Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40344601›Full record

ArticleHuman brain mapping2025

Topography of Functional Organization of Beat Perception in Human Premotor Cortex: Causal Evidence From a Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) Study.

Giorgio Lazzari, Giulio Costantini, Stefania La Rocca, Andrea Massironi, Luigi Cattaneo, Virginia Penhune, Carlotta Lega

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Human brain mapping, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Cortico-striatal network architecture shapes rhythmic biases in music.Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991) · 2026
    Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Continuous Theta Burst to Supplementary Motor Area Modulates Groove.Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences · 2026
    Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Giorgio LazzariDepartment of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.ORCID 0009-0001-9326-4165
Giulio CostantiniDepartment of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy.ORCID 0000-0002-1536-9279
Stefania La RoccaDepartment of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy.
Andrea MassironiDepartment of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy.ORCID 0009-0009-0057-5908
Luigi CattaneoCenter for Mind/Brain Sciences (CIMeC), University of Trento, Trento, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-8905-7529
Virginia PenhunePsychology Department, Concordia University, Montreal, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-9475-5724
Carlotta LegaDepartment of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.ORCID 0000-0001-7030-7639

Funding

Fundação Bial 241/20
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Humans can flexibly extract a regular beat from complex rhythmic auditory patterns, as often occurs in music. Contemporary models of beat perception suggest that the premotor cortex (PMC) and the supplementary motor area (SMA) are integral to this process. However, how these motor planning regions actively contribute to beat perception, along with any potential hemispheric specialization, remains open questions. Therefore, following the validation of stimuli in a behavioral experiment (Experiment I, N = 29, 12 males, mean age = 23.8 ± 0.7 years), we employed transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to test the causal contribution of these regions to beat perception. In Experiment II (N = 40, 16 males, mean age = 23.2 ± 2.37 years), we applied online repetitive TMS (rTMS) over a defined grid encompassing the right rostral and caudal dPMC, SMA, and pre-SMA, and a sham control location. Results showed that stimulation of the caudal portion of right dPMC selectively affected beat perception compared to all other regions. In Experiment III (preregistered, N = 42, 17 males, mean age = 23.5 ± 2.61 years), we tested the lateralization of this contribution by applying rTMS over right and left caudal dPMC. Our results showed that only stimulation over right, but not left, dPMC modulated beat perception. Finally, across all three experiments, individual differences in musical reward predicted beat perception sensitivity. Together, these results support the causal role of the right dPMC in generating internal action predictions and perceptual expectations regarding ongoing sequential events, in line with recent models emphasizing the role of the dorsal auditory stream in beat-based temporal perception. These findings offer valuable insights into the functional organization of the premotor cortex, contributing to a deeper understanding of the neural mechanisms involved in human rhythm perception.

Indexed as

Auditory PerceptionBrain MappingMotor CortexMusicTranscranial Magnetic StimulationAcoustic StimulationAdultFemaleFunctional LateralityHumansMaleYoung Adultmusicpremotor cortexrhythm perceptionsupplementary motor areastranscranial magnetic stimulation

Identifiers

PMID40344601
PMCPMC12063481

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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.