Physiology-inspired bifocal fronto-parietal tACS for working memory enhancement
Aging populations face significant cognitive challenges, particularly in working memory (WM). Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) offer promising avenues for cognitive enhancement, especially when inspired by brain physiology. This study (NCT04986787) explores the effect of multifocal tACS on WM performance in healthy older adults, focusing on fronto-parietal network modulation. Individualized physiology-inspired tACS applied to the fronto-parietal network was investigated in two blinded cross-over experiments. The first experiment involved monofocal/bifocal theta-tACS to the fronto-parietal network, while in the second experiment cross-frequency theta-gamma interactions between these regions were explored. Participants have done online WM tasks under the stimulation conditions. Network connectivity was assessed via rs-fMRI and multichannel electroencephalography. Prefrontal monofocal theta tACS modestly improved WM accuracy over sham (d = 0.30). Fronto-parietal stimulation enhanced WM task processing speed, with the strongest effects for bifocal in-phase theta tACS (d = 0.41). Cross-frequency stimulations modestly boosted processing speed with or without impairing task accuracy depending on the stimulation protocol. This research adds to the understanding of physiology-inspired brain stimulation for cognitive enhancement in older subjects.
Authors
- Martin Lamoš (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1276-4342)
- Irena Rektorová (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5455-4573)
- Pablo Maceira-Elvira (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9861-5246)
- Martin Gajdoš (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2780-7472)
- Patrik Šimko (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0767-0918)
- Umberto Nencha (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2115-1823)
- Sylvain Harquel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8756-2230)
- Kristína Mitterová
- Friedhelm C. Hummel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4746-4633)
- Monika Pupíková (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8394-555X)
- Traian Popa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1160-4830)
- Adam Šimo
Institutions
- University of Geneva (CH)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Central European Institute of Technology (CZ)
- Masaryk University (CZ)
- Central European Institute of Technology – Masaryk University (CZ)
- Laboratoire de Psychologie et NeuroCognition (FR)
- St. Anne's University Hospital Brno (CZ)
- Clinique Romande de Réadaptation (CH)
- École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (CH)
- Université Grenoble Alpes (FR)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Heliyon
- Published
- 2024-09-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e37427
- Citations
- 7
- Primary Topic
- Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 1.73
Funders
- National Science Foundation
- Wyss Center for Bio and Neuroengineering
- European Commission
- Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung
- Ministerstvo Školství, Mládeže a Tělovýchovy
- Grantová Agentura České Republiky
- Agentura Pro Zdravotnický Výzkum České Republiky
- Board of the Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology
- Fondation Defitech