Hubs and highways for Motor Planning: Brain network organization associated with planning time during decision-making

Hubs and highways for Motor Planning: Brain network organization associated with planning time during decision-making | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Hubs and highways for Motor Planning: Brain network organization associated with planning time during decision-making Leonardo Ariel Cano, Ana Lía Albarracín, Eduardo Fernandez, Fernando Daniel Farfán This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8633232/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 6 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Motor planning emerges from the integration of sensory information, effector selection, and inhibitory control within large-scale cortical networks. Although behavioral asymmetries between dominant and non-dominant hands have been widely reported, the network-level mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here, we examined whether differences in motor planning efficiency reflect distinct patterns of cortical network organization. Seventeen healthy right-handed individuals performed a visually guided hand-selection task while EEG, EMG, and kinematic signals were recorded. Motor planning time was defined as the interval between stimulus onset and the onset of agonist muscle activity. Functional coupling during planning was estimated in the beta band and characterized using graph-theoretical measures of network integration, segregation, and regional hubness. Planning time was significantly longer for dominant-hand movements, yet correlated across hands, indicating partially shared planning processes. Only dominant-hand planning showed systematic relationships between behavior and network organization. Longer planning times were associated with increased global efficiency and clustering, suggesting enhanced integration and local specialization as planning demands increased. Regional analyses revealed a left-lateralized set of temporal, sensorimotor, and parietal hubs selectively engaged during dominant-hand planning. In particular, planning time increases with functional coupling between a left parietal hub and contralateral frontal regions pointed to dynamic interhemispheric coordination. No comparable network–behavior relationships were observed during non-dominant hand planning. These findings demonstrate that motor planning efficiency is constrained by the dynamic reconfiguration of large-scale cortical networks rather than by isolated regional activations. Dominant-hand planning recruits an asymmetric parieto-frontal network whose increasing integration scales with planning demands, consistent with bounded evidence-accumulation frameworks. Motor planning EEG functional coupling brain networks decision-making Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files supplementarymaterial.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 14 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 May, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 13 May, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 13 May, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 29 Apr, 2026 First submitted to journal 22 Apr, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8633232","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":628061949,"identity":"1f53665a-c650-4e30-84b9-d4c74419529b","order_by":0,"name":"Leonardo Ariel 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