0000000000843578
AUTHOR
Cristiano Pecchioli
Changes in intracortical circuits of the human motor cortex following theta burst stimulation of the lateral cerebellum
Objective: The cerebellum takes part in several motor functions through its influence on the motor cortex (M1). Here, we applied the theta burst stimulation (TBS) protocol, a novel form of repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS) over the lateral cerebellum. The aim of this study was to test whether TBS of the lateral cerebellum could be able to modulate the excitability of the contralateral M1 in healthy subjects. Methods: Motor-evoked potentials (MEPs) amplitude, short intracortical inhibition (SICI), long intracortical inhibition (LICI) and short intracortical facilitation (SICF) were tested in the M1 before and after cerebellar continuous TBS (cTBS) or intermittent TBS (iTBS)…
In vivo definition of parieto-motor connections involved in planning of grasping movements
We combined bifocal transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography to investigate in humans the contribution of connections originating from different parietal areas in planning of different reaching to grasp movements. TMS experiments revealed that in the left hemisphere functional connectivity between the primary motor cortex (M1) and a portion of the angular gyrus (AG) close to the caudal intraparietal sulcus was activated during early preparation of reaching and grasping movements only when the movement was made with a whole hand grasp (WHG) towards objects in contralateral space. In contrast, a different pathway, linking M1 with a part of the su…
Long-term effects on motor cortical excitability induced by repeated muscle vibration during contraction in healthy subjects
article i nfo Objective: The effects of a novel repeated muscle vibration intervention (rMV; 100 Hz, 90 min over 3 consecutive days) on corticomotor excitability were studied in healthy subjects. Methods: rMV was applied over the flexor carpi radialis (FCR) during voluntary contraction (experiment 1), during relaxation and during contraction without vibration (experiment 2). Focal transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was applied before rMV and one hour, and one, two and three weeks after the last muscle vibration intervention. At each of these time points, we assessed the motor map area and volume in the FCR, extensor digitorum communis (EDC) and abductor digiti minimi (ADM). Short-inter…
TMS activation of interhemispheric pathways between the posterior parietal cortex and the contralateral motor cortex
Using a twin coil transcranial magnetic stimulation (tc-TMS) approach we have previously demonstrated that facilitation may be detected in the primary motor cortex (M1) following stimulation over the ipsilateral caudal intraparietal sulcus (cIPS). Here we tested the interhemispheric interactions between the IPS and the contralateral motor cortex (M1). We found that conditioning the right cIPS facilitated contralateral M1 when the conditioning stimulus had an intensity of 90% resting motor threshold (RMT) but not at 70% or 110% RMT. Facilitation was maximal when the interstimulus interval (ISI) between cIPS and M1 was 6 or 12 ms. These facilitatory effects were mediated by interactions with …