Age related differences in the neural substrates of motor sequence learning after interleaved and repetitive practice

Practice of tasks in an interleaved order generally induces superior retention compared to practicing in a repetitive order. Younger and older adults practiced serial reaction time tasks that were arranged in a repeated or an interleaved order on 2 successive days. Retention was tested on Day 5. For...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:NeuroImage (Orlando, Fla.) Fla.), 2012-09, Vol.62 (3), p.2007-2020
Main Authors: Lin, Chien-Ho (Janice), Chiang, Ming-Chang, Wu, Allan D., Iacoboni, Marco, Udompholkul, Parima, Yazdanshenas, Omid, Knowlton, Barbara J.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Age
Age Factors
Aged
Aging
Brain - physiology
Brain Mapping
Contextual interference
Cross-Over Studies
Female
fMRI
Humans
Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Motor Skills - physiology
Neuronal Plasticity - physiology
Older people
Practice (Psychology)
Practice condition
Reaction Time - physiology
Retention
Retention (Psychology) - physiology
Studies
TMS
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
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Summary:Practice of tasks in an interleaved order generally induces superior retention compared to practicing in a repetitive order. Younger and older adults practiced serial reaction time tasks that were arranged in a repeated or an interleaved order on 2 successive days. Retention was tested on Day 5. For both groups, reaction times in the interleaved condition were slower than the repetitive condition during practice, but the reverse was true during retention on Day 5. After interleaved practice, changes in M1 excitability measured by paired-pulse TMS were greater than after repetitive practice, and this effect was more pronounced in older adults. Moreover, the increased M1 excitability correlated with the benefit of interleaved practice. BOLD signal was also increased for interleaved compared to repetitive practice in both groups. However, the pattern of correlations between increased BOLD during practice and subsequent benefit of the interleaved condition differed by group. In younger adults, dorsolateral-prefrontal activity during practice was related to this benefit, while in older adults, activation in sensorimotor regions and rostral prefrontal cortex during practice correlated with the benefit of interleaving on retention. Older adults may engage compensatory mechanisms during interleaved practice such as increasing sensorimotor recruitment which in turn benefits learning.
ISSN:1053-8119
1095-9572
DOI:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2012.05.015