• FiorinFernando da SilvaFDSGraduate Program in Neuroengineering, Edmond and Lily Safra International Institute of Neuroscience, Santos Dumont Institute, Macaíba, Brazil. Electronic address: fernandofiorin@hotmail.com., Mariane de Araújo E Silva, Raquel E de Medeiros, Guilherme H Viana da Silva, Abner Cardoso Rodrigues, and Edgard Morya.
• Graduate Program in Neuroengineering, Edmond and Lily Safra International Institute of Neuroscience, Santos Dumont Institute, Macaíba, Brazil. Electronic address: fernandofiorin@hotmail.com.
• Neuromodulation. 2024 Aug 13.

ObjectiveThe cortico-basal ganglia circuit is crucial to understanding locomotor behavior and movement disorders. Spinal cord stimulation modulates that circuit, which is a promising approach to restoring motor functions. However, the effects of electrical spinal cord stimulation in the healthy brain motor circuit in pre- and postgait are poorly understood. Thus, this report aims to evaluate, through electrophysiological analyses, the dynamic spectral features of motor networks underlying locomotor initiation with spinal cord stimulation.Materials And MethodsWistar male rats underwent spinal cord stimulation (current 30-150 μA, frequency 100, 333, and 500 Hz) with the electrophysiological recording of the caudate and putamen nuclei, primary and secondary motor cortices, and primary somatosensory cortex. Video tracking recorded treadmill locomotion and extracted the motor planning and gait initiation.ResultsSpectral analysis of segments of gait initiation (pre- and postgait), with stimulation off, showed increased low-frequency activity. Postgait initiation showed increased alpha and beta rhythms and decreased delta rhythm with the stimulation off. Overall, the stimulation frequencies reduced alpha and beta rhythms in all brain areas during movement initiation. Regarding movement planning, such an effect was observed in the sensorimotor area, comprising the delta and alpha rhythms.ConclusionThis study showed a short-term effect of spinal cord stimulation on the brain areas of the motor circuit, suggesting possible facilitation of movement planning and starting through neuromodulation. Thus, the electrophysiological characterization of this study may contribute to understanding basal ganglia networks and developing new approaches to treat movement disorders in the gait initiation phase.Copyright © 2024 International Neuromodulation Society. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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