Evidence map›Paper›PMID 28338977›Full record

Trial reportSchizophrenia bulletin2017

Effects of Augmenting N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor Signaling on Working Memory and Experience-Dependent Plasticity in Schizophrenia: An Exploratory Study Using Acute d-cycloserine.

Jennifer K Forsyth, Peter Bachman, Daniel H Mathalon, Brian J Roach, Elissa Ye, Robert F Asarnow

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

Trial report in Schizophrenia bulletin, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
18citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
1.6field-weighted citation impact, top 20% 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

18 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 34 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Glutamatergic Modulation of Brain Function in Psychosis: A Systematic Review of Neuroimaging Studies.Biological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging · 2025
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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

6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.

Jennifer K ForsythDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA.
Peter BachmanDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA.
Daniel H MathalonDepartment of Psychiatry and Biomedical Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA.
Brian J RoachSan Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center, San Francisco, CA.
Elissa YeDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA.
Robert F AsarnowDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA.
University of California, Los Angeles · USSan Francisco VA Medical Center · USUniversity of Pittsburgh · US

Funding

STRESS AND EMOTIONAL REACTIVITYP50MH066286 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI YEE-BRADBURY, CINDY M. · 2003 to 2014
$18.6M
Cognitive and Affective Dysfunctions in the PsychosesT32MH096682 · NIMH · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI NUECHTERLEIN, KEITH H · 2013 to 2018
$1.1M
NIMH NIH HHS P50 MH066286NIMH NIH HHS T32 MH096682
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Cognitive deficits in schizophrenia have been hypothesized to reflect N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) dysfunction. However, the mechanisms through which the NMDAR contributes to individual cognitive functions differ. To explore how NMDAR signaling relates to specific cognitive deficits in schizophrenia, we tested the effects of enhancing NMDAR signaling on working memory and experience-dependent plasticity using d-cycloserine (DCS). Plasticity was assessed using an EEG paradigm that utilizes high-frequency visual stimulation (HFvS) to induce neural potentiation, and 2 learning tasks, the information integration (IIT) and weather prediction (WPT) tasks. Working memory was assessed using an N-back task. Forty-five schizophrenia patients were randomized to receive a single 100 mg DCS dose (SZ-DCS; n = 24) or placebo (SZ-PLC; n = 21) in a double-blind, between-groups design. Testing occurred on a single day after placebo or DCS administration; baseline values were not obtained. DCS did not affect plasticity, as indicated by similar neural potentiation, and similar IIT and WPT learning between groups. However, among patients who successfully engaged in the working memory task (ie, performed above chance), SZ-DCS (n = 17) showed superior 2-back performance compared to SZ-PLC (n = 16). Interestingly, SZ-DCS also showed larger pre-HFvS neural responses during the LTP task. Notably, this pattern of DCS effects is the opposite of those found in our prior study of healthy adults. Results are consistent with target engagement of the NMDAR by DCS, but suggest that NMDAR signaling was not translated into synaptic plasticity changes in schizophrenia. Results highlight the importance of considering how distinct NMDAR-associated processes contribute to individual cognitive deficits in schizophrenia.

Indexed as

AdolescentAdultCognitive DysfunctionCycloserineDouble-Blind MethodElectroencephalographyEvoked Potentials, VisualFemaleHumansMaleMemory, Short-TermNeuronal PlasticityNootropic AgentsReceptors, N-Methyl-D-AspartateSchizophreniaSignal TransductionCycloserineNootropic AgentsReceptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartatecognitionlearninglong-term potentiationmemoryNMDA receptorpsychosis

Identifiers

PMID28338977
PMCPMC5581900
OpenAlexW2596458326

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
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.