About this Research Topic
A large body of molecular and neurophysiological evidence attaches synaptic plasticity and connectivity to specific functions and energy metabolism in particular areas of the brain. A favourable approach to investigating various brain functions in humans that enables a well-defined modulation of neuronal excitability and energy is to stimulate the brain using a dedicated transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) protocol and then to observe the effect on neurometabolites and brain functioning using magnetic resonance spectroscopy and magnetic resonance imaging. tDCS is a non-invasive technique for brain stimulation that modulates the level of cortical excitability (hyper- or hypo-polarisation of the membranes) to investigate the biochemical and physiological roles of the brain. The technique is also utilised for clinical and therapeutic purposes, such as depression, chronic pain, epilepsy, stroke-induced aphasia or Parkinson's motor symptoms, and can also be used to boost ongoing activities, including accelerated learning, focus, memorisation or relaxation.
The effect of tDCS on changes in brain metabolites and brain function could be determined by various technical and practical factors: (a) the size, type, arrangement, polarity and position of these electrodes; (b) the employed current intensity, repetition and duration of stimulation, (c) tissue properties in the stimulated area and d) montages. Therefore, the main goal of this special issue is to collect studies that focus on the novel technologies and methods of tDCS with cutting-edge magnetic resonance imaging or spectroscopy. It would also be favourable to gather studies that utilise new applications of the methods to investigate the effect of tDCS in humans.
This Special Issue primarily focuses on the collection of studies relating to cutting-edge methods using novel tDCS with MRI and/or MRS for human brain research. We cordially invite researchers to contribute their high-quality original research papers or systematic reviews on the topics stated below for publication in this Special Issue:
- Novel tDCS techniques, e.g. High-definition tDCS or remotely-supervised tDCS
- Advanced methods to simulate the tDCS effects;
- Cutting-edge multimodal approaches using MRI and MRS with tDCS;
- New methodologies and applications to investigate, for example, brain functions, plasticity and connectivity and clinical and therapeutical usages
The effect of tDCS on changes in brain metabolites and brain function could be determined by various technical and practical factors: (a) the size, type, arrangement, polarity and position of these electrodes; (b) the employed current intensity, repetition and duration of stimulation, (c) tissue properties in the stimulated area and d) montages. Therefore, the main goal of this special issue is to collect studies that focus on the novel technologies and methods of tDCS with cutting-edge magnetic resonance imaging or spectroscopy. It would also be favourable to gather studies that utilise new applications of the methods to investigate the effect of tDCS in humans.
This Special Issue primarily focuses on the collection of studies relating to cutting-edge methods using novel tDCS with MRI and/or MRS for human brain research. We cordially invite researchers to contribute their high-quality original research papers or systematic reviews on the topics stated below for publication in this Special Issue:
- Novel tDCS techniques, e.g. High-definition tDCS or remotely-supervised tDCS
- Advanced methods to simulate the tDCS effects;
- Cutting-edge multimodal approaches using MRI and MRS with tDCS;
- New methodologies and applications to investigate, for example, brain functions, plasticity and connectivity and clinical and therapeutical usages
Keywords: Transcranial direct current stimulation, Brain, MRI, MRS, Connectivity, Plasticity, Neurometabolites
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