Voelker Pascale, Parker Ashley N, Luu Phan, Davey Colin, Rothbart Mary K, Posner Michael I
Department of Psychology, University of Oregon, Eugene OR, USA.
BelCo Eugene OR, USA.
AIMS Neurosci. 2020 Nov 5;7(4):418-437. doi: 10.3934/Neuroscience.2020026. eCollection 2020.
In a mouse study we found increased myelination of pathways surrounding the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) following stimulation near the theta rhythm (4-8 Hz), and evidence that this change in connectivity reduced behavioral anxiety. We cannot use the optogenetic methods with humans that were used in our mouse studies. This paper examines whether it is possible to enhance intrinsic theta amplitudes in humans using less invasive methods. The first experiment compares electrical, auditory and biofeedback as methods for increasing intrinsic theta rhythm amplitudes in the Anterior Cingulate Cortex (ACC). These methods are used alone or in conjunction with a task designed to activate the same area. The results favor using electrical stimulation in conjunction with a task targeting this region. Stimulating the ACC increases intrinsic theta more in this area than in a control area distant from the site of stimulation, suggesting some degree of localization of the stimulation. In Experiment 2, we employed electrical stimulation with the electrodes common to each person, or with electrodes selected from an individual head model. We targeted the ACC or Motor Cortex (PMC). At baseline, intrinsic theta is higher in the ACC than the PMC. In both areas, theta can be increased in amplitude by electrical stimulation plus task. In the PMC, theta levels during stimulation plus task are not significantly higher than during task alone. There is no significant difference between generic and individual electrodes. We discuss steps needed to determine whether we can use the electrical stimulation + task to improve the connectivity of white matter in different brain areas.
在一项小鼠研究中，我们发现，在靠近θ节律（4-8赫兹）处进行刺激后，前扣带回皮质（ACC）周围通路的髓鞘形成增加，并且有证据表明这种连接性变化可减轻行为焦虑。我们无法将小鼠研究中使用的光遗传学方法应用于人类。本文探讨了是否有可能使用侵入性较小的方法来增强人类的固有θ波振幅。第一个实验比较了电刺激、听觉刺激和生物反馈作为增加前扣带回皮质（ACC）固有θ节律振幅的方法。这些方法单独使用或与旨在激活同一区域的任务结合使用。结果表明，将电刺激与针对该区域的任务结合使用效果更佳。刺激ACC在该区域比在远离刺激部位的对照区域能更有效地增加固有θ波，这表明刺激具有一定程度的定位性。在实验2中，我们使用每个人通用的电极或从个体头部模型中选择的电极进行电刺激。我们的目标是ACC或运动皮质（PMC）。在基线时，ACC中的固有θ波高于PMC。在这两个区域，通过电刺激加任务都可以增加θ波的振幅。在PMC中，刺激加任务期间的θ波水平并不显著高于仅执行任务时。通用电极和个体电极之间没有显著差异。我们讨论了确定是否可以使用电刺激加任务来改善不同脑区白质连接性所需的步骤。
