ArticleNature2018
Distinct descending motor cortex pathways and their roles in movement.
Article in Nature, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 237 papers.
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Who cites it
237 citing papers in PubMed.
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- Pyramidal cell types and circuit organization of the mouse insular cortex reveal functional specializations.Nature neuroscience · 2026Article
- Tuft Dendrite Spikes Are Accompanied by Selective Input From Distinct Functional Networks.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2026Article
- Cognitive-Motor Duality in Human M1 and Cerebellum.Research square · 2026Article
- Barcoded Rabies In Situ Connectomics for high-throughput reconstruction of neural circuits.Nature communications · 2026Article
- A cortical output channel for perceptual categorization.Science advances · 2026Article
- From Sensation to Action: Neuroplasticity, Cognitive-Motor Training, and Emerging Biomarkers of Adaptation.Brain sciences · 2026Review
- Complementary roles of cell-type-specific plasticity in shaping neocortical dynamics for learning action timing.Nature communications · 2026Article
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- Sensory-to-motor transformations: From serial pipelines to dynamic, distributed processes.Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews · 2026Review
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- Tuft dendrite spikes are accompanied by selective input from distinct functional networks.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Large-scale electrophysiology at single-spike resolution.Nature reviews. Neuroscience · 2026Review
- Developmental molecular signatures define de novo cortico-brainstem circuit for skilled forelimb movement.Nature communications · 2026Article
- The role of transthalamic pathways in perception.Communications biology · 2026Review
- Linking rare variants to cell-type function in profound autism with brain transcriptomics and foundation models.Cell genomics · 2026Review
- Cell type-specific barcoding reveals the single-neuron projectional architecture of the mouse midbrain dopaminergic system.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Distinct roles of cortical layer 5 subtypes in associative learning.Nature communications · 2026Article
- Corticothalamic communication for action coordination in a skilled motor behavior.Nature neuroscience · 2026Article
177 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
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Authors and funding
16 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Activity in the motor cortex predicts movements, seconds before they are initiated. This preparatory activity has been observed across cortical layers, including in descending pyramidal tract neurons in layer 5. A key question is how preparatory activity is maintained without causing movement, and is ultimately converted to a motor command to trigger appropriate movements. Here, using single-cell transcriptional profiling and axonal reconstructions, we identify two types of pyramidal tract neuron. Both types project to several targets in the basal ganglia and brainstem. One type projects to thalamic regions that connect back to motor cortex; populations of these neurons produced early preparatory activity that persisted until the movement was initiated. The second type projects to motor centres in the medulla and mainly produced late preparatory activity and motor commands. These results indicate that two types of motor cortex output neurons have specialized roles in motor control.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.