Brain Mechanisms of Social Perception in Parkinson's Disease

Condition(s) studied

Investigational drug(s) / intervention(s)

Behavioral task of social perception (stage 1): Patients with Parkinson disease and healthy volunteer are engaged in a social perception behavioral task.

Functional magnetic resonance imaging: 3 Tesla magnetic resonance imaging (stage 2): Patients with Parkinson disease and healthy volunteer are assessed by functional magnetic resonance imaging while they are engaged in a social perception behavioral task. 2 times for patients with Parkinson disease (during ON-levodopa and OFF-levodopa) Once for healthy volunteer

Neurological and neuropsychological assessments: Patients with Parkinson disease and healthy volunteer will undergo a neurological and neuropsychological assessment with several evaluations: weight, height, medical history, global cognitive performance (MoCA and BREF score), apathy (LARS score), depression (BDI-II score), social cognition (mini-SEA), and quality of life (PDQ39 self-questionnaire).

Neurological assessments of Parkinson's disease symptoms and caregiver burden: Patients with Parkinson disease will undergo a neurological assessment of motor and non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease (MDS-UPDRS III \& IV scale and MDS-NMS scale) and caregiver burden (Zarit scale).

Study summary

Social cognition is a complex process that enables humans to interpret social information and behave appropriately in a social environment. Social cognition can be impaired in Parkinson's disease patients, worsening quality of life and relationships with those around them, even at an early stage. These alterations are manifested in particular by impairments of the recognition of facial emotions and body movements, involving the motor system. The aim of this study is to understand the brain mechanisms associated with impaired social perception in people with Parkinson's disease using functional MRI and a behavioural task for the perception of social interaction scenes depicted by "Point Light Display" (PLD).This study will investigate the effect of dopaminergic modulation on the networks associated with the perception of movement and mirror system, the observation of action (parietal cortex, superior temporal sulcus), and those associated with the mentalization of others' cognitive or emotional states (prefrontal cortex and limbic system).

The study is thus divided into 2 stages.

* Stage 1 "preliminary": Preliminary validation of the experimental task
* Stage 2 "imagery": Assessment of brain activity (BOLD signal) related to social perception in imaging

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• BOLD signal difference in the brain networks associated with social perception in Parkinson's patients compared with age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers — Up to 75 days
  BOLD signal difference in the brain networks associated with social perception in Parkinson's patients compared with age- and sex-matched healthy volunteers during a social perception behavioural task using point light display

Trial sites (1)

More Hospices Civils de Lyon trials in France