Brain-wide activation involved in 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first-episode major depressive disorder

Background Although 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) has a therapeutic effect on depression, the activations of brain structures in humans accounting for this tACS configuration remain largely unknown.Aims To investigate which intracranial brain structures are engaged in the...

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Main Authors: Jie Wang, Qing Xue, Wenfeng Zhao, Huang Wang, Haixia Leng, Mao Peng, Xiukun Jin, Liucen Tan, Keming Gao, Hongxing Wang, Baoquan Min
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2024-04-01
Series:General Psychiatry
Online Access:https://gpsych.bmj.com/content/37/2/e101338.full
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author Jie Wang
Qing Xue
Wenfeng Zhao
Huang Wang
Haixia Leng
Mao Peng
Xiukun Jin
Liucen Tan
Keming Gao
Hongxing Wang
Baoquan Min
author_facet Jie Wang
Qing Xue
Wenfeng Zhao
Huang Wang
Haixia Leng
Mao Peng
Xiukun Jin
Liucen Tan
Keming Gao
Hongxing Wang
Baoquan Min
author_sort Jie Wang
collection DOAJ
description Background Although 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) has a therapeutic effect on depression, the activations of brain structures in humans accounting for this tACS configuration remain largely unknown.Aims To investigate which intracranial brain structures are engaged in the tACS at 77.5 Hz and 15 mA, delivered via the forehead and the mastoid electrodes in the human brain.Methods Actual human head models were built using the magnetic resonance imagings of eight outpatient volunteers with drug-naïve, first-episode major depressive disorder and then used to perform the electric field distributions with SimNIBS software.Results The electric field distributions of the sagittal, coronal and axial planes showed that the bilateral frontal lobes, bilateral temporal lobes, hippocampus, cingulate, hypothalamus, thalamus, amygdala, cerebellum and brainstem were visibly stimulated by the 15 mA tACS procedure.Conclusions Brain-wide activation, including the cortex, subcortical structures, cerebellum and brainstem, is involved in the 15 mA tACS intervention for first-episode major depressive disorder. Our results indicate that the simultaneous involvement of multiple brain regions is a possible mechanism for its effectiveness in reducing depressive symptoms.
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series General Psychiatry
spelling doaj-art-0394284e970a45f8a64c77b127c5a6842025-01-29T13:45:09ZengBMJ Publishing GroupGeneral Psychiatry2517-729X2024-04-0137210.1136/gpsych-2023-101338Brain-wide activation involved in 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first-episode major depressive disorderJie Wang0Qing Xue1Wenfeng Zhao2Huang Wang3Haixia Leng4Mao Peng5Xiukun Jin6Liucen Tan7Keming Gao8Hongxing Wang9Baoquan Min102 Departments of Neurosurgery and Interventional Neuroradiology, Xuanwu Hospital Capital Medical University, Beijing, Chinaassociate professor3 Division of Neuropsychiatry and Psychosomatics, Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China3 Division of Neuropsychiatry and Psychosomatics, Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China3 Division of Neuropsychiatry and Psychosomatics, Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China3 Division of Neuropsychiatry and Psychosomatics, Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China3 Division of Neuropsychiatry and Psychosomatics, Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China3 Division of Neuropsychiatry and Psychosomatics, Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, China4 Electroconvulsive Therapy, University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center, Cleveland, Ohio, USA1 Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Zhongda Hospital Southeast University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China3 Division of Neuropsychiatry and Psychosomatics, Department of Neurology, Xuanwu Hospital of Capital Medical University, Beijing, ChinaBackground Although 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) has a therapeutic effect on depression, the activations of brain structures in humans accounting for this tACS configuration remain largely unknown.Aims To investigate which intracranial brain structures are engaged in the tACS at 77.5 Hz and 15 mA, delivered via the forehead and the mastoid electrodes in the human brain.Methods Actual human head models were built using the magnetic resonance imagings of eight outpatient volunteers with drug-naïve, first-episode major depressive disorder and then used to perform the electric field distributions with SimNIBS software.Results The electric field distributions of the sagittal, coronal and axial planes showed that the bilateral frontal lobes, bilateral temporal lobes, hippocampus, cingulate, hypothalamus, thalamus, amygdala, cerebellum and brainstem were visibly stimulated by the 15 mA tACS procedure.Conclusions Brain-wide activation, including the cortex, subcortical structures, cerebellum and brainstem, is involved in the 15 mA tACS intervention for first-episode major depressive disorder. Our results indicate that the simultaneous involvement of multiple brain regions is a possible mechanism for its effectiveness in reducing depressive symptoms.https://gpsych.bmj.com/content/37/2/e101338.full
spellingShingle Jie Wang
Qing Xue
Wenfeng Zhao
Huang Wang
Haixia Leng
Mao Peng
Xiukun Jin
Liucen Tan
Keming Gao
Hongxing Wang
Baoquan Min
Brain-wide activation involved in 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first-episode major depressive disorder
General Psychiatry
title Brain-wide activation involved in 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first-episode major depressive disorder
title_full Brain-wide activation involved in 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first-episode major depressive disorder
title_fullStr Brain-wide activation involved in 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first-episode major depressive disorder
title_full_unstemmed Brain-wide activation involved in 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first-episode major depressive disorder
title_short Brain-wide activation involved in 15 mA transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first-episode major depressive disorder
title_sort brain wide activation involved in 15 ma transcranial alternating current stimulation in patients with first episode major depressive disorder
url https://gpsych.bmj.com/content/37/2/e101338.full
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