Evidence map›Paper›PMID 22549117›Full record

Trial reportNeuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology2012

N-acetylcysteine normalizes glutamate levels in cocaine-dependent patients: a randomized crossover magnetic resonance spectroscopy study.

Lianne Schmaal, Dick J Veltman, Aart Nederveen, Wim van den Brink, Anna E Goudriaan

2 registry-linked trialsOpen access · hybridAbstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, 2012. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 2 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 87 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
87citing papers in PubMed, 5 pooled it
5.1field-weighted citation impact, top 3% 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.

NCT03018236 phase4unknown statusnot on this mapstarted 2017, after this paper: background citation

The Effect of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on Treatment of Alcohol and Cocaine Use Disorders: A Double-Blind Randomized Controlled Trial.

TypeinterventionalSponsorHospital de Clinicas de Porto AlegreRan2017 to 2018Enrolled100ConditionsCocaine Addiction, Alcohol AddictionArmsAlcohol N-acetylcysteine, Alcohol Placebo, Cocaine N-acetylcysteine, Cocaine Placebo
NCT03220776 phase2completednot on this mapstarted 2017, after this paper: background citation

Imaging Framework for Testing GABAergic/Glutamatergic Drugs in Bipolar Alcoholics

TypeinterventionalSponsorMedical University of South CarolinaRan2017 to 2022Enrolled54ConditionsAlcohol Use Disorder, Bipolar DisorderArmsN-Acetylcysteine, Gabapentin, Placebo Oral Tablet
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

87 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 147 citations in OpenAlex.

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  18. Redefining the role of the thiol-based agentRSC medicinal chemistry · 2026
    Review
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27 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.

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

5 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Lianne SchmaalAmsterdam Institute for Addiction Research, Department of Psychiatry, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands. lianschmaal@gmail.com
Dick J Veltman
Aart Nederveen
Wim van den Brink
Anna E Goudriaan
University of Amsterdam · NLAcademic Medical Center · NLAmsterdam Institute for Addiction Research · NLAmsterdam UMC Location VUmc · NL

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Treatment with N-acetylcysteine (NAC) normalizes glutamate (Glu) homeostasis and prevents relapse in drug-dependent animals. However, the effect of NAC on brain Glu levels in substance-dependent humans has not yet been investigated. Proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy ((1)H MRS) was used to investigate Glu changes in the dorsal anterior cingulate cortex (dACC) after a single dose of NAC in cocaine-dependent patients and normal controls. In an open-label, randomized, crossover study, 8 cocaine-dependent patients and 14 healthy controls underwent two scan sessions: one group receiving no compound and the other following a single administration of 2400 mg NAC. The Barratt Impulsiveness Scale was administered to examine the relation between dACC Glu levels and impulsivity. In the medication-free condition, Glu levels in the dACC were significantly higher in cocaine-dependent patients compared with healthy controls. After administration of NAC, Glu levels were reduced in the cocaine-dependent group, whereas NAC had no effect in healthy controls. Higher baseline Glu levels were associated with higher impulsivity, and both were predictive of greater NAC-induced Glu reduction. The current findings indicate that NAC can normalize elevated Glu levels in cocaine-dependent patients. These findings may have important implications for treatment, because abnormal Glu levels are related to relapse, and treatment with NAC prevented relapse in animal studies. Furthermore, clinical studies have indicated beneficial effects of NAC in cocaine-dependent patients, and the current study suggests that these beneficial effects might in part be mediated by the ability of NAC to normalize glutamatergic abnormalities.

Indexed as

Magnetic Resonance SpectroscopyAcetylcysteineAdultCocaine-Related DisordersCross-Over StudiesGlutamic AcidGyrus CinguliHumansMalePilot ProjectsAcetylcysteineGlutamic Acid

Identifiers

PMID22549117
PMCPMC3398721
OpenAlexW2005904867

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

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.