Assessment of Cholinergic and Cognitive Function Using Pharmacologic ASL-Perfusion MRI

Hebrew SeniorLife

Status

Completed

Conditions

Cholinergic Function

Treatments

Drug: Scopolamine

Drug: Placebo

Drug: Donepezil

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Identifiers

NCT01379001

K23AG031320

Details and patient eligibility

About

This research study will look at how medications affect the pattern of blood flow in the brain. This study will use a special type of MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scan called perfusion MRI to make measurements of cerebral (brain) blood flow. The medications we will use in this study are scopolamine (commonly used to treat motion sickness), mecamylamine (used to treat high blood pressure), and donepezil (used to treat memory loss). Cognitive testing will also be obtained, and correlated with the blood flow patterns in the brain.

Full description

Project Summary: This research project will investigate the value of combined pharmacologic manipulation and arterial spin-labeled perfusion MRI (pharmacologic ASL-pMRI) as an in vivo probe of cholinergic function. Methods to investigate cholinergic function in vivo are needed to better understand the role of acetylcholine in the physiology of the cerebral cortex, and in cognitive processes in health and in disease states. In this study, pharmacologic ASL-pMRI will be used to characterize the normal cerebral perfusion response to cholinergic manipulation in young healthy subjects. Cognitive measures will also be obtained and correlated with cerebral perfusion changes. Pharmacologic ASL-pMRI and cognitive testing will then be used to study how the cholinergic response is altered with normal aging and in delirium

Enrollment

60 patients

Sex

All

Ages

21 to 80 years old

Volunteers

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

healthy volunteers

Exclusion criteria

Any neurological condition, such as brain tumor, history of stroke, seizure disorder, attention deficit disorder, normal pressure hydrocephalus, dementia, traumatic brain injury
Any major medical conditions, such a cancer, diabetes, glaucoma, prostate disease, uncontrolled hypertension
antihistamine use
tricyclic antidepressant use
presence of metal in body, including pacemaker, defibrillator, neurostimulator, metal implants, or foreign metal objects such as bullets or shrapnel.
anxiety or panic disorder
history of claustrophobia
pregnancy