AUTHOR=Rahman Zebunnessa , Murray Nicholas W. G. , Sala-Padró Jacint , Bartley Melissa , Dexter Mark , Fung Victor S. C. , Mahant Neil , Bleasel Andrew Fabian , Wong Chong H. 

TITLE=Investigating the Precise Localization of the Grasping Action in the Mid-Cingulate Cortex and Future Directions

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Human Neuroscience

VOLUME=16

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/human-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnhum.2022.815749

DOI=10.3389/fnhum.2022.815749

ISSN=1662-5161

ABSTRACT=<sec><title>Objective</title><p>To prospectively study the cingulate cortex for the localization and role of the grasping action in humans during electrical stimulation of depth electrodes.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods</title><p>All the patients (<italic>n</italic> = 23) with intractable focal epilepsy and a depth electrode stereotactically placed in the cingulate cortex, as part of their pre-surgical epilepsy evaluation from 2015 to 2017, were included. Cortical stimulation was performed and examined for grasping actions. Post-implantation volumetric T1 MRIs were co-registered to determine the exact electrode position.</p></sec><sec sec-type="results"><title>Results</title><p>Five patients (male: female 4:1; median age 31) exhibited contralateral grasping actions during electrical stimulation. All patients had electrodes implanted in the ventral bank of the right cingulate sulcus adjacent to the vertical anterior commissure (VAC) line. Stimulation of other electrodes in adjacent regions did not elicit grasping.</p></sec><sec sec-type="conclusion"><title>Conclusion</title><p>Grasping action elicited from a localized region in the mid-cingulate cortex (MCC) directly supports the concept of the cingulate cortex being crucially involved in the grasping network. This opens an opportunity to explore this region with deep brain stimulation as a motor neuromodulation target for treatment in specific movement disorders or neurorehabilitation.</p></sec>