Elsevier

Behavioural Brain Research

Volume 375, 16 December 2019, 112168
Behavioural Brain Research

Research report
Comparison of transcranial electrical stimulation regimens for effects on inhibitory circuit activity in primary somatosensory cortex and tactile spatial discrimination performance

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2019.112168Get rights and content
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Highlights

  • Various tES regimens were compared for effects on somatosensory cortex excitability.

  • Same regimens were compared for effects on tactile discrimination performance.

  • tES regimens differentially modulated cortical inhibitory circuits.

  • These regimens also differentially affected tactile discrimination.

  • tRNS and anodal tPCS effectively improved tactile discrimination.

Abstract

Transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) can be used to modulate inhibitory circuits in primary somatosensory cortex, resulting in improved somatosensory function. However, efficacy may depend on the specific stimulus modality and patterns. For instance, transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS), and transcranial pulsed current stimulation (tPCS) were found to stably and effectively modulate neuronal excitability, while anodal transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) appeared less effective overall but with substantial response heterogeneity among subjects. Therefore, we compared the effects of tES applied to primary somatosensory cortex on somatosensory evoked potential paired-pulse depression (SEP-PPD) and tactile discrimination performance in 17 neurologically healthy subjects. In Experiment 1, somatosensory evoked potential N20/P25_SEP-PPD, N20_SEP-PPD, and P25_SEP-PPD responses were assessed before and immediately after anodal tDCS, tACS (stimulation frequency, 140 Hz), tRNS (stimulation frequency, 0.1–640 Hz), anodal tPCS (pulse width, 50 ms; inter-pulse interval, 5 ms), and sham stimulation applied to primary somatosensory cortex. In Experiment 2, a grating orientation task (GOT) was performed before and immediately after the same anodal tDCS, tRNS, anodal tPCS, and sham stimulation regimens. Anodal tDCS and anodal tPCS decreased N20_SEP-PPD, and tRNS increased the first N20 SEP amplitude. Furthermore, tRNS and anodal tPCS decreased GOT discrimination threshold (improved performance). These results suggest that tRNS and anodal tPCS can improve sensory perception by modulating neuronal activity in primary somatosensory cortex.

Abbreviations

tES
transcranial electrical stimulation
tDCS
transcranial direct current stimulation
tACS
transcranial alternating current stimulation
tRNS
transcranial random noise stimulation

Keywords

Transcranial electrical stimulation
Tactile orientation discrimination
Somatosensory evoked potential
Paired-pulse depression

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