重复经颅直流电刺激帕金森病模型大鼠的旋转行为

背景：经颅直流电刺激对帕金森病具有潜在的治疗作用,然而单次经颅直流电刺激的后效往往只能维持几个小时。 目的：观察重复经颅直流电刺激对帕金森病大鼠旋转行为的治疗作用。 方法：在SD大鼠黑质致密部和腹侧被盖区注射6-羟基多巴胺制作帕金森病大鼠模型,并完全随机分成阳极经颅直流电刺激组、阴极经颅直流电刺激组和对照组。对前两组大鼠初级运动区进行连续刺激10 d,电流强度为80 μA,刺激时间为30 min/d的经颅直流电刺激。对照组不施加电刺激。 结果与结论：重复阳极或阴极经颅直流电刺激对大鼠平均转速的减小存在显著的时间效应(P < 0.05),刺激的后效可持续二三周;而对潜伏期和旋转持续时间改善作用不明显(P > 0.05)。若保持两刺激组的刺激时间、刺激强度、刺激位置一致,则发现阴极经颅直流电刺激较阳极经颅直流电刺激对大鼠平均转速的减小更显著。结果提示使用重复经颅直流电刺激能够显著减小帕金森大鼠的旋转运动中的平均转速,且阴极刺激的效果更好。     

阳极经颅直流电刺激对肌肉力量及肌肉耐力影响的Meta分析

目的:经颅直流电刺激已在临床医学中表现出积极效果,但是其应用于运动生物力学领域的研究尚浅,仍有学者对该技术增强肌肉力量及提升运动表现效果提出质疑.该文系统梳理阳极经颅直流电刺激对肌肉力量的影响及经颅直流电刺激的作用机制.方法:检索PubMed、Web of Science、Google scholar、Scopus数据...     

经颅电刺激技术用于运动表现提升的研究进展

经颅电刺激(TES)包括经颅直流电刺激、经颅交流电刺激和经颅随机噪声刺激,是一种非侵入的脑刺激技术。通过不同尺寸的电极将特定模式的低强度电流作用于特定的脑区,调节大脑皮质神经活动和/或兴奋性,增强大脑与神经、肌肉的连接,达到改善运动表现的作用。目前TES技术正在实现从实验室研究到运动科学应用研究的转变。首先阐述TES作用于大脑皮质的神经机制,着重评述近20年来TES在人类运动表现提升方面的研究进展,包括身体平衡、耐力表现、运动疲劳、肌肉力量和运动学习能力等5个方面;然后综述TES在脑网络功能连通性中应用的相关研究,并探讨该领域对TES改善运动表现的重要意义; 最后对TES在运动表现提升中的应用研究进行展望。     

阳极经颅直流电刺激对脑卒中患者脑功能网络的影响

经颅直流电刺激(tDCS)在脑卒中治疗中应用潜力巨大,但其作用效应仍不明确。本研究基于脑电图(EEG)和图论分析探讨阳极tDCS干预对脑卒中患者的作用效应。对15例脑卒中患者施加阳极tDCS真刺激和伪刺激,以随机顺序间隔一周进行两次刺激,每次采集刺激前和刺激后静息态EEG信号。对每次采集的EEG信号,采用皮尔逊相关系数等分析方法研究各个导联间的关联性特征参数。基于分析结果,构建患者刺激前、后的脑功能网络,并分析网络特征参数的变化。结果显示,真刺激后脑功能网络的平均度、平均聚类系数、全局效率以及“小世界”属性值较刺激前均显著增大(P<0.05),特征路径长度显著减小(P<0.05),而伪刺激组相关参数变化未见显著差异(P>0.05)。结果表明,阳极tDCS干预对卒中后恢复性治疗具有积极影响,为其临床应用提供了实验依据。     

经颅磁刺激促进脑卒中功能恢复的作用机制

近年来国内脑卒中发病率逐年上升,经颅磁刺激以其无痛、无创的治疗优势应用于脑卒中患者的康复治疗中,但目前其促进脑卒中后运动功能恢复的作用机制尚不完全明确,本文从其调节刺激部位脑血流量、调节大脑皮层兴奋性、调节大脑半球双相平衡模型、诱导长时程效应、调节突触可塑性和促进轴突再生、调节神经递质和激活神经通路、改善神经元微环境和调节干细胞增殖分化的研究做一综述,以期为临床治疗提供参考。     

硬膜外植入式皮质刺激脑卒中患者提高神经网络功能

背景：硬膜外植入式皮质刺激兼顾了经颅磁刺激、经颅直流电刺激、硬膜下皮质刺激和深部脑刺激的优点,可显著改善脑卒中后的肢体运动与语言功能。 目的：综述近年来有关硬膜外植入式皮质刺激在脑卒中康复中的研究及其临床应用。 方法：由第一作者应用计算机检索1995年1月至2014年4月PubMed 数据库及中国期刊全文数据库文献,检索关键词为“cortical stimulation,extradural motor cortex stimulation,extradural cortical implants,extradural cortical stimulation,stroke,rehabilitation;皮质刺激,硬膜外电刺激,硬膜外皮质植入,硬膜外皮质刺激,脑卒中,康复”。纳入有关硬膜外植入式皮质刺激在脑卒中后运动与言语障碍中应用的文章。 结果与结论：硬膜外皮质刺激是植入式皮质刺激,其优势是侵入性小、高度精确性和经硬膜与大脑密切接触,对缺乏有效治疗的脑卒中慢性期运动和语言障碍患者来说,这有可能是一种新的治疗方法。硬膜外皮质刺激通过促进神经可塑性、促进病灶周围结构与功能改变、提高神经网络功能、促进大脑半球间功能平衡及增加感觉输入来改善脑卒中后的肢体运动功能与语言功能。中国组织工程研究杂志出版内容重点：生物材料;骨生物材料; 口腔生物材料; 纳米材料; 缓释材料; 材料相容性;组织工程全文链接：     

非侵入性脑刺激对运动能力的影响

在非侵入性脑刺激(NIBS)装置中,应用广泛的是经颅磁刺激(TMS)和经颅直流电刺激(tDCS)。通过不同的TMS或tDCS刺激方案可以改变大脑皮层兴奋性,且这种兴奋性改变可长时间维持,从而具有改变突触可塑性的潜在作用。多数研究选择啮齿类动物(如大鼠和小鼠等)作为研究对象,其运动行为表现涉及运动能力、运动协调能力和运动感觉能力等。脑刺激提升运动能力的神经生物学可能机制主要体现在神经发生、神经可塑性和神经保护等方面。评估NIBS对动物模型的运动功能影响及相关的脑结构变化,将有助于探索NIBS提高脑功能的可能机制,并优化临床或实践应用的干预方案。     

经颅电刺激在卒中后运动康复领域的研究进展

由脑卒中造成的神经性损伤是目前导致运动功能障碍的主要病因之一,为社会和患者家庭带来了巨大的精神和经济负担。结合经颅电刺激的运动康复疗法为改善患者运动功能障碍、提高生活质量提供一种重要的治疗方式。经颅电刺激是一种无痛、非侵入式脑刺激方法,能够调节神经元胞内钙离子浓度、增强突触可塑性、调制神经放电频率、改变皮层兴奋性,从而实现对大脑神经活动的调控。回顾经颅电刺激的神经机制,在科研临床应用中的参数设置,以及安全性等问题,总结其在运动功能康复方面的成果以及目前亟待解决的问题。     

经颅直流电刺激干预工作记忆的脑功能网络研究

工作记忆是高级认知功能的重要基础,为探索经颅直流电刺激(tDCS)对工作记忆的影响及具体机制,招募18位被试参加实验,采集被试在伪/阳极/阴极tDCS刺激后三图、四图以及五图记忆负载任务中的行为数据(准确率、反应时长)与脑电信号.首先根据行为数据对工作记忆能力进行评估,再利用不同通道之间脑电信号的相关性,构建各状态下的...     

高精度经颅直流电刺激对人体动态平衡能力的影响

背景:高精度经颅直流电刺激在促进认知和运动行为提升方面有巨大潜力,其可提升人体的静态平衡能力.目的:探究高精度经颅直流电刺激对人体动态平衡能力的影响.方法:招募沈阳体育学院36名健康学生为试验对象,男24名,女12名,随机数字表法分3组,分别接受电流强度为0(假刺激),1,2 mA的阳极高精度经颅直流电刺激,刺激20 ...     

Enhanced locomotor adaptation aftereffect in the "broken escalator" phenomenon using anodal tDCS

The everyday experience of stepping onto a stationary escalator causes a stumble, despite our full awareness that the escalator is broken. In the laboratory, this "broken escalator" phenomenon is reproduced when subjects step onto an obviously stationary platform (AFTER trials) that was previously experienced as moving (MOVING trials) and attests to a process of motor adaptation. Given the critical role of M1 in upper limb motor adaptation and the potential for transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) to increase cortical excitability, we hypothesized that anodal tDCS over leg M1 and premotor cortices would increase the size and duration of the locomotor aftereffect. Thirty healthy volunteers received either sham or real tDCS (anodal bihemispheric tDCS; 2 mA for 15 min at rest) to induce excitatory effects over the primary motor and premotor cortex before walking onto the moving platform. The real tDCS group, compared with sham, displayed larger trunk sway and increased gait velocity in the first AFTER trial and a persistence of the trunk sway aftereffect into the second AFTER trial. We also used transcranial magnetic stimulation to probe changes in cortical leg excitability using different electrode montages and eyeblink conditioning, before and after tDCS, as well as simulating the current flow of tDCS on the human brain using a computational model of these different tDCS montages. Our data show that anodal tDCS induces excitability changes in lower limb motor cortex with resultant enhancement of locomotor adaptation aftereffects. These findings might encourage the use of tDCS over leg motor and premotor regions to improve locomotor control in patients with neurological gait disorders.     

After-effects of transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) on cortical spreading depression

Abnormal cortical excitability influences susceptibility to cortical spreading depression (CSD) in migraine. Because transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is capable of inducing lasting changes of cortical excitability, we investigated the after-effects of tDCS on the propagation velocity of CSD in the rat. Twenty-five anesthetised rats received either anodal, cathodal or sham tDCS. The stimulation was applied for 20 min at a current strength of 200 microA after the recording of three baseline CSD measurements. Starting 5 min after tDCS, a further three CSDs were elicited and CSD velocity recorded at intervals of 20 min. tDCS and CSD recording was performed under anaesthesia with chloralose and urethane. As compared to the baseline velocity of 3.14 mm/min, anodal tDCS induced a significant increase of propagation velocity during the first post-tDCS recording (3.49 mm/min). In contrast to anodal tDCS, neither cathodal tDCS nor sham tDCS, which consisted of an initial ramped DC stimulation lasting only 20 s, showed a significant effect on CSD propagation velocity. As anodal tDCS is known to induce a lasting increase of cortical excitability in the clinical setting, our results support the notion that CSD propagation velocity reflects cortical excitability. Since cortical excitability and susceptibility to CSD is elevated in migraine patients, anodal tDCS - by increasing cortical excitability - might increase the probability of migraine attack in these patients, even beyond the end of its application.     

Modulating parameters of excitability during and after transcranial direct current stimulation of the human motor cortex

Weak transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) of the human motor cortex results in excitability shifts which occur during and after stimulation. These excitability shifts are polarity-specific with anodal tDCS enhancing excitability, and cathodal reducing it. To explore the origin of this excitability modulation in more detail, we measured the input–output curve and motor thresholds as global parameters of cortico-spinal excitability, and determined intracortical inhibition and facilitation, as well as facilitatory indirect wave (I-wave) interactions. Measurements were performed during short-term tDCS, which elicits no after-effects, and during other tDCS protocols which do elicit short- and long-lasting after-effects. Resting and active motor thresholds remained stable during and after tDCS. The slope of the input–output curve was increased by anodal tDCS and decreased by cathodal tDCS. Anodal tDCS of the primary motor cortex reduced intracortical inhibition and enhanced facilitation after tDCS but not during tDCS. Cathodal tDCS reduced facilitation during, and additionally increased inhibition after its administration. During tDCS, I-wave facilitation was not influenced but, for the after-effects, anodal tDCS increased I-wave facilitation, while cathodal tDCS had only minor effects. These results suggest that the effect of tDCS on cortico-spinal excitability during a short period of stimulation (which does not induce after-effects) primarily depends on subthreshold resting membrane potential changes, which are able to modulate the input-output curve, but not motor thresholds. In contrast, the after-effects of tDCS are due to shifts in intracortical inhibition and facilitation, and at least partly also to facilitatory I-wave interaction, which is controlled by synaptic activity.     

Transcranial direct current stimulation effects on I-wave activity in humans

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) of the human cerebral cortex modulates cortical excitability noninvasively in a polarity-specific manner: anodal tDCS leads to lasting facilitation and cathodal tDCS to inhibition of motor cortex excitability. To further elucidate the underlying physiological mechanisms, we recorded corticospinal volleys evoked by single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation of the primary motor cortex before and after a 5-min period of anodal or cathodal tDCS in eight conscious patients who had electrodes implanted in the cervical epidural space for the control of pain. The effects of anodal tDCS were evaluated in six subjects and the effects of cathodal tDCS in five subjects. Three subjects were studied with both polarities. Anodal tDCS increased the excitability of cortical circuits generating I waves in the corticospinal system, including the earliest wave (I1 wave), whereas cathodal tDCS suppressed later I waves. The motor evoked potential (MEP) amplitude changes immediately following tDCS periods were in agreement with the effects produced on intracortical circuitry. The results deliver additional evidence that tDCS changes the excitability of cortical neurons.     

Anodal transcranial direct current stimulation of prefrontal cortex enhances working memory

Previous studies have claimed that weak transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) induces persisting excitability changes in the human motor cortex that can be more pronounced than cortical modulation induced by transcranial magnetic stimulation, but there are no studies that have evaluated the effects of tDCS on working memory. Our aim was to determine whether anodal transcranial direct current stimulation, which enhances brain cortical excitability and activity, would modify performance in a sequential-letter working memory task when administered to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). Fifteen subjects underwent a three-back working memory task based on letters. This task was performed during sham and anodal stimulation applied over the left DLPFC. Moreover seven of these subjects performed the same task, but with inverse polarity (cathodal stimulation of the left DLPFC) and anodal stimulation of the primary motor cortex (M1). Our results indicate that only anodal stimulation of the left prefrontal cortex, but not cathodal stimulation of left DLPFC or anodal stimulation of M1, increases the accuracy of the task performance when compared to sham stimulation of the same area. This accuracy enhancement during active stimulation cannot be accounted for by slowed responses, as response times were not changed by stimulation. Our results indicate that left prefrontal anodal stimulation leads to an enhancement of working memory performance. Furthermore, this effect depends on the stimulation polarity and is specific to the site of stimulation. This result may be helpful to develop future interventions aiming at clinical benefits.Felipe Fregni and Paulo S. Boggio contributed equally to this work.     

Manipulation of phosphene thresholds by transcranial direct current stimulation in man

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) can modulate the excitability of the human motor cortex, as revealed by the amplitude of the motor-evoked potentials (MEP). The aim of our study has been to produce localized changes of cerebral excitability of the visual cortex in the intact human by weak anodal and cathodal stimulation. For quantification of current-induced excitability changes, we measured phosphene threshold (PT) using short trains of 5-Hz transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) pulses in nine healthy subjects before, immediately after, 10 min, and 20 min after the end of tDCS. PTs are suggested as representative values of visual cortex excitability changes. Reduced PT was detected immediately and 10 min after the end of anodal stimulation, while cathodal stimulation resulted in an opposite effect. Our results show that tDCS elicits a transient, reversible excitability alteration of the visual cortex, thus representing a promising tool for neuroplasticity research. Electronic Publication     

Transcranial direct current stimulation modulates motor responses evoked by repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation

Introduction

Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) are non-invasive techniques able to induce changes in corticospinal excitability. In this study, we combined rTMS and tDCS to understand possible interactions between the two techniques, and investigate whether they are polarity dependent.

Materials and methods

Eleven healthy subjects participated in the study. Each patient underwent both anodal and cathodal conditioning tDCS in two separate sessions; brief 5 Hz-rTMS trains were delivered over the primary motor cortex at an intensity of 120% the resting motor threshold (RMT) before tDCS (T0), immediately after (T1) and 10 min after current offset (T2). We then analysed changes induced by cathodal and anodal tDCS on TMS variables.

Results

Our results showed that in both anodal and cathodal sessions, the motor evoked potential (MEP) amplitude increased significantly in size before stimulation (T0). Conversely, after anodal tDCS, the MEP facilitation measured at T1 and T2 was absent, whereas after cathodal tDCS it was preserved.

Conclusions

Our findings provide new direct neurophysiological evidence that tDCS influences primary motor cortex excitability.     

Transcranial direct current stimulation and repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation in consultation-liaison psychiatry

Patients with clinical diseases often present psychiatric conditions whose pharmacological treatment is hampered due to hazardous interactions with the clinical treatment and/or disease. This is particularly relevant for major depressive disorder, the most common psychiatric disorder in the general hospital. In this context, nonpharmacological interventions could be useful therapies; and, among those, noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) might be an interesting option. The main methods of NIBS are repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), which was recently approved as a nonresearch treatment for some psychiatric conditions, and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), a technique that is currently limited to research scenarios but has shown promising results. Therefore, our aim was to review the main medical conditions associated with high depression rates, the main obstacles for depression treatment, and whether these therapies could be a useful intervention for such conditions. We found that depression is an important and prevalent comorbidity in a variety of diseases such as epilepsy, stroke, Parkinson''s disease, myocardial infarction, cancer, and in other conditions such as pregnancy and in patients without enteral access. We found that treatment of depression is often suboptimal within the above contexts and that rTMS and tDCS therapies have been insufficiently appraised. We discuss whether rTMS and tDCS could have a significant impact in treating depression that develops within a clinical context, considering its unique characteristics such as the absence of pharmacological interactions, the use of a nonenteral route, and as an augmentation therapy for antidepressants.     

The effect of transcranial direct current stimulation on the cortical activation by motor task in the human brain: An fMRI study

Objectives: We attempted to evaluate whether cortical activation resulting from hand movements is changed by transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) applied on the primary motor cortex for the hand in the human brain, using functional MRI (fMRI). Methods: Fourteen normal subjects were recruited; subjects were randomly assigned to either the tDCS group (n = 7) or the sham group (n = 7). fMRI was performed with hand grasp-release movements at 1 Hz before and after 20 min of intervention (the tDCS group: anodal tDCS, the sham group: sham stimulation). Results: The activation of the tDCS underlying primary sensorimotor cortex (SM1) was significantly increased in the tDCS group (p < 0.05). By contrast, the SM1 was significantly decreased in the sham group in terms of the voxel count and intensity (p < 0.05). No subjects complained of any adverse symptoms or signs. Conclusion: We demonstrated that anodal tDCS increased the cortical excitability of the underlying motor cortex in the human brain. It seems that tDCS is an effective modality to modulate brain function.     

Pharmacological Modulation of Cortical Excitability Shifts Induced by Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation in Humans

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) of the human motor cortex results in polarity-specific shifts of cortical excitability during and after stimulation. Anodal tDCS enhances and cathodal stimulation reduces excitability. Animal experiments have demonstrated that the effect of anodal tDCS is caused by neuronal depolarisation, while cathodal tDCS hyperpolarises cortical neurones. However, not much is known about the ion channels and receptors involved in these effects. Thus, the impact of the sodium channel blocker carbamazepine, the calcium channel blocker flunarizine and the NMDA receptor antagonist dextromethorphane on tDCS-elicited motor cortical excitability changes of healthy human subjects were tested. tDCS-protocols inducing excitability alterations (1) only during tDCS and (2) eliciting long-lasting after-effects were applied after drug administration. Carbamazepine selectively eliminated the excitability enhancement induced by anodal stimulation during and after tDCS. Flunarizine resulted in similar changes. Antagonising NMDA receptors did not alter current-generated excitability changes during a short stimulation, which elicits no after-effects, but prevented the induction of long-lasting after-effects independent of their direction. These results suggest that, like in other animals, cortical excitability shifts induced during tDCS in humans also depend on membrane polarisation, thus modulating the conductance of sodium and calcium channels. Moreover, they suggest that the after-effects may be NMDA receptor dependent. Since NMDA receptors are involved in neuroplastic changes, the results suggest a possible application of tDCS in the modulation or induction of these processes in a clinical setting. The selective elimination of tDCS-driven excitability enhancements by carbamazepine proposes a role for this drug in focussing the effects of cathodal tDCS, which may have important future clinical applications.