Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of Human Brain Exposed to a 60Hz, 1800T Magnetic Field

Alexandre G. Legros^1,2, Julie Weller¹, John Robertson^1,2, Michael Corbacio^1,2, Daniel Goulet³, Robert Stodilka^1,2, Frank S. Prato^1,2, Alex W. Thomas^1,2

A simple finger tapping task is known to activate the controlateral Supplementary Motor Area and the controlateral Primary Motor Area. Interestingly, it has been shown that exposure to Extremely Low Frequency Magnetic Fields (ELF MF, below 300Hz) decreases the amplitude of spontaneous motor activity of healthy subjects. Moreover, a few results suggest a decrease of brain electrical activity with exposure. We hypothesize that for an index finger vs. thumb opposition task realized at natural frequency, thirty minutes of ELF MF exposure will induce a decrease of BOLD activation in the involved brain structures.