| Title | Boosting visual perceptual learning by transcranial alternating current stimulation over the visual cortex at alpha frequency |
| Authors | He, Qing Yang, Xin-Yue Gong, Baoqi Bi, Keyan Fang, Fang |
| Affiliation | Peking Univ, Sch Psychol & Cognit Sci, Beijing 100871, Peoples R China Peking Univ, Beijing Key Lab Behav & Mental Hlth, Beijing 100871, Peoples R China Peking Univ, Key Lab Machine Percept, Minist Educ, Beijing 100871, Peoples R China Peking Univ, IDG McGovern Inst Brain Res, Beijing 100871, Peoples R China Peking Univ, Peking Tsinghua Ctr Life Sci, Beijing 100871, Peoples R China |
| Keywords | GAMMA-BAND RESPONSES OSCILLATIONS COMMUNICATION PERFORMANCE MODULATION ATTENTION FEEDBACK PREDICT VISION RATHER |
| Issue Date | May-2022 |
| Publisher | BRAIN STIMULATION |
| Abstract | Background: Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) has been widely used to alter ongoing brain rhythms in a frequency-specific manner to modulate relevant cognitive functions, including visual functions. Therefore, it is a useful tool for exploring the causal role of neural oscillations in cognition. Visual functions can be improved substantially by training, which is called visual perceptual learning (VPL). However, whether and how tACS can modulate VPL is still unclear.Objective: This work aims to explore how tACS modulates VPL and the role of neural oscillations in VPL. Methods: A between-subjects design was adopted. Subjects were assigned to six groups and undertook five daily training sessions to execute an orientation discrimination task. During training, five groups received occipital tACS stimulation at 6, 10, 20, 40, and sham 10 Hz respectively, and one group was stimulated at the sensorimotor regions by 10 Hz tACS.Results: Compared with the sham stimulation, occipital tACS at 10 Hz, but not at other frequencies, accelerated perceptual learning and increased the performance improvement. However, these modulatory effects were absent when 10 Hz tACS was delivered to the sensorimotor areas. Moreover, the tACSinduced performance improvement lasted at least two months after the end of training.Conclusion: TACS can facilitate orientation discrimination learning in a frequency-and location-specific manner. Our findings provide strong evidence for a pivotal role of alpha oscillations in boosting VPL and shed new light on the design of effective neuromodulation protocols that can facilitate rehabilitation for patients with neuro-ophthalmological disorders.(c) 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). |
| URI | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11897/642811 |
| ISSN | 1935-861X |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.brs.2022.02.018 |
| Indexed | SCI(E) |
| Appears in Collections: | 心理与认知科学学院 行为与心理健康北京市重点实验室 机器感知与智能教育部重点实验室 生命科学学院 |
