Biomarkers of non-invasive visual brain stimulation

有时，为了了解复杂系统是如何工作的，需要对其进行拆解，以了解其组件如何协同工作。同样的逆向工程方法也可以用来理解大脑及其组成部分。一种允许研究人员做到这一点的技术是非侵入性脑刺激。经颅磁刺激(TMS)无创脑刺激是治疗临床抑郁症的一种较新的治疗手段。这也是认知神经科学中了解大脑网络和功能的一种新的实验方法。在这两种情况下，大脑刺激如何发挥作用的机制尚不清楚。这项研究的目标是了解非侵入性脑刺激期间大脑中发生的事情。通过一系列的实验，我们会问脑刺激部位的大脑是如何受到影响的，刺激部位所连接的网络又是如何受到影响的？该方法将使用脑成像技术(磁共振成像，MRI)来测量大脑刺激对大脑不同部位大脑功能的局部和全局影响。这项研究计划将为更好地了解TMS刺激对大脑的影响奠定基础，这项工作的发现将为实验室和临床环境中非侵入性神经调节的使用提供信息和指导政策。

Sometimes in order to understand how a complex system works, it needs to be taken apart to see how its components work together. The same reverse engineering approach can be used to understand the brain and its components. One technique that allows a researcher to do this is with non-invasive brain stimulation. Non-invasive brain stimulation using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) is a relatively new therapeutic tool for treatment of clinical depression. It is also a new experimental approach in cognitive neuroscience to understand brain networks and function. In both cases, the mechanisms of how brain stimulation works are not known. The goal of this research is to understand what is going on in the brain during non-invasive brain stimulation. Through a series of experiments, we will ask how is the brain affected at the site of brain stimulation and how are the networks to which the stimulation site is connected affected? The approach will use brain imaging techniques (magnetic resonance imaging, MRI) to measure local and global effects of brain stimulation on brain functioning at different sites across the brain. This research program will lay the groundwork for better understanding TMS stimulation effects on the brain and findings from this work will inform and guide policy for non-invasive neuromodulation use in laboratory and clinical settings.