Neuroimaging-informed Transcranial Electrical Stimulation (tES)

Forms of non-invasive transcranial electrical stimulation using low-intensity currents are widely applied to investigate brain-behaviour relationships in humans and as therapeutic applications for brain disorders. Advantages of these techniques include their good side-effect profile, relatively low cost, opportunities for home usage and possibility for a wide range of stimulation patterns (by varying for example waveforms, location and timings). However, because their effects on brain function tend to be more nuanced and associated with modulations of the timings or levels of brain activity, their combination with neuroimaging is key to improve their applicability, efficiency and basic understanding of mechanism of action in the human brain.
During this talk I will illustrate how brain imaging techniques, particularly fMRI and EEG can shape our understanding of the mechanisms by which transcranial electrical stimulation acts on brain function and how they can be used to inform target engagement and the selection of more effective stimulation parameters.