scholarly journals Can the causal role of brain oscillations be studied through rhythmic brain stimulation?

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (12) ◽  
pp. 2
Author(s):  
Tanya Lobo ◽  
Matthew J. Brookes ◽  
Markus Bauer
Keyword(s):  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
Causal Role ◽  
Brain Oscillations

scholarly journals Binding Mechanisms in Visual Perception and Their Link With Neural Oscillations: A Review of Evidence From tACS

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Ghiani ◽  
Marcello Maniglia ◽  
Luca Battaglini ◽  
David Melcher ◽  
Luca Ronconi
Keyword(s):  
Visual Perception ◽  
Feature Binding ◽  
Causal Role ◽  
Oscillatory Activity ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Brain Oscillations ◽  
Temporal Binding ◽  
Neurophysiological Studies ◽  
Binding Mechanisms

Neurophysiological studies in humans employing magneto- (MEG) and electro- (EEG) encephalography increasingly suggest that oscillatory rhythmic activity of the brain may be a core mechanism for binding sensory information across space, time, and object features to generate a unified perceptual representation. To distinguish whether oscillatory activity is causally related to binding processes or whether, on the contrary, it is a mere epiphenomenon, one possibility is to employ neuromodulatory techniques such as transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS). tACS has seen a rising interest due to its ability to modulate brain oscillations in a frequency-dependent manner. In the present review, we critically summarize current tACS evidence for a causal role of oscillatory activity in spatial, temporal, and feature binding in the context of visual perception. For temporal binding, the emerging picture supports a causal link with the power and the frequency of occipital alpha rhythms (8–12 Hz); however, there is no consistent evidence on the causal role of the phase of occipital tACS. For feature binding, the only study available showed a modulation by occipital alpha tACS. The majority of studies that successfully modulated oscillatory activity and behavioral performance in spatial binding targeted parietal areas, with the main rhythms causally linked being the theta (~7 Hz) and beta (~18 Hz) frequency bands. On the other hand, spatio-temporal binding has been directly modulated by parieto-occipital gamma (~40–60 Hz) and alpha (10 Hz) tACS, suggesting a potential role of cross-frequency coupling when binding across space and time. Nonetheless, negative or partial results have also been observed, suggesting methodological limitations that should be addressed in future research. Overall, the emerging picture seems to support a causal role of brain oscillations in binding processes and, consequently, a certain degree of plasticity for shaping binding mechanisms in visual perception, which, if proved to have long lasting effects, can find applications in different clinical populations.

scholarly journals Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) reveals causal role of brain oscillations in visual attention

2016 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. 937 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Baldauf ◽  
Nir Grossman ◽  
An-Ming Hu ◽  
Ed Boyden ◽  
Robert Desimone
Keyword(s):  
Visual Attention ◽  
Alternating Current ◽  
Causal Role ◽  
Brain Oscillations ◽  
Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation

Do Writing Directions Influence How People Map Space onto Time?

2018 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
pp. 173-184
Author(s):  
Wenxing Yang ◽  
Ying Sun
Keyword(s):  
Mental Representations ◽  
Space Time ◽  
Horizontal Axis ◽  
Causal Role ◽  
Writing Systems ◽  
Temporal Cognition ◽  
Japanese Speakers ◽  
Psychological Experiments ◽  
Vertical Up

Abstract. The causal role of a unidirectional orthography in shaping speakers’ mental representations of time seems to be well established by many psychological experiments. However, the question of whether bidirectional writing systems in some languages can also produce such an impact on temporal cognition remains unresolved. To address this issue, the present study focused on Japanese and Taiwanese, both of which have a similar mix of texts written horizontally from left to right (HLR) and vertically from top to bottom (VTB). Two experiments were performed which recruited Japanese and Taiwanese speakers as participants. Experiment 1 used an explicit temporal arrangement design, and Experiment 2 measured implicit space-time associations in participants along the horizontal (left/right) and the vertical (up/down) axis. Converging evidence gathered from the two experiments demonstrate that neither Japanese speakers nor Taiwanese speakers aligned their vertical representations of time with the VTB writing orientation. Along the horizontal axis, only Japanese speakers encoded elapsing time into a left-to-right linear layout, which was commensurate with the HLR writing direction. Therefore, two distinct writing orientations of a language could not bring about two coexisting mental time lines. Possible theoretical implications underlying the findings are discussed.

The Causal role of the Election Enforcement Campaign in Modern Japan

2016 ◽  
Vol 42 (0) ◽  
pp. 167-193
Author(s):  
Jongsik Kim ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Causal Role ◽  
Modern Japan

Introduction

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Evan Franklin
Keyword(s):  
Moral Responsibility ◽  
Free Will ◽  
Human Agency ◽  
Causal Role ◽  
Central Question ◽  
Agent Causation ◽  
The Right

This chapter lays out the book’s central question: Assuming agency reductionism—that is, the thesis that the causal role of the agent in all agential activities is reducible to the causal role of states and events involving the agent—is it possible to construct a defensible model of libertarianism? It is explained that most think the answer is negative and this is because they think libertarians must embrace some form of agent-causation in order to address the problems of luck and enhanced control. The thesis of the book is that these philosophers are mistaken: it is possible to construct a libertarian model of free will and moral responsibility within an agency reductionist framework that silences that central objections to libertarianism by simply taking the best compatibilist model of freedom and adding indeterminism in the right junctures of human agency. A brief summary of the chapters to follow is given.

scholarly journals Monitoring and Modulating Inflammation-Associated Alterations in Synaptic Plasticity: Role of Brain Stimulation and the Blood–Brain Interface

Biomolecules ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 359
Author(s):  
Maximilian Lenz ◽  
Amelie Eichler ◽  
Andreas Vlachos
Keyword(s):  
Synaptic Plasticity ◽  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
Vascular Function ◽  
Neuropsychiatric Symptoms ◽  
Systemic Infection ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Blood Brain ◽  
Brain Interface ◽  
The Central Nervous System

Inflammation of the central nervous system can be triggered by endogenous and exogenous stimuli such as local or systemic infection, trauma, and stroke. In addition to neurodegeneration and cell death, alterations in physiological brain functions are often associated with neuroinflammation. Robust experimental evidence has demonstrated that inflammatory cytokines affect the ability of neurons to express plasticity. It has been well-established that inflammation-associated alterations in synaptic plasticity contribute to the development of neuropsychiatric symptoms. Nevertheless, diagnostic approaches and interventional strategies to restore inflammatory deficits in synaptic plasticity are limited. Here, we review recent findings on inflammation-associated alterations in synaptic plasticity and the potential role of the blood–brain interface, i.e., the blood–brain barrier, in modulating synaptic plasticity. Based on recent findings indicating that brain stimulation promotes plasticity and modulates vascular function, we argue that clinically employed non-invasive brain stimulation techniques, such as transcranial magnetic stimulation, could be used for monitoring and modulating inflammation-induced alterations in synaptic plasticity.

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