Transcranial magnetic stimulation

Lindsay N. Oberman reviews evidence for transcranial magnetic stimulation protocols in autism spectrum disorder. The seminar first explains how TMS works and how it can probe the brain mechanisms associated with autism. It then presents NIH research using repetitive TMS as an experimental therapeutic tool, examining its effects on both brain function and behaviour to guide the development of potential interventions. Online via Duke Zoom. Wednesday 7 October 2026, 16:00 EDT (America/New_York; UTC−4). Register through the event-specific Register Here link on the Duke Autism Seminar Series page

Corey Keller discusses how transcranial magnetic stimulation can probe and influence brain networks. He explains efforts to measure the brain's response to stimulation and to understand why treatment outcomes differ, outlining the opportunities and remaining uncertainties in developing more precise psychiatric interventions.

Integrating information is particularly crucial when decisions contain complex information. In decision neuroscience, it has been widely studied how overall decision value is encoded in the brain, but how information is integrated prior to encoding overall value remains largely unclear. Recently, our neuroimaging study has shown that the lateral frontopolar cortex (FPl), a uniquely well-developed region in the human brain, engaged specifically in complex choice but not in simple choice (Law et al., 2023). Aided by an artificial neural network, we found that FPl involved a parallel processing t

Modeling non-invasive brain stimulation, particularly transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) of the primary motor cortex (M1), has been previously explored through simulation methods at different scales. However, the coupling of TMS induced electric fields to neural mass models is still largely unexplored, while previously approached as an arbitrary current pulse [1, 2]. Via multi-scale simulations at the subcellular and neural mass level we study the underlying mechanisms of electromagnetic activation of cortical tissue by TMS. Validation of the coupling model is aided by measurements like E

Transcranial static magnetic field stimulation (tSMS), which uses static magnetic fields produced by a small and strong neodymium magnet placed on the scalp, is a new member of non-invasive brain stimulation family. tSMS can reduce the cortical excitability in the cerebral cortex just below the magnet as well as modulate the function of the cerebral cortex contralateral to the stimulation side via the brain network. tSMS is a promising neuromodulatory technique for a safe, low-cost, and easy therapeutic tool. However, the neurophysiological mechanisms how local tSMS changes the whole brain net

How the brain responds to non-invasive brain stimulation, such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), depends on the physiological state. In recent years, we have come to understand what happens at the stimulation site, but the whole-brain response remains unclear. Here, we consider the brain as an autonomous control system and stimuli as control inputs, and use the framework of control theory to describe the whole-brain response to brain stimuli. Our method, based on the so-called controllability gramian, can reveal not only the average controllability, i.e. how easily the brain dynamics

Both virtual reality (VR) goggles and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), as stand-alone tools, have proven to be valuable in neuroscience, medicine, and psychology. However, their combined use is rare due to limited data on technical compatibility and safety considerations. It is unclear whether all brain regions can be equally stimulated while in VR.To investigate the constraints of integrating VR goggles and TMS and to assess brain region accessibility, we explored 28 TMS coil positions over five 3D-printed heads outfitted with MetaQuest2 VR goggles and a TMS coil, using both MNI coord

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique for modulating neocortical excitability in humans. Repetitive magnetic stimulations (rMS) applied to tissue cultures trigger functional changes of dendritic spines alongside a potentiation of excitatory neurotransmission. Furthermore, in vivo studies involving both animal models and patients have demonstrated the therapeutic potential of rTMS in treating psychiatric disorders.Despite its use in both neuroscience research and clinical settings, the molecular mechanisms of rTMS-based interventions remain not we

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique that has been widely used in both primary research, as well as clinical treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders. While some previous studies have examined the reliability of single pulse TMS protocols, few have done a systematic evaluation of the influence of pulse shapes and current directions of TMS on test-retest reliability and variability of motor-evoked potential (MEP) measurements.The aim of this study is to investigate the test-retest reliability and variability of MEPs induced by single pulse TMS pro

…Thus, utilising non-invasive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and electroencephalography (EEG) methods, similarly applicable in both patients and translationally relevant preclinical animal models, we established baseline cortical excitability in rhesus macaques, followed by modulation of the E/I balance by diazepam (GABAA PAM).We recorded scalp-EEG from 27 electrodes by a telemetric amplifier system d

In the context of impulsive decision-making, delay discounting is a phenomenon observed when participants refer to the preference for a smaller reward sooner rather than a larger reward later in reward receipt. Previous neuroimaging findings showed that the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) contributes to predicting the selection of larger-later over smaller-sooner rewards. However, recent studies on delay discounting offer mixed conclusions. This study aimed to examine how impulsive decision-making affects the signal transfer from the left DLPFC to the primary motor cortex (M1) by using

…motor (M1) cortices using dual-site transcranial magnetic stimulation. We had 30 right-handed young adults (15F; 26.5±4.3yrs) participate in three experimental conditions to examine interhemispheric inhibition (IHI) between: (1) PMd to M1, (2) PMv to M1 and (3) M1 to M1. PMd and PMv were located relative to M1 (PMd: 2cm anterior, 1cm medial; PMv: 3cm

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, manifested by the loss of dopaminergic neurons. It has been shown that oxidative stress and apoptosis play a major role in the pathology of PD. One of the most commonly used models for in vitro investigation of PD is the SH-SY5Y neuroblastoma cell line and application of hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA). The 6-OHDA exerts its cytotoxicity by generating reactive oxygen species (ROS) such as hydrogen peroxide, superoxide anion and hydroxyl-radical, leading to oxidative stress by disrupting the mitochondrial membrane integrity,

…task) and cortical excitability via transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). For cortical excitability, M

Advancements in cognitive neuroscience have provided profound insights into the workings of the human brain and the methods used offer opportunities to enhance performance, cognition, and mental health. Drawing upon interdisciplinary collaborations in the University of California San Diego, Human Performance Optimization Lab, this talk explores the application of cognitive neuroscience principles in three domains to improve human performance and alleviate mental health challenges. The first section will discuss studies addressing the role of vision and oculomotor function in athletic performan

…(a) cortical excitability, measured by transcranial magnetic stimulation, (b) inducibility of long-term potentiation (LTP)- and long-term depression (LTD)-like plasticity via transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), and (c) learning, memory, and attention. We found that sleep deprivat

When listening to music, humans readily perceive and move along with a periodic beat. Critically, perception of a periodic beat is commonly elicited by rhythmic stimuli with physical features arranged in a way that is not strictly periodic. Hence, beat perception must capitalize on mechanisms that transform stimulus features into a temporally recurrent format with emphasized beat periodicity. Here, I will present a line of work that aims to clarify the nature and neural basis of this transformation. In these studies, electrophysiological activity was recorded as participants listened to rhythm

Mobile organisms must be capable of deciding both where and when to move in order to keep up with a changing environment; therefore, a strong sense of time is necessary, otherwise, we would fail in many of our movement goals. Despite this intrinsic link between movement and timing, only recently has research begun to investigate the interaction. Two primary effects that have been observed include: movements biasing time estimates (i.e., affecting accuracy) as well as making time estimates more precise. The goal of this presentation is to review this literature, discuss a Bayesian cue combinati

…By comparing WM performance with transcranial magnetic stimulati

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) offers a non-invasive clinical treatment for intractable neuropsychiatric disorders, including Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). Repetitive TMS (rTMS) involves administering a series of patterned magnetic pulses through the skull to modulate cortical brain activity and induce synaptic plasticity in aberrant neural circuitry. When successful, rTMS results in lasting therapeutic changes that may reflect an amelioration in cognitive symptoms. The salient parameters that comprise rTMS protocols, such as pulse frequency, amplitude, etc., interact to determine

…we have shown that using navigated transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) allows us to reliably trace interactions among motor cortical representations (MCRs) of different upper limb muscles. Using this approach, we investigate changes in the MCRs after fine finger movement training. Our preliminary results demonstrated that areas of the APB and ADM and their overlaps tended to increase after finger independence training. Considering the behavioral data, hand dexterity increased for both hand

…transcranial magnetic stimulation, TMS) inputs

…neurons effect take place by using Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation at specific time windows? In the current study we test different ways of stimuli presentation (photo and video of hand movements) and brain stimulation (e.g. TMS) delivered on the dominant primary motor cortex (M1)