Modulation of Memory Consolidation in Humans

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

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Recruitment Status

COMPLETED

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

54 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2018-12-01

Study Completion Date

2021-01-31

Brief Summary

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The goal of the present study is to optimize effects of slow oscillatory transcranial direct current stimulation (so-tDCS) on sleep physiology and memory consolidation in humans by combining computational and experimental human models in an iterative process. The investigator therefore works in cooperation with Prof. Dr. Klaus Obermayer (TU Berlin), who contributes computation models with the aim to mechanistically understand the impact of different perturbations on sleep-related electrophysiological features, and to subsequently optimize so-tDCS parameters for inducing SO and spindle activity.

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Detailed Description

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Sleep plays an active role in long-term consolidation of memories. Specifically, slow oscillations (SO, large amplitude waves \<1 Hz) and sleep spindles (8-15 Hz), that can be measured by electroencephalography (EEG), appear to be critical for declarative memories. According to the "active system consolidation" account, newly encoded memories are reactivated during sleep, accompanied by sharp-wave ripple events (80-100 Hz) in the hippocampus, and redistributed to cortical long-term storage networks through a coordinated dialog between the hippocampus and neocortex. This dialog is supposedly mediated by a particular coupling between cortical SO and thalamo-cortical fast spindles (12-15 Hz), with spindles preferably occurring during SO up-phases, and hippocampal ripples grouped at the troughs of fast spindles. Slow spindles (8-12 Hz) are a separate kind of sleep spindle activity whose function in memory consolidation is less well understood.

Interventions targeting sleep parameters may not only make it possible to beneficially modulate a vital aspect of memory consolidation, i. e., sleep-dependent memory consolidation, but may also help to delineate which specific elements of the neural dynamics during sleep are crucial for successful consolidation.

Conditions

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Sleep

Study Design

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Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

CROSSOVER

7 experimental stimulation conditions (including sham stimulation) are tested in a randomized, counterbalanced, within-subject design

Primary Study Purpose

OTHER

Blinding Strategy

DOUBLE

Participants Investigators

Study Groups

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Slow oscillating transcranial direct current stimulation (so-tDCS)

7 experimental daytime naps with so-tDCS of different frequencies (fixed frequency of 0.75 Hz versus individually adapted frequency) and durations (5 min, 2 min, 30 sec) (Crossover assignment, applicable for each participant)

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Device: anodal tDCS

Intervention Type OTHER

anodal current modulated by an oscillatory component including a fixed (0,75 Hz) versus individually adapted so-tDCS frequency with three different stimulation durations (5 min, 2 min, 30 sec)

Sham stimulation

sham so-tDCS during a daytime nap (Crossover assignment, applicable for each participant)

Group Type SHAM_COMPARATOR

Device: no stimulation

Intervention Type OTHER

sham stimulation

Interventions

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Device: anodal tDCS

anodal current modulated by an oscillatory component including a fixed (0,75 Hz) versus individually adapted so-tDCS frequency with three different stimulation durations (5 min, 2 min, 30 sec)

Intervention Type OTHER

Device: no stimulation

sham stimulation

Intervention Type OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

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Inclusion Criteria

* Adults aged between 50-80 years
* screened as healthy in a structured telephone interview

Exclusion Criteria

* Mini Mental Status Examination scores below 24
* history of severe untreated medical, neurological, and psychiatric diseases
* sleep disorders
* alcohol or substance abuse
* brain pathologies identified on MRI scan
* intake of medication acting primarily on the central nervous system (e.g., antipsychotics, antidepressants, benzodiazepines, or any type of over-the-counter sleep-inducing drugs such as valerian),
* nonfluent German language abilities.

Minimum Eligible Age

50 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

80 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes