Evidence map›Paper›PMID 21810630›Full record

Trial reportArchives of general psychiatry2011

Effects of moderate-dose treatment with varenicline on neurobiological and cognitive biomarkers in smokers and nonsmokers with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder.

L Elliot Hong, Gunvant K Thaker, Robert P McMahon, Ann Summerfelt, Jill Rachbeisel, Rebecca L Fuller, Ikwunga Wonodi, Robert W Buchanan, Carol Myers, Stephen J Heishman and 2 more

Open access · greenAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Archives of general psychiatry, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 59 papers, 12 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
59citing papers in PubMed, 12 pooled it
6.5field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

59 citing papers in PubMed, 12 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 141 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Nicotine receptor partial agonists for smoking cessation.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2023
    Pooled it
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  6. Nicotine receptor partial agonists for smoking cessation.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2016
    Pooled it
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  13. Trial
  14. Pharmacological intervention and abstinence in smokers undergoing cessation treatment: A psychophysiological study.International journal of psychophysiology : official journal of the International Organization of Psychophysiology · 2018
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  18. Cognitive effects of very low nicotine content cigarettes, with and without nicotine replacement, in smokers with schizophrenia and controls.Nicotine & tobacco research : official journal of the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco · 2015
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

L Elliot HongMaryland Psychiatric Research Center, Baltimore, MD 21228, USA. ehong@mprc.umaryland.edu
Gunvant K Thaker
Robert P McMahon
Ann Summerfelt
Jill Rachbeisel
Rebecca L Fuller
Ikwunga Wonodi
Robert W Buchanan
Carol Myers
Stephen J Heishman
Jeff Yang
Adrienne Nye

Funding

Zonulin Antibodies in Intestinal Permeabilitiy in IDDMM01RR016500 · NCRR · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · PI OSWALD, LYNN M · 2002 to 2009
$20.2M
Bipolar & Schizophrenia Consortium for Parsing Intermediate PhenotypesR01MH077852 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · PI THAKER, GUNVANT K · 2007 to 2010
$3.5M
Shared Neural Circuitry in Comorbid Schizophrenia and Nicotine AddictionR01DA027680 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · PI HONG, L ELLIOT ELLIOT · 2010 to 2014
$2.4M
Neural Oscillatory Biomarkers for Genetics and Animal Models of SchizophreniaR01MH085646 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · PI HONG, L ELLIOT ELLIOT · 2010 to 2013
$2.2M
Tobacco Craving and Cigarette Reinforcement in Normal and Schizophrenic SmokersZIADA000558 · NIDA · NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON DRUG ABUSE · PI HEISHMAN, STEPHEN · 2009 to 2013
$1.6M
Cellular Electrophysiology of Nicotine Addiction Clinical PhenotypesR21DA033817 · NIDA · UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND BALTIMORE · PI FELDMAN, RICARDO A, HONG, L ELLIOT ELLIOT · 2012 to 2013
$376k
NCRR NIH HHS M01 RR016500NCRR NIH HHS M01-RR16500NIDA NIH HHS DA027680NIDA NIH HHS R01 DA027680NIDA NIH HHS R21 DA033817NIMH NIH HHS MH077852NIMH NIH HHS MH085646NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH077852NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH085646
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

contextThe administration of nicotine transiently improves many neurobiological and cognitive functions in schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. It is not yet clear which nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subtype or subtypes are responsible for these seemingly pervasive nicotinic effects in schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder.

objectiveBecause α4β2 is a key nAChR subtype for nicotinic actions, we investigated the effect of varenicline tartrate, a relatively specific α4β2 partial agonist and antagonist, on key biomarkers that are associated with schizophrenia and are previously shown to be responsive to nicotinic challenge in humans.

designA double-blind, parallel, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of patients with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder to examine the effects of varenicline on biomarkers at 2 weeks (short-term treatment) and 8 weeks (long-term treatment), using a slow titration and moderate dosing strategy for retaining α4β2-specific effects while minimizing adverse effects.

settingOutpatient clinics.

participantsA total of 69 smoking and nonsmoking patients; 64 patients completed week 2, and 59 patients completed week 8. Intervention Varenicline.

main outcome measuresPrepulse inhibition, sensory gating, antisaccade, spatial working memory, eye tracking, processing speed, and sustained attention.

resultsA moderate dose of varenicline (1) significantly reduced the P50 sensory gating deficit in nonsmokers after long-term treatment (P = .006), (2) reduced startle reactivity (P = .02) regardless of baseline smoking status, and (3) improved executive function by reducing the antisaccadic error rate (P = .03) regardless of smoking status. A moderate dose of varenicline had no significant effect on spatial working memory, predictive and maintenance pursuit measures, processing speed, or sustained attention by Conners' Continuous Performance Test. Clinically, there was no evidence of exacerbation of psychiatric symptoms, psychosis, depression, or suicidality using a gradual titration (1-mg daily dose).

conclusionsModerate-dose treatment with varenicline has a unique treatment profile on core schizophrenia-related biomarkers. Further development is warranted for specific nAChR compounds and dosing and duration strategies to target subgroups of schizophrenic patients with specific biological deficits.

Indexed as

AdultAttentionBenzazepinesBiomarkersCognitionDouble-Blind MethodEye MovementsFemaleHumansMaleMemory, Short-TermMiddle AgedNeuropsychological TestsNicotinic AgonistsPsychotic DisordersQuinoxalinesBenzazepinesBiomarkersNicotinic AgonistsQuinoxalinesVarenicline

Identifiers

PMID21810630
PMCPMC3618988
OpenAlexW2102770635

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.