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Brain scans reveal why some people are more susceptible to placebos

NCT ID NCT07479966

Knowledge-focused Sponsor: Stefanie Brassen Source: ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

What the study statuses mean

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only This study
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 26, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study looks at whether differences in brain connectivity can predict how strongly people respond to placebos. About 50 healthy adults will undergo brain scans and participate in placebo experiments where they receive a nasal spray labeled as oxytocin (but actually just saline). The goal is to understand why some individuals experience stronger placebo effects, which could inform future treatments for mood disorders.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

What this could lead to
If successful, this could help explain why some people respond to placebos more than others, potentially improving future treatment designs for mood disorders.
What could go wrong
This is a small, early-stage observational study in healthy volunteers, not a treatment trial. Results may not apply to patients with mood disorders or lead to direct clinical benefits.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Participants

About 50 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Mar 2022

Expected to finish

Jul 2026

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

Other sponsor

The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Who is studied

This rs-fMRI study will include healthy volunteers who completed an expectation-manipulation study and agreed to an additional rs-fMRI session. The sample will be drawn from the ongoing ClinicalTrials.gov-registered study "Expectation Effects on Emotional Processing" (NCT07031804) (Szabo et al., in prep) and a previously collected cohort reported by Mostauli et al. (2025). In both datasets, participants complete a counterbalanced cross-over fMRI design with sessions approximately one week apart, receiving intranasal saline labeled as "oxytocin" or "saline". In the scanner, participants perform an emotion classification task (Szabo et al., in prep.) or a spatial cueing task with emotional distractors (Mostauli et al., 2025). After finishing the study, participants are invited to an additional MRI session including resting-state fMRI and a T1-weighted scan.

Ages

18 to 35 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Aged 18-35 years * MRI compatible * Medical information and signed declaration of consent * Normal or corrected to normal vision * German speaking Exclusion Criteria: * No informed consent * Current intake of central nervous system active drugs * Under influence of alcohol * BDI score above 12 * Significant acute somatic or neurological diseases * History of psychiatric or neurological disorders * Pregnancy/ breastfeeding * Acute nasal diseases or injuries * MR-specific exclusion criteria (claustrophobia, pacemaker, non-MR compatible metallic objects) * fMRI data with strong artefacts or excessive movement will be excluded from analysis

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As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Condition: healthy

How to take part

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  1. The places running it

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  2. The official record

    The full official record for this study. This one lists no contact details, but it is the first place any would appear.

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Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Department of Systems Neuroscience, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf

    Hamburg, Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, 20246, Germany