Prefrontal Glutamatergic Modulation by N-acetylcysteine and Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy for Mild Depression in Youth
University of Cincinnati
Summary
The primary goal is to investigate to what extent changes in glutamate and glutathione modulation and functional integration between brain networks associated with emotion and attention regulation are associated with treatment response in mildly depressed youth.
Description
The specific goals are to determine whether treatment with a combination of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) and N-acetylcysteine (NAC) enhances changes in left ventrolateral prefrontal cortex (VLPFC) and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) glutamate and glutathione levels, and cortical-subcortical functional connectivity (Fc) compared with MBCT alone or NAC alone. The central hypothesis is that modulating glutamatergic output in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and improving the cortical-subcortical functional connectivity (Fc) underlie treatment response in this population. The rationale fo…
Eligibility
- Age range
- 15–24 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- No
Inclusion Criteria: 1. age between 15 years, 0 months to 24 years, 11 months old; 2. presenting with mild depression, defined by meeting DSM-5 criteria for a current major depressive episode, mild severity, or persistent depressive disorder, or other specified depressive disorder (depressive episode with insufficient symptoms to meet criteria for a major depressive episode); 3. medication-naïve or medication free for at least 5 half-lives since the last use of a psychoactive medication, with the exception of stimulants for ADHD; 4. if on ADHD stimulant medication over 2 months prior to screen…
Interventions
- DrugN-acetylcysteine
N-acetylcysteine 2400 mg/d
- BehavioralMindfulness-based cognitive therapy
Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy
- DrugPlacebo
Placebo capsules
- BehavioralSham mindfulness-based intervention
Sham mindfulness-based intervention
Location
- University of Cincinnati, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral NeuroscienceCincinnati, Ohio