Cerebellar transcranial alternating current stimulation modulates human gait rhythm

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Motor Control
• Human Locomotion

Background:

• The precise neural mechanisms governing human bipedal locomotion rhythm generation remain incompletely understood.
• Specific brain regions are known to be crucial for patterned limb movements.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if rhythmic transcranial brain stimulation applied to the cerebellum can modulate human walking rhythm.
• To explore the potential of cerebellar stimulation as an intervention for gait disturbances.

Main Methods:

• Fourteen healthy subjects underwent over-ground walking for 10 minutes.
• Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) was applied over the left cerebellum at the approximate gait cycle frequency, alongside sham and scalp control conditions.
• The effect of current directionality was also examined.

Main Results:

• Cerebellar tACS demonstrated a significant entrainment of gait rhythm compared to control conditions.
• Reversing the direction of cerebellar tACS currents resulted in phase-shifted entrainment in some subjects, indicating current orientation dependence.
• These findings suggest the cerebellum plays a key role in gait rhythm generation.

Conclusions:

• Transcranial alternating current stimulation over the cerebellum can effectively modulate the gait generation system.
• Cerebellar tACS presents an innovative approach for potentially aiding the recovery of locomotion in individuals with gait impairments due to central nervous system disorders.