Recruiting

Thalamus Research

Sponsor:

Kai Hwang

Code:

NCT07217652

Conditions

Schizophrenia

Attention Deficit Disorder With Hyperactivity (ADHD)

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18 - 35

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Interventions

High-resolution fMRI during working memory, cognitive control, and decision-making tasks

Study Details

Brief summary:

The goal of this basic experimental research study is to examine how the human thalamus supports flexible thinking and behavior. Specifically, the research aims to elucidate how the mediodorsal (MD) thalamus encodes and updates "context"-the mental framework that determines which rules or actions are relevant in a given situation. This work may contribute to understanding why certain psychiatric conditions, such as schizophrenia and ADHD, involve difficulties with cognitive flexibility and control.

The primary research questions are:

Does the MD thalamus represent the context that organizes how working memory guides task selection? Does the MD thalamus signal when context needs to be updated after a change in task demands? Do these thalamic representations support generalization to new situations or rules?

Participants will complete cognitive tasks while undergoing high-resolution brain imaging using 7-Tesla MRI. The investigators will combine behavioral data, computational modeling, and advanced neuroimaging analyses to examine how the thalamus interacts with the cortex during flexible decision-making.

Conditions

Schizophrenia

Attention Deficit Disorder With Hyperactivity (ADHD)

Study ID

NCT07217652

Start date

Dec 1, 2025

Status verified date

Feb, 2026

Completion date

Jul 30, 2030

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Jun 30, 2030

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18 - 35

Healthy Volunteers: Accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

  • No history of any neurological, psychiatric, or medical condition that could affect cognition
  • No use of benzodiazepines, long-acting opioids, or other psychotropic drugs that could alter cognitive performance
  • Normal or corrected-to-normal vision (visual acuity)
  • Normal color perception (Farnsworth-Munsell 100 Hue Test)
  • Fluent in English
  • No metal implants (including aneurysm clip, cardiac pacemaker, ICD, IUD, neurostimulation system, spinal cord stimulator, internal electrodes or wires, bone stimulator, ear implant, insulin or other infusion pump or device, prosthesis, artificial or prosthetic limb, shunt, vascular access port or catheter, thermodilution catheter, medication patch, radiation seeds or implants, wire mesh implant, tissue expander, surgical staples or clips or sutures, joint replacement, joint/bone pin/screw/nail/wire/plate, dentures, or non-removable hearing aid)
  • No exposure to shrapnel or other-related MR contraindications
  • No non-removable body piercing jewelry
  • No non-removable makeup
  • No history of claustrophobia
  • No history of breathing problems
  • Not currently pregnant or trying to get pregnant (this will be determined via self report and no records will be kept).

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Has a history of any neurological, psychiatric, or medical condition that could affect cognition
  • Use of benzodiazepines, long-acting opioids, or other psychotropic drugs that could alter cognitive performance
  • Not fluent in English
  • Known metal implants (including aneurysm clip, cardiac pacemaker, ICD, IUD, neurostimulation system, spinal cord stimulator, internal electrodes or wires, bone stimulator, ear implant, insulin or other infusion pump or device, prosthesis, artificial or prosthetic limb, shunt, vascular access port or catheter, thermodilution catheter, medication patch, radiation seeds or implants, wire mesh implant, tissue expander, surgical staples or clips or sutures, joint replacement, joint/bone pin/screw/nail/wire/plate, dentures, or non-removable hearing aid)
  • History of claustrophobia
  • Currently pregnant or trying to get pregnant (this will be determined via self report and no records will be kept).

Study Design

Enrollment

100 participants

Anticipated

Intervention Model

Single group

Primary purpose

Basic Science

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Within subject manipulation of working memory, cognitive control, and decision making

Participants will complete a series of cognitive tasks designed to engage working memory, cognitive control, and decision-making. During these tasks, participants will view stimuli and make rule-based or value-based choices that require updating and applying context to guide behavior. Brain activity will be measured using high-resolution 7-Tesla functional MRI to assess how the mediodorsal thalamus and prefrontal cortex represent and update contextual information. Computational models will link behavior and neural activity to test how thalamic signals support flexible cognition and adaptive decision-making.

Interventions

High-resolution fMRI during working memory, cognitive control, and decision-making tasks

Participants will perform a set of computerized cognitive tasks designed to test working memory, cognitive control, and decision-making while undergoing high-resolution 7-Tesla functional MRI. These tasks require participants to maintain and update contextual information, switch between rules, and make value-based choices under changing conditions. The intervention is distinguished by its integration of advanced neuroimaging with computational modeling to identify how the mediodorsal thalamus and prefrontal cortex represent, update, and generalize context. This approach allows precise mapping of thalamocortical mechanisms that support flexible cognition and goal-directed behavior.

Primary outcome measure

  • Decoding of context representations in the medial dorsal thalamus from 7 T MRI data [ Time Frame: Measured throughout the MRI session (approximately 90 minutes per participant). ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Kai Hwang, PhD

319-335-2406kai-hwang@uiowa.edu

Locations

The University of Iowa

Recruiting

Iowa City, Iowa, United States, 52242

Contacts

Kai Hwang, PhD

319-335-2406kai-hwang@uiowa.edu

More Information

Sponsor

Kai Hwang

Last update posted

Feb 13, 2026

Last verified

Feb, 2026

Keywords

  • Cognitive control
  • working memory
  • decision making

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-09. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by Kai Hwang on 2026-02-13.