Noninvasive brain stimulation, comprising of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), noninvasive vagus nerve stimulation (nVNS), and transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS), are tools with widespread research and therapeutic potential. Amongst these, multiple TMS devices and pulse sequences are FDA-approved for the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, smoking cessation, and migraine headache, with many other indications under investigation.
However, the mechanism of action for these brain stimulation modalities is not yet fully elucidated. Examining the neural circuit changes underlying brain stimulation efficacy could ultimately lead to more effective and personalized treatments.
This Research Topic considers the effects of brain stimulation on micro- and macro-neural circuit levels in human, animal, computational, and cellular work. Specifically, the focus of this topic is to elucidate the mechanisms of noninvasive brain stimulation and highlight its therapeutic potential viewed through the lens of neural circuitry.
The scope of this Research Topic is broad by design, with the goal of publishing multimodal and interdisciplinary approaches that converge on understanding the effects of brain stimulation at multiple scales.
We welcome submissions examining the effects of noninvasive brain stimulation on neural circuits in four domains:
1) Neuroimaging:
How do different noninvasive brain stimulation techniques structurally and functionally affect neural circuits, as measured with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), electroencephalography (EEG), functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), and other imaging modalities? What are the neural underpinnings of therapeutic effects, and are neural circuit changes altered from single and/or multiple stimulation sessions? What does neuroimaging reveal about the neuroplastic effects derived from brain stimulation in the neural circuit?
2) Neurophysiological and Clinical Studies:
How does brain stimulation alter neural circuits, in the central and/or peripheral nervous system, from pre- to post-stimulation? What does motor physiology (e.g., motor evoked potentials) reveal about neural circuit plasticity? How do these effects compare with other cortical regions (e.g., prefrontal plasticity, as assessed by TMS-evoked potentials)?
3) Computational Modeling:
From the single neuron to the whole brain level, how strongly and focally do different forms of brain stimulation stimulate the brain? How does TMS pulse pattern or tES intensity alter the neuronal potential and local calcium concentration in the neural circuit? How do these neural circuit changes relate to therapeutic effects?
4) Pharmacological Studies:
What can pharmacological research reveal about the effects of brain stimulation on the neural circuit? What does activation or inhibition of NMDA, AMPA, GABA, or metabotropic receptors reveal about the mechanisms underlying noninvasive brain stimulation in the neural circuit? How do the changes in these neural circuits relate to long-term potentiation (LTP)- or long-term depression (LTD)-like behavior?
We encourage original research articles, reviews, protocols, and case reports that address how brain stimulation affects neural circuits
Noninvasive brain stimulation, comprising of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), noninvasive vagus nerve stimulation (nVNS), and transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS), are tools with widespread research and therapeutic potential. Amongst these, multiple TMS devices and pulse sequences are FDA-approved for the treatment of depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, smoking cessation, and migraine headache, with many other indications under investigation.
However, the mechanism of action for these brain stimulation modalities is not yet fully elucidated. Examining the neural circuit changes underlying brain stimulation efficacy could ultimately lead to more effective and personalized treatments.
This Research Topic considers the effects of brain stimulation on micro- and macro-neural circuit levels in human, animal, computational, and cellular work. Specifically, the focus of this topic is to elucidate the mechanisms of noninvasive brain stimulation and highlight its therapeutic potential viewed through the lens of neural circuitry.
The scope of this Research Topic is broad by design, with the goal of publishing multimodal and interdisciplinary approaches that converge on understanding the effects of brain stimulation at multiple scales.
We welcome submissions examining the effects of noninvasive brain stimulation on neural circuits in four domains:
1) Neuroimaging:
How do different noninvasive brain stimulation techniques structurally and functionally affect neural circuits, as measured with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), electroencephalography (EEG), functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), and other imaging modalities? What are the neural underpinnings of therapeutic effects, and are neural circuit changes altered from single and/or multiple stimulation sessions? What does neuroimaging reveal about the neuroplastic effects derived from brain stimulation in the neural circuit?
2) Neurophysiological and Clinical Studies:
How does brain stimulation alter neural circuits, in the central and/or peripheral nervous system, from pre- to post-stimulation? What does motor physiology (e.g., motor evoked potentials) reveal about neural circuit plasticity? How do these effects compare with other cortical regions (e.g., prefrontal plasticity, as assessed by TMS-evoked potentials)?
3) Computational Modeling:
From the single neuron to the whole brain level, how strongly and focally do different forms of brain stimulation stimulate the brain? How does TMS pulse pattern or tES intensity alter the neuronal potential and local calcium concentration in the neural circuit? How do these neural circuit changes relate to therapeutic effects?
4) Pharmacological Studies:
What can pharmacological research reveal about the effects of brain stimulation on the neural circuit? What does activation or inhibition of NMDA, AMPA, GABA, or metabotropic receptors reveal about the mechanisms underlying noninvasive brain stimulation in the neural circuit? How do the changes in these neural circuits relate to long-term potentiation (LTP)- or long-term depression (LTD)-like behavior?
We encourage original research articles, reviews, protocols, and case reports that address how brain stimulation affects neural circuits
