- ICH GCP
- US Clinical Trials Registry
- Clinical Trial NCT01701141
Depression and Dopamine Transporter Function Study Using C-11 Altropane
Depression and Dopamine Transporter Function: A Positron Emission Tomography Study Using C-11 Altropane
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is often characterized by anhedonia and impaired ability to modulate behavior as a function of rewards. However, the neurobiology of anhedonia and reduced reward responsiveness remains largely unknown. Because dopamine (DA) plays a critical role in goal-directed behavior and reinforcement learning, DA dysregulation might play an important role. In fact, several lines of evidence suggest that down-regulation of DA transmission might characterize depression vulnerability and the emergence of depressive symptoms. The current study seeks to elucidate the role of DA dysfunction in MDD. We hypothesize that MDD subjects will show reduced DAT binding potential, reduced reward learning in the probabilistic reward task, and abnormal functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) activation in dorsal and ventral striatal regions during an instrumental learning task.
This study will include three sessions.
The first will take place at Massachusetts General Hospital or at McLean Hospital's Center for Depression, Anxiety and Stress Research. The aims of this session will be to (a) explain the study; (b) collect written informed consent, and (c) assess the subject's eligibility.
Following this, another session (either second or third in order) will take place at the MGH PET Imaging Laboratory. Participants will complete a PET scan and a probabilistic reward task designed to measure reward learning and sensitivity to reward. The radioactive tracer utilized is 11C-altropane.
Another session (either second or third in order) will take place at the McLean Hospital Neuroimaging Center. Participants will complete an instrumental learning task while in the fMRI, followed by a social reinforcement learning task and an implicit learning serial reaction time task upon completion of the scan. In the instrumental learning task, participants have the opportunity to earn money but need to learn, by trial and error, stimulus-outcome associations. The social reinforcement learning task is designed to investigate whether learning deficits in MDD are specific to learning from monetary incentives or whether the learning deficits are more global and are affected when learning from social rewards and punishments. Participants will also complete an implicit learning serial reaction time task, designed to exclude the possibility of global learning deficits in MDD.
Study Overview
Status
Conditions
Study Type
Enrollment (Anticipated)
Contacts and Locations
Study Locations
-
-
Massachusetts
-
Belmont, Massachusetts, United States, 02478
- McLean Hospital
-
Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02114
- Massachusetts General Hospital
-
-
Participation Criteria
Eligibility Criteria
Ages Eligible for Study
Accepts Healthy Volunteers
Genders Eligible for Study
Sampling Method
Study Population
Description
Criteria for All Subjects
Inclusion Criteria:
- Written informed consent;
- Both genders and all ethnic origins, age between 18 and 45;
- Right-handed (Chapman and Chapman 1987);
- Absence of any medications for at least 3 weeks;
- Absence of pregnancy;
- Absence of current drug use (cocaine, cannabinoids, opiates, amphetamines, benzodiazepines and barbiturates) as assessed by urinary drug test.
- For women, completion of a negative urine pregnancy test prior to the MRI scan, as well as a negative STAT quantitative serum hCG test immediately prior to radiopharmaceutical exposure;
- Normal or corrected-to-normal vision and hearing.
Exclusion Criteria
- Pregnant or currently breast-feeding women or any woman of childbearing potential who is seeking to become pregnant or suspects that she may be pregnant.
- History or current serious or unstable medical illness, including cancer, cardiovascular, hepatic, renal, respiratory, endocrine, neurologic or hematologic disease;
- History of seizure disorder;
- Failure to meet standard PET safety requirements;
- Failure to meet standard fMRI safety requirements;
- Students and employees supervised by the Investigators at MGH, McLean Hospital and Harvard University;
- Absence of fluency in written and spoken English;
- History of head injury;
- History or current use of cocaine, stimulants, or other dopaminergic drugs.
- Diabetes with poor glucose control;
- History or current diagnosis of dementia, or a score of < 26 on the Mini Mental Status Examination (Folstein, 1975) at the screening visit;
- Clinical or laboratory evidence of hypothyroidism or currently taking thyroid medication;
- Currently taking medication that affects blood flow, e.g. certain blood pressure medications
- Evidence of significant inconsistencies in self-report.
Criteria Specific to MDD subjects
Inclusion Criteria:
- DSM-IV diagnostic criteria for MDD (diagnosed with the use of the SCID);
- A baseline HRSD score (Hamilton 1960) greater than or equal to 16 (17-item version);
Exclusion Criteria:
- Subjects with suicidal ideation where outpatient treatment is determined unsafe by the study clinician. These patients will be immediately referred to appropriate clinical treatment;
- History or current diagnosis of: learning and developmental disorders (including ADHD and autism spectrum disorders), anorexia nervosa, cognitive disorders, somatoform and factitious disorders, dissociative disorders, personality disorders, organic mental disorders, schizophrenia or other psychotic disorder, bipolar disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder; simple phobia, social anxiety disorder and generalized anxiety disorder are allowed if secondary to MDD.
- History of substance dependence lifetime or substance abuse within the last 12 months;
- History of bulimia nervosa or PTSD within the past 2 years;
- History or current diagnosis of dementia, or a score of < 26 on the Mini Mental Status Examination (Folstein, 1975) at the screening visit;
- Current use of other psychotropic drugs;
- Patients with lifetime electroconvulsive therapy (ECT);
Presence of any psychotropic medications for at least 2 weeks:
- 6 months for dopaminergic drugs (including methylphenidate),
- 6 weeks for fluoxetine,
- 6 months for neuroleptics,
- 2 weeks for benzodiazepines,
- 2 weeks for any other antidepressants.
Criteria Specific to Control subjects
Inclusion Criteria:
- Absence of medical, neurological, and psychiatric illness (including alcohol and substance abuse), as assessed by subject history and a structured clinical interview (SCID-I/NP);
- Absence of any medications for at least 3 weeks;
Exclusion Criteria:
- History or current diagnosis of any of DSM-IV psychiatric illness;
- First degree relative with mood disorder or psychosis;
- History or current use of any psychiatric medication.
Study Plan
How is the study designed?
Design Details
Cohorts and Interventions
Group / Cohort |
---|
Individuals with MDD
Individuals with current MDD as determined by structured clinical interview for DSM-IV (SCID) at time of enrollment.
|
Healthy Controls
Individuals with no psychiatric diagnosis as determined by structured clinical interview for DSM-IV (SCID) at time of enrollment
|
What is the study measuring?
Primary Outcome Measures
Outcome Measure |
Measure Description |
Time Frame |
---|---|---|
11C-Altropane Binding
Time Frame: 1 hour long PET scan during session 2
|
11C-altropane binding is recording during the positron emission tomography (PET) scan and is used to measure dopamine transporter levels.
|
1 hour long PET scan during session 2
|
Behavioral Performance in Probabilistic Reward Task
Time Frame: 20 minute task administered during session 2
|
The probabilistic reward task is designed to measure sensitivity to reward and reward learning.
|
20 minute task administered during session 2
|
Brain Activity during Instrumental Learning Task
Time Frame: 30 minute long fMRI scan during session 3
|
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) data are acquired while participants perform the instrumental learning task.
fMRI data allows us to measure aspects of brain activity.
|
30 minute long fMRI scan during session 3
|
Behavioral Performance in Instrumental Learning Task
Time Frame: 30 minute task administered during session 3
|
The instrumental learning task is designed to measure participant learning from reward and punishment.
|
30 minute task administered during session 3
|
Behavioral Performance in the Social Reinforcement Learning Task
Time Frame: 15 minute task administered during session 3
|
The social reinforcement learning task is designed to investigate whether learning deficits in MDD are specific to learning from monetary incentives or whether the learning deficits are more global and are affected when learning from social rewards and punishments.
|
15 minute task administered during session 3
|
Secondary Outcome Measures
Outcome Measure |
Measure Description |
Time Frame |
---|---|---|
Questionnaire Data
Time Frame: Self-report measures are administered at all 3 sessions which take place within an average of 2-3 weeks
|
At all sessions participants will fill out self-report questionnaires regarding aspects of mood and affect, demographics, caffeine and alcohol consumption, etc.
|
Self-report measures are administered at all 3 sessions which take place within an average of 2-3 weeks
|
Behavioral Performance in Implicit Learning Serial Reaction Time Task
Time Frame: 5 minute task administered during session 3
|
The implicit learning serial reaction time task is designed to exclude the possibility of global learning deficits in major depressive disorder.
|
5 minute task administered during session 3
|
Collaborators and Investigators
Sponsor
Study record dates
Study Major Dates
Study Start
Primary Completion (ACTUAL)
Study Completion (ACTUAL)
Study Registration Dates
First Submitted
First Submitted That Met QC Criteria
First Posted (ESTIMATE)
Study Record Updates
Last Update Posted (ACTUAL)
Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria
Last Verified
More Information
Terms related to this study
Keywords
Additional Relevant MeSH Terms
Other Study ID Numbers
- 2009-P-001360
This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.
Clinical Trials on Anhedonia
-
CEN BiotechCEN Nutriment; Biovet Conseil; Amadeite SASCompletedAnhedonia in Healthy Volunteers
-
Maastricht UniversityAristotle University Of Thessaloniki; P1vital Products LTD.; Biotrial; University... and other collaboratorsCompletedDepression | Schizophrenia | Motivation | Anhedonia, Physical | Anhedonia, Social | Negative Symptoms With Primary Psychotic DisorderGermany, Greece, Netherlands, Spain
-
University of OxfordRecruiting
-
University of ManitobaEnrolling by invitation
-
The University of Texas Health Science Center,...Emory UniversityCompleted
-
University of North Carolina, Chapel HillNational Institute of Mental Health (NIMH); Duke UniversityCompletedAnhedoniaUnited States
-
Jiangsu Province Nanjing Brain HospitalRecruiting
-
University of New MexicoNational Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)Completed
-
University of North Carolina, Chapel HillNational Institute of Mental Health (NIMH); Duke UniversityCompletedAnhedoniaUnited States