Transcranial ultrasound modulates neuronal calcium activity in awake mice
OA Version
Citation
Abstract
Transcranial ultrasound is an emerging technique for non-invasive neuromodulation for the treatment of brain disorders. Unlike electromagnetic approaches like transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS), transcranial ultrasound has spatial resolution in the millimeter range as well as favorable tissue penetrating properties allowing for targeted modulation in deep brain structures. Currently, the effects of ultrasound at the individual neuron level are unclear. Additionally, the neuronal response to ultrasound in different brain regions is unknown as well. Using in-vivo calcium imaging we examined the neuronal responses to ultrasound in thousands of individual neurons and found unique cellular effects in the motor cortex versus hippocampus. Next, we sought to understand the role of ultrasound parameters by stimulating with different pulse frequencies and compared the responses of inhibitory interneurons and excitatory neurons in the motor cortex. Our results revealed that different pulse frequencies selectively activate different subsets of neurons independent of cell type. This work highlights the brain region-specific effect of transcranial ultrasound on the single neuron level and emphasizes the importance of ultrasound parameters when designing stimulation protocols to optimize stimulation efficacy.
Description
2024
License
Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International