Opposite effects of high- and low-frequency transcranial random noise stimulation probed with visual motion adaptation

作者：Campana Gianluca; Camilleri Rebecca; Moret Beatrice; Ghin Filippo; Pavan Andrea

来源：Scientific Reports, 2016, 6(1): 38919.

DOI：10.1038/srep38919

Transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS) is a recent neuro-modulation technique whose effects at both behavioural and neural level are still debated. Here we employed the well-known phenomenon of motion after-effect (MAE) in order to investigate the effects of high-vs. low-frequency tRNS on motion adaptation and recovery. Participants were asked to estimate the MAE duration following prolonged adaptation (20 s) to a complex moving pattern, while being stimulated with either sham or tRNS across different blocks. Different groups were administered with either high-or low-frequency tRNS. Stimulation sites were either bilateral human MT complex (hMT(+)) or frontal areas. The results showed that, whereas no effects on MAE duration were induced by stimulating frontal areas, when applied to the bilateral hMT+, high-frequency tRNS caused a significant decrease in MAE duration whereas low-frequency tRNS caused a significant corresponding increase in MAE duration. These findings indicate that high-and low-frequency tRNS have opposed effects on the adaptation-dependent unbalance between neurons tuned to opposite motion directions, and thus on neuronal excitability.

• 出版日期2016-12-9