The effect of N-acetylcysteine and working memory training on neural mechanisms of working memory and cue reactivity in regular cocaine users.

Mieke H J Schulte, Anne Marije Kaag, Wouter J Boendermaker, Wim van den Brink, Anna E Goudriaan, Reinout W Wiers

Journal: Psychiatry research. Neuroimaging 2020;287():56-59

PMID: 30991248

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

The current study investigated the combined effects of N-acetylcysteine and working memory (WM) training on behavioral and neural mechanisms of cue reactivity and WM in cocaine users in a randomized, double-blind design. Twenty-four of 38 cocaine-using men completed a 25-day treatment with either 2400 mg/day NAC or placebo. Both groups performed WM-training. During pre- and post-test lab-visits, neural mechanisms of cue reactivity and WM, and cue-induced craving and WM performance were assessed. Additionally, exploratory whole brain analyses were performed. Overall, the hypotheses were not confirmed, possibly due to small sample size, low WM-training adherence and/or ongoing substance use.

Address: Addiction, Development, and Psychopathology (ADAPT) lab, Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Psychiatry, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Faculty of Movement and Behavioral Science, Department of Clinical, Neuro-, and Developmental Psychology, Section of Clinical Psychology, VU University, Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Electronic address: [email protected].; Addiction, Development, and Psychopathology (ADAPT) lab, Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Psychiatry, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.; Addiction, Development, and Psychopathology (ADAPT) lab, Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Department of Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, the Netherlands.; Department of Psychiatry, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands.; Department of Psychiatry, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands; Arkin Mental Health, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.; Addiction, Development, and Psychopathology (ADAPT) lab, Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

DOI: 10.1016/j.pscychresns.2019.03.011

Link outs

Free resources

Medical:

https://medlineplus.gov/cocaine.html

Miscellaneous:

https://assays.cancer.gov/CPTAC-972

Subscription / membership required

Full Text Sources:

MeSH Terms: Acetylcysteine, Brain, Cocaine, Cocaine-Related Disorders, Cognition, Cues, Double-Blind Method, Humans, Male, Memory, Short-Term