Neuropharmacological Basis of Social Connection: The Role of Opioids

NCT ID: NCT01672723

Last Updated: 2016-01-14

Basic Information

• Recruitment Status: COMPLETED
• Clinical Phase: NA
• Total Enrollment: 34 participants
• Study Classification: INTERVENTIONAL
• Study Start Date: 2012-10-31
• Study Completion Date: 2014-02-28

Brief Summary

From birth we rely on others for comfort and care and derive pleasure from being together. Research from the fields of health psychology, social psychology, and public health converge to highlight the importance of having and maintaining good relationships for overall health. Indeed, having close friends and family and feeling connected to them has been called a basic need, similar to our need for food and water. It may not be a coincidence then that feelings of connection rely on similar systems in the body as other needs that are both basic and highly pleasing and rewarding. For instance, its possible that opioids, a substance in the body associated with pleasant, euphoric feelings, may also be important for connecting with others. This study will examine the role of opioids in feeling connected to others by administering a drug called naltrexone, that effects opioid processing in the body, on perceptions and feelings toward a number of tasks in the lab. Additionally, to assess the effects of naltrexone outside of the lab, participants will complete daily diary responses via text and online surveys.

40 participants will take both placebo and naltrexone. Participants will complete two sessions, one in each drug condition, in which they complete a number of tasks including reading messages on a computer screen, holding a number of objects, and viewing images while undergoing electric shocks. Participants will also complete a daily diary for 14 days while on naltrexone and placebo. Prior to these lab sessions participants will be screened at UCLA's Clinical & Translational Research Center (CTRC) to ensure that they are healthy and that it is safe for them to take the study drug.

We hypothesize that people will report feeling less socially connected when on naltrexone compared to placebo and will show subsequent changes in social behavior outside of the lab.

Conditions

Psychology, Social

Study Design

• Allocation Method: RANDOMIZED
• Intervention Model: CROSSOVER
• Primary Study Purpose: BASIC_SCIENCE
• Blinding Strategy: DOUBLE

Study Groups

Naltrexone

Participants will take 4 doses of naltrexone over 4 days (25mg/day for days 1 and 2, 50mg/day for days 3 and 4) as well as 4 matched placebo pills for a total of 8 days. Capsules will be packaged into blister packs.

Participants will be asked to take the first drug, either naltrexone or placebo, once a day for three days prior to the first experimental session and when they arrive at the lab for the experimental procedure . After the first session, participants will take the second study drug for three days prior to the second experimental session and when they arrive for the second experimental procedure.

Group Type: EXPERIMENTAL

Naltrexone

Intervention Type: DRUG

Placebi

Participants will take 4 doses of naltrexone over 4 days (25mg/day for days 1 and 2, 50mg/day for days 3 and 4) as well as 4 matched placebo pills for a total of 8 days. Capsules will be packaged into blister packs.

Participants will be asked to take the first drug, either naltrexone or placebo, once a day for three days prior to the first experimental session and when they arrive at the lab for the experimental procedure . After the first session, participants will take the second study drug for three days prior to the second experimental session and when they arrive for the second experimental procedure.

Group Type: PLACEBO_COMPARATOR

Naltrexone

Intervention Type: DRUG

Interventions

Naltrexone

Intervention Type: DRUG

Other Intervention Names

Depade; ReVia

Eligibility Criteria

Exclusion Criteria

Following an email screening and structured telephone interview, prospective participants with the following conditions will not advance to the in- person screening session: pregnant or planning to become pregnant in the next 6 months, presence of chronic mental or physical illness, history of allergies, liver, or other severe chronic diseases, current and regular use of prescription medications, or previous history of fainting during blood draws.

Furthermore, the absence of significant health problems or medication use history will be confirmed by an in-person screening session. Any participant who has any of the following conditions will be ineligible for the study: (1) Any and all medical conditions, especially hepatitis or liver failure.

Psychiatric Disorders. (2) current and/or lifetime history of a major Depressive Disorder or other Diagnostic and Statistical Manual Diploma in Social Medicine (DSM-IV) psychiatric disorder (e.g. substance dependence) (3) current and/or past regular use of analgesics such as opioids; (4) current and/or past regular use of psychotropic medications, including selective serotonergic reuptake inhibitors, antidepressants, anxiolytics, hypnotics, sedatives and barbiturates. Health factors. (5) current smokers (13) body mass index (BMI) greater than 35, (14) shows evidence of drug use from a urine test, (15) has a positive pregnancy test, if female, or (16) shows any abnormalities on screening laboratory tests.

• Minimum Eligible Age: 18 Years
• Maximum Eligible Age: 35 Years
• Eligible Sex: ALL
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes

Sponsors

University of California, Los Angeles

OTHER

Sponsor Role: lead

Responsible Party

Naomi Eisenberger

Associate Professor

Responsibility Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

Principal Investigators

Naomi I Eisenberger, PhD

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University of California, Los Angeles

Locations

University of California, Los Angeles Department of Psychology

Los Angeles, California, United States

Countries

United States

Other Identifiers

Opioids and Social Cognition

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id