Brain, Obesity, Dopamine and You Study
Public ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT01094756. Field values are reproduced from the official study page; the official ClinicalTrials.gov record remains the source of truth for eligibility, enrollment, and contact information.
Data is sourced from official ClinicalTrials.gov public API records. Always review the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for the latest information.
Official title
Central Dopamine Receptors In Obesity
Brief summary
Reproduced verbatim from the official ClinicalTrials.gov record. Not medical advice.
Central dopamine is thought to play a significant role in obesity. In support of this idea, animal studies and one human positron emission tomography (PET) study have found reduced postsynaptic D2-like receptor availability in the striatum in obesity, with lower D2 receptor availability associated with higher weight. In addition, reward sensitivity and hedonic responses, known to be related to dopamine function, have also been implicated in obesity and obesity-related eating behavior. These reports have led to the concept that dopaminergic abnormalities (e.g. reduced D2-like receptors) influence reward sensitivity, leading to altered eating behaviors and eventually obesity. However, there are several critical limitations of the human D2 receptor studies that limit the strength of their conclusions and thus the interpretations and speculations embedded in literature that relies on this work. First, estimates of D2-like receptors in humans have been confounded by potential differences in endogenous dopamine release since the PET ligand (raclopride) used is known to be displaceable from receptors by endogenous dopamine. Second, failure to rigorously screen obese individuals for diabetes confounds conclusions, since diabetes has been independently associated with dopaminergic abnormalities such as reduced D2-like receptors and muted dopamine release in diabetic rats. Finally, no human studies have addressed whether reduced D2-like receptor levels are a risk factor for obesity, a consequence of engaging in obesity-related behaviors or being obese or all of the above.
Study identification
- NCT ID
- NCT01094756
- Recruitment status
- Completed
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Not applicable
- Enrollment
- 82 participants
Conditions and interventions
Conditions
Interventions
- meal replacements, psychotherapy, dietary education Dietary Supplement
Dietary Supplement
Eligibility (public fields only)
- Age range
- 18 Years to 40 Years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepts healthy volunteers
This page does not interpret eligibility. Detailed inclusion and exclusion criteria are on the official ClinicalTrials.gov record.
Study timeline
- Start date
- Jun 30, 2010
- Primary completion
- May 31, 2015
- Completion
- Sep 30, 2016
- Last update posted
- Nov 1, 2016
2010 – 2016
United States locations
- U.S. sites
- 1
- U.S. states
- 1
- U.S. cities
- 1
| Facility | City | State | ZIP | Site status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washington University Medical School | St Louis | Missouri | 63110 | — |
Site contact phone numbers, emails, and investigator names are intentionally not displayed here. Open the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for site contact information.
About this trial record page
- What this page shows
- Public field values for ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT01094756, including study identification, conditions, interventions, eligibility (age, sex, healthy volunteer), timeline, and U.S. site list.
- What this page does not do
- No medical advice, eligibility judgments, treatment recommendations, study quality scoring, or AI-generated medical summaries. No site contact phone numbers, emails, or investigator names.
- Where the data comes from
- Sourced from the official ClinicalTrials.gov public API. The official record is the source of truth.
- Last refresh
- Last update posted Nov 1, 2016 · Synced Sep 2, 2026
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Open the official record
The complete protocol, eligibility criteria, and contact information for NCT01094756 live on ClinicalTrials.gov.