Increasing human motor skill acquisition by driving theta-gamma coupling
- University College London, United Kingdom
- University of Oxford, United Kingdom
Abstract
Skill learning is a fundamental adaptive process, but the mechanisms remain poorly understood. Some learning paradigms, particularly in the memory domain, are closely associated with gamma activity that is amplitude-modulated by the phase of underlying theta activity, but whether such nested activity patterns also underpin skill learning is unknown. Here we addressed this question by using transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) over sensorimotor cortex to modulate theta-gamma activity during motor skill acquisition, as an exemplar of a non-hippocampal-dependent task. We demonstrated, and then replicated, a significant improvement in skill acquisition with theta-gamma tACS, which outlasted the stimulation by an hour. Our results suggest that theta-gamma activity may be a common mechanism for learning across the brain and provides a putative novel intervention for optimising functional improvements in response to training or therapy.
Data availability
All data generated or analysed during this study are included in the manuscript and freely available on the open science framework (https://osf.io/xjpef). Details of data analysis, experimental design and protocol were pre-registered prior to data collection and freely available on the open science framework - Registration form: osf.io/xjpef; Files: osf.io/452f8/files/
Article and author information
Author details
Funding
Royal Society (Sir Henry Dale Fellowship,102584/Z/13/Z)
- Charlotte J Stagg
Brain Research UK (201617-03)
- Sven Bestmann
Brain Research UK (Graduate Student Fellowship)
- Haya Akkad
Wellcome Trust (Sir Henry Dale Fellowship - 102584/Z/13/Z)
- Charlotte J Stagg
The funders had no role in study design, data collection and interpretation, or the decision to submit the work for publication.
Ethics
Human subjects: Ethical permission for this study was granted by the University College London Research Ethics Committee (UCLREC: 6285/001). Written informed consent was obtained from all volunteers prior to data collection.
Copyright
© 2021, Akkad et al.
This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License permitting unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited.
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Increasing human motor skill acquisition by driving theta-gamma coupling
eLife 10:e67355.
https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.67355
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