Clinical Trials Logo

Clinical Trial Summary

The investigators propose a behavioral experiment with SEEG recording and stimulation, to both confirm the role of a brain region known as the anterior insula in identifying surprise, and disambiguate between competing principles behind adaptation: optimizing and satisficing. Optimizers continue to learn and adapt if performance can be improved, while satisficers are satisfied with a good enough performance and will cease adapting once that is reached. To study surprise signals in the anterior insula, a brain structure where these signals have been very prominent, the investigators will employ an experiment with subjects who are under SEEG (stereoelectroencephalogram) recording, that is, recording from electrodes which have been surgically implanted in the brain. These recordings will be done as patients perform a task where they try to anticipate the movements of a target on a line in two different learning environments (conditions). The experimenters will then determine whether these signals reflect surprise relative to past engagement with the environment, or surprise that reveals that the agent no longer feels in control because uncertainty is not in line with the reference model. If evidence is consistent with the former, adaptation reflects traditional reinforcement and aims at optimizing behavior. If evidence instead is consistent with the latter, behavior is guided by a prior model (a reference model) and behavior is satisficing. An fMRI study by d'Acremont and Bossaerts provides initial evidence that activation in the anterior insula supports the satisficing hypothesis, however it lacks the temporal granularity to completely rule out optimizing. In the current project, the investigators propose to use the higher time resolution of SEEG recordings to confirm these findings and reject the optimizing hypothesis. Additionally, stimulations of the anterior insula during a subset of trials will be used to determine whether insular activation following surprise signals and preceding changes in behavior (learning) is merely correlational or in fact causal. Stimulation will allow us to determine to what extent the subjects' sense of control and subsequent behavior can be influenced in accordance with surprise-based modeling of behavior. The cohort for this study will be patients with drug-resistant, focal epilepsy and who are hospitalized at the Hôpitaux Universitaires de Genève (HUG) for pre-surgical evaluation of their epilepsy using SEEG. The protocol will run in parallel with the patients' clinical procedures.


Clinical Trial Description

n/a


Study Design


Related Conditions & MeSH terms


NCT number NCT05997758
Study type Observational
Source University Hospital, Geneva
Contact Fabienne Picard, MD
Phone +41 22 372 5258
Email Fabienne.Picard@hcuge.ch
Status Recruiting
Phase
Start date January 15, 2024
Completion date December 2025

See also
  Status Clinical Trial Phase
Recruiting NCT06052553 - A Study of TopSpin360 Training Device N/A
Completed NCT05511077 - Biomarkers of Oat Product Intake: The BiOAT Marker Study N/A
Recruiting NCT04632485 - Early Detection of Vascular Dysfunction Using Biomarkers From Lagrangian Carotid Strain Imaging
Completed NCT05931237 - Cranberry Flavan-3-ols Consumption and Gut Microbiota in Healthy Adults N/A
Completed NCT04527718 - Study of the Safety, Tolerability and Pharmacokinetics of 611 in Adult Healthy Volunteers Phase 1
Terminated NCT04556032 - Effects of Ergothioneine on Cognition, Mood, and Sleep in Healthy Adult Men and Women N/A
Completed NCT04065295 - A Study to Test How Well Healthy Men Tolerate Different Doses of BI 1356225 Phase 1
Completed NCT04998695 - Health Effects of Consuming Olive Pomace Oil N/A
Completed NCT04107441 - AX-8 Drug Safety, Tolerability and Plasma Levels in Healthy Subjects Phase 1
Completed NCT01442831 - Evaluate the Absorption, Metabolism, And Excretion Of Orally Administered [14C] TR 701 In Healthy Adult Male Subjects Phase 1
Terminated NCT05934942 - A Study in Healthy Women to Test Whether BI 1358894 Influences the Amount of a Contraceptive in the Blood Phase 1
Recruiting NCT05525845 - Studying the Hedonic and Homeostatic Regulation of Food Intake Using Functional MRI N/A
Completed NCT05515328 - A Study in Healthy Men to Test How BI 685509 is Processed in the Body Phase 1
Completed NCT05030857 - Drug-drug Interaction and Food-effect Study With GLPG4716 and Midazolam in Healthy Subjects Phase 1
Completed NCT04967157 - Cognitive Effects of Citicoline on Attention in Healthy Men and Women N/A
Recruiting NCT04494269 - A Study to Evaluate Pharmacokinetics and Safety of Tegoprazan in Subjects With Hepatic Impairment and Healthy Controls Phase 1
Recruiting NCT04714294 - Evaluate the Safety, Tolerability and Pharmacokinetics Characteristics of HPP737 in Healthy Volunteers Phase 1
Completed NCT04539756 - Writing Activities and Emotions N/A
Recruiting NCT04098510 - Concentration of MitoQ in Human Skeletal Muscle N/A
Completed NCT03308110 - Bioavailability and Food Effect Study of Two Formulations of PF-06650833 Phase 1