Left prefrontal repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation impairs performance in affective go/no-go task.
Functional neuroimaging studies have associated affective go/no-go function with lateral prefrontal activation, but they have not established a causal role and have not determined whether one hemisphere is predominantly engaged. In the present study, 11 normal volunteers underwent slow repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation of the left and right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, and the occipital cortex prior to performance of a picture-based affective go/no-go task. We found an interfering effect of left prefrontal repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation compared with both right prefrontal and occipital repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation. This impairment concerned positive and negative task stimuli to a similar extent, and tended to be greater in shift compared with nonshift blocks. Our findings demonstrate a functionally relevant lateralization of the prefrontal contribution to affective go/no-go tasks.
Bermpohl
Felix
F
Psychiatry and Psychology Institute, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil. felix.bermpohl@charite.de
Fregni
Felipe
F
Boggio
Paulo S
PS
Thut
Gregor
G
Northoff
Georg
G
Otachi
Patricia T M
PT
Rigonatti
Sergio P
SP
Marcolin
Marco A
MA
Pascual-Leone
Alvaro
A
D000328:Adult; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005260:Female; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000502:physiology*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D050781:Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation