Background: Delay eyeblink conditioning (dEBC) is widely used to assess cerebellar-dependent associative motor learning, including precise timing processes. Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), noninvasive brain stimulation used to indirectly excite and inhibit select brain regions, may be a promising tool for understanding how functional integrity of the cerebellum influences dEBC behavior.Objective/Hypothesis: The aim of this study was to assess whether tDCS-induced inhibition (cathodal) or excitation (anodal) of the cerebellum impairs or facilitates, respectively, timing of dEBC.Methods: A standard 10-block dEBC paradigm was administered to 102 healthy participants. Participants were randomized to stimulation conditions in a double-blind, between-subjects shamcontrolled design. Participants received 20-minute active (anodal or cathodal) stimulation at 1.5mA (n=20 anodal, n=22 cathodal) or 2mA (n=19 anodal, n=21 cathodal) or sham (n=20) stimulation concurrently with dEBC training. Stimulation intensity and polarity effects on percent conditioned responses (CRs) and CR peak and onset latency were examined using repeated measures analyses of variance.Terms of use and reuse: academic research for non-commercial purposes, see here for full terms. http://www.springer.com/gb/openaccess/authors-rights/aam-terms-v1
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.