Recruiting

Beta-Blocker

Sponsor:

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Code:

NCT06263452

Conditions

Cardiovascular Disease

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18 - 30

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Interventions

Propranolol

Placebo

Study Details

Brief summary:

The purpose of this study is to map the neural and molecular mechanisms underlying psychological stress-induced changes in inflammation which could reveal new targets for intervention to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Conditions

Cardiovascular Disease

Study ID

NCT06263452

Start date

May 1, 2024

Status verified date

Oct, 2025

Completion date

May, 2026

Anticipated

Primary completion date

May, 2026

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18 - 30

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Ages 18-30 years
  • Right-handed
  • Fluent in English reading, writing, and speaking at least at a 10th grade level
  • Body mass index (BMI) less than or equal to 35 kg/m\^2

Exclusion Criteria:

Assessed as screening, reassessed at Session I:

  • Non-removeable metal devices/implants/objects in the body
  • Severe claustrophobia (assessed by self-report)
  • Currently pregnant
  • Left-handed
  • Body mass index (BMI) greater than 35 kg/m\^2
  • History of fainting spells or any heart condition
  • History of or present low resting heart rate (< 60 BPM) and/or low blood pressure (systolic blood pressure < 80mmHg)
  • Self-reported physical illnesses: diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, high blood pressure, inflammatory bowel diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, autoimmune disease, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, lupus
  • Any self-reported diagnosed mental illness
  • Current use of prescription medications (except hormonal contraceptives)
  • Current or recent regular nicotine/tobacco use (cigarettes, e-cigarettes, vape, chewing tobacco, nicotine gum)
  • Current regular (daily or almost daily) recreational drug use = 4 or more times per week

Instructed against during Session I, reassessed at Session II:

  • Received any vaccine within the past two weeks
  • Severe sleep disturbance (3-4 hours of sleep loss) the night before Session II
  • Vigorous physical activity on the day of Session II
  • Acute illness or allergy symptoms on the day of Session II
  • Usage of over-the-counter medications on the day of Session II
  • Usage of recreational drugs within 48 hours of Session II
  • Usage of alcohol on the day of Session II

Study Design

Enrollment

120 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Basic Science

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Propranolol

Propranolol tablet, 40mg, one-time, orally

placebo comparator: Placebo

Encapsulated placebo tablet

Interventions

Propranolol

Tablet encapsulated to visually look identical to the placebo.

Placebo

Encapsulated sugar pill to visually look identical to the experimental condition.

Primary outcome measure

  • Change in levels of pro-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-6 in response to social stress [ Time Frame: Post-drug baseline to 90-minutes post-stress task (T-90) ]
  • Change in levels of inflammatory gene expression in response to social stress [ Time Frame: Post-drug baseline to 30-minutes post-stress task (T-30) ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Jonathan Bunting, BS

9164957661jonb@unc.edu

Keely A Muscatell, PhD

9164957661kmuscatell@unc.edu

Locations

Social Neuroscience and Health Laboratory

Recruiting

Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States, 27514

Contacts

Keely A Muscatell, PhD

916-495-7661kmuscatell@unc.edu

More Information

Sponsor

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Last update posted

Oct 29, 2025

Last verified

Oct, 2025

Keywords

  • Beta-Blockade
  • Inflammation
  • Neuroimaging

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-09. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill on 2025-10-29.