Affiliations: Department of Nuclear Medicine, University Hospital
Ulm, Robert-Koch-Str. 8, 89081 Ulm, Germany | Department of Neurology, RWTH Aachen, Pauwelsstr. 30,
52074 Aachen, Germany | Department of Neurology, AK Hamburg-Harburg,
Eissendorfer Pferdeweg 52 21075 Hamburg, Germany
Note: [] Corresponding author: Felix M. Mottaghy, MD PhD, University
Hospital Ulm, Robert-Koch-Str. 8, 89081 Ulm, Germany. Tel.: +49 731 50033807;
Fax: +49 731 50024512; E-mail: felix_mottaghy@yahoo.de
Abstract: The enhancement of cognitive function in healthy subjects by
medication, training or intervention yields increasing political, social and
ethical attention. In this paper facilitatory effects of single-pulse TMS and
repetitive TMS on a simple picture naming task are presented. A significant
shortening of picture naming latencies was observed after single-pulse TMS over
Wernicke's area. The accuracy of the response was not affected by this speed
effect. After TMS over the dominant motor cortex or over the non-dominant
temporal lobe, however, no facilitation of picture naming was observed. In the
rTMS experiments only rTMS of Wernicke's area had an impact on picture naming
latencies resulting in a shortening of naming latencies without affecting the
accuracy of the response. rTMS over the visual cortex, Broca's area or over the
corresponding sites in the non-dominant hemisphere had no effect. Single-pulse
TMS is able to facilitate lexical processes due to a general preactivation of
language-related neuronal networks when delivered over Wernicke's area.
Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation over Wernicke's area also leads to
a brief facilitation of picture naming possibly by shortening linguistic
processing time. Whether TMS or rTMS can be used to aid linguistic therapy in
the rehabilitation phase of aphasic patients should be subject of further
investigations.
