed2002

Subthalamic nucleus stimulation affects striato-anterior cingulate cortex circuit in a response conflict task: a PET study.

The subthalamic nucleus (STN) has generally been considered as a relay station within frontal-subcortical motor control circuitry. Little is known about the influence of the STN on cognitive networks. Clinical observations and studies in animals suggest that the STN participates in non-motor functions which can now be probed in Parkinson's disease patients with deep brain stimulation of the STN, allowing selective and reversible modulation of this nucleus. Using PET, we studied changes in regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) associated with a response conflict task (Stroop task) in Parkinson's disease patients ON and OFF bilateral STN stimulation. The Stroop task requires subjects to name the font colour of colour words (e.g. "blue") printed in an incongruent colour ink (e.g. yellow). During STN stimulation, impaired task performance (prolonged reaction times) was associated with decreased activation in both right anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and right ventral striatum. Concomitant increased activation in left angular gyrus indicative of ongoing word processing during stimulation is consistent with an impairment to inhibit habitual responses. ACC and ventral striatum are part of the ACC circuit associated with response conflict tasks. The decreased activation during STN stimulation in the ACC circuit, while response conflict processing worsened, provides direct evidence of STN modulating non-motor basal ganglia-thalamocortical circuitry. Impairment in ACC circuit function could account for the subtle negative effects on cognition induced by STN stimulation.

Adult↗
PubMed2002

A H(2)(15)O positron emission tomography study on mental imagery of movement sequences--the effect of modulating sequence length and direction.

Motor imagery is a state of mental rehearsal of single movements or movement patterns and has been shown to recruit motor networks overlapping with those activated during movement execution. We wished to examine whether the brain areas subserving control of sequential processes could be delineated by pure mental imagery, their activation levels reflecting the processing demands of a sequential task. We studied six right-handed volunteers (39.0 +/- 14 years) with H(2)(15)O positron emission tomography (PET) while they continuously mentally pursued with their right hand one of five sequences differing in complexity (i.e., increases in sequence length, single-finger repetitions, and reversals). Conditions were repeated twice, alternating with two rest scans. Each imagined single motor element was paced at a frequency of 1 Hz. Significant activation increases (P < 0.05, corrected) associated with imagination of right finger movement sequences (conditions I to V combined)--compared to the rest condition--were observed in left sensorimotor cortex (M1/S1) and the adjacent inferior parietal cortex. Further activation increases (P < 0.001, uncorrected) occurred in bilateral dorsal premotor (PMd) cortex, left caudal supplementary motor area, bilateral ventral premotor cortex, right M1, left superior parietal cortex, left putamen, and right cerebellum. Activation decreases occurred in bilateral prefrontal and right temporo-occipital cortex. Activation increases that correlated with sequence complexity were observed only in specific areas of the activated network, notably in left PMd, right superior parietal cortex, and right cerebellar vermis (P < 0.05, corrected). In conclusion, our study, by varying the sequence structure of imagined finger movements, identified task-related activity changes in parietopremotor-cerebellar structures, reflecting their role in mediating sequence control.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Thalamic stimulation for essential tremor activates motor and deactivates vestibular cortex.

BACKGROUND: The functional effects of deep brain stimulation in the nucleus ventralis intermedius (VIM) of the thalamus on brain circuitry are not well understood. The connectivity of the VIM has so far not been studied functionally. It was hypothesized that VIM stimulation would exert an effect primarily on VIM projection areas, namely motor and parietoinsular vestibular cortex. METHODS: Six patients with essential tremor who had electrodes implanted in the VIM were studied with PET. Regional cerebral blood flow was measured during three experimental conditions: with 130 Hz (effective) and 50 Hz (ineffective) stimulation, and without stimulation. RESULTS: Effective stimulation was associated with regional cerebral blood flow increases in motor cortex ipsilateral to the side of stimulation. Right retroinsular (parietoinsular vestibular) cortex showed regional cerebral blood flow decreases with stimulation. CONCLUSIONS: Beneficial effects of VIM stimulation in essential tremor are associated with increased synaptic activity in motor cortex, possibly due to nonphysiologic activation of thalamofrontal projections or frequency-dependent neuroinhibition. Retroinsular regional cerebral blood flow decreases suggest an interaction of VIM stimulation on vestibular-thalamic-cortical projections that may explain dysequilibrium, a common and reversible stimulation-associated side effect.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Motor imagery in normal subjects and Parkinson's disease patients: an H215O PET study.

Motor imagery paradigms can be used to investigate motor preparation. We used positron emission tomography to compare regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in patients with Parkinson's disease and normal controls under three conditions: rest, motor imagery and motor execution. In controls, imagery activated bilateral dorsolateral and mesial frontal cortex, inferior parietal cortex and precuneus. Motor execution additionally activated primary motor cortex (p < 0.001). Between-group, for imagery there was relative reduction in dorsolateral and mesial frontal activation in the patient group (p<0.01). For execution, there was impaired activation of right dorsolateral frontal cortex and basal ganglia (p<0.01). Our results support the notion that underfunctioning of mesial frontal and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex may underlie motor preparation in Parkinson's disease but also suggest that akinesia may occur in the absence of impaired mesial frontal cortex activation.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Right lateralized motor cortex activation during volitional blinking.

Using H2 15O positron emission tomography in 6 healthy volunteers, we found that self-initiated and externally cued blinking activated the right primary motor cortex and supplementary motor area (SMA). The left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and the rostral SMA showed greater activation during the self-initiated task compared to the externally cued task. This study confirms the hypothesis of right hemispheric lateralization of volitional blinking derived from observations in stroke patients. Furthermore, it underscores the role of DLPFC and rostral SMA in self-initiated movements, which has been found in similar experiments with hand movements.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Cortical correlates of gesture processing: clues to the cerebral mechanisms underlying apraxia during the imitation of meaningless gestures.

The clinical test of imitation of meaningless gestures is highly sensitive in revealing limb apraxia after dominant left brain damage. To relate lesion locations in apraxic patients to functional brain activation and to reveal the neuronal network subserving gesture representation, repeated H2(15O)-PET measurements were made in seven healthy subjects during a gesture discrimination task. Observing paired images of either meaningless hand or meaningless finger gestures, subjects had to indicate whether they were identical or different. As a control condition subjects simply had to indicate whether two portrayed persons were identical or not. Brain activity during the discrimination of hand gestures was strongly lateralized to the left hemisphere, a prominent peak activation being localized within the inferior parietal cortex (BA40). The discrimination of finger gestures induced a more symmetrical activation and rCBF peaks in the right intraparietal sulcus and in medial visual association areas (BA18/19). Two additional foci of prominent rCBF increase were found. One focus was located at the left lateral occipitotemporal junction (BA 19/37) and was related to both tasks; the other in the pre-SMA was particularly related to hand gestures. The pattern of task-dependent activation corresponds closely to the predictions made from the clinical findings, and underlines the left brain dominance for meaningless hand gestures and the critical involvement of the parietal cortex. The lateral visual association areas appear to support first stages of gesture representation, and the parietal cortex is part of the dorsal action stream. Finger gestures may require in addition precise visual analysis and spatial attention enabled by occipital and right intraparietal activity. Pre-SMA activity during the perception of hand gestures may reflect engagement of a network that is intimately related to gesture execution.

Adult↗
PubMed2001

Event-related functional magnetic resonance imaging in Parkinson's disease before and after levodopa.

Event-related functional MRI (fMRI) was used to study blood oxygen level dependent cortical signal changes associated with volitional limb movements off and on levodopa in Parkinson's disease. Eight patients with early stage akinetic Parkinson's disease and eight healthy volunteers underwent three functional imaging runs (high speed echo planar imaging with 600 scans/run) while performing paced single joystick movements in a freely chosen direction every 7-15 s. The non-magnetic joystick was linked to a monitoring system for on-line registration of performance parameters along with timing of the pacing tones and fMRI-scan acquisition parameters. This allowed correlation of movement onset, i.e. event-onset, to scanning time. We repeated the scanning procedure in the Parkinson's disease patients when akinesia improved 30 min after oral levodopa. Compared with the control group, patients both off and on levodopa showed movement-related impaired activation in the rostral supplementary motor area and increased activation in primary motor cortex (M1) and the lateral premotor cortex bilaterally. Levodopa led to a relative normalization of the impaired activation in the mesial premotor cortex and decreased signal levels in M1, lateral premotor and superior parietal cortex. We conclude that levodopa improves impaired motor initiation in the supplementary motor area and decreases hyperfunction of lateral premotor and M1 associated with Parkinson's disease during simple volitional movements.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

The role of the striatum and hippocampus in planning: a PET activation study in Parkinson's disease.

Previous work has identified the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and striatum as participating in the planning and selection of movements. We compared the brain activation patterns during planning in Parkinson's disease patients and age-matched controls using H(2)(15)O-PET and the Tower of London (TOL) task. In this study, our mildly affected Parkinson's disease group performed as well as the control group but showed a different pattern of neuronal activation. In the two groups, overlapping areas of the PFC were activated but, whereas the right caudate nucleus was activated in the control group, this was not evident in the Parkinson's disease patients. This suggests that normal normal frontal lobe activation can occur in Parkinson's disease despite abnormal processing within the basal ganglia. Moreover, right hippocampus activity was suppressed in the controls and enhanced in the Parkinson's disease patients. This could represent a shift to the declarative memory system in Parkinson's disease during performance of the TOL task, possibly resulting from insufficient working memory capacity within the frontostriatal system.

Aged↗
PubMed2001

Time-resolved fMRI of activation patterns in M1 and SMA during complex voluntary movement.

The aim of this study was to use time-resolved functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate temporal differences in the activation of the supplementary motor area (SMA) and the primary motor cortex (M1). We report data from eight human volunteers who underwent fMRI examinations in a 1.5T Philips Gyroscan ACS-NT MRI scanner. While wearing a contact glove, subjects executed a complex automated sequence of finger movements either spontaneously or in response to external auditory cues. Based on the result of a functional scout scan, a single slice that included the M1 and the SMA was selected for image acquisition (echo planar imaging, repetition time 100 ms, echo time 50 ms, 64 x 64 matrix, 1,000 images). Data were analyzed with a shifting cross-correlation approach using the STIMULATE program and in-house programs written in Interactive Data Language (IDL(TM)). Time-course data were generated for regions of interest in the M1 as well as in the rostral and caudal SMA. Mean time between onset of the finger movement sequence and half-maximum of the signal change in M1 was 3.6 s for the externally cued execution (SD 0.5) and 3.5 s for the spontaneous execution (SD 0.6). Activation in the rostral section of the SMA occurred 0.7 s earlier than it did in the M1 during the externally cued execution and 2.0 s earlier during the spontaneous execution, a difference significant at the P < 0.01 level. Our results indicate that rostral SMA activation precedes M1 activation by varying time intervals in the sub-second range that are determined by the mode of movement initialization. By applying a paradigm that exerts a differential influence on temporal activation, we could ensure that the observed timing differences were not the result of differences in hemodynamic response function.

Acoustic Stimulation↗
PubMed2000

Lasting cortical activation after repetitive TMS of the motor cortex: a glucose metabolic study.

OBJECTIVE: Cerebral [18F]fluorodeoxy-D-glucose PET ([18F]FDG-PET) was used to visualize the lasting neuronal activation after repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) over the left hand area of the primary motor cortex (M1HAND). BACKGROUND: Applied over M1HAND, rTMS has been shown to produce a modulation of corticomotor excitability beyond the time of stimulation itself. METHODS: Eight right-handed subjects underwent nonquantitative [18F]FDG-PET measurements during two experimental conditions: at rest and after focal subthreshold 5-Hz rTMS over the left M1HAND. In the post-rTMS condition, [18F]FDG was injected immediately after the administration of 1,800 magnetic pulses over the left M1HAND. Relative differences in normalized regional cerebral metabolic rate of glucose (normalized rCMRglc) between conditions were determined using a voxel-by-voxel Student's t-test and volume-of-interest (VOI) analysis. Analysis was a priori restricted to the M1HAND, the supplementary motor area (SMA), and the primary auditory cortex of both hemispheres. RESULTS: A 5-Hz rTMS of the left M1HAND caused a lasting relative increase in normalized rCMRglc within the M1HAND bilaterally and the SMA. The magnitude and the topographic pattern of persisting relative rCMRglc increases within these motor cortical areas demonstrated considerable interindividual variations. CONCLUSIONS: Subthreshold 5-Hz repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) over the hand area of the primary motor cortex is associated with a persisting neuronal activation in a distinct set of motor cortical areas beyond the time of stimulation. The current findings demonstrate that [18F]FDG-PET can localize and quantify regional net changes in synaptic cortical activity after rTMS and thus might elucidate the mechanisms underlying rTMS-associated therapeutic effects.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

A positron emission tomographic study of subthalamic nucleus stimulation in Parkinson disease: enhanced movement-related activity of motor-association cortex and decreased motor cortex resting activity.

BACKGROUND: Long-term high-frequency stimulation of the subthalamic nucleus (STN) improves akinesia in Parkinson disease. The neural correlates of STN stimulation are not well understood. Positron emission tomography can be applied to the in vivo study of the mechanisms of deep brain stimulation. OBJECTIVE: To study changes in regional cerebral blood flow as an index of synaptic activity in patients with Parkinson disease with effective STN stimulation on and off during rest and movement. METHODS: Eight patients with Parkinson disease who had electrodes implanted in the STN underwent 12 measurements of regional cerebral blood flow with water O 15 positron emission tomography at rest and during performance of paced freely selected joystick movements, both with and without STN stimulation (3 scans per experimental condition). Motor performance and reaction and movement times were monitored. Statistical parametric mapping was used to compare changes in regional cerebral blood flow between conditions and differences in activation. RESULTS: All patients showed improvement in reaction and movement times during scans with the stimulator on. As predicted, increases in activation of rostral supplementary motor area and premotor cortex ipsilateral to stimulation were observed when stimulation was on during contralateral movement (P<.001). Unpredicted observations included decreases in regional cerebral blood flow in primary motor cortex at rest induced by STN stimulation. CONCLUSION: Stimulation of the STN reduces the movement-related impairment of frontal motor association areas and the inappropriate motor cortex resting activity in Parkinson disease.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Mapping the network for planning: a correlational PET activation study with the Tower of London task.

We used the Tower of London task (TOL) and H(2)(15)O-PET to map the network of brain structures involved in planning. Six healthy right-handed subjects had 12 measurements of relative regional cerebral blood flow (rrCBF) during six conditions, each performed twice. There was one rest condition, and five sets of TOL problems at different complexity levels, performed on a touch-sensitive computer monitor with the right arm. Complexity was defined as the number of moves required to solve each problem. Activation was analysed in two ways: a category analysis comparing levels of rrCBF during rest and task was done to identify all structures involved in performance of the TOL; and a correlation analysis was carried out to delineate a subset of structures where the levels of rrCBF correlated with task complexity. Activated brain areas in which rrCBF increases did not correlate with complexity could be grouped into: (i) regions belonging to the dorsal stream of visual input processing, namely visual cortical areas 17, 18 and 19, and posterior parietal cortical areas 7 and 40; and (ii) regions involved in the execution and sequencing of arm movements (right cerebellum, left primary motor cortex and supplementary motor area). Brain regions where levels of rrCBF correlated with task complexity included lateral premotor cortex (area 6), rostral anterior cingulate cortex (areas 32 and 24), dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (areas 9 and 46) bilaterally, and right dorsal caudate nucleus. We propose that dorsolateral prefrontal, lateral premotor, anterior cingulate and caudate areas form a network for the planning of movement that interacts with brain areas primarily involved in visual processing and movement execution.

Aged↗