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Cortical Excitability Changes on the Sensorimotor Cortex Induced by Caffeine Consumption: A TMS Study

NCT03720665 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 30

Last updated 2019-11-29

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Caffeine is a widely used psychostimulant drug and acts as a competitive antagonist at adenosine receptors. Its effect is on neurons and glial cells of all brain areas. Chronic consumption of caffeine leads to tolerance which might be associated with an increased number of binding sites in the brain. In deep brain stimulation (DBS), the production of adenosine following the release of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) explains the reduction of in tremor. Binding of adenosine to adenosine A1 receptor suppresses excitatory transmission in the thalamus and thus reduces both tremor-and DBS-induced side effects. Also, the effect of adenosine was attenuated following the administration of the 8-Cyclopentyl-1,3-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX) adenosine A1 receptor antagonist. Therefore, the presence of a receptor antagonist such as caffeine was suggested to reduce the effectiveness of deep brain stimulation (DBS) in treating tremor and other movement disorders.

In light with this finding, we anticipate that the antagonistic effect of caffeine is a culprit to the reduction of effectiveness of any stimulation protocol in non-invasive stimulation (NIBS). In particular the excitatory effects of a NIBS protocol can tentatively be blocked in the presence of caffeine.

In this study, the effects of caffeine consumption on cortical excitability at the sensorimotor cortex shall be examined on focal and non-focal plasticity. Focal plasticity will be induced by paired associated stimulation (PAS) and global cortical plasticity from transcranial alternating current (tACS) stimulation. In case of tACS stimulation, 1) an excitatory protocol (tACS, 140 Hz, 1 mA) and 2) an inhibitory protocol (tACS, 140 Hz, 0.4 mA) with the active electrode over M1 and the return electrode over the orbitofrontal cortex will be used. Changes in cortical excitability are assessed using transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) recordings.

Research goals are to examine the effects of caffeine consumption on sensorimotor cortical excitability and stimulation induced plasticity. In addition, this study explores further factors which usually contribute to variability in cortical excitability studies. The results are expected to give a useful recommendation for researchers to reduce confounding factors and hereby improves repeatability.

Conditions

  • Cortical Excitability
  • Brain Stimulation

Interventions

COMBINATION_PRODUCT

Caffeine_TMS

Caffeine group: participants will receive a caffeine tablet and all electrical stimulations in a random order \[transcranial electrical stimulation (tACS 140 Hz at 1 mA, 0.4 mA, sham) and paired associative stimulation (PAS 25)\] Placebo tablet: participants will receive a placebo tablet and all electrical stimulations in a random order \[transcranial electrical stimulation (tACS 140 Hz at 1 mA, 0.4 mA, sham) and paired associative stimulation (PAS 25)\]

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • University Medical Center Goettingen

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Walter Paulus, Prof. Dr · University of Goettingen

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
BASIC_SCIENCE
Masking
DOUBLE
Model
CROSSOVER

Eligibility

Min Age
18 Years
Max Age
45 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2018-10-01
Primary Completion
2019-11-18
Completion
2019-11-18

Countries

  • Germany

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT03720665 on ClinicalTrials.gov