Scientists listen in on brain cells that judge a face
NCT ID NCT07822178
First seen Sep 16, 2026 · Last updated Sep 17, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
Researchers want to understand how the brain handles faces, which people use constantly to make social decisions. The study enrolls adults with intractable epilepsy who already have electrodes implanted in their brains for clinical monitoring. While those electrodes are in place, participants perform simple computer tasks that involve looking at faces and pressing buttons. The team records brain cell activity and sometimes delivers brief electrical pulses to see how that changes face-based decisions.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Recording and electrical stimulation through electrodes temporarily implanted in the brain for epilepsy monitoring
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could reveal where and when the brain represents face information and how that shapes social decisions, which may inform future treatments for conditions that affect social perception.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small observational study in people who already need brain electrodes for epilepsy care, so the findings may not apply to healthy brains or to other brain regions. Electrical stimulation carries a small risk of seizures or discomfort.
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.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 100 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Dec 2023
- Expected to finish
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Nov 2028
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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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.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide 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: * Intractable epilepsy, undergoing invasive monitoring * Age ≥18 * Full Scale Intelligence Quotient \> 70 * Ability to comprehend and perform simple behavioral tasks by pressing buttons on laptop computer in response to questions. Exclusion Criteria: * Determination by clinicians and investigators that a patient is unable to complete the behavioral tasks required for the protocol due to either cognitive limits, psychological limits, or pain.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
2 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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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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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Cedars-Sinai Medical Center
Los Angeles, California, 90048, United States
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Stanford University
Palo Alto, California, 94304, United States
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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- Scientists probe the brain's decision-making circuitry one neuron at a time
- Ketogenic diet in kids with epilepsy: how does it affect eating habits and metabolism?
- Virtual tours may help spare memory in epilepsy surgery
- Brain study reveals how we learn from experience
- New score could spare epilepsy patients from invasive brain probes