Dataset Information

Frequency Band-Specific Electrical Brain Stimulation Modulates Cognitive Control Processes.

ABSTRACT: A large body of findings has tied midfrontal theta-band (4-8 Hz) oscillatory activity to adaptive control mechanisms during response conflict. Thus far, this evidence has been correlational. To evaluate whether theta oscillations are causally involved in conflict processing, we applied transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) in the theta band to a midfrontal scalp region, while human subjects performed a spatial response conflict task. Conflict was introduced by incongruency between the location of the target stimulus and the required response hand. As a control condition, we used alpha-band (8-12 Hz) tACS over the same location. The exact stimulation frequencies were determined empirically for each subject based on a pre-stimulation EEG session. Behavioral results showed general conflict effects of slower response times (RT) and lower accuracy for high conflict trials compared to low conflict trials. Importantly, this conflict effect was reduced specifically during theta tACS, which was driven by slower response times on low conflict trials. These results show how theta tACS can modulate adaptive cognitive control processes, which is in accordance with the view of midfrontal theta oscillations as an active mechanism for cognitive control.

SUBMITTER: van Driel J

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4583279 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Frequency Band-Specific Electrical Brain Stimulation Modulates Cognitive Control Processes.

van Driel Joram J Sligte Ilja G IG Linders Jara J Elport Daniel D Cohen Michael X MX

PloS one 20150925 9

A large body of findings has tied midfrontal theta-band (4-8 Hz) oscillatory activity to adaptive control mechanisms during response conflict. Thus far, this evidence has been correlational. To evaluate whether theta oscillations are causally involved in conflict processing, we applied transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) in the theta band to a midfrontal scalp region, while human subjects performed a spatial response conflict task. Conflict was introduced by incongruency between ...[more]

PMID: 26405801

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Project description:Deep brain stimulation is an established therapy for Parkinson's disease; however, its effectiveness is hindered by limited understanding of therapeutic mechanisms and the lack of a robust feedback signal for tailoring stimulation. We recently reported that subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation evokes a neural response resembling a decaying high-frequency (200-500?Hz) oscillation that typically has a duration of at least 10?ms and is localizable to the dorsal sub-region. As the morphology of this response suggests a propensity for the underlying neural circuitry to oscillate at a particular frequency, we have named it evoked resonant neural activity. Here, we determine whether this evoked activity is modulated by therapeutic stimulation - a critical attribute of a feedback signal. Furthermore, we investigated whether any related changes occurred in spontaneous local field potentials. Evoked and spontaneous neural activity was intraoperatively recorded from 19 subthalamic nuclei in patients with Parkinson's disease. Recordings were obtained before therapeutic stimulation and during 130?Hz stimulation at increasing amplitudes (0.67-3.38?mA), 'washout' of therapeutic effects, and non-therapeutic 20?Hz stimulation. Therapeutic efficacy was assessed using clinical bradykinesia and rigidity scores. The frequency and amplitude of evoked resonant neural activity varied with the level of 130?Hz stimulation (p?<?.001). This modulation coincided with improvement in bradykinesia and rigidity (p?<?.001), and correlated with spontaneous beta band suppression (p?<?.001). Evoked neural activity occupied a similar frequency band to spontaneous high-frequency oscillations (200-400?Hz), both of which decreased to around twice the 130?Hz stimulation rate. Non-therapeutic stimulation at 20?Hz evoked, but did not modulate, resonant activity. These results indicate that therapeutic deep brain stimulation alters the frequency of evoked and spontaneous oscillations recorded in the subthalamic nucleus that are likely generated by loops within the cortico-basal ganglia-thalamo-cortical network. Evoked resonant neural activity therefore has potential as a tool for providing insight into brain network function and has key attributes of a dynamic feedback signal for optimizing therapy.

Project description:Demand-controlled deep brain stimulation (DBS) appears to be a promising approach for the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD) as revealed by computational, pre-clinical and clinical studies. Stimulation delivery is adapted to brain activity, for example, to the amount of neuronal activity considered to be abnormal. Such a closed-loop stimulation setup might help to reduce the amount of stimulation current, thereby maintaining therapeutic efficacy. In the context of the development of stimulation techniques that aim to restore desynchronized neuronal activity on a long-term basis, specific closed-loop stimulation protocols were designed computationally. These feedback techniques, e.g., pulsatile linear delayed feedback (LDF) or pulsatile nonlinear delayed feedback (NDF), were computationally developed to counteract abnormal neuronal synchronization characteristic for PD and other neurological disorders. By design, these techniques are intrinsically demand-controlled methods, where the amplitude of the stimulation signal is reduced when the desired desynchronized regime is reached. We here introduce a novel demand-controlled stimulation method, pulsatile multisite linear delayed feedback (MLDF), by employing MLDF to modulate the pulse amplitude of high-frequency (HF) DBS, in this way aiming at a specific, MLDF-related desynchronizing impact, while maintaining safety requirements with the charge-balanced HF DBS. Previously, MLDF was computationally developed for the control of spatio-temporal synchronized patterns and cluster states in neuronal populations. Here, in a physiologically motivated model network comprising neurons from subthalamic nucleus (STN) and external globus pallidus (GPe), we compare pulsatile MLDF to pulsatile LDF for the case where the smooth feedback signals are used to modulate the amplitude of charge-balanced HF DBS and suggest a modification of pulsatile MLDF which enables a pronounced desynchronizing impact. Our results may contribute to further clinical development of closed-loop DBS techniques.

Dataset Information

Frequency Band-Specific Electrical Brain Stimulation Modulates Cognitive Control Processes.

Publications

Frequency Band-Specific Electrical Brain Stimulation Modulates Cognitive Control Processes.

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