EEG-Based Control of Working Memory Maintenance Using Closed Loop Binaural Stimulation

1604279-众所周知，脑电波的频率会影响广泛的认知能力，如注意力、情绪、注意力和记忆力，但目前还不清楚如何无创地控制这些频率。该项目的目的不是使用电刺激等侵入性控制方法，而是使用听觉系统中现有的感觉通路来驱动大脑中的振荡。这里使用的技术，被称为双耳节拍，依赖于在每只耳朵听不同的音调，是一种安全的大脑刺激方法。这种类型的刺激，在一个反馈回路，将探讨其对工作记忆的影响，在人们和没有轻度认知障碍（MCI），一个共同的前兆阿尔茨海默氏病。该项目的结果有望通过在未来的化身中提供基于双耳搏动的非侵入性诊断和治疗干预来改善MCI患者的生活质量。这项工作将通过在弗吉尼亚州西南部多个地点举行的一系列信息会议与MCI患者及其护理人员分享，从而教育社区这种疾病的影响。工作记忆是一个控制暂时记忆和在线组织思想以实现成功目标导向行为的系统。值得注意的是，个体在能够同时保留的项目数量上表现出最大负荷。由于工作记忆依赖于神经通信，它受益于皮层内相位同步的增加。MCI患者的整体相位同步性降低，这可能与工作记忆容量的丧失有关。因此，一种非侵入性的刺激技术，以诱导同步，称为双耳节拍，可能构成一个诊断和治疗技术的MCI。双耳节拍利用当两个不同的音调分别呈现给每只耳朵时在皮层内发生的现象。第三个幻象双耳节拍，其频率等于两个呈现的音调的差异，在听觉通路内产生并投射到听觉皮层。该项目旨在回答双耳节拍是否可以用来识别和控制工作记忆的问题。这些相互作用将使用计算模型和实验测试进行探讨。将开发硬件，用于使用双耳节拍实现对大脑信号的实时控制。大脑信号将使用脑电图（EEG）记录，脑电图使用一系列电极非侵入性地测量头皮上的电压。 这项工作的目标是确定EEG输出，可以可靠地预测一个主题？的能力，执行工作记忆任务和控制的主题？的性能使用闭环控制的双耳节拍刺激，无论是在人谁是神经健康或谁有MCI。

1604279-AbaidThe frequency of brainwaves is known to impact a wide range of cognitive abilities, such as concentration, mood, attention, and memory, but understanding how to noninvasively control these frequencies is currently not well understood. Rather than using invasive control methods such as electrical stimulation, this project aims to drive oscillations in the brain using existing sensory pathways in the auditory system. The technique used here, known as binaural beats, relies on listening to different tones in each ear and is a safe method of brain stimulation. This type of stimulation, in a feedback loop, will be explored in terms of its impact on working memory in people with and without mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a common precursor to Alzheimer's disease. The results of this project are expected to improve the quality of life for people with MCI by offering noninvasive diagnostic and therapeutic interventions based on binaural beats in future incarnations. This work will be shared with people who have MCI and their caregivers through a series of information sessions in multiple locations in southwest Virginia, thus educating the community such illnesses impact. Working memory is the system in control of temporary retention and online organization of thoughts for successful goal-directed behavior. Remarkably, individuals exhibit a maximum load on the number of items that can be simultaneously retained. Since working memory relies upon neural communication, it is benefitted by increased phase synchronization within the cortex. People with MCI have decreased overall phase synchronization which can be correlated with a loss in working memory capacity. Therefore, a non-invasive stimulation technique to induce synchronization, called binaural beats, may constitute a diagnostic and therapeutic technology for MCI. Binaural beats utilize a phenomenon that occurs within the cortex when two different tones are presented separately to each ear. A third phantom binaural beat, whose frequency is equal to the difference of the two presented tones, is produced within the auditory pathway and projected to the auditory cortex. The project seeks to answer the question of whether binaural beats can be used to identify and control working memory. These interactions will be explored using computational models and experimental tests. Hardware will be developed for implementing real-time control of brain signals using binaural beats. The brain signals will be recorded using electroencephalography (EEG), which noninvasively measures the voltage across the scalp using a series of electrodes. The goal of this work is to identify EEG outputs which can reliably predict a subject?s ability to perform working memory tasks and to control the subject?s performance using closed loop control of the binaural beat stimulus, both in people who are neurologically healthy or who have MCI.