Modulatory effect of trans-spinal magnetic intermittent theta burst stimulation on diaphragmatic activity following cervical spinal cord contusion in the rat

Abstract

Transcranial magnetic intermittent theta burst stimulation can enhance the excitability of the cortical region. However, it is unclear whether this approach can modulate spinal neuroplasticity. The present study was designed to investigate hether trans-spinal magnetic intermittent theta burst stimulation can modulate respiratory motor outputs in the rodent model of cervical spinal cord injury. The effect of trans-spinal magnetic intermittent theta burst stimulation on diaphragmatic activity was assessed in adult rats with unilateral cervical spinal cord contusion at 2 weeks post-injury. The result demonstrated that unilateral cervical spinal cord contusion significantly attenuated the inspiratory activity and motor evoked potential of the diaphragm. Trans-spinal magnetic intermittent theta burst stimulation significantly enhanced the inspiratory activity of the diaphragm in cervical spinal cord contused rats. Moreover, inspiratory bursting could be recruited by trans-spinal magnetic intermittent theta burst stimulation in the contused rats without diaphragmatic activity. Notably, the whole body metabolism was also increased by trans-spinal magnetic intermittent theta burst stimulation. These results suggested that trans-spinal magnetic intermittent theta burst stimulation can be considered as a rehabilitative strategy for improving the respiratory activity after cervical spinal cord injury. National science and technology council (111-2636-B-110-001) This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2023 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.