The brain uses efference copy information to optimise spatial memory

• Published in: Experimental brain research Vol. 224; no. 2; pp. 189 - 197
• Main Authors: Gonzalez, C. C., Burke, M. R.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer-Verlag 2013; Springer
• Subjects: Activities of daily living; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Brain - physiology; Decision Making; Eye and associated structures. Visual pathways and centers. Vision; Eye Movements - physiology; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Hand; Human mechanics; Humans; Male; Memory - physiology; Mental Processes - physiology; Neurology; Neurosciences; Photic Stimulation; Physiological aspects; Psychological aspects; Psychomotor Performance - physiology; Reaction Time - physiology; Research Article; Short-term memory; Space Perception - physiology; Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs; Visual Fields; Young Adult; United Kingdom; Eye movements; Eye–hand coordination; Vision; Hand movements; Short-term memory; Go/NoGo; Central nervous system; Hand; Eye movement; Encephalon; Eye; Visual system; Eye―hand coordination; Spatial memory
• ISSN: 0014-4819; 1432-1106
• DOI: 10.1007/s00221-012-3298-y

Does a motor response to a target improve the subsequent recall of the target position or can we simply use peripheral position information to guide an accurate response? We suggest that a motor plan of the hand can be enhanced with actual motor and efference copy feedback (GoGo trials), which is absent in the passive observation of a stimulus (NoGo trials). To investigate this effect during eye and hand coordination movements, we presented stimuli in two formats (memory guided or visually guided) under three modality conditions (eyes only, hands only (with eyes fixated), or eyes and hand together). We found that during coordinated movements, both the eye and hand response times were facilitated when efference feedback of the movement was provided. Furthermore, both eye and hand movements to remembered locations were significantly more accurate in the GoGo than in the NoGo trial types. These results reveal that an efference copy of a motor plan enhances memory for a location that is not only observed in eye movements, but also translated downstream into a hand movement. These results have significant implications on how we plan, code and guide behavioural responses, and how we can optimise accuracy and timing to a given target.