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Electroencephalographic Study of the Mechanisms of Inhibition of Emotional Memories in Young Healthy Subjects

Etude Par électroencéphalographie Des mécanismes d'Inhibition de Souvenirs émotionnels Chez le Sujet Jeune Sain

Status
Completed
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT06891612
Acronym
ENGRAMME
Enrollment
78
Registered
2025-03-24
Start date
2016-06-13
Completion date
2019-04-12
Last updated
2025-09-03

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

Conditions

Anxiety, Depression, Cognitive Control

Brief summary

Forgetfulness has long been considered a pathology of memory. However, the brain's voluntary suppression of certain unpleasant memories is essential for building a healthy memory. This suppression capacity can be measured using the Think/No-Think (TNT) paradigm.However, while the areas involved in these processes of suppression are now well described, the nature and temporal dynamics of the processes of inhibition and orientation of attention is still poorly defined. The aim of this study is to describe the nature of the attentional and inhibitory mechanisms involved in the suppression of emotionally negative memories, and their temporal articulation using electroencephalography (EEG). To this end, we will use a model of memory deletion derived from a perceptual attentional task and simulating the deletion phase in order to control the nature and timing of the processes involved. This approach will allow us to observe the presence of correspondences between the responses measured during the attentional test simulating the suppression and the actual phase of suppression, for which we cannot control the nature of the operations undertaken by the subject. In addition, we will assess the emotional response through physiological measures of autonomic nervous system activity (heart rate and electrodermal response) immediately after the TNT phase or one day later, which will allow us to evaluate the influence of memory suppression mechanisms on their emotional content. From a practical point of view, this study is organized into 3 groups of participants (healthy young adults). Each group will perform a perceptual attentional test and a TNT task, which will be preceded and followed by a measure of emotional response. Group 1 will allow us to test our main hypothesis from a behavioral point of view, as well as to calibrate the attentional task and its consistency with the TNT task. Group 2 will carry out the same tests but during an EEG examination to decode the temporal dynamics of attention states during the process of memory suppression. Group 3 will perform these same tests with a 24-hour interval between the TNT phase and the emotional assessment to estimate the effect of a retention period on forgetfulness functions. The description of these mechanisms and their physiological correlates will allow us to better understand how this ability to voluntarily control the flow of thoughts associated with negative memories is implemented, and thus to better understand the alterations in this capacity that can be observed during certain mental pathologies such as anxiety or depression.

Interventions

Cognitive Assessments

measurement of the points of gaze

DEVICEElectroencephalography (EEG)

Electrophysiological monitoring method to record electrical activity of the brain

measurement of the electrical activity of the heart

Sponsors

Institut National de la Santé Et de la Recherche Médicale, France
Lead SponsorOTHER_GOV

Study design

Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
NONE

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 35 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

* Male or female aged between 18 and 35 years * Affiliated to a social security scheme * Having French as their mother tongue * Right-handed * High school graduate or equivalent * Having signed a written informed consent

Exclusion criteria

* Pregnancy in progress, pregnancy test will be performed * Person deprived of liberty by judicial or administrative decision * Person hospitalized without consent and not subject to legal protection measures, and person admitted to a health or social care facility for purposes other than research * Minor * Adults subject to legal protection measure (guardianship, curatorship or judicial protection), adults unable to express their consent and not subject to protection measure * Person subject to an exclusion for another research * History of a neurological, psychiatric disorders, or head trauma with loss of consciousness for more than an hour * History of cancer over the last 5 years, with the exception of squamous cell carcinomas of the skin * Presence or history of chronic alcoholism or drug addiction * Taking medications that may alter cognitive and/or brain function (decision of the principal investigator) * Presence of visual and/or auditory disorders sufficiently significant to affect the progress of the tests * Contraindications to electroencephalography * Presentation of unpleasant images that are too emotionally disturbing for the participant (by decision of the physician)

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Completion psychopathological scalesInclusion visitEntered into a computer
Measurement of the electrodermal conductanceDay1For emotional evaluation when presenting negative images
Measuremet of heart rateDay 1For emotional evaluation when presenting negative images

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Measuremet of heart rateDay 1 and Day 2For emotional evaluation after learning pairs of images
Test of Think/No-ThinkDay1 and Day2This test is performed on a computer after learning pairs of images
Measurement of electroencephalographic activityDay1 and Day 2Subjects will be equiped with electrodes during the attentional task and Think/No-Think test
Attentional taskDay 1 and Day 2This test is performed on a computer after learning pairs of images
Measurement of the electrodermal conductanceDay 1 and Day 2For emotional evaluation after learning pairs of images

Countries

France

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026