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bioRxiv · 10.1101/2025.09.11.675501

A common neural architecture for encoding finger movements

Marins, T. F.·Casarsa de Azevedo, F. A.·Wood, G.
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Abstract

Human behavior evokes cortical responses that are highly variable across individuals, challenging the existence of a shared informational architecture, previously reported in animal studies. Here, using 7-Tesla fMRI and Procrustean transformation, we show that high-dimensional alignment of neural information from finger-tapping sequences reveals a latent neural architecture for sequential finger movements that generalizes across brains. This shared representation is instantiated in both sides of the sensorimotor cortex and does not reflect trial-wise variability of motor behavior, as regional decoding differences persisted after controlling for movement-time fluctuations. This conserved sensorimotor encoding structure provides a neuroscientific foundation for scalable, calibration-free brain-computer interfaces and cross-subject models of motor rehabilitation.

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Marins, T. F., Casarsa de Azevedo, F. A., Wood, G.. 2025-09-11. A common neural architecture for encoding finger movements. https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.09.11.675501

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