Fröhlich Flavio, Sellers Kristin K, Cordle Asa L
Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC 27599, USA.
Expert Rev Neurother. 2015 Feb;15(2):145-67. doi: 10.1586/14737175.2015.992782. Epub 2014 Dec 30.
Cognitive impairment represents one of the most debilitating and most difficult symptom to treat of many psychiatric illnesses. Human neurophysiology studies have suggested that specific pathologies of cortical network activity correlate with cognitive impairment. However, we lack demonstration of causal relationships between specific network activity patterns and cognitive capabilities and treatment modalities that directly target impaired network dynamics of cognition. Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), a novel non-invasive brain stimulation approach, may provide a crucial tool to tackle these challenges. Here, we propose that tACS can be used to elucidate the causal role of cortical synchronization in cognition and, eventually, to enhance pathologically weakened synchrony that may underlie cognitive deficits. To accelerate such development of tACS as a treatment for cognitive deficits, we discuss studies on tACS and cognition performed in healthy participants, according to the Research Domain Criteria of the National Institute of Mental Health.
认知障碍是许多精神疾病中最使人衰弱且最难治疗的症状之一。人类神经生理学研究表明，皮质网络活动的特定病理与认知障碍相关。然而，我们缺乏关于特定网络活动模式与认知能力以及直接针对认知受损网络动态的治疗方式之间因果关系的论证。经颅交流电刺激（tACS）是一种新型非侵入性脑刺激方法，可能为应对这些挑战提供关键工具。在此，我们提出tACS可用于阐明皮质同步在认知中的因果作用，并最终增强可能是认知缺陷基础的病理性减弱的同步性。为了加速tACS作为认知缺陷治疗方法的这种发展，我们根据美国国立精神卫生研究所的研究领域标准，讨论了在健康参与者中进行的关于tACS与认知的研究。
