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Changes in the Inhibitory Control Exerted by the Antagonist Ia Afferents on Human Wrist Extensor Motor Units During an Attention-Demanding Motor Task

Laboratoire de Plasticité et PhysioPathologie de la Motricité, Unité Mixte Recherche 6196, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique/Université de la Méditerranée, Marseille Cedex 20, France

Submitted 22 September 2004; accepted in final form 13 November 2004

The aim of this study was to determine the extent to which an attention-demanding visuomotor task affects the strength of the inhibitory control exerted by the wrist flexor group Ia afferents on the wrist extensor motoneurons. Effects of median nerve stimulation on the tonic activity of wrist extensor single motor units were analyzed in terms of the interspike interval (ISI) lengthening. Results show that the inhibitory effects exerted by the antagonistic group Ia afferents were significantly enhanced when the wrist extensor motoneurons were involved in an attention-demanding task. Enhanced inhibition from antagonist afferents may reflect task-related changes in the excitability of the di- and/or polysynaptic pathways mediating reciprocal inhibition due to either the action of descending inputs and/or an increase in the efficiency of the Ia inputs to the premotoneuronal inhibitory interneurons. Modulation of the inhibition exerted by proprioceptive antagonist afferents may be one of the processes which contribute to the fine adjustment of the wrist muscle force output required in fine handling tasks.

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