摘要：SummaryContinuous theta-burst stimulation (cTBS), a non-invasive brain stimulation technique, can induce long-lasting changes in synaptic plasticity, vital for memory reconsolidation. For this study, a total of 170 participants completed four experiments by a randomized controlled design. Succeeding fear conditioning, the subjects received cTBS over the right dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (dlPFC) or vertex (control) with or without exposure to the conditioned stimulus to reactivate the original fear memory, and then underwent fear response tests. Compared with cTBS over the vertex and without memory reactivation, only cTBS over the right dlPFC after reactivation decreased the fear response for both recent and remote fear memories. This procedure was effective only during the reconsolidation window. The disruptive effect of cTBS over the right dlPFC on fear memory reconsolidation was delay-dependent. These findings demonstrate that cTBS time-dependently and delay-dependently prevents the return of fear and may have clinical potential for treating fear-related disorders.Graphical abstractDisplay OmittedHighlights•The fear response was decreased by cTBS over the right dlPFC after memory reactivation•cTBS prevented the return of fear memory only during the reconsolidation window•The impact of cTBS on fear memory reconsolidation was delay-dependent•Remote fear memory expression was blocked effectively by cTBS after memory reactivationNeurogenetics; Behavioral neuroscience; Cognitive neuroscience
