Clinical Research Directory

Determining Efficacy and Safety of BXCL501 in Agitation Associated With Pediatric Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder

This is a study of the efficacy and safety of BXCL501 in children and adolescents with acute agitation and either bipolar disorder or schizophrenia.

Cerebellar Modulation of Cognition in Psychosis

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn about cognition in psychotic disorders (schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and schizoaffective disorder). The main question it aims to answer is: Can we use magnetic stimulation to change processing speed (how quickly people can solve challenging tasks). Participants will be asked to perform cognitive tasks (problem-solving) and undergo brain scans before and after transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). TMS is a way to non-invasively change brain activity. Forms of TMS are FDA-approved to treat depression and obsessive compulsive disorder. In this study, we will use a different form of TMS to temporarily change brain activity to observe how that changes speed in problem-solving.

Unobtrusive Monitoring of Affective Symptoms and Cognition Using Keyboard Dynamics (UnMASCK)

Mood disorders are associated with significant financial and health costs for the United States, partially due to cognitive problems in these patients that can worsen disease course and impair treatment response. This study proposes to use smartphone-based technology to monitor cognitive problems in patients with mood disorders by linking brain network changes with predicted worsening of mood symptoms. The proposed study will provide evidence for using smartphone-based passive sensing as a cost-effective way to predict illness course and treatment response.

Melatonin and Response to Lithium

Bipolar disorders are mental illnesses characterized by the recurrence of mood-episodes, that can have a severe impact on the life of individuals. The effect of lithium, one of the main medications used to treat acute episodes or prevent them from happening, is very different from one individual to an-other. So far, there is no way to predict in advance for whom patient this treatment will be effective or for whom it will not. Finding markers that can predict as early as possible the efficiency of this treatment is a major field of current research in psychiatry, in order to avoid maintaining an inefficient treatment for several years that can have negative side-effects. Over the past decades, it has been shown by multiple studies that lithium can act on the biological clock, that regulates circadian rhythmicity of the body (i.e. rhythms that presents a 24 hours periods, such as rhythms of sleep and activity, feeding, social activities...). But it is still very unclear whether the effect of lithium in regulating the mood in bipolar disorders is mediated by this action. Melatonin is one of the key-regulator of circadian rhythmicity of the human body. Our hypothesis, based on some previous studies, is that the action of lithium in type-1 bipolar disorder (BD-I) is related to an action on melatonin secretion. To test that, we want in this study to compare the noctunal secretion of melatonin between BD-I individuals with a good response to lithium versus with a poor response to lithium.

Biocollection on Peripheral Inflammation

Most psychiatric research is based on the nosographic classifications used in current practice. At present, there is no diagnostic or prognostic biomarker for psychiatric pathologies commonly used in clinical practice. The study hypothesis is that peripheral inflammatory biomarkers could be common to several psychiatric disorders, in particular psychotic disorders (bipolar disorder, schizophreniform disorder, schizophrenia, depressive episode with psychotic features). The aim of this project is to set up a bio-collection of biological samples (peripheral blood samples) with associated phenotypic data (assessment of various symptoms using standardized scales in patients whose blood is sampled). The setting up of this cohort follows on from work carried out on a PsyCourse cohort also using a transdiagnostic approach in psychiatry, in order to be able to collaborate within a European research project.