Modulation of Brain Oscillations Underlying Working Memory

Working Memory Clinical Trial

Official title:

State-dependent Modulation of Interactions of Theta and Gamma Rhythms in Working Memory

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Not yet recruiting

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT05923606
• Other study ID #: 2023P001479
• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: May 1, 2024
• Est. completion date: August 31, 2026

Study information

• Verified date: March 2024
• Source: Massachusetts General Hospital
• Contact: Alexandra O'Neill, B.S.
• Phone: (617) 726-8753
• Email: agoneill[@]mgh.harvard.edu
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

This study will use novel transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) protocols and electroencephalography (EEG) to modulate and measure brain oscillations that underlie working memory. tACS is a noninvasive method used to modulate the timing and patterns of brain rhythms via weak electric currents passed through electrodes on the scalp.

Description:

In this study, healthy adult individuals will perform a spatial working memory task as investigators record scalp EEG before and immediately after undergoing transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS). Each participant will complete four tACS sessions in randomized order: 1) theta-nested gamma tACS applied during active task periods, 2) theta-nested gamma tACS applied during passive (rest) periods, 3) gamma stimulation applied in phase with ongoing theta oscillations, and 4) placebo tACS. The different stimulation protocols will take place on different days. Therefore, participants will be expected to attend 4 in-person study visits at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging in Charlestown, Massachusetts.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Not yet recruiting
• Enrollment: 32
• Est. completion date: August 31, 2026
• Est. primary completion date: August 31, 2025
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 18 Years to 35 Years

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Able to provide informed consent

• Fluent in English.

Exclusion Criteria:

• History of a neurological/psychiatric disorder

• Current use of psychotropic medications

• Current use of substances and drugs that were shown to affect tES (transcranial electrical stimulation) efficacy (dopamine altering drugs, nicotine, NMDA (N-methyl-D-aspartate) antagonists/agonists, sodium/calcium channel blockers, norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, GABAergic modulators and selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors)

• Contraindications for tACS (e.g., history of seizures, metallic implants in the head or neck, implanted brain stimulators, vagus nerve stimulators, pacemakers, pregnancy)

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Working Memory

Intervention

Device:
• Active tACS
Active tACS will be administered over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for approximately 25 minutes.
• Placebo tACS
Placebo tACS will be administered over the left dorsolateral prefrontal cortex for approximately 25 minutes.

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging	Charlestown	Massachusetts

Sponsors (1)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
Massachusetts General Hospital

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Working memory accuracy	Accuracy of working memory retrieval during a Delayed Match-to-Sample task will be assessed before and during tACS interventions	2 hours
Primary	Working memory accuracy under interference	Accuracy of working memory retrieval during interference conditions of a Delayed Match-to-Sample task will be assessed before and during tACS interventions.	2 hours
Primary	Theta-gamma cross-frequency coupling	Cross-frequency coupling between theta band phase and gamma band amplitude will be calculated using the EEG data collected while subjects perform the Delayed Match-to-Sample task before and after tACS interventions.	2 hours
Primary	Fronto-parietal theta phase synchronization	Phase synchronization in the theta band between frontal and parietal brain regions will be calculated using the EEG data collected while subjects perform the Delayed Match-to-Sample task before and after the tACS interventions.	2 hours