Neural effects of transcranial magnetic stimulation at the single-cell level

Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) can non-invasively modulate neural activity in humans. Despite three decades of research, the spatial extent of the cortical area activated by TMS is still controversial. Moreover, how TMS interacts with task-related activity during motor behavior is unknown....

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Nature communications 2019-06, Vol.10 (1), p.2642-11, Article 2642
Main Authors: Romero, Maria C., Davare, Marco, Armendariz, Marcelo, Janssen, Peter
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
631/1647/1453/2105
631/378/1697
631/378/2649
631/378/87
Animals
Behavior, Animal - physiology
Cortex (parietal)
Electroencephalography - instrumentation
Firing pattern
Grasping
Humanities and Social Sciences
Macaca mulatta
Magnetic fields
Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Male
Microelectrodes
Models, Animal
Models, Biological
multidisciplinary
Neurons
Neurons - physiology
Parietal Lobe - diagnostic imaging
Parietal Lobe - physiology
Recording
Science
Science (multidisciplinary)
Single-Cell Analysis
Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation
Unit activity
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Summary:Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) can non-invasively modulate neural activity in humans. Despite three decades of research, the spatial extent of the cortical area activated by TMS is still controversial. Moreover, how TMS interacts with task-related activity during motor behavior is unknown. Here, we applied single-pulse TMS over macaque parietal cortex while recording single-unit activity at various distances from the center of stimulation during grasping. The spatial extent of TMS-induced activation is remarkably restricted, affecting the spiking activity of single neurons in an area of cortex measuring less than 2 mm in diameter. In task-related neurons, TMS evokes a transient excitation followed by reduced activity, paralleled by a significantly longer grasping time. Furthermore, TMS-induced activity and task-related activity do not summate in single neurons. These results furnish crucial experimental evidence for the neural effects of TMS at the single-cell level and uncover the neural underpinnings of behavioral effects of TMS. Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) can modulate human brain activity, but the extent of the cortical area activated by TMS is unclear. Here, the authors show that TMS affects monkey single neuron activity in an area less than 2 mm diameter, while TMS-induced activity and task-related activity do not summate.
ISSN:2041-1723
2041-1723
DOI:10.1038/s41467-019-10638-7