Hannah, R;
Iacovou, A;
Rothwell, JC;
(2019)
Direction of TDCS current flow in human sensorimotor cortex influences behavioural learning.
Brain Stimulation
, 12
(3)
pp. 684-692.
10.1016/j.brs.2019.01.016.
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: Recent studies have shown that neurophysiological outcomes of transcranial direct current stimulation (TDCS) are influenced by current flow in brain regions between the electrodes, and in particular the orientation of current flow relative to the cortical surface. // OBJECTIVE: We asked whether the directional effects of TDCS on physiological measures in the motor system would also be observed on motor behaviours. // METHODS: We applied TDCS during the practice of a ballistic movement task to test whether it affected learning or the retention of learning 48 h later. TDCS electrodes were oriented perpendicular to the central sulcus and two current orientations were used (posterior-anterior, TDCSPA; and anterior-posterior, TDCSAP). Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was used to assess whether changes in corticospinal excitability reflected any behavioural changes. // RESULTS: Directional TDCSAP impaired the retention of learning on the ballistic movement task compared to TDCSPA and a sham condition. Although TDCSPA had no effect on learning or retention, it blocked the typical increase in corticospinal excitability after a period of motor practice. // CONCLUSIONS: Our results extend on previous reports of TDCS producing directionally specific changes in neurophysiological outcomes by showing that current direction through a cortical target also impacts upon behavioural outcomes. In addition, changes in corticospinal excitability after a period of motor practice are not causally linked to behavioural learning.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Direction of TDCS current flow in human sensorimotor cortex influences behavioural learning |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.brs.2019.01.016 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1016/j.brs.2019.01.016 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| Keywords: | Transcranial magnetic stimulation, Transcranial direct current stimulation, Motor cortex, Learning, Plasticity |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology > Clinical and Movement Neurosciences |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10068490 |
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