Voluntary contractions induce thixotropic changes in intrafusal muscle fibres and hence, by induction or removal of "slack", the background discharge and sensitivity of spindle endings to stretch is altered. This study assessed whether such changes also altered the "excitability" of the motor cortex. Eleven subjects performed a series of voluntary conditioning contractions of the wrist flexors ...

Exercise-induced fatigue affects muscle performance and modulates corticospinal excitability in non-exercised muscles. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of bilateral knee extensor fatigue on dominant elbow flexor (EF) maximal voluntary force production and corticospinal excitability. Transcranial magnetic, transmastoid electrical and brachial plexus electrical stimulation ...

This is the first study to report the influence of different cadences on the modulation of supraspinal and spinal excitability during arm cycling. Supraspinal and spinal excitability were assessed using transcranial magnetic stimulation of the motor cortex and transmastoid electrical stimulation of the corticospinal tract, respectively. Transcranial magnetic stimulation-induced motor evoked pot...

MOTOR CORTEX EXCITABILITY IS MODULATED BY CUTANEOUS ELECTRICAL STIMULATION OF THE FOOT SOLE Gagandeep Gill Advisor: University of Guelph, 2016 Dr. Leah R. Bent Lower limb peripheral nerve stimulation, which activates cutaneous afferents from the foot dorsum, has been shown to generate transcortical reflex responses. This suggests that the motor cortex may play a role in modulating lower limb cu...

OBJECTIVES To verify the applicability and validity of time-frequency analysis (TFA) of evoked potential (EP) signals in detecting the integrity of spinal cord function and preventing spinal cord injury. METHODS The spinal cord was simulated during surgery in 20 mature rats by mechanically damaging the spinal cord. Cortical somatosensory evoked potential (CSEP), spinal somatosensory evoked po...