摘要BACKGROUND: Previous studies have demonstrated the relationship of lower limb dominance with left- and right-handedness, supporting findings suggest that there is a role for peripheral factors in the neural control of movement.OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effect of laterality pattern on the neural mechanisms of motor control at the peripheral level. DESIGN, TIME AND SETTING: A controlled observation experiment was performed at the Motor Diagnostics Laboratory of the Academy of Physical Education in Katowice, Poland, in June 2009. PARTICIPANTS: Twenty young male adults aged 21-23 years and presenting two laterality patterns in hand-foot combination (right handed-right footed and left handed-left footed groups) took part in the experiment. All participants were carefully screened to eliminate any neurological or muscle disease or trauma.METHODS: The experiment included a laterality evaluation and the motor evoked potentials of dominant and non-dominant limbs. Measures were done through the use of the Hoffmann-reflex (H-reflex) circuitry. The soleus H-reflex parameters elicited at rest in lower extremities were compared. The soleus H-reflex and the direct motor response were elicited in lower extremities of each participant in the same laboratory session. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Onset latencies and min-max amplitudes of the direct motor response and the H-reflex; the motor and sensory conduction velocities; and symmetry coefficients of response parameters.RESULTS: The analysis of symmetry coefficients of direct and late motor responses confirmed differences between two laterality patterns in amplitude and latency of the H-reflex as well as in a sensory conduction velocity (P < 0.05), but not in direct motor response parameters. The amplitude of the H-reflex and the calculated sensory Ia afferent conduction velocity in the dominant lower extremity were significantly depressed in the right-sided group in comparison to the left-sided group (P = 0.001). The right-sided group presented significantly higher motor fiber conduction velocity in the dominant leg than in the non-dominant leg (P = 0.006), with no similar effect in the left-sided group. CONCLUSION: The neural control of the H-reflex elicited at rest is related to the laterality pattern in hand-foot combination in healthy adults. This result strongly suggests the possible existence of intrinsic control mechanisms of afferent feedback related to functional dominance in human limbs.