• DOI:10.1113/jphysiol.2013.257063
• Corpus ID: 15662486

Subcortical effects of transcranial direct current stimulation in the rat

@article{Bolzoni2013SubcorticalEO,
  title={Subcortical effects of transcranial direct current stimulation in the rat},
  author={Francesco Bolzoni and Marcin Bączyk and Elzbieta Jankowska},
  journal={The Journal of Physiology},
  year={2013},
  volume={591}
}

• F. Bolzoni, M. Bączyk, E. Jankowska
• Published 1 August 2013
• Biology, Psychology
• The Journal of Physiology

•  Previously demonstrated facilitation of activation of subcortical neurons by transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) in acute experiments on deeply anaesthetized animals was fairly weak. It resulted in only small increases in the amplitude and in a slight shortening of latencies of subcortically initiated descending volleys. •  Here we show that despite weak effects on descending volleys, EMG responses evoked in neck muscles by reticulospinal and rubrospinal neurons in deeply anaesthetized non‐paralysed rats are potently facilitated by tDCS and that the facilitation outlasts tDCS. •  We further show that the facilitatory subcortical effects of tDCS in the rat are evoked by cathodal rather than anodal polarization, i.e. by a polarity that is the reverse of that most often found to be effective in humans and in the cat. Anodal polarization depressed activation of the same rat subcortical neurons. •  These findings should assist further studies of mechanisms of tDCS in vivo in rodents.