Neuronal reactivity in men with high alcohol consumption after reduction of dihydrotestosterone in a pharmaco-challenge experiment with finasteride vs. placebo (Reduction of dihydrotestosterone and neuronal reactivity)

Neuronal reactivity in men with high alcohol consumption after reduction of dihydrotestosterone in a pharmaco-challenge experiment with finasteride vs. placebo (Reduction of dihydrotestosterone and neuronal reactivity) - ReD-Neuron

Status

Active, not recruiting

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Interventional

Source

DRKS

Registry ID

DRKS00020569

Enrollment

Registered

2021-12-27

Start date

2022-02-14

Completion date

Unknown

Last updated

2026-03-02

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Neuronal reactivity

Interventions

Group 1: Finasteride 5mg (one-time administration) Group 2: Placebo (one-time administration)

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

Male

Age

18 Years to 65 Years

Inclusion criteria

Inclusion criteria: Body mass index 18.5-30.0 kg/m²; high episodic alcohol consumption defined as drinking at least 5 alcoholic beverages of 12 g alcohol each (12 g alcohol is equivalent to approximately 0.33 liters of beer or approximately 0.125 liters of wine) on one occasion, i.e., within a few hours, once per month (WHO, 2018); ability to give written informed consent and to undergo fMRI; present written informed consent; sufficient knowledge of the German language; breath alcohol concentration of 0.0 per mille

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion criteria: Lack of written informed consent; medical history with outpatient or inpatient treatment of depressive or bipolar disorder, psychotic disorder, schizophrenia or schizophrenic spectrum disorder, or substance dependence other than alcohol, nicotine or cannabis; medical history of severe head injury or other severe central nervous system disease (e.g., dementia, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis); use of drugs or medications that interact with the central nervous system within the past 10 days or if their use was less than 5 half-lives ago; regular use of finasteride for medical reasons; exclusion criteria for finasteride use: known hypersensitivity to finasteride, clinically significant pharmacokinetic interaction (finasteride is metabolized via the cytochrome P450-3A4 system), currently planning pregnancy with sexual intercourse without contraception, pregnant partner; exclusion criteria for an MRI examination (e.g. metal in the body)

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame
Neuronal fMRI reactivity to alcohol stimuli	—

Secondary

Measure	Time frame
Neuronal reactivity to emotional stimuli, in a stop signal task, in an incentive delay task, explicit and implicit craving, and attention bias	—

Countries

Germany

Contacts

Public ContactRafat Boroumand-Jazi

Zentralinstitut für Seelische Gesundheit (ZI)

rafat.boroumandjazi@zi-mannheim.de++49 621 1703 3522

Outcome results

None listed

Source: DRKS (via WHO ICTRP) · Data processed: Mar 14, 2026