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Home/Research/Ketamine/Neuroimaging & Brain Measures

Ketamine for Neuroimaging & Brain Measures

66 papers and 83 clinical trials exploring ketamine as a treatment for neuroimaging & brain measures.

CompoundArylcyclohexylamine

Ketamine

A dissociative anesthetic with rapid-acting antidepressant properties, widely used in clinical settings for mood and pain disorders.

Full Ketamine profile
IndicationApproximately 264 million people globally suffer from depression, with PTSD affecting around 8 million adults in the United States each year.

Neuroimaging & Brain Measures

Recent advances in neuroimaging have shed light on the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the effects of psychedelics, particularly in the treatment of mental health disorders such as depression and PTSD. Studies involving compounds like psilocybin and MDMA have demonstrated significant changes in brain activity associated with therapeutic outcomes.

Full Neuroimaging & Brain Measures profile

Academic Research

66 papers
Open Accessmeta

Reorganization of Human Brain Waves Across Diverse States of Consciousness

This brain imaging study analysed data from healthy people in sleep, propofol anaesthesia and psychedelic states, including LSD, DMT, psilocybin, nitrous oxide and ketamine, to map how brain waves spread across the brain. It found that sleep and anaesthesia slowed and fragmented global wave propagation, while psychedelic states sped it up and made it more evenly distributed.

Published
June 1, 2026
Journal
Biorxiv
Authors
Fotiadis, P., Jang, H., Dai, R., Li, D., Cofré, R., Timmermann, C., Mashour, G. A., Hudetz, A. G., Huang, Z.
Paywallindividual

Protocol and pilot results for a double-blind randomized placebo-controlled trial of ketamine under propofol sedation for chronic pain and depression

This randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial protocol and pilot study (n=42) is testing ketamine 0.5 mg/kg given under propofol sedation for chronic pain with depression, with pain as the main outcome. In six pilot participants, there were no serious adverse events and propofol seemed to help mask treatment allocation, although many still guessed ketamine immediately after sedation.

Published
April 16, 2026
Journal
Pain Management
Authors
Lii, T. R., Sikka, P., Deverett, B., Altirkawi, O. K., Heifets, B. D.
Paywallindividual

General Anesthesia and Discrete Components of Ketamine Neurophysiology

This cohort study (n=52) examined how general anaesthesia changes ketamine’s brain activity patterns in healthy volunteers, surgical patients and people with depression. Ketamine given during general anaesthesia kept its beta-gamma effects but lost the usual theta increase, suggesting these neurophysiological components can be separated.

Published
April 8, 2026
Journal
JAMA Psychiatry
Authors
Deverett, B., Li, D., Lii, T. R., Vlisides, P. E., Tarnal, V., Forsyth, A., Sumner, R., Sikka, P., Schatzberg, A. F., Muthukumaraswamy, S., Mashour, G. A., Heifets, B. D.
Open Accessindividual

Detecting neuroplastic effects induced by ketamine in healthy human subjects: A multimodal approach

This brain imaging study (n=11) found that a single intravenous dose of ketamine (70mg/70kg) increased glutamate levels in the anterior cingulate cortex and altered functional connectivity between this region, the dlPFC, and the amygdala in healthy men. Multimodal imaging also suggested that ketamine-related increases in a putative marker of synaptic plasticity were linked to reduced default mode network activity.

Published
March 21, 2026
Journal
Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism
Authors
Agnorelli, C., Peill, J., Sawicka, G., Kurtin, D., Shatalina, E., Ahmad, K., Wall, M. B., Rua, C., Godfrey, K., Ertl, N., Searle, G., Zhou, K., Osugo, M., Weiss, B., Greenway, K. T., Fagiolini, A., Carhart-Harris, R., Matthews, P. M., Rabiner, E. A., Nutt, D., Erritzoe, D.
Open Accessindividual

Ketamine-induced changes in accumbal glutamate and their association with altered states of consciousness

This brain imaging study (n=10) in healthy participants used magnetic resonance spectroscopy to measure glutamate levels in the nucleus accumbens before and during a single intravenous ketamine infusion (50mg/70kg). Ketamine did not significantly increase overall glutamate levels, but individual changes in glutamate were positively associated with anxious ego dissolution and reduced vigilance.

Published
March 21, 2026
Journal
Brain Research Bulletin
Authors
Gubser, L. P., Trippel, A. S., Zoelch, N., Engeli, E. J. E., Herdener, M.
Open Accessindividual

The dynamics of AMPA receptors underlies the efficacy of ketamine in treatment resistant patients with depression

Using the PET tracer [11C]K-2 to image AMPAR density in vivo, the authors found that lower AMPAR availability correlates with greater illness severity and differs between patients with treatment‑resistant depression and healthy controls. Ketamine produced region‑specific changes in AMPAR density that correlated with clinical improvement and partially restored the abnormal AMPAR phenotype, supporting AMPAR dynamics as a mechanistic substrate of ketamine’s antidepressant effect in TRD.

Published
March 5, 2026
Journal
Molecular Psychiatry
Authors
Nakajima, W., Hatano, M., Ohtani, Y., Tani, H., Yatomi, T., Tsuchimoto, S., Fujimoto, Y., Eiro, T., Ichijo, S., Nakano, K., Arisawa, T., Takada, Y., Kimura, K., Abe, H., Sano, A., Nomoto-Takahashi, K., Yonezawa, K., Tomiyama, S., Nagai, N., Kusudo, K., Honda, S., Moriyama, S., Nakajima, S., Yamada, T., Iwabuchi, Y., Jinzaki, M., Yoshimura, K., Syed, S. A., Tsugawa, S., Uchida, H., Takahashi, T.

Clinical Trials

83 trials
Not yet recruitingPhase II

Investigating the Analgesic Potential of (2R,6R)-HNK in Acute Pain in Healthy Volunteers

This Phase II, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover trial (n=92) will evaluate the analgesic potential of a single intravenous infusion of (2R,6R)-hydroxynorketamine (HNK) in healthy adults aged 18 to 60 years. The study will assess whether 0.5 mg/kg HNK reduces acute experimental pain during quantitative sensory testing (QST) and will also examine pain-related and emotion-related brain responses. Participants will receive HNK or matched placebo as a single intravenous infusion over approximately 40 minutes, with visits repeated 1 to 3 weeks apart in the treatment group. A no-treatment control arm is included to help estimate natural changes and placebo effects. Pain ratings, blood draws, and functional MRI assessments will be repeated before and after infusion, including follow-up measures immediately after treatment, at 4 to 5 hours, and one day later. The trial will also compare placebo with the no-treatment group to gauge placebo analgesia.

Started
June 15, 2026
Type
interventional
Blinding
quadruple
Randomized
Yes
Registry ID
NCT07504601
Not yet recruitingPhase II

Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for Treatment-Resistant Depression

This Phase II, open‑label, single‑group trial (n=25) will evaluate ketamine‑assisted psychotherapy in adults with treatment‑resistant depression (including participants with chronic pain) to assess feasibility, antidepressant effect and frontolimbic brain plasticity using functional MRI. The intervention is intramuscular ketamine hydrochloride (0.5–1 mg/kg IM, capped at 60 mg), given as 1–2 dosing sessions paired with psychotherapy; primary outcomes include proportion retained through 2‑month follow‑up and mean change in Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HDRS) scores. Participants will attend 6–8 visits including two MRI scans (baseline and follow‑up), 3–4 psychotherapy sessions (two preparatory sessions before the first ketamine), and 1–2 supervised IM ketamine sessions (visit 4: 0.5 mg/kg not to exceed 60 mg; visit 6: dose may be increased but will not exceed 60 mg, determined by investigators). Supportive medications (ondansetron, lorazepam, clonidine) are available for nausea, agitation or hypertension. Key eligibility includes age ≥18, HDRS in the moderate or above range and failure of two adequate antidepressant trials in the past two years; standard MRI and medical exclusions (cardiac, uncontrolled hypertension, recent substance‑use criteria, pregnancy, etc.) apply. HDRS assessments are scheduled at baseline, within 90 minutes after dosing, daily for up to 7 days around baseline and dosing, and at the 2‑month follow‑up.

Started
January 1, 2026
Type
interventional
Blinding
none
Randomized
No
Registry ID
NCT07247006
RecruitingPhase II

Ketamine and Neurofeedback as Combined Therapeutic Interventions to Target Glutamatergic Neurotransmission in Alcohol Use Disorder (Nektar)

This Phase II, randomised, placebo-controlled, double-blind, parallel-group single-centre trial (n=75) will assess the effects of a single IV ketamine infusion (0.8 mg/kg) combined with real-time fMRI neurofeedback versus sham NFT and placebo in people with alcohol use disorder.

Started
May 1, 2025
Type
interventional
Blinding
triple
Randomized
Yes
Registry ID
NCT06969937
RecruitingPhase II/III

Understanding and Treating Suicidal Ideation With Ketamine

This open-label, Phase II/III trial (n=36) will study the effects of ketamine (0.5 mg/kg IV infused over 40 minutes, four infusions over two weeks) on suicidal ideation in individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD).

Started
April 8, 2025
Type
interventional
Blinding
none
Randomized
No
Registry ID
NCT06891300
RecruitingPhase I

Pilot Study: Establishing Glutamatergic Changes in Rapid Antidepressant Effects of Ketamine

This open-label, early Phase I trial (n=10) will investigate the effects of a single intravenous ketamine infusion (0.5 mg/kg over 40 minutes) on glutamatergic activity and synaptic strength in individuals with treatment-resistant major depressive disorder (MDD).

Started
March 15, 2025
Type
interventional
Blinding
none
Randomized
No
Registry ID
NCT06788249
RecruitingPhase II

Intravenous Ketamine for Treatment-Resistant Depression (G2K)

Randomised, triple-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group Phase II trial (n=30) comparing single IV ketamine 0.5 mg/kg versus saline infusion in adults with treatment-resistant depression; primary outcomes include central and peripheral GABA and glutamate changes and change in MADRS at 24 hours.

Started
March 1, 2025
Type
interventional
Blinding
triple
Randomized
Yes
Registry ID
NCT06668571

Explore further

Search all Ketamine papers Search all Neuroimaging & Brain Measures trials Full Ketamine profile Full Neuroimaging & Brain Measures profile