Temporal interference (TI) as a new neuromodulation technique can be applied to non-invasive deep brain stimulation. In order to verify its effectiveness in the regulation of motor behavior in animals, this paper uses the TI method to focus the envelope electric field to the ventral posterior lateral nucleus (VPL) of the thalamus in the deep brain of mouse to regulate left- and right-turning motor behavior. The focusability of TI in the mouse VPL was analyzed by finite element method, and the focus area and volume were obtained by numerical calculation. A stimulator was used to generate TI current to stimulate the mouse VPL to verify the effectiveness of the TI stimulation method, and the accuracy of the focus location was further determined by c-Fos immunofluorescence experiments. The results showed that the electric field generated by TI stimulation was able to focus on the VPL nuclei when the stimulation current reached 800 μA; the mouse were able to make corresponding left and right turns according to the stimulation position; and the c-Fos positive cell markers in the VPL nuclei increased significantly after stimulation. This study confirms the feasibility of TI in regulating animal motor behavior and provides a non-invasive stimulation method for brain tissue for animal robots.
时间干涉（TI）作为一种新的神经调控技术可以应用于非侵入性深部脑刺激。为了验证它在动物运动行为调控中的有效性，本文使用TI方法将包络电场聚焦到小鼠脑深部的丘脑腹后外侧核（VPL）调控左、右转运动行为。通过有限元方法分析TI在小鼠VPL的聚焦性，利用数值计算获得聚焦面积和体积，采用刺激器产生TI电流对小鼠VPL进行刺激，验证TI刺激方法的有效性，进一步通过c-Fos免疫荧光实验确定聚焦位置的准确性。结果表明，通过调整电极位置，当刺激电流达到800 μA时，TI刺激产生的电场能够聚焦到VPL核团；小鼠能够根据刺激位置进行相应的左、右转；刺激后VPL核团c-Fos阳性细胞标记明显增加。本研究证实了TI在动物运动行为调控中的可行性，为动物机器人提供了一种对脑组织无创的刺激方法。.
Keywords: Behavioral regulation; Stimulation current; Temporal interference; Ventral posterior lateral nucleus of the thalamus.