Electroencephalographic responses before, during, and after upper limb paired associative stimulation

Yumi Shikauchi, Kazumasa Uehara, Yuka O. Okazaki, Keiichi Kitajo

Abstract: Paired associative stimulation (PAS) is a non-invasive proto- col involving repeated stimulus pairs to activate two cortical areas alternately, inducing Hebbian-like plasticity. However, its neurophysiological impacts remain unclear. To determine the changes that occur in the brain during PAS, brain activ- ity during PAS must be measured and distinguished from the electromagnetic artifacts produced by the stimulation. Here, we present a novel dataset of electroencephalography (EEG) measurements during PAS with an inter-stimulus-interval of 25 ms (PAS 25, expected to induce long-term potentiation- like changes) or 35 ms (PAS 35, no expected change). This dataset includes raw data and pre-processed data with electromagnetic artefacts removed. The right ulnar nerve’s electrical stimulation preceded transcranial magnetic stimu- lation to the left primary motor cortex in both cases. EEG was measured before and after the PAS sessions, with only electrical or magnetic stimulation. To demonstrate the qual- ity of the data, we summarize the stability of the stimulation site and the event-related potentials before, during, and after PAS. This dataset will enable observing brain dynamics due to the accumulation of stimulations during PAS and differ- ences in responsiveness to stimulations before and after PAS.