scholarly journals Brain Circuits Involved in the Development of Chronic Musculoskeletal Pain: Evidence From Non-invasive Brain Stimulation

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mina Kandić ◽  
Vera Moliadze ◽  
Jamila Andoh ◽  
Herta Flor ◽  
Frauke Nees
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Musculoskeletal Pain ◽  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Mechanistic Models ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Brain Circuits ◽  
The Brain

It has been well-documented that the brain changes in states of chronic pain. Less is known about changes in the brain that predict the transition from acute to chronic pain. Evidence from neuroimaging studies suggests a shift from brain regions involved in nociceptive processing to corticostriatal brain regions that are instrumental in the processing of reward and emotional learning in the transition to the chronic state. In addition, dysfunction in descending pain modulatory circuits encompassing the periaqueductal gray and the rostral anterior cingulate cortex may also be a key risk factor for pain chronicity. Although longitudinal imaging studies have revealed potential predictors of pain chronicity, their causal role has not yet been determined. Here we review evidence from studies that involve non-invasive brain stimulation to elucidate to what extent they may help to elucidate the brain circuits involved in pain chronicity. Especially, we focus on studies using non-invasive brain stimulation techniques [e.g., transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), particularly its repetitive form (rTMS), transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS), and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS)] in the context of musculoskeletal pain chronicity. We focus on the role of the motor cortex because of its known contribution to sensory components of pain via thalamic inhibition, and the role of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex because of its role on cognitive and affective processing of pain. We will also discuss findings from studies using experimentally induced prolonged pain and studies implicating the DLPFC, which may shed light on the earliest transition phase to chronicity. We propose that combined brain stimulation and imaging studies might further advance mechanistic models of the chronicity process and involved brain circuits. Implications and challenges for translating the research on mechanistic models of the development of chronic pain to clinical practice will also be addressed.

scholarly journals Visual stability

2011 ◽  
Vol 366 (1564) ◽  
pp. 468-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Melcher
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Neuroscience ◽  
State Of The Art ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Clinical Neurology ◽  
Visual Stability ◽  
Retinal Motion ◽  
Brain Circuits ◽  
The World ◽  
The Brain

Our vision remains stable even though the movements of our eyes, head and bodies create a motion pattern on the retina. One of the most important, yet basic, feats of the visual system is to correctly determine whether this retinal motion is owing to real movement in the world or rather our own self-movement. This problem has occupied many great thinkers, such as Descartes and Helmholtz, at least since the time of Alhazen. This theme issue brings together leading researchers from animal neurophysiology, clinical neurology, psychophysics and cognitive neuroscience to summarize the state of the art in the study of visual stability. Recently, there has been significant progress in understanding the limits of visual stability in humans and in identifying many of the brain circuits involved in maintaining a stable percept of the world. Clinical studies and new experimental methods, such as transcranial magnetic stimulation, now make it possible to test the causal role of different brain regions in creating visual stability and also allow us to measure the consequences when the mechanisms of visual stability break down.

scholarly journals Variability in Reward Responsivity and Obesity: Evidence from Brain Imaging Studies

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kyle Stanley Burger
Keyword(s):  
Food Intake ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Vulnerability Factors ◽  
Imaging Studies ◽  
Vulnerability Model ◽  
Reward Responsivity ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Insight Into ◽  
Neuroimaging Techniques

Advances in neuroimaging techniques have provided insight into the role of the brain in the regulation of food intake and weight. Growing evidence demonstrate that energy dense, palatable foods elicit similar responses in reward-related brain regions that mimic those of addictive substances. Currently, various models of obesity’s relation to reward from food have been theorized. There is evidence to support a theory of hypo-responsivity of reward regions to food, where individuals consume excess amounts to overcome this reward deficit. There is also data to support a theory of hyper-responsivity of reward regions, where individuals who experience greater reward from food intake are at risk for overeating. However, these seemingly discordant theories are static in nature and do not account for the possible effects of repeated overeating on brain responsivity to food and initial vulnerability factors. Here we review data that support these theories and propose a dynamic vulnerability model of obesity that appears to offer a parsimonious theory that accommodates extant findings.

Noninvasive Brain Stimulation: Contribution to Research in Neuroaesthetics

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zaira Cattaneo
Keyword(s):  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Transcranial Electrical Stimulation ◽  
Noninvasive Brain Stimulation ◽  
Aesthetic Experiences ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Future Potential ◽  
Brain Behavior ◽  
Shed Light

Noninvasive brain stimulation (NIBS) techniques, such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial electrical stimulation (tES), are largely employed in cognitive neuroscience to investigate the brain–behavior relationship. During the last decade, non-invasive brain stimulation techniques have been increasingly employed in the field of neuroaesthetics research to shed light on the possible causal role of different brain regions contributing to aesthetic appreciation. This chapter provides a synthetic description of mechanisms of actions of TMS and different types of tES, and reviews recent NIBS studies that have shed light on the neural underpinning of aesthetic evaluation of (visual) artworks. The chapter also considers methodological limitations of the reviewed studies and the future potential for non-invasive brain stimulation to significantly contribute to the understanding of the neural bases of visual aesthetic experiences.

Neural Oscillations: Understanding a Neural Code of Pain

2020 ◽  
pp. 107385842095862
Author(s):  
Junseok A. Kim ◽  
Karen D. Davis
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Oscillatory Activity ◽  
Neural Oscillations ◽  
Brain Functions ◽  
Disease States ◽  
Efficient Communication ◽  
Nociceptive Processing ◽  
The Brain

Neural oscillations play an important role in the integration and segregation of brain regions that are important for brain functions, including pain. Disturbances in oscillatory activity are associated with several disease states, including chronic pain. Studies of neural oscillations related to pain have identified several functional bands, especially alpha, beta, and gamma bands, implicated in nociceptive processing. In this review, we introduce several properties of neural oscillations that are important to understand the role of brain oscillations in nociceptive processing. We also discuss the role of neural oscillations in the maintenance of efficient communication in the brain. Finally, we discuss the role of neural oscillations in healthy and chronic pain nociceptive processing. These data and concepts illustrate the key role of regional and interregional neural oscillations in nociceptive processing underlying acute and chronic pains.

The Role of the Parietal Cortex in Multisensory and Response Integration: Evidence from Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS)

2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 161-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon Zmigrod
Keyword(s):  
Multisensory Integration ◽  
Parietal Cortex ◽  
Direct Current ◽  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
The Right ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Healthy Participants

The question of how the brain forms unified representations from multisensory data that are processed in distinct cortical regions is known in the literature as ‘the binding problem’. In the last decade, several studies have suggested possible neural mechanisms and brain regions that might be involved in integration processes. One of the brain regions that is implicated with multisensory perception is the posterior parietal cortex (PPC). Evidence from patients with parietal lesions suggests the involvement of the PPC in coherent perception. Here, we investigated the role of the PPC in multisensory feature integration through experimental manipulation of non-invasive brain stimulation with healthy participants using transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). In different sessions, healthy participants received anodal, cathodal, or sham stimulation (2 mA, 20 min) over the right PPC while performing an audio-visual event-file task. The results underscore two interesting observations. Firstly, there was a significant difference in integration effects between features from different modalities in the anodal stimulation compared to sham, suggesting interference of the multisensory integration processes during the brain stimulation. And secondly, after anodal stimulation, the unattended feature became more likely to be integrated with the response feature compared to the other conditions, presumably through an interference of attentional processes. Hence, these findings emphasize the role of the right PPC in multisensory integration. Furthermore, from a methodological perspective, tDCS can be used as an experimental tool by creating a temporary, reversible disruption in cognitive processes in order to explore the mechanisms underlying cognitive functions.

scholarly journals Magnetic Temporal Interference for Noninvasive Focal Brain Stimulation

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Khalifa ◽  
Seyed Mahdi Abrishami ◽  
Mohsen Zaeimbashi ◽  
Alexander D. Tang ◽  
Brian Coughlin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electric Fields ◽  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
High Frequency ◽  
Low Frequency ◽  
Brain Regions ◽  
Strong Increase ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Frequency Magnetic Field ◽  
Fos Expression ◽  
The Brain

Non-invasive stimulation of deep brain regions has been a major goal for neuroscience and neuromodulation in the past three decades. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), for instance, cannot target deep regions in the brain without activating the overlying tissues and has a poor spatial resolution. In this manuscript, we propose a new concept that relies on the temporal interference of two high-frequency magnetic fields generated by two electromagnetic solenoids. To illustrate the concept, custom solenoids were fabricated and optimized to generate temporal interfering electric fields for rodent brain stimulation. C-Fos expression was used to track neuronal activation. C-Fos expression was not present in regions impacted by only one high-frequency magnetic field indicating ineffective recruitment of neural activity in non-target regions. In contrast, regions impacted by two fields that interfere to create a low-frequency envelope display a strong increase in c-Fos expression. Therefore, this magnetic temporal interference solenoid-based system provides a framework to perform further stimulation studies that would investigate the advantages it could bring over conventional TMS systems.

Chemo- and Optogenetic Strategies for the Elucidation of Pain Pathways

2019 ◽  
pp. 816-832 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sascha R. A. Alles ◽  
Anne-Marie Malfait ◽  
Richard J. Miller
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Pain Response ◽  
Conscious Perception ◽  
Novel Therapies ◽  
The Past ◽  
Nociceptive Pathways ◽  
Pain Pathways ◽  
Technical Advances ◽  
The Brain

Pain is not a simple phenomenon and, beyond its conscious perception, involves circuitry that allows the brain to provide an affective context for nociception, which can influence mood and memory. In the past decade, neurobiological techniques have been developed that allow investigators to elucidate the importance of particular groups of neurons in different aspects of the pain response, something that may have important translational implications for the development of novel therapies. Chemo- and optogenetics represent two of the most important technical advances of recent times for gaining understanding of physiological circuitry underlying complex behaviors. The use of these techniques for teasing out the role of neurons and glia in nociceptive pathways is a rapidly growing area of research. The major findings of studies focused on understanding circuitry involved in different aspects of nociception and pain are highlighted in this article. In addition, attention is drawn to the possibility of modification of chemo- and optogenetic techniques for use as potential therapies for treatment of chronic pain disorders in human patients.

A Method for Chronically Implanting Stimulating Electrodes into the Brains of Locusts, and some Results of Stimulation

1963 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 271-284
Author(s):  
C. H. FRASER ROWELL
Keyword(s):  
Stainless Steel ◽  
Brain Stimulation ◽  
Sexual Behaviour ◽  
Foraging Behaviour ◽  
Stimulating Electrodes ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Antennal Movement ◽  
Steel Electrodes

1. Methods are described for implanting permanent stainless-steel electrodes into the brains of locusts, for stimulating the brain under near-normal conditions, and for localizing the electrode subsequently. 2. Threshold currents measured under these conditions are lower than those required in acute preparations, or if the animal is restrained. 3. The results of stimulation are described for four common aspects of behaviour. These are antennal movement, locomotion, feeding and sexual behaviour. 4. The effect of stimulation on antennal and locomotory movements largely confirms previous work on crickets. 5. Feeding and foraging behaviour, which is a very common result, is shown to be almost completely determined by peripheral stimuli at the time of brain stimulation. The role of the latter is permissive or disinhibitory rather than causal or excitatory. 6. Integrated sexual behaviour is occasionally inhibited, but never elicited, by stimulation. This contrasts with observations on crickets, and its implications are discussed.

scholarly journals Optogenetics and photopharmacology in pain research and therapeutics

STEMedicine ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (3) ◽  
pp. e43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federico Iseppon ◽  
Manuel Arcangeletti
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Pain Treatment ◽  
Molecular Switches ◽  
Genetic Profiling ◽  
Pain Research ◽  
Recent Advances ◽  
Cellular Components ◽  
The Brain

Pain afflicts billions of people worldwide, who suffer especially from long-term chronic pain. This gruelling condition affects the nervous system at all levels: from the brain to the spinal cord, the Dorsal Root Ganglia (DRG) and the peripheral fibres innervating the skin. The nature of the different molecular and cellular components of the somatosensory modalities, as well as the complexity of the peripheral and central circuitry are yet poorly understood. Light-based techniques such as optogenetics, in concert with the recent advances in single-cell genetic profiling, can help to elucidate the role of diverse neuronal sub-populations in the encoding of different sensory and painful stimuli by switching these neurons on and off via optically active proteins, namely opsins.  Recently, photopharmacology has emerged from the efforts made to advance optogenetics. The introduction of azo-benzene-based light-sensitive molecular switches has been applied to a wide variety of molecular targets, from ion channels and receptors to transporters, enzymes and many more, some of which are paramount for pain research and therapy. In this Review, we summarise the recent advances in the fields of optogenetics and photopharmacology and we discuss the use of light-based techniques for the study of acute and chronic pain physiology, as well as their potential for future therapeutic use to improve pain treatment.

Forward Dendritic Spikes

2011 ◽  
pp. 42-59
Author(s):  
Oscar Herreras ◽  
Julia Makarova ◽  
José Manuel Ibarz
Keyword(s):  
Action Potentials ◽  
Remarkable Property ◽  
Synaptic Inputs ◽  
Brain Circuits ◽  
Voltage Dependent ◽  
Dendritic Spikes ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Made In

Neurons send trains of action potentials to communicate each other. Different messages are issued according to varying inputs, but they can also mix them up in a multiplexed language transmitted through a single cable, the axon. This remarkable property arises from the capability of dendritic domains to work semi autonomously and even decide output. We review the underlying mechanisms and theoretical implications of the role of voltage-dependent dendritic currents on the forward transmission of synaptic inputs, with special emphasis in the initiation, integration and forward conduction of dendritic spikes. When these spikes reach the axon, output decision was made in one of many parallel dendritic substations. When failed, they still serve as an internal language to transfer information between dendritic domains. This notion brakes with the classic view of neurons as the elementary units of the brain and attributes them computational/storage capabilities earlier billed to complex brain circuits.

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