Using transcranial magnetic stimulation to investigate the neural mechanisms of inhibitory control

Many everyday actions require inhibitory control. The success of these actions depends on the availability of prior information regarding stopping demands. Using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), Cirillo and colleagues (Cirillo J, Cowie MJ, MacDonald HJ, Byblow WD. J Neurophysiol 119: 877–886, 2018) provide novel neurophysiological evidence for distinct roles of intracortical inhibitory mechanisms underlying inhibitory control. Other, nonexclusive mechanisms such as disfacilitation of excitatory pathways and interhemispheric inhibition may also contribute to inhibitory control. Accordingly, diverse TMS protocols are a valuable assessment tool to investigate these mechanisms.