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Parkinson's disease (PD) adversely affects information processing and motor performance. The impact of aerobic exercise on modifying the deleterious effects of PD underlying information and motor control processes is not well established. The primary aim of this project was to determine the effects of an 8-week high intensity exercise intervention on information processing and movement execution in individuals with PD. A secondary aim sought to understand the effects of antiparkinsonian medication relative to exercise on motor control processes. Data were collected at baseline (on- and off-medication) and upon completion of the exercise intervention (off-medication). Information processing and motor execution were evaluated via simple and choice reaction time paradigms (SRT and CRT) performed on a mobile device. Neither exercise nor medication impacted information processing or movement execution under the SRT paradigm. However, under CRT, exercise improved movement execution and information processing: total time was significantly reduced from 814 to 747 ms (p < 0.001), reaction time improved from 543 to 502 ms (p < 0.001), movement time improved from 270 to 246 ms (p = 0.01), and movement velocity improved from 28 cm/sec to 30 cm/sec (p = 0.01). Improvements in total time and reaction time in the CRT paradigm persisted 4 and 8 weeks following exercise cessation. Antiparkinsonian medication improved motor execution, but not information processing. The improvement in information processing following aerobic exercise, but not levodopa administration, suggests high intensity exercise may be enhancing neural processing and non-motor pathways outside those impacted by medication. The persistence of symptom improvement despite exercise intervention cessation indicates exercise is a candidate for disease modification. Trial registration: The trial was first registered at ClinicalTrials.gov on 7/10/2012 under registration number NCT01636297.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00221-020-06009-0 | DOI Listing |
Front Sports Act Living
August 2025
Faculty of Physical Education, China West Normal University, Nanchong, China.
Understanding how athletes mentally simulate and anticipate actions provides key insights into experience-driven brain plasticity. While previous studies have investigated motor imagery and action anticipation separately, little is known about how their underlying neural mechanisms converge or diverge in expert performers. This study conducted a meta-analysis using activation likelihood estimation (ALE) and meta-analytic connectivity modeling (MACM) to compare brain activation patterns between athletes and non-athletes across both tasks.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFParkinsonism Relat Disord
September 2025
Clinical Neurosciences, University of Turku, Turku, Finland; Neurocenter, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland. Electronic address:
Introduction: Sarcopenia, the age-related loss of muscle mass and function, has been reported in Parkinson's disease (PD). While grip strength is a key marker of sarcopenia and has been linked to PD risk and progression, its relationship with underlying neurodegenerative processes remains unclear. This study examines whether grip strength is impaired in PD and reflects disease severity or dopaminergic function.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPflugers Arch
September 2025
Department of Science, University "G. d'Annunzio" Chieti-Pescara, Chieti, Italy.
Hypoxia has been extensively studied as a stressor which pushes human bodily systems to responses and adaptations. Nevertheless, a few evidence exist onto constituent trains of motor unit action potential, despite recent advancements which allow to decompose surface electromyographic signals. This study aimed to investigate motor unit properties from noninvasive approaches during maximal isometric exercise in normobaric hypoxia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCommun Biol
September 2025
Department of Physiology Anatomy and Genetics, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
Primate lateral intraparietal area (LIP) has been directly linked to perceptual categorization and decision-making. However, the intrinsic LIP circuitry that gives rise to the flexible generation of motor responses to sensory instruction remains unclear. Using retrograde tracers, we delineate two distinct operational compartments based on different intrinsic connectivity patterns of dorsal and ventral LIP.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFExp Neurobiol
August 2025
Brain Science Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul 02792, Korea.
Aging correlates with alterations in metabolism and neuronal function, which affect the overall regulation of energy homeostasis. Recent studies have highlighted that protein O-GlcNAcylation, a common post-translational modification regulating metabolic function, is linked to aging. In particular, elevated O-GlcNAcylation increases energy expenditure, potentially due to alterations in the neuronal function of the hypothalamic arcuate nucleus (ARC), a key brain region for energy balance and metabolic processes.
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