title: Transcranial cerebellar direct current stimulation and transcutaneous spinal cord direct current stimulation as innovative tools for neuroscientists.
abstract: Two neuromodulatory techniques based on applying direct current (DC) non-invasively through the skin, transcranial cerebellar direct current stimulation (tDCS) and transcutaneous spinal DCS, can induce prolonged functional changes consistent with a direct influence on the human cerebellum and spinal cord. In this article we review the major experimental works on cerebellar tDCS and on spinal tDCS, and their preliminary clinical applications. Cerebellar tDCS modulates cerebellar motor cortical inhibition, gait adaptation, motor behaviour, and cognition (learning, language, memory, attention). Spinal tDCS influences the ascending and descending spinal pathways, and spinal reflex excitability. In the anaesthetised mouse, DC stimulation applied under the skin along the entire spinal cord may affect GABAergic and glutamatergic systems. Preliminary clinical studies in patients with cerebellar disorders, and in animals and patients with spinal cord injuries, have reported beneficial effects. Overall the available data show that cerebellar tDCS and spinal tDCS are two novel approaches for inducing prolonged functional changes and neuroplasticity in the human cerebellum and spinal cord, and both are new tools for experimental and clinical neuroscientists.
authors.affiliation: Centro Clinico per la Neurostimolazione, le Neurotecnologie e i Disordini del Movimento, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Milan, Italy Dipartimento di Fisiopatologia Medico Chirurgica e dei Trapianti, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy alberto.priori@unimi.it.
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Priori
authors.affiliation: Centro Clinico per la Neurostimolazione, le Neurotecnologie e i Disordini del Movimento, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Milan, Italy Dipartimento di Fisiopatologia Medico Chirurgica e dei Trapianti, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Matteo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ciocca
authors.affiliation: Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Istituto di Elettronica e di Ingegneria dell'Informazione e delle Telecomunicazioni, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Marta
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Parazzini
authors.affiliation: Centro Clinico per la Neurostimolazione, le Neurotecnologie e i Disordini del Movimento, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Maurizio
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vergari
authors.affiliation: Centro Clinico per la Neurostimolazione, le Neurotecnologie e i Disordini del Movimento, Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda, Milan, Italy Dipartimento di Fisiopatologia Medico Chirurgica e dei Trapianti, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Roberta
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ferrucci
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002531:Cerebellum / Q000502:physiology*; D046690:Deep Brain Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D004599:Electric Stimulation Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000502:physiology*; D050781:Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation / Q000379:methods*; D004561:Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation / Q000379:methods*