Ketamine-dependent neuronal activation in healthy volunteers

• Published in: Brain Structure and Function 2017-04, Vol.222 (3), p.1533-1542
• Main Authors: Höflich, Anna, Hahn, Andreas, Küblböck, Martin, Kranz, Georg S., Vanicek, Thomas, Ganger, Sebastian, Spies, Marie, Windischberger, Christian, Kasper, Siegfried, Winkler, Dietmar, Lanzenberger, Rupert
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Analysis of Variance; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biomedicine; Brain; Brain - diagnostic imaging; Brain - drug effects; Brain Mapping; Cell Biology; Double-Blind Method; Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists - pharmacology; Female; Healthy Volunteers; Humans; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; Ketamine - pharmacology; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Male; Medical imaging; Neurobiology; Neurology; Neurosciences; Original Article; Oxygen - blood; Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; Psychopharmacology; Rest; Young Adult
• ISSN: 1863-2653; 1863-2661; 0340-2061
• DOI: 10.1007/s00429-016-1291-0

Over the last years, a number of studies have been conducted to clarify the neurobiological correlates of ketamine application. However, comprehensive information regarding the influence of ketamine on cortical activity is still lacking. Using resting-state functional MRI and integrating pharmacokinetic information, a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, crossover study was performed to determine the effects of ketamine on neuronal activation. During a 55 min resting-state fMRI scan, esketamine (Ketanest S ® ) was administered intravenously to 35 healthy volunteers. Neural activation as indicated by the BOLD signal using the pharmacokinetic curve of ketamine plasma levels as a regressor was computed. Compared with placebo, ketamine-dependent increases of neural activation were observed in the midcingulate cortex, the dorsal part of the anterior cingulate cortex, the insula bilaterally, and the thalamus ( t values ranging between 5.95–9.78, p