title: Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation of the Brain: Mechanisms from Animal and Experimental Models.
abstract: Since the development of transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) in the early 1980s, a range of repetitive TMS (rTMS) protocols are now available to modulate neuronal plasticity in clinical and non-clinical populations. However, despite the wide application of rTMS in humans, the mechanisms underlying rTMS-induced plasticity remain uncertain. Animal and in vitro models provide an adjunct method of investigating potential synaptic and non-synaptic mechanisms of rTMS-induced plasticity. This review summarizes in vitro experimental studies, in vivo studies with intact rodents, and preclinical models of selected neurological disorders-Parkinson's disease, depression, and stroke. We suggest that these basic research findings can contribute to the understanding of how rTMS-induced plasticity can be modulated, including novel mechanisms such as neuroprotection and neurogenesis that have significant therapeutic potential.
authors.affiliation: 1 Experimental and Regenerative Neurosciences, School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.affiliation: 2 Burke Medical Research Institute, White Plains, NY, USA.
authors.forename: Gary
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Thickbroom
authors.affiliation: 1 Experimental and Regenerative Neurosciences, School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia, Perth, Australia.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rodger
keywords: Parkinson’s disease; animal models; depression; rTMS; stroke; synaptic plasticity; theta burst stimulation