Project description
A novel treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder
Exposure to a traumatic event often leads to posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a psychiatric illness associated with trauma-related recollections and flashbacks. Emerging evidence indicates that in PTSD certain parts of the brain cannot regulate the generation of hyperactive emotions. Scientists of the EU-funded PTSD Neurofeedback project will investigate a treatment approach that improves the connectivity between emotion regulation and emotion generation regions of the brain. This intervention will be based on a real-time functional MRI and tested in a randomised clinical trial, paving the way towards a new treatment for PTSD.
Objective
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating and prevalent psychiatric illness that develops after exposure to a traumatic event, and involves symptoms of severe intrusive recollections and flashbacks related to the trauma, hyperarousal and reactivity, avoidance, and negative alterations in cognitions and mood. Indeed, patients with PTSD are characterized by decreased prefrontal cortex (PFC) regulation on hyperactive emotion generation regions, such as the amygdala and brainstem. Real-time fMRI neurofeedback allows for brain regions to be self-regulated through neuroimaging signal feedback. Recently, the experienced researcher has shown that learning to decrease amygdala activation via real-time fMRI neurofeedback leads to a normalization of pathological neural circuitry maintaining PTSD, which was negatively correlated to symptoms. Critically, however, an intervention has not yet been developed to directly target suboptimal connectivity between emotion regulation regions (PFC) and emotion generation regions (amygdala and brainstem), where an urgent need for novel treatment interventions exists particularly among individuals suffering from PTSD. The objective of the current proposal is to determine the treatment efficacy of increasing the strength of connectivity from the PFC to the amygdala and brainstem via a real-time fMRI neurofeedback randomized clinical trial (RCT). Here, connectivity signals will be relayed back to the participant in the scanner as a simple thermometer that changes as directed connectivity between brain regions-of-interest fluctuate. Participants will be asked to self-regulate the neural signal displayed by the thermometer in real-time during PTSD emotion induction paradigms. The proposed study has the potential to develop into a novel treatment for PTSD, and is in line with current European research trends and societal needs to decrease the economic resources required to support mental health treatment.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2019
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
1010 Wien
Austria
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.