Abstract
Visuomotor processing, the cognitive process by which visual information motivates motor action, is a fundamental process of mammalian brain function involving areas in the lateral frontal cortex. Specifically, in the frontal eye field (FEF) and premotor cortex (PM), frequency-dependent modulation of neural oscillations has been observed in association with visual perception and motor planning, respectively. However, whether the combination of neural signals in different frequency bands is related to information processing remains unclear. Here, we show phase coherence of delta band oscillations and phase amplitude coupling of delta and gamma band oscillations in electrocorticogram (ECoG) signals from FEF and PM, in monkeys during visuomotor tasks. Event-related phase signal in the delta frequency band and the coupling signal between the delta and gamma frequency bands were observed in respond to visual instruction and around movement onset. The spatial patterns of phase coherence and phase‒amplitude coupling could discriminate the task conditions. The phase of the delta oscillations and amplitude of the gamma oscillations may play roles in visuomotor processing in the FEF and PM.
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Data availability
The raw data were recorded at Tohoku University. The derived data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author H. W. upon request.
Abbreviations
- ECoG:
-
Electrocorticogram
- LFP:
-
Local field potential
- EEG:
-
Electroencephalogram
- CS:
-
Central sulcus
- AS:
-
Arcuate sulcus
- PM:
-
Premotor cortex
- M1:
-
Primary motor cortex
- FEF:
-
Frontal eye field
- PMd:
-
Dorsal premotor cortex
- PMv:
-
Ventral premotor cortex
- S1:
-
Primary sensory cortex
- SD:
-
Standard distribution
- SEM:
-
Standard error mean
- ITPC:
-
Intertrial phase coherence
- ERSP:
-
Event-related spectral perturbation
- PAC:
-
Phase amplitude coupling
- ANOVA:
-
Analysis of variance
- ERP:
-
Event-related potential
- MEG:
-
Magnetoencephalography
- iEEG:
-
Intracranial EEG
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science KAKENHI (15K01854, 17KK0140, 22K07316 to HW; 16H0627, 19H03337, 23K18159 to HM); Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (15H05879 and 22H04922 to HM); Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (JP19dm0207001 to HM); JST/MIRAI (JPMJMI19B4 to HM). Two monkeys used in the present study were provided through National Bio-Resource Project (NBRP) “Japanese Monkeys” of Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development (AMED). We thank M. Takahashi for technical assistance and animal care, Dr. K. Takahashi and R. Vetter for support of our design and surgery about the electrode arrays. We would like to thank Editage (www.editage.jp) and Springer Nature Author Services(authorservices.springernature.com) for English language editing.
Funding
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, 15K01854, 16H0627, 17KK0140, 19H03337, 22K07316, 23K18159. Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, 15H05879, 22H04922. Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, JP19dm0207001. JST-Mirai Program, JPMJMI19B4.
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Conceived and designed the experiments: HW, HM. Performed the experiments: HW. Analyzed the data: SH, HW. Wrote the paper: SH, HW, MA, and HM.
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The Institutional Laboratory Animal Care and Use Committee of Tohoku University and the President of University (Approval No. 2015MdA-304, 2018MdA-255).
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Harigae, S., Watanabe, H., Aoki, M. et al. Delta gamma oscillatory interactions support visuomotor processing in the lateral frontal cortex of macaque monkeys. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-36628-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-36628-6


