Can a low dose of ketamine change how people with treatment-resistant depression remember their lives, deal with emotions, and make decisions?

This parallel-arm placebo-controlled experimental medicine study (n=60) aims to investigate whether a low dose of ketamine can alter autobiographical memory, emotional processing, and decision-making in individuals with treatment-resistant depression (TRD).

The study, conducted by the Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, UK, investigates the effects of ketamine, a licensed drug impacting glutamate levels in the brain. Glutamate, involved in memory, prompts an examination of ketamine’s effects on memory, emotional understanding, reward learning, and motivation in TRD.

Participants, adults with TRD unresponsive to standard antidepressants, undergo health screening, questionnaires, computer tasks, and pre-and post-ketamine/placebo MRI scans. Risks include MRI scans, ketamine administration, and questionnaire completion.

Funded by the Medical Research Council (UK), Janssen Pharmaceutical (USA), and Wellcome Trust (UK), the study has ethics approval and is scheduled from October 2017 to March 2024.

Recruitment occurred from April 20, 2022, to February 28, 2024, at the University of Oxford, UK. Exclusions apply to participants with specific psychiatric or medical conditions, substance use disorders, or MRI contraindications.

Publication is anticipated by September 30, 2024, with individual participant data available upon request.

Trial Details

Clinical depression often involves a pessimistic view of things which have happened in the past and an impairment in the ability to experience pleasure or look forward to things. A licensed drug called ketamine affects the levels of glutamate, a chemical messenger in the brain, and has been used as a treatment, particularly for depression which hasn’t got better with other types of medication. Glutamate plays a role in learning and memory so we are interested in understanding how ketamine can affect how people with depression remember past negative and positive memories. This project will help us understand what is the role of glutamate in depression and will expand our understanding of how ketamine can influence memory, the way people understand emotions and learn from rewards and punishments, and motivation.

NCT Number ISRCTN68107842

Data attribution

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