Pillar Study - Non-Invasive Identification of Craving Biomarkers
Study Basics
Are you over the age of 18 and diagnosed with Substance Use Disorder (SUD) or have an implanted Percept DBS System? If so, you may be eligible to participate in a study to identify non-invasive areas of craving in the brain.
Study Purpose
Substance Use Disorders (SUDs) are a major public health problem. Craving often comes before and motivates relapse. This study aims to use brain Electroencephalogram (EEG), MRI, and other methods to find a brain signal (biomarker) involved in craving. There is no current objective biomarker for craving and finding one could help diagnose and treat SUDs in the future. Additionally the study team will recruit participants with DBS electrodes implanted in the brain to record neural signal along with brain EEG. This will allow us to validate our methods to assess deep neural signals from scalp EEG.
Could this study be right for you?
Eligible participants are:
Cohort 1:
- Between the ages of 18 and 55 years old
- Diagnosed with Substance Use Disorder (SUD)
Cohort 2:
- Between the ages of 18 and 75 years old
- Have an implanted Percept DBS System
What participants can expect
Cohort 1: You would be in this study for about 3-4 weeks and visit the research site at UCSF Mission Bay 3 times in addition to 1 virtual visit. During the second, third and fourth clinic visits, you will complete a series of non-invasive testing may including brain MRI, EEG, questionnaires, cognitive and behavioral tasks while wearing the EEG head web. The HD-EEG cap is a 280-channel head web that will allow the study team to see how your brain activity changes while participating in tasks.
Cohort 2: You would be in this study for about 2 weeks and visit the research site at UCSF Mission Bay once in addition to 1 virtual visit. You will be asked to complete the cognitive and behavioral tasks while wearing the HD-EEG head web. The HD-EEG cap is a 280-channel head web that will allow the study team to see how your brain activity changes while participating in tasks. Additionally, local field potentials (LFPs) from your DBS recordings will be measured while you wear the HD-EEG head web. This will allow the study team to compare the HD-EEG activity to known LFPs generated by the DBS device.
Study participants will be compensated for their time and effort.
IRB: 24-41884 - Non-Invasive Identification of Craving Biomarkers
Contact the Research Team if you are interested in participating
Study Personnel
PILLAR Study Personnel
Khaled Moussawi, MD, PhD
Principal Investigator
Associate Professor in Residence in the departments of Neurology and Psychiatry at UCSF with extensive experience in substance use disorders and neuromodulation. Dr. Moussawi is board-certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.
Ru Zhang, PhD
Assistant Researcher
Ru Zhang is an assistant professional researcher with a background in cognitive psychology and neuroscience. She received her PhD in mathematical and computational cognitive science from Purdue University.
Kelly Kadlec, PhD
Postdoctoral Scholar
Kelly Kadlec is a postdoctoral researcher with a background in electrical engineering and neuroscience. She received her PhD in Neurobiology from Caltech.
Sierra Brandts, BS
Clinical Research Coordinator
Sierra Brandts is a Clinical Research Coordinator with a background in neuromodulation and addiction research. She received her BS in Neuroscience from Sewanee: The University of the South.
Emme Chen, BS
Jr. Research Specialist
Emme Chen is a Jr. Research Specialist with a clinical background in addiction medicine. She received her degree in Biopsychology from UC Santa Barbara.