Can pulsing light on the scalp boost brain performance?
NCT ID NCT07752602
First seen Aug 07, 2026 · Last updated Aug 07, 2026
Summary
This trial explores whether shining low-level light on the scalp—a technique called transcranial photobiomodulation—can change brain activity and improve fine motor skills like finger tapping. Twenty healthy young adults will receive different light pulse frequencies (continuous, 10 Hz, 40 Hz, 100 Hz) and a sham control, with a week between sessions. Researchers will measure brain excitability using transcranial magnetic stimulation and assess motor speed and dexterity. The goal is to see if specific frequencies have distinct effects on brain function.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Transcranial photobiomodulation (tPBM), a non-invasive light therapy applied to the scalp
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could help identify optimal light frequencies for enhancing brain function and motor performance, potentially informing future treatments for neurological conditions.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-phase, small study in healthy volunteers, so results may not apply to patients. The effects may be subtle or not reproducible, and the therapy's safety and efficacy are not yet established.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 1
The first testing in people. Mainly checks safety and dose, usually in a small group.
- Participants
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About 20 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Jan 2027
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Dec 2027
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 to 35 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
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: * Voluntary Participation: Participants who are clear of their cognitive faculties, capable of understanding all experimental procedures, and who provide written informed consent prior to enrollment. * Neurologically and Psychiatrically Healthy Status: Individuals with no current or prior history of neurological, neurodevelopmental, or psychiatric conditions; * Age Range: Young adult volunteers aged between 18 and 35 years. Exclusion Criteria: * Use of any continuous psychotropic medication within the past 12 months. * Any current psychiatric diagnosis based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). * Diagnosis of any neurological disorder capable of altering cortical excitability (e.g., seizures/epilepsy, cerebrovascular accidents/stroke, brain tumors). * Any clinical, psychological, or social condition that, in the investigator's opinion, places the participant at an increased risk, compromises participant safety, or precludes full compliance and successful completion of the study protocol. * Presence of any intracranial devices or implants, including cochlear implants and aneurysm clips. * Severe or uncompensated systemic medical illness that could interfere with study participation or confound physiological outcomes. * Participation in any other interventional neuromodulation study within the preceding 6 months.
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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
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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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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Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre
Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
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