Neurobiological Mechanisms of Aging and Stress on Prospective Navigation
This study is looking at how aging and stress affect your memory and ability to navigate, especially when planning how to reach a goal. Researchers want to understand why some older adults experience more memory and navigation problems, and how stress plays a role. You would be assigned to either a group that experiences anticipatory psychological stress (a mild electrical stimulation to the ankle during tasks) or a control group. Both groups will complete a virtual navigation task. Researchers will measure your behavior, brain activity using fMRI (functional magnetic resonance imaging), and how your brain reactivates memories. The goal is to understand the brain mechanisms behind these differences. This study is for adults aged 65-80 who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents, speak fluent English, and can come to Georgia Tech for testing.
- Study design
- This is an interventional study with an unclear status, aiming to enroll 85 participants. Participants will be assigned to either a stress-manipulated group or a control group.
- What's involved
- You would participate in group testing sessions at Georgia Tech. The study involves psychology tasks, virtual navigation, and fMRI scans.
- Compensation
- Not stated in the trial record.
- Follow-up
- Measurements for primary outcomes will be taken at approximately 1.5 years.
AI-generated from the public study record. Only the study team can confirm whether you're eligible — confirm details with them before making decisions.
Neurobiological Mechanisms of Aging and Stress on Prospective Navigation
At a glance
Conditions
NCT03896529
Where you'd take part
This study runs at 1 site. They're the same protocol — you choose where, and that choice sets who your contact draft is addressed to.
Center for Advance Brain Imaging
Atlanta, Georgiastudy coordinator listed
Recruiting
Sites open and close at different times, so the status above is per site — it can differ from the study's overall status.
Study leadership
- Thackery I Brown, Ph.D. · PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR · Georgia Institute of Technology
Who to contact
Opens a ready-to-send draft in your own email app — review before sending.
Want this trial checked against your situation?
Add a private profile and we'll compare every criterion below against your situation — and tell you which ones are met, uncertain, or excluding.
Inclusion
Exclusion
What this trial measures
- Behavioral probability of taking a shortcut between control and treatment groupsApproximately 1.5 years
Probability of taking a virtual navigation shortcut on an fMRI task trial, compared between stress and control groups. Measurement tool: objective categorical measure (no scale) reflecting proportion of trials in which participants traverse the shortcut road or, alternatively, the familiar (longer) road in a virtual environment.
- fMRI activation level between control and treatment groupsApproximately 1.5 years
Network activation levels (across frontoparietal, hippocampal, and striatal memory network) during fMRI task trials, compared between stress and control groups. Measurement tool: fMRI activity level. Scale: continuous activity level estimates from fMRI.
- Neural memory representation reactivation between control and treatment groupsApproximately 1.5 years
Memory reactivation levels in neural activity patterns during fMRI task, compared between stress and control groups. Measurement tool: Machine learning algorithm trained to decode fMRI patterns across voxels. Scale: algorithm success at classifying fMRI patterns according to the correct location memory for a given fMRI task trial