Stimulating learning: A functional MRI and behavioral investigation of the effects of transcranial direct current stimulation on stochastic learning in schizophrenia.

Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) is under clinical investigation as a treatment for cognitive deficits. We investigate the effects of tDCS over the mPFC on performance SSLT in individuals with schizophrenia, and the underlying neurophysiological effect in regions associated with learning values and stimulus-outcome relationships. In this parallel-design double-blind pilot study, 49 individuals with schizophrenia, of whom 28 completed a fMRI, were randomized into active or sham tDCS stimulation groups.

The effect of training intensity on implicit learning rates in schizophrenia.

Cognitive impairments in learning and memory are core symptoms of schizophrenia, associated with reduced self-reported quality of life. The most effective treatment of cognitive impairments is drill and practice cognitive training. Still, to date no study has investigated the effect of varying the frequency of training on cognitive outcomes.

Real-time fMRI neurofeedback to down-regulate superior temporal gyrus activity in patients with schizophrenia and auditory hallucinations: a proof-of-concept study.

Neurocognitive models and previous neuroimaging work posit that auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH) arise due to increased activity in speech-sensitive regions of the left posterior superior temporal gyrus (STG). Here, we examined if patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) and AVH could be trained to down-regulate STG activity using real-time functional magnetic resonance imaging neurofeedback (rtfMRI-NF). We also examined the effects of rtfMRI-NF training on functional connectivity between the STG and other speech and language regions.

Stimulating thought: a functional MRI study of transcranial direct current stimulation in schizophrenia.

Individuals with schizophrenia typically suffer a range of cognitive deficits, including prominent deficits in working memory and executive function. These difficulties are strongly predictive of functional outcomes, but there is a paucity of effective therapeutic interventions targeting these deficits. Transcranial direct current stimulation is a novel neuromodulatory technique with emerging evidence of potential pro-cognitive effects; however, there is limited understanding of its mechanism.

Stimulating cognition in schizophrenia: A controlled pilot study of the effects of prefrontal transcranial direct current stimulation upon memory and learning.

Background: Schizophrenia is characterized by prominent cognitive deficits, impacting on memory and learning; these are strongly associated with the prefrontal cortex.

Objective/hypothesis: To combine two interventions, transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) over the prefrontal cortex and cognitive training, to examine change in cognitive performance in patients with schizophrenia.

Methods: A double blind, sham-controlled pilot study of 49 patients with schizophrenia, randomized into real or sham tDCS stimulation groups.

Interaction of language, auditory and memory brain networks in auditory verbal hallucinations.

Auditory verbal hallucinations (AVH) occur in psychotic disorders, but also as a symptom of other conditions and even in healthy people. Several current theories on the origin of AVH converge, with neuroimaging studies suggesting that the language, auditory and memory/limbic networks are of particular relevance. However, reconciliation of these theories with experimental evidence is missing.