Workshop Fundamentals of non-invasive brain stimulation

From September 9, 2019 to September 10, 2019

ISC Marc Jeannerod

The workshop will feature detailed talks exploring transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial electrical stimulation (tES/tDCS/tACS), as well as substantial, hands-on practical experience using non-invasive brain stimulation equipment.

Jimmy Bonaiuto helped run these workshops when he was in London.

The workshop programme will feature talks on:

  • An introduction to transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) as a means of non-invasive brain stimulation
  • The basic physiology and principles of TMS
  • An examination of common TMS measurements: motor evoked potentials (MEPs) and phosphenes
  • Methods of identifying brain stimulation sites using ‘hunting’ methods, and neuronavigation techniques using fMRI and anatomical coordinates
  • An introduction to basic TMS paradigms including rTMS and single pulse TMS techniques
  • An introduction to the different transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) paradigms: tDCS, tACS, and tRNS
  • The physiological basis for tDCS and its effects: modulating cortical excitability
  • The physiological basis for tACS and its effects: sinusoidal waveforms causing frequency band changes in oscillatory rhythms
  • Choice of task, control conditions, and stimulation parameters based on functional networks
  • Practical considerations and potential limitations of tES paradigms

and hands-on practical sessions on:

  • Hotspot localisation and thresholding using single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation
  • An introduction to neuronavigation software and the integration of a TMS site into experimental paradigms
  • Electrode preparation and placement and the effects of anodal and cathodal tDCS on MEP amplitudes evoked by TMS

If there is interest, we will also have a session on non-invasive brain stimulation with nonhuman primates.