Gamma tACS in Alzheimer's Disease

NCT04515433 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: NP3847
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 20
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Brain oscillations are ubiquitous in the human brain and have been implicated in cognitive and behavioral states defined in precisely tuned neural networks. In neurodegenerative disorders, neurodegeneration is accompanied by changes in oscillatory activity leading to the emerging concept of neurological and psychiatric disorders as "oscillopathies". Alzheimer's disease, which accounts for the vast majority of age-related dementias, is characterised by a prominent disruption of oscillations in the gamma frequency band. The restoration of gamma oscillations by neural entrainment in animal models of Alzheimer's disease have shown a remarkable decrease in the pathological burden of amyloid and tau via increased microglial activity, resulting in a significant increase of cognitive performances. Transcranial alternating current brain stimulation (tACS), is a neurophysiological method of non-invasive modulation of the excitability of the central nervous system that is having an increasingly numerous spectrum of potential therapeutic applications. Recent studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of this method in modulating the natural frequencies of cerebral oscillation, underlying multiple cognitive processes such as verbal memory, perception and working memory. On the basis of these premises, the treatment with gamma tACS is proposed in patients affected by Alzheimer's disease. In this randomized, double-blind, sham-controlled, cross-over study, the investigators will evaluate whether a single stimulation with gamma tACS on the posterior parietal cortex can improve symptoms in patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment due to Alzheimer's disease.

Conditions

Alzheimer Disease

Keywords

Alzheimer's disease; transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation; tACS; Gamma stimulation

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Changes in Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test scores

  Participants are given a list of 15 unrelated words repeated over five different trials and are asked to repeat. Another list of 15 unrelated words are given and the patient must again repeat the original list of 15 words and then again after 30 minutes. The score ranges from 0 (worse performance) to 15 (best performance).

  Baseline (immediately before the intervention) - Immediately after the intervention

• Changes in Face-Name Associative Memory Test scores

  The Face-Name Associative Memory Test is a cross-modal associative memory test, it includes 20 face-name pairs. The administration procedure starts with the presentation of 20 faces with each name and participants should read the name underneath the faces and try to learn each face-name pair. After 5 minutes, the faces are shown one by one and participants are asked to recall the associated names from 4 different names. The correct number of pairs recalled is recorded. The score ranges from 0 (worse performance) to 20 (best performance).

  During the intervention

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• Change in SAI measurements

  Baseline (immediately before the intervention) - Immediately after the intervention

Study Arms (2)

real tACS

EXPERIMENTAL

Single session of gamma tACS (40 Hz) at 3 mA over the superior parietal cortex (Precuneus)

Device: Gamma tACS (40 Hz) over the superior parietal cortex

sham tACS

PLACEBO COMPARATOR

Single session of sham tACS over the superior parietal cortex (Precuneus)

Device: Gamma tACS (40 Hz) over the superior parietal cortex

Interventions

Gamma tACS (40 Hz) over the superior parietal cortex DEVICE

Single session of gamma tACS (40 Hz) over the superior parietal cortex

real tACS; sham tACS

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: No
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• \- Mild Cognitive Impairment due to Alzheimer's disease (according to Albert et al., Alzheimers Dement 2011).

You may not qualify if:

• Cerebrovascular disorders, previous stroke, hydrocephalus, and intra-cranial mass documented by MRI.
• History of traumatic brain injury or other neurological diseases.
• Serious medical illness other than FTD
• History of seizures
• Pregnancy
• Metal implants in the head (except dental fillings)
• Electronic implants (i.e. pace-maker, implanted medical pump)
• Age \<18 years

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Azienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale degli Spedali Civili di Brescia: lead

Study Sites (1)

AO Spedali Civili

Brescia, BS, 25100, Italy

Location

Related Publications (5)

• Fries P. Neuronal gamma-band synchronization as a fundamental process in cortical computation. Annu Rev Neurosci. 2009;32:209-24. doi: 10.1146/annurev.neuro.051508.135603.

  PMID: 19400723 BACKGROUND

• Iaccarino HF, Singer AC, Martorell AJ, Rudenko A, Gao F, Gillingham TZ, Mathys H, Seo J, Kritskiy O, Abdurrob F, Adaikkan C, Canter RG, Rueda R, Brown EN, Boyden ES, Tsai LH. Gamma frequency entrainment attenuates amyloid load and modifies microglia. Nature. 2016 Dec 7;540(7632):230-235. doi: 10.1038/nature20587.

  PMID: 27929004 BACKGROUND

• Adaikkan C, Middleton SJ, Marco A, Pao PC, Mathys H, Kim DN, Gao F, Young JZ, Suk HJ, Boyden ES, McHugh TJ, Tsai LH. Gamma Entrainment Binds Higher-Order Brain Regions and Offers Neuroprotection. Neuron. 2019 Jun 5;102(5):929-943.e8. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2019.04.011. Epub 2019 May 7.

  PMID: 31076275 BACKGROUND

• Martorell AJ, Paulson AL, Suk HJ, Abdurrob F, Drummond GT, Guan W, Young JZ, Kim DN, Kritskiy O, Barker SJ, Mangena V, Prince SM, Brown EN, Chung K, Boyden ES, Singer AC, Tsai LH. Multi-sensory Gamma Stimulation Ameliorates Alzheimer's-Associated Pathology and Improves Cognition. Cell. 2019 Apr 4;177(2):256-271.e22. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2019.02.014. Epub 2019 Mar 14.

  PMID: 30879788 BACKGROUND

• Herrmann CS, Rach S, Neuling T, Struber D. Transcranial alternating current stimulation: a review of the underlying mechanisms and modulation of cognitive processes. Front Hum Neurosci. 2013 Jun 14;7:279. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00279. eCollection 2013.

  PMID: 23785325 BACKGROUND

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Alzheimer Disease

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Dementia; Brain Diseases; Central Nervous System Diseases; Nervous System Diseases; Tauopathies; Neurodegenerative Diseases; Neurocognitive Disorders; Mental Disorders

Study Officials

• Barbara Borroni, MD

  Azienda Ospedaliera Spedali Civili, Brescia

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

• Alberto Benussi, MD

  Azienda Ospedaliera Spedali Civili, Brescia

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Masking: QUADRUPLE
• Who Masked: PARTICIPANT, CARE PROVIDER, INVESTIGATOR, OUTCOMES ASSESSOR
• Purpose: TREATMENT
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Professor

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: August 11, 2020
• First Posted: August 17, 2020
• Study Start: August 20, 2020
• Primary Completion: September 30, 2020
• Study Completion: September 30, 2020
• Last Updated: March 19, 2021

Record last verified: 2021-03

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will share
• Shared Documents: STUDY PROTOCOL, SAP
• Time Frame: Data will be shared after the study completion indefinitely.
• Access Criteria: Reasonable request

Locations

IT (1)