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Frontotemporal Lobar DegenerationPhase 2NCT00604591

Effects of Tolcapone on Frontotemporal Dementia

A Phase 2 study testing Tolcapone in people with Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration, run by Columbia University at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

This study will test the effects of a medication called tolcapone on cognitive, behavioral, and language problems seen in patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Tolcapone increases the amount of dopamine, a brain chemical that may be lowered in FTD. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 40 to 85 years
Conditions the study is for
Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration
What is being tested?
Tolcapone
Type of treatment
Pill or oral medicine
Could I receive a placebo?
Yes, some participants may receive a placebo
How many people
28 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
30 Jan 2008to 16 Jun 2016
Phase
Phase 2
Are there results?
Yes, posted in the registrySummary in the doctors' view

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 40 to 85 years
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia (FTD)
  • Age 40 to 85
  • Assigned durable power of attorney
  • Caregiver willing and able to accept the responsibilities involved in the study
  • Mattis Dementia Rating Scale-2 (MDRS2) score less than 132

Who cannot join

  • The diagnosis of any other type of dementia besides FTD including Alzheimer's disease, Lewy body dementia, vascular dementia, dementia associated with Parkinson's disease, corticobasal syndrome, and progressive supranuclear palsy.
  • Known allergy or serious adverse reaction to tolcapone
  • Active liver disease
  • Current alcohol abuse
  • Active substance abuse
  • Elevated liver function tests
Show all 12Show fewer
  • Patient is taking tolcapone or any other catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) inhibitor, benserazide, alpha-methyldopa, dobutamine, apomorphine, isoproterenol, an monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAO-I), or clozapine
  • Symptomatic cardiovascular disease (e.g., angina, transient ischemic attack (TIA) , syncope)
  • Uncontrolled hyper- or hypotension
  • Any other contraindication to tolcapone
  • Any medication that significantly affects the dopamine system, including stimulants and antipsychotic medications
  • Pregnant women

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • Columbia University Irving Medical Center

    New York, New York, 10032

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Investigation of the Dopamine System in Frontotemporal Dementia

This study will test the effects of a medication called tolcapone on cognitive, behavioral, and language problems seen in patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Tolcapone increases the amount of dopamine, a brain chemical that may be lowered in FTD. The study will see if tolcapone can improve thinking, behavior, and language in people with FTD and will look at the effects of the drug on brain activity.

Patients with FTD who are between 40 and 85 years of age may be eligible for this study.

Read more

Participants will be seen as outpatients at the Columbia University Medical Center approximately one a week for 4 weeks. They take tolcapone or a placebo (a look-alike pill with no active ingredient) during study week 1. During study week 3, those who took placebo during week 1 now take tolcapone for 1 week and those who took tolcapone now take placebo. In addition, patients undergo the following tests and procedures:

  • Neurological tests to evaluate attention, problem-solving and memory. These tests are repeated several times during the course of the study.
  • Test to look for a gene that affects the amount of dopamine in the brain, using blood samples collected in a previous study.
  • Blood draws four times during the study.
  • Functional MRI (fMRI) to learn about changes in brain regions that are involved in performing tasks. For fMRI, the patient lies on a table that can slide in and out of the scanner, a narrow metal cylinder surrounded by a magnetic field. The procedure takes about 60 minutes and is performed four times over the course of the . FMRI involves taking pictures of the brain during MRI while the subject performs a task so that changes in the brain that occur during these tasks can be studied.
Read the detailed description

FTD is a significant cause of disability and death with an estimated prevalence of 15 cases per 100,000 persons in the 45- to 64-year-old age range. Despite the magnitude of this problem, there is currently a relative lack of understanding of the causes of, and treatments for, FTD, possibly because criteria for its diagnosis have only recently been developed. As an outcome of the proposed investigations, the investigators expect to determine the effects of cortical dopamine augmentation in FTD, evaluate the effect of dopamine augmentation on processing efficiency with fMRI, and explore the effects of a genetic polymorphism on symptom presentation and disease course. The research proposed in this protocol is significant because it could provide a new class of treatments for FTD, identify the fMRI findings associated with symptom improvement, and determine the contribution of a genetic polymorphism to symptom presentation and disease course.

Being tested
Tolcapone, Placebo
Keywords
Dementia Treatment, Frontotemporal Dementia, Dopamine, Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration
Medical subject headings
Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration, Frontotemporal Dementia

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • TolcaponeDrug

    Also called Tasmar

    200 mg by mouth three times a day

  • PlaceboDrug

    Also called Sugar pill

    200 mg by mouth three times a day

Study groups in NCT00604591
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Placebo then TolcaponePlacebo comparatorParticipants take placebo during study week 1 and then tolcapone during week 3. On Day 1, 100 mg of tolcapone/placebo will be taken at three specific times: once in the morning, once in the afternoon, once at night. Then, from Days 2-6, 200 mg of tolcapone/placebo will be taken three times a day: once in the morning, once in the afternoon, once at night. On Day 7, 200 mg of tolcapone/placebo will be taken only in the morning and afternoon. On Day 8, 200 mg of tolcapone/placebo will be taken only in the morning. After the last dose on Day 8 is taken, the wash-out period begins and lasts through Day 14.
Receives: Drug: Tolcapone; Drug: Placebo
Tolcapone then PlaceboExperimentalParticipants take tolcapone during study week 1 and then placebo during week 3. On Day 1, 100 mg of tolcapone/placebo will be taken at three specific times: once in the morning, once in the afternoon, once at night. Then, from Days 2-6, 200 mg of tolcapone/placebo will be taken three times a day: once in the morning, once in the afternoon, once at night. On Day 7, 200 mg of tolcapone/placebo will be taken only in the morning and afternoon. On Day 8, 200 mg of tolcapone/placebo will be taken only in the morning. After the last dose on Day 8 is taken, the wash-out period begins and lasts through Day 14.
Receives: Drug: Tolcapone; Drug: Placebo

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Reaction Time on the N-back Cognitive Test (0-back Condition)

    In the N-back task, subjects are given a response pad with response buttons numbered 1, 2, 3, and 4 at the points of a diamond-shaped box and shown a random series of numbers from 1 to 4 appearing for 500 ms every 1.8 seconds at locations corresponding to the positions of the numbers on the response pad. Instructions presented on the screen above the diamond instruct patients to recall the stimulus seen "N" numbers previously. In the 0-back condition, the subjects are instructed to press the button with the number on the screen. Three blocks of 40 images will be administered during the working memory task for a total of 120 images.

    Measured: First intervention: Day 8 and Second intervention: Day 21

  2. Reaction Time on the N-back Cognitive Test (1-back Condition)

    In the N-back task, subjects are given a response pad with response buttons numbered 1, 2, 3, and 4 at the points of a diamond-shaped box and shown a random series of numbers from 1 to 4 appearing for 500 ms every 1.8 seconds at locations corresponding to the positions of the numbers on the response pad. Instructions presented on the screen above the diamond instruct patients to recall the stimulus seen "N" numbers previously. In the 1-back condition, the subjects are instructed to report the number presented one number back from the number displayed on the screen. Three blocks of 40 images will be administered during the working memory task for a total of 120 images.

    Measured: First intervention: Day 8 and Second intervention: Day 21

Secondary outcomes (3)
  1. Score on Neuropsychiatric Inventory Questionnaire (NPI-Q)

    The NPI-Q is a retrospective caregiver/informant-based interview that assesses 12 neuropsychiatric symptom domains including delusions, hallucinations, agitation/aggression, depression, anxiety, euphoria/elation, apathy/indifference, disinhibition, irritability/lability, aberrant motor behaviors, night-time behavioral disturbances and appetite/eating disturbances. Each symptom within a domain are rated by the caregiver in terms of severity (1=mild to 3=severe). Total scores are calculated by adding the composite scores to obtain a score ranging from 0 (no symptoms, better outcome) to 36.

    Measured: First intervention: Day 8 and Second intervention: Day 21

  2. Score on the Repeated Battery for the Assessment of Neurological Status (RBANS) for Dementia

    The RBANS is a brief, individually administered test that captures multiple cognitive domains, including attention, language, visuospatial/constructional abilities, immediate memory, and delayed memory. Index scores range from 0 to 20 (better outcome) for each of the 5 domains tested and the composite scores are added to generated a total index score, which ranges from 0 to 100 (better outcome).

    Measured: First intervention: Day 8 and Second intervention: Day 21

  3. Score on the Clinical Global Impressions (CGI) Scale

    The CGI is often used in treatment studies as a proxy for global functioning and is a subjective score assigned by the treating physician that incorporates elements of illness severity, patient distress, patient impairment, and functioning. The CGI is given a numerical ranking each visit after the first, with 6=major worsening, 5=mild worsening, 4=no change, 3=mild improvement, and 2=major improvement. Scores range from a 2 (better outcome) to a 6 (worse outcome).

    Measured: First intervention: Day 8 and Second intervention: Day 21

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted30 Jan 2008 (estimated)
  2. Study start30 Jan 2008
  3. Primary completion16 Jun 2016
  4. Study completion16 Jun 2016

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Crossover
Masking
Triple blind
Who is masked
Participant, Care provider, Investigator
Enrolment
28 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00604591
Sponsor's protocol ID
AAAF4151
Other IDs
5R00NS060766
Status last verified
Aug 2024
First submitted
19 Jan 2008
Last updated
28 Aug 2024
Data monitoring committee
No
Individual data sharing
No

Publications

  • Adler CH, Singer C, O'Brien C, Hauser RA, Lew MF, Marek KL, Dorflinger E, Pedder S, Deptula D, Yoo K. Randomized, placebo-controlled study of tolcapone in patients with fluctuating Parkinson disease treated with levodopa-carbidopa. Tolcapone Fluctuator Study Group III. Arch Neurol. 1998 Aug;55(8):1089-95. doi: 10.1001/archneur.55.8.1089.

    PubMed 9708959
  • Apud JA, Mattay V, Chen J, Kolachana BS, Callicott JH, Rasetti R, Alce G, Iudicello JE, Akbar N, Egan MF, Goldberg TE, Weinberger DR. Tolcapone improves cognition and cortical information processing in normal human subjects. Neuropsychopharmacology. 2007 May;32(5):1011-20. doi: 10.1038/sj.npp.1301227. Epub 2006 Oct 25.

    PubMed 17063156
  • Baker M, Mackenzie IR, Pickering-Brown SM, Gass J, Rademakers R, Lindholm C, Snowden J, Adamson J, Sadovnick AD, Rollinson S, Cannon A, Dwosh E, Neary D, Melquist S, Richardson A, Dickson D, Berger Z, Eriksen J, Robinson T, Zehr C, Dickey CA, Crook R, McGowan E, Mann D, Boeve B, Feldman H, Hutton M. Mutations in progranulin cause tau-negative frontotemporal dementia linked to chromosome 17. Nature. 2006 Aug 24;442(7105):916-9. doi: 10.1038/nature05016. Epub 2006 Jul 16.

    PubMed 16862116

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 2 study testing Tolcapone in people with Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration, run by Columbia University at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 5 inclusion and 12 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 28 Aug 2024. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. Some participants in this study may receive a placebo. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 2 studies give the treatment to a larger group to see whether it has the intended effect and to keep checking safety.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

Yes. Results are posted in the registry (first posted 28 Aug 2024). A summary is in the For doctors view, and the full results are on ClinicalTrials.gov.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Reaction Time on the N-back Cognitive Test (0-back Condition) (time frame: First intervention: Day 8 and Second intervention: Day 21). The study lists 2 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00604591, which also lists 3 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 28 Aug 2024.

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