Previous research indicates that following alcohol intoxication, activity in prefrontal cortices is reduced, linking to changes in associated cognitive processes, such as inhibitory control, attentional bias (AB), and craving. While these changes have been implicated in alcohol consumption behaviour, it has yet to be fully illuminated how these frontal regions and cognitive processes interact to govern alcohol consumption behaviour. The current preregistered study applied continuous theta burst transcranial magnetic stimulation (cTBS) to examine directly these relationships while removing the wider pharmacological effects of alcohol. A mixed design was implemented, with cTBS stimulation to right and left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), the medial orbital frontal cortex (mOFC) and Vertex, with measures of inhibitory control, AB, and craving taken both pre- and post-stimulation. Ad libitum consumption was measured using a bogus taste task. Results suggest that rDLPFC stimulation impaired inhibitory control but did not significantly increase ad libitum consumption. However, lDLPFC stimulation heightened craving and increased consumption, with findings indicating that changes in craving partially mediated the relationship between cTBS stimulation of prefrontal regions and ad libitum consumption. Medial OFC stimulation and AB findings were inconclusive. Overall, results implicate the left DLPFC in the regulation of craving, which appears to be a prepotent cognitive mechanism by which alcohol consumption is driven and maintained.

先前的研究表明，酒精中毒后，前额叶皮层的活动减少，这与相关认知过程的变化有关，例如抑制控制、注意力偏差 (AB) 和渴望。虽然这些变化与饮酒行为有关，但尚未完全阐明这些额叶区域和认知过程如何相互作用以控制饮酒行为。目前的预注册研究应用连续θ爆发经颅磁刺激（cTBS）直接检查这些关系，同时消除酒精更广泛的药理作用。实施混合设计，cTBS 刺激左右背外侧前额叶皮层 (DLPFC)、内侧眶额叶皮层 (mOFC) 和顶点，并采用抑制控制措施、AB、使用虚假口味任务测量随意消耗量。结果表明，rDLPFC 刺激损害了抑制控制，但没有显着增加随意消耗。然而，lDLPFC 刺激增加了渴望并增加了消耗，研究结果表明，渴望的变化部分介导了前额区域的 cTBS 刺激与随意消耗之间的关系。内侧 OFC 刺激和 AB 发现尚无定论。总体而言，结果表明左侧 DLPFC 参与了对渴望的调节，这似乎是一种驱动和维持饮酒的优越认知机制。