Magnetic Stimulation: A Simple Stimulation Device to Deliver Defined Low Intensity Electromagnetic Fields.

Non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) by electromagnetic fields appears to benefit human neurological and psychiatric conditions, although the optimal stimulation parameters and underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Although, studies have begun to elucidate cellular mechanisms, stimulation is delivered by a range of coils (from commercially available human stimulation coils to laboratory-built circuits) so that the electromagnetic fields induced within the tissue to produce the reported effects are ill-defined. Here, we develop a simple stimulation device with plug-and-play features that allow delivery of a range of stimulation parameters.

Cellular and molecular changes to cortical neurons following low intensity repetitive magnetic stimulation at different frequencies.

Background: Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation is increasingly used as a treatment for neurological dysfunction. Therapeutic effects have been reported for low intensity rTMS (LI-rTMS) although these remain poorly understood.

Objective: Our study describes for the first time a systematic comparison of the cellular and molecular changes in neurons in vitro induced by low intensity magnetic stimulation at different frequencies.

The other in me: interpersonal multisensory stimulation changes the mental representation of the self.

Background: Recent studies have shown that the well-known effect of multisensory stimulation on body-awareness can be extended to self-recognition. Seeing someone else's face being touched at the same time as one's own face elicits changes in the mental representation of the self-face. We sought to further elucidate the underlying mechanisms and the effects of interpersonal multisensory stimulation (IMS) on the mental representation of the self and others.