Examining the neural correlates of motor control/learning with transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS)

Humans have an amazing capacity to perform a wide range of complex motor behaviours, but we have limited ability to assess the neural mechanisms which underpin them. Specifically, non-invasive brain stimulation techniques, such as transcranial magnetic stimulation and transcranial electrical stimulation, have been used to causally examine the role of specific brain regions in motor control (e.g. disrupting the activity of a brain region and assessing its impact on a motor task). However, these techniques suffer from a lack of spatial and temporal specificity in addition to an inability to modulate deeper, subcortical, brain regions.

Transcranial ultrasound stimulation (TUS) provides a novel solution as it can non-invasively modulate deep regions of the brain (cortical and subcortical) with a high level of temporal (milliseconds) and spatial (millimetres) precision. Whilst TUS has significant potential as a tool to characterise, and possibly enhance, motor function in humans it is still a very new technique with only a few institutions in the UK having access to the equipment.

The School of Psychology at the University of Birmingham has recently been awarded a £300k equipment grant to buy a TUS device providing an exciting opportunity for the School to establish itself as leader in the field of TUS research. In light of this award, the aim of this project is to perform a range of studies examining the capacity of TUS to modulate, and possibly enhance, the neural substrates which underlie motor control in humans. Specifically, the project will involve:

Study 1: will investigate how TUS of the primary motor cortex (M1) influences neural excitability (measured with transcranial magnetic stimulation) and behaviour (speed and accuracy on a simple motor task).

Study 2: will investigate how TUS of the cerebellum influences a range of motor learning tasks which are dependent on specific regions of the cerebellum (visuomotor adaptation, force-field adaptation, saccade adaptation).

Study 3: will combine TUS with neuroimaging (fMRI and MRS) to examine the impact of TUS on cerebellar function and how these changes are linked to behaviour.

These set of studies will enable the student to become an expert in a state-of-the-art neurostimulation technique providing an exciting opportunity to be at the forefront of this emerging field. The outcome of this project has significant mechanistic and translational potential with it opening the door to potential new treatments for movement disorders such as ataxia.

Funding notes:

This is an advertised project through the BBSRC MIBTP program (https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/cross_fac/mibtp/phd/) so the student will have go through a selection process. To begin with, please email me your CV so we can discuss your eligibility.

References:

Neural substrates for motor control/learning Shadmehr & Krakauer (2008). A computational neuroanatomy for motor control. Exp Brain Res, 185(3):359-81.

Ultrasound Nakajima, K., Osada, T., Ogawa, A., Tanaka, M., Oka, S., Kamagata, K., . . . Konishi, S. (2022). A causal role of anterior prefrontal-putamen circuit for response inhibition revealed by transcranial ultrasound stimulation in humans. Cell Rep, 40(7), 111197.

Yaakub, S. N., White, T. A., Roberts, J., Martin, E., Verhagen, L., Stagg, C. J., . . . Fouragnan, E. F. (2023). Transcranial focused ultrasound-mediated neurochemical and functional connectivity changes in deep cortical regions in humans. Nat Commun, 14(1), 5318.

Zeng, K., Darmani, G., Fomenko, A., Xia, X., Tran, S., Nankoo, J. F., . . . Chen, R. (2022). Induction of Human Motor Cortex Plasticity by Theta Burst Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation. Ann Neurol, 91(2), 238-252.