Gamma Induction for Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer Disease Clinical Trial

Official title: Gamma Induction for Amyloid Clearance in Alzheimer's Disease

Status Recruiting

Clinical Trial Summary

Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is characterized by amyloid-β (Aβ) plaque buildup and phosphorylated tau (p-tau) in the brain, as well as widespread neurodegeneration. Amyloid-β and tau are proteins that build up in the brain that may contribute to memory problems. The evidence suggests that both amyloid and tau play a critical role in AD and interventions that reliably and safely decrease the intracerebral burden of amyloid or tau could potentially be of marked clinical importance. Currently, therapeutic options are very limited and while there are pharmacologic interventions that transiently improve cognitive function, there are no treatments that alter disease progression.

The purpose of this study is to see if multiple daily sessions of non-invasive brain stimulation can affect brain activity to decrease the amount of amyloid and tau in people with AD as compared to Sham (placebo) stimulation. The type of brain stimulation that will be used is called transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS). This study will investigate different doses of tACS (2-4 weeks) and assess safety. The hope is that tACS will decrease the amount of amyloid and tau and improve memory and thinking in people with AD.

Clinical Trial Description

This is an interventional, sham controlled, double-blind study in patients with early to moderate Alzheimer's Disease (AD). The study will enroll approximately 55 individuals with amyloid positive Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) or AD. Each subject will undergo a 1-2 visit screening period consisting of a physical and neurological exam, medical history and medication review, safety questionnaires, and cognitive testing. Each subject will then undergo 5-7 baseline visits including neuropsychological testing (memory and thinking tests), amyloid Positron Emission Tomography (PET) imaging if one is not available or it has been greater than 6 months, tau PET imaging, tACS-EEG (transcranial alternating current stimulation and electroencephalogram) assessment, TMS-EEG (transcranial magnetic stimulation and electroencephalogram) plasticity assessment, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), blood and saliva sample collection, and optional lumbar puncture (LP). Participants will be randomly assigned to one of four groups: stimulation for 2 weeks or 4 weeks, once a day or twice a day. One of the groups is a sham group. This means that this group will not receive actual tACS. Each session will be one hour of either individualized gamma-frequency (40 Hz) tACS or sham tACS, depending on the assigned group. Subjects will be assessed for any side effects before and after each session and complete a short memory and thinking test either daily or weekly. At the end of the daily sessions, 5-7 follow up visits will include a repeat of the baseline measures including amyloid and tau PET scans. Long-term follow-up visits will include an EEG, cognitive testing and an amyloid PET scan. The PET imaging studies will be conducted at Massachusetts General Hospital and up to 5 PET scans will be performed. ;

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Alzheimer Disease
• Cognitive Dysfunction
• Mild Cognitive Impairment

• NCT number: NCT03880240
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: Massachusetts General Hospital
• Contact: Stacey Monsell
• Phone: 617-667-9088
• Email: smonsell@bidmc.harvard.edu
• Status: Recruiting
• Phase: Phase 1/Phase 2
• Start date: August 5, 2019
• Completion date: November 2024