Brain Stimulation and Vision Testing

NCT01617408 | Recruiting

• 2 other identifiers: 12012812-M-0128
• Study Type: observational
• Target: 665
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Background:

• The brain has two systems for recognizing objects. One system recognizes what an object is, and the other system recognizes where the object is located. However, there is much about how the brain handles and interprets the information from these two systems that is still unclear. Researchers want to study the parts of the brain that are involved in how vision is processed. They will use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) or transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) on the brain. MRI measures what parts of the brain become more active when tasks are performed. TMS uses magnetic pulses to temporarily change the activity in parts of the brain. tES uses electrical current to temporarily change brain function. Objectives:
• To better understand how people visually recognize different types of objects. Eligibility:
• Healthy volunteers between 18 and 50 years of age, who only speak English. Design:
• This study includes many different experiments on vision. Each experiment may combine visual tasks, MRI scans, and TMS or tES. Participants may be asked to have several different tests. Each test will require a separate visit to the National Institutes of Health.
• Participants will be screened with a physical exam and medical history. They will have a baseline brain scan at the first visit.
• Participants may do visual tasks alone, with MRI only, with TMS or tES only, or with MRI and TMS or tES combined. For the visual tasks, they will look at pictures of objects on a computer screen. Sometimes the images will appear very briefly (less than one-tenth of a second). Sometimes they will appear for up to 5 seconds. These images will be of things like faces, bodies, tools, and scenes. Participants will be asked to respond in different ways to the pictures. They may respond by typing on a computer keyboard or by pressing a button. Participants will have time to practice the tasks before the experiment.
• Participants will remain on the study for up to 3 years.

Conditions

fMRI; Dorsal Pathway; Ventral Pathway

Keywords

Theta Burst Stimulation; Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS); Visual Cortex; Visual Processing; Natural History

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• Online behavioral TMS experiments: performance accuracy, sensitivity (d') and reaction time (RT); Offline fMRI TBS experiments: task performance as well as reduced neuronal activity

  a. Behavioral TMS or tES experiments will measure the speed of a key press to indicate the correct answer and performance accuracy on the task. b. Offline TMS that combine TBS or tES with fMRI will measure changes in BOLD activation in the targeted region as well as in connected cortical areas identified with an independent localizer.

  Ongoing

Study Arms (1)

1

Neurologically normal subjects aged 18 to 50 years old

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years - 50 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64)
• Sampling Method: Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

Neurologically normal subjects aged between 18 and 50 years old.

You may qualify if:

• Healthy
• Ages 18-50 years (inclusive)
• Able to read and write in English to guarantee understanding of all written and spoken instructions, which are in English

You may not qualify if:

• Individuals with conditions that could pose a risk relating to the safety of the MRI procedure, the TMS procedure or the combined TBS and fMRI procedure will be excluded from the protocol such as:
• Those with ferromagnetic metal in the cranial cavity or eye, e.g. aneurysm clip, implanted neural stimulator, cochlear implant, ocular foreign body.
• Those with an abnormality on a structural MRI.
• Those with an implanted cardiac pacemaker or auto-defibrillator
• Those with an insulin pump.
• Those with an irremovable body piercing
• Pregnant women
• Those with a visual impairment that will prevent them from performing the task
• Those without consent capacity will not be enrolled
• Those who do not understand the study instructions
• Those with a history of neurological problems. Neurological problems include, but are not limited to; family history of epilepsy, history of seizures and recurrent migraines.
• Those using medicines that can lower the seizure threshold. These can include but are not limited to; imipramine, amitriptyline, doxepine, nortriptyline, maprotiline, chlorpromazine, clozapine, foscarnet, ganciclovir, ritonavir, amphetamines.
• Those with a visual impairment that will prevent them from performing the task
• Those who have a significant psychiatric illness or have a history of psychiatric illness.
• NIMH staff/employees/family members

Sponsors & Collaborators

• National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH): lead

Study Sites (1)

National Institutes of Health Clinical Center

Bethesda, Maryland, 20892, United States

RECRUITING

Related Publications (5)

• Aguirre GK, D'Esposito M. Topographical disorientation: a synthesis and taxonomy. Brain. 1999 Sep;122 ( Pt 9):1613-28. doi: 10.1093/brain/122.9.1613.

  PMID: 10468502 BACKGROUND

• Amemori K, Sawaguchi T. Rule-dependent shifting of sensorimotor representation in the primate prefrontal cortex. Eur J Neurosci. 2006 Apr;23(7):1895-909. doi: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2006.04702.x.

  PMID: 16623846 BACKGROUND

• Barker AT, Jalinous R, Freeston IL. Non-invasive magnetic stimulation of human motor cortex. Lancet. 1985 May 11;1(8437):1106-7. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(85)92413-4. No abstract available.

  PMID: 2860322 BACKGROUND

• Groen IIA, Silson EH, Pitcher D, Baker CI. Theta-burst TMS of lateral occipital cortex reduces BOLD responses across category-selective areas in ventral temporal cortex. Neuroimage. 2021 Apr 15;230:117790. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2021.117790. Epub 2021 Jan 23.

  PMID: 33497776 DERIVED

• Pitcher D, Pilkington A, Rauth L, Baker C, Kravitz DJ, Ungerleider LG. The Human Posterior Superior Temporal Sulcus Samples Visual Space Differently From Other Face-Selective Regions. Cereb Cortex. 2020 Mar 21;30(2):778-785. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhz125.

  PMID: 31264693 DERIVED

Related Links

• NIH Clinical Center Detailed Web Page

Study Officials

• Christopher I Baker, Ph.D.

  National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Central Study Contacts

NIMH LBC Volunteer

CONTACT

(301) 827-5157; nimhlbcvolunteer@mail.nih.gov

Christopher I Baker, Ph.D.

CONTACT

(301) 435-6058; bakerchris@mail.nih.gov

Study Design

• Study Type: observational
• Observational Model: COHORT
• Time Perspective: CROSS SECTIONAL
• Sponsor Type: NIH
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: June 8, 2012
• First Posted: June 12, 2012
• Study Start: March 4, 2013
• Last Updated: June 12, 2026

Record last verified: 2025-10-28

Locations

US (1)