Conditions: Healthy Controls
Allocation: RANDOMIZED | Intervention model: PARALLEL
Enrollment: 65
Healthy volunteers: yes

Brief summary:
The purpose of this study is to assess the relative feasibility of 2 potential functional measures of target engagement (Glx MRS, BOLD fMRI) to systematically assess mGluR 2/3 in drug development for psychotic spectrum disorders.

Detailed description:
This is a pilot study of healthy subject to assess the feasibility of Glx MRS and BOLD fMRI to measure ketamine induced changes in glutamatergic indices. The investigators will randomize 18 subjects at each site. Subjects will be randomized to ketamine or placebo in a 2:1 ratio and receive two drug challenges separated by at least two weeks. Ketamine challenge is used to induce a "glutamate surge" within prefrontal brain regions that can be detected using neurochemical and functional imaging techniques. Each subject will receive MRS and BOLD fMRI during each challenge day. The goal of the pilot study is to assess the feasibility of both the proposed ketamine challenge paradigm and of the proposed imaging-based biomarkers. Specific indices to be used in assessing feasibility will include effect size, cross-site and cross-subject reliability, safety, and subject tolerability as similar studies will be performed independently at Yale and UC Davis. Second this information will be used to select and refine final study parameters for a subsequent full proof-of-clinical mechanism (POCM) study investigating the effect of Pomaglumetad on ketamine-induced MRS and fMRI effects.

Arms:
arm 1: IV infusion of ketamine 0.23mg/kg bolus over 1 minutes followed by 0.58 mg/kg/hr over 30 minutes then 0.29mg/kg/hr over 64 minutes arm 2: Placebo group will receive normal saline

Interventions: intervention 1: Ketamine intervention 2: Normal saline
Intervention descriptions: intervention 1: intravenous infusion of saline solution with ketamine intervention 2: Normal saline will be used for placebo in this group

Protocol document: