Dopamine’s role in premature decision-making in healthy humans
- Conditions
- Healthy volunteers studied.
- Registration Number
- DRKS00011612
- Lead Sponsor
- Psychiatrische Universitätsklinik ZürichKlinik für Psychiatrie, Psychotherapie und Psychosomatik
- Brief Summary
Not available
- Detailed Description
Not available
Recruitment & Eligibility
- Status
- Recruiting stopped after recruiting started
- Sex
- Male
- Target Recruitment
- 50
• Age from 18 to 40 years
• Male sex
• European ancestry
• Right-handedness
• Written informed consent
• Consent to adhere to the study protocol
• Ability to adhere to the study protocol
• Serious past or present brain disease, brain injury or brain surgery
• Any neurological or psychiatric disorders (past or present)
• Nicotine/tobacco use of more than 10 cigarettes per week, or equivalent
• Current use of recreational drugs
• History of alcohol and/or drug abuse
• Any current severe medical condition
• Currently taking medication of any kind, in particular any known to interact with methylphenidate
• Allergy to lactose (placebo) or to methylphenidate
• Tachycardia >100 bpm, cardiac arrhythmia and/or QTc time >430 ms
• Blood pressure outside of healthy range
• History of severe kidney or liver disorder
• Pacemaker, neurostimulator or any other head or heart implants
• Any breathing difficulties
• Claustrophobia
• Dependence on a hearing aid
• Bald head or dreadlocks (EEG only)
• Inability to sit still (EEG) or lie still (MRI) for the duration of the experiment (sneezing, coughing,
itching, trembling, twitching, pain, etc.)
• Subjects with MRI-incompatible metal parts in the body
• Possibility of the presence of any metal fragments in the body (e.g., metal splinters, ballistic
wounds, shrapnel or surgical clips)
Study & Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Study Design
- Not specified
- Primary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method To obtain non-invasive measures of behaviour, fMRI and EEG which allow us to determine, using mathematical analysis, the dependence of goal-directed decision-making on levels of dopamine.
- Secondary Outcome Measures
Name Time Method In addition, to examine how this dependence is influenced by individual differences in personality and serotonin-relevant genetic polymorphisms.