Analysis of the Causal Connection Network Characteristics of Prefrontal Cortex in WorkingMemory of Rats under Transcranial Magneto- Acousto-Electrical Stimulation
Zhang Shuai1,2,3*, Du Wenjing1,2,3, Dang Junwu1,2,3, You Shengnan1,2,3, Xu Yihao1,2,3, Xu Guizhi1,2,3#
1(State Key Laboratory of Reliability and Intelligence of Electrical Equipment, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300130, China) 2(Tianjin Key Laboratory of Bioelectricity and Intelligent Health, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300130, China) 3(Hebei Key Laboratory of Electromagnetic Field and Electrical Reliability, Hebei University of Technology, Tianjin 300130, China)
Abstract：Transcranial magneto-acousto-electrical stimulation (TMAES) is a new non-invasive brain neuromodulation technology that uses static magnetic field and ultrasonic coupling to generate stimulation currents in the brain tissue to regulate neural discharge activity in specific brain regions. The purpose of this paper is to explore the effects of TMAES on the working memory function from the perspective of neural rhythm oscillation and information transmission. Fifteen Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into control group, ultrasound group, and TMAES group, with the TMAES group applying 0.10 T, 7.98 W/cm2 stimulation, the ultrasound group receiving the same intensity of ultrasound stimulation, and the control group receiving no stimulation. The local field potentials (LFPs) signals of rat prefrontal cortex in T-maze working memory experiment were collected. The time-frequency distribution of LFPs signals in θ (4~8 Hz) and γ (30~80 Hz) bands of different groups was compared, and the causal connection network characteristics of prefrontal cortex were further analyzed based on graph theory. The experimental results showed that the energy values of θ and γ-band LFPs signals in the TMAES group were higher than that of the ultrasound group and the control group during the behavior selection process (P<0.05). The causal connection strength between the signals in the TMAES group and the ultrasound group was higher than that of the control group (P<0.05). The global efficiency and clustering coefficient of θ band causal connection network in working memory task of the TMAES group were significantly higher than those in the TUS group and the control group (TMAES group : Eglob=0.134±0.033,C=0.837±0.071; TUS group : Eglob=0.099±0.032,C=0.713±0.111; control group : Eglob=0.068±0.022,C=0.554±0.118, P<0.05). The global efficiency and clustering coefficient of γ band causal network in the TMAES group were significantly higher than those in the TUS group and control group (TMAES group: Eglob=0.116±0.031,C=0.789±0.106; TUS group: Eglob=0.116±0.031,C=0.789±0.106; control group: Eglob=0.066±0.012,C=0.480±0.091, P<0.05). Our studies have shown that TMAES enhanced θ and γ rhythm neural discharge activities, promoted the information interaction between neurons during behavioral selection in rats, and improved the transmission efficiency of working memory-related information, which would provide support for further revealing the deep mechanism of TMAES stimulation regulating brain memory function.
张帅, 杜文静, 党君武, 由胜男, 徐亦豪, 徐桂芝. 经颅磁声电刺激下大鼠工作记忆中前额叶皮层因果连接网络特性分析[J]. 中国生物医学工程学报, 2023, 42(1): 10-18.
Zhang Shuai, Du Wenjing, Dang Junwu, You Shengnan, Xu Yihao, Xu Guizhi. Analysis of the Causal Connection Network Characteristics of Prefrontal Cortex in WorkingMemory of Rats under Transcranial Magneto- Acousto-Electrical Stimulation. Chinese Journal of Biomedical Engineering, 2023, 42(1): 10-18.
