Task-Based and Resting-State Functional MRI in Observing Eloquent Cerebral Areas Personalized for Epilepsy and Surgical Oncology Patients: A Review of the Current Evidence

Neuroimaging studies have typically relied on rigorously controlled experimental paradigms to probe cognition, in which movement is primitive, an afterthought or merely used to indicate a subject’s choice. Whilst powerful, these paradigms often do not resemble how we behave in everyday life, so a new generation of ecologically valid experiments are being developed. Magnetoencephalography (MEG) measures neural activity by sensing extracranial magnetic fields. It has recently been transformed from a large, static imaging modality to a wearable method where participants can freely move. This makes wearable MEG systems a candidate for naturalistic experiments going forward.Additional measures that capture information about complex behaviours that are compatible with neuroimaging techniques, such as MEG, will benefit researchers therefore needed for naturalistic experiments using naturalistic paradigms. Here we use video data from multi-limb dance moves, processed with open-source machine learning methods, to directly cue the timings of task onset and offset in wearable MEG data In a first step, we compare a traditional, block-designed analysis of limb movements, where the times of interest are based on stimulus presentation, to an analysis pipeline based on hidden Markov model states derived from the video telemetry. We then show that by observing the participants choreographed movement in a dancing paradigm, it is possible to express modes of neuronal activity related to specific limbs and body posture. This demonstrates the potential of combing video telemetry with mobile neuroimaging for future studies of complex and naturalistic behaviours.

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Target engagement of the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex with transcranial temporal interference stimulation in major depressive disorder: a protocol for a randomized sham-controlled trial

Demchenko,

Rampersad,

Datta

et al. 2024

Front. Neurosci.

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BackgroundTranscranial temporal interference stimulation (tTIS) is a new, emerging neurostimulation technology that utilizes two or more electric fields at specific frequencies to modulate the oscillations of neurons at a desired spatial location in the brain. The physics of tTIS offers the advantage of modulating deep brain structures in a non-invasive fashion and with minimal stimulation of the overlying cortex outside of a selected target. As such, tTIS can be effectively employed in the context of therapeutics for the psychiatric disease of disrupted brain connectivity, such as major depressive disorder (MDD). The subgenual anterior cingulate cortex (sgACC), a key brain center that regulates human emotions and influences negative emotional states, is a plausible target for tTIS in MDD based on reports of its successful neuromodulation with invasive deep brain stimulation.MethodsThis pilot, single-site, double-blind, randomized, sham-controlled interventional clinical trial will be conducted at St. Michael’s Hospital – Unity Health Toronto in Toronto, ON, Canada. The primary objective is to demonstrate target engagement of the sgACC with 130 Hz tTIS using resting-state magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) techniques. The secondary objective is to estimate the therapeutic potential of tTIS for MDD by evaluating the change in clinical characteristics of participants and electrophysiological outcomes and providing feasibility and tolerability estimates for a large-scale efficacy trial. Thirty participants (18–65 years) with unipolar, non-psychotic MDD will be recruited and randomized to receive 10 sessions of 130 Hz tTIS or sham stimulation (n = 15 per arm). The trial includes a pre- vs. post-treatment 3T MRI scan of the brain, clinical evaluation, and electroencephalography (EEG) acquisition at rest and during the auditory mismatch negativity (MMN) paradigm.DiscussionThis study is one of the first-ever clinical trials among patients with psychiatric disorders examining the therapeutic potential of repetitive tTIS and its neurobiological mechanisms. Data obtained from this trial will be used to optimize the tTIS approach and design a large-scale efficacy trial. Research in this area has the potential to provide a novel treatment option for individuals with MDD and circuitry-related disorders and may contribute to the process of obtaining regulatory approval for therapeutic applications of tTIS.Clinical Trial RegistrationClinicalTrials.gov, identifier NCT05295888.

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Task-Based and Resting-State Functional MRI in Observing Eloquent Cerebral Areas Personalized for Epilepsy and Surgical Oncology Patients: A Review of the Current Evidence

Cited by 3 publications

References 104 publications

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Combining video telemetry and wearable MEG for naturalistic imaging

Target engagement of the subgenual anterior cingulate cortex with transcranial temporal interference stimulation in major depressive disorder: a protocol for a randomized sham-controlled trial

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