Impulsive Behavior
Conditions
Keywords
transcranial focused ultrasound, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Reward
Brief summary
The investigators aim to examine the immediate effect of transcranial focused ultrasound (tFUS) on brain activity in healthy adults.
Detailed description
The investigators will examine ventral striatum (VS) target engagement by tFUS in healthy adults using a reward processing task that reliably activates the VS.
Interventions
DEVICEtFUS
tFUS is a brief stimulation of a part of the brain called the ventral striatum with low-intensity sound waves that pass through the scalp and skull safely.
DEVICESham tFUS
Sham tFUS goes through the motions of applying tFUS to the brain. Participants will know that one session will be a sham, but they will be blinded to which session is the sham
Sponsors
Mary Phillips, MD MD (Cantab)
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
CROSSOVER
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
SINGLE (Subject)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 45 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* No present/lifetime history of major depressive disorder (MDD), psychosis, Bipolar Disorder; Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS)\>7; Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS)\>10), borderline personality disorder, and present suicidal ideation * No family history of MDD, psychosis, Bipolar Disorder, or epilepsy
Exclusion criteria
* Present/lifetime history of MDD, psychosis, Bipolar Disorder (HDRS\>7; YMRS\>10), borderline personality disorder, and present suicidal ideation. Childhood history of, but not present, anxiety disorders and Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) will be allowed as these are common disorders in childhood * Family history of MDD, psychosis, Bipolar Disorder, or epilepsy * History of head injury, neurological (e.g., epilepsy), pervasive developmental disorder (e.g., autism), systemic medical disease and treatment (medical records, participant report) * Use of substances with seizure risk (e.g., stimulants) in the past month, as for other non-invasive neuromodulation techniques, assessed as screening and before each tFUS session * Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) score (cognitive state) \<24 * Premorbid North American Adult Reading Test (NAART) intelligence quotient (IQ) estimate \<85; * Visual disturbance: \<20/40 (Snellen visual acuity) * Left/mixed handedness (Annett criteria) * History of alcohol or other substance use disorder (SUD), daily nicotine use, and/or illicit substance use over the last 3 months (SCID-5). Note: lifetime/present cannabis use (\<3 times in the past month) at non-SUD levels will be allowed, given its common usage in young adults. Urine tests on scan days will exclude current illicit substance use. Salivary alcohol tests on scan days will exclude intoxicated individuals * Binge drinking (as defined by National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAA) criteria: consuming 5 or more drinks (male), or 4 or more drinks (female), in about 2 hours.) in the week before, and/or \>3 drinks/day for the 3 days before, and/or alcohol in the last 12 hrs before, any alcohol on tFUS scan day, confirmed at screening and scan days. Alcohol/nicotine/caffeine/cannabis use (below SCID-5 SUD and binge levels) will be allowed * MRI
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ventral striatum (VS) activity to prediction error before receiving tFUS to the VS | Two visits over up to 8 weeks | Measure of ventral striatum (VS) activity to prediction error before receiving tFUS to the VS |
| Ventral striatum (VS) activity to prediction error after receiving tFUS to the VS | Two visits over up to 8 weeks | Measure of ventral striatum (VS) activity to prediction error after receiving tFUS to the VS |
Countries
United States
Contacts
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORMary P Phillips, MD MD (Cantab)
University of Pittsburgh
Outcome results
None listed