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Slow-Frequency Pulsed Transcranial Electrical Stimulation for Modulation of Cortical Plasticity Based on Reciprocity
Phan Luu1, Easwara Moorthy Essaki Arumugam2, Erik Anderson2
1Electrical Geodesics, Inc., EugeneOR, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, EugeneOR, USA.
Frontiers in Human Neuroscience
|August 18, 2016
Summary
This study improved non-invasive neuromodulation by precisely targeting brain regions with a 256-electrode array. Pulsed electrical stimulation, particularly cathodal, induced sustained motor evoked potential depression, showing potential for pain management.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Neuromodulation
- Neurophysiology
Background:
- Optimizing neuromodulation requires understanding timing and spatial current parameters for activity-dependent plasticity.
- Current spatial targeting uncertainty in transcranial electrical stimulation hinders analysis of temporal factors like pulsed vs. sustained currents.
Purpose of the Study:
- To enhance precision in targeting specific cortical locations for neuromodulation.
- To investigate the effects of pulsed cortical-surface-anodal and cortical-surface-cathodal stimulation on motor evoked potentials.
- To replicate long-term depression (LTD) findings from invasive studies using non-invasive methods.
Main Methods:
- Developed flexible source-sink configurations with 256 electrodes in a geodesic array.
- Constructed precision electric head models for 12 healthy individuals.
- Applied 100 ms pulses at 1.9 s intervals (anodal, cathodal, and sham) to the motor cortex.
Main Results:
- Cortical-surface-cathodal pulses significantly induced long-term depression (LTD) of motor evoked potentials compared to placebo.
- Anodal pulses showed a smaller but similar LTD effect.
- The cathodal LTD after-effect persisted for over 90 minutes.
Conclusions:
- Pulsed protocols with low total charge are feasible for non-invasive neuromodulation.
- Improved targeting precision using dense electrode arrays and accurate head modeling is crucial.
- This approach shows promise for clinical applications like pain management.
