Effect of rTMS of the Dorsolateral Prefrontal Cortex on Language Production in Healthy Participants

Role of Executive Function in Language: an Experimental and Clinical Approach With Application to Mother Language and Second Language

Status

Completed

Phases

Study type

Interventional

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT02840396

Enrollment

Registered

2016-07-21

Start date

2016-03-31

Completion date

2017-07-31

Last updated

2019-10-09

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Language

Keywords

language, DLPFC, rTMS, Executive Functions

Brief summary

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) on language production.

Detailed description

Background: Several studies investigating healthy or clinical populations have shown that (r)TMS applied over the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) has an effect on language-related processes such as verbal working memory (Osaka et al., 2007), sentence comprehension (Cotelli et al., 2011) and language switching (Holtzheimer et al., 2005, Nardone et al., 2011). Clinical observations and neuroimaging studies seem to confirm the role of executive functions and frontal structures in language processing in monolingual and bilingual subjects (e.g. Fabbro et al., 2000, Abutalebi & Green 2007). However, only few studies investigated the effects of modulation of cognitive control-networks on lexical access. Aim and procedure: The study will investigate the role of the DLPFC and executive functioning in L1 and L2 language processing. The core question is whether rTMS over the DLPFC will influence lexical access and language production. Each participant will take part in two sessions: 1. rTMS session 2. Sham rTMS session. After the application of rTMS/Sham rTMS, the participants will conduct two language tasks (translation, picture naming) and a non-verbal task, while the EEG is recorded.

Interventions

DEVICErTMS

repetitive TMS (rTMS) can lead to temporary increases or decreases (depending on the protocol used) in excitability of the targeted area. This change in excitability has been shown to last beyond the duration of the stimulation.

DEVICESham rTMS

Sham rTMS (or placebo rTMS) refers to a control condition in which no physiological effect on the targeted cortical region occurs.

Study design

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

CROSSOVER

Primary purpose

OTHER

Masking

SINGLE (Subject)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

18 Years to 45 Years

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

* L1 French, knowledge of English as a foreign language * 18-45 years of age * Right-handedness

Exclusion criteria

* epilepsy /family history of epilepsy * brain surgery, traumatic brain injuries * cardiac pacemaker, metallic objects in the body * history of neurological diseases or psychiatric disorders * drug use (alcohol, psychoactive medication) * developmental language disorder

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Language production	within 30 mins after rTMS/sham rTMS	Picture naming task and word translation task

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
non-verbal executive functions task	within 30 mins after rTMS/sham rTMS

Countries

Switzerland

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026