Mayo Leah M, Gauffin Emelie, Petrie Gavin N, Tansey Ryann, Mazurka Raegan, Haggarty Connor J, Jones Madeleine R, Engelbrektsson Hilda, Aminoff Victoria, Hühne-Landgraf Anisja, Schmidt Mark E, Pemberton Darrel J, Fredlund Cecilia, Östman Lars, Karlsson Hanna, Löfberg Andreas, Pietrzak Michal, Andersson Gerhard, Capusan Andrea Johansson, Hill Matthew N, Heilig Markus
Department of Psychiatry, Mathison Centre for Mental Health Research and Education, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Center for Social and Affective Neuroscience, Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences, Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden.
Neuropsychopharmacology. 2025 May 17. doi: 10.1038/s41386-025-02128-w.
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a severe mental health disorder with limited treatment options. Gold standard treatment includes cognitive behavioral therapies (CBT) that incorporate exposure to traumatic memories to facilitate extinction. CBT can be effective in PTSD, but effects are incomplete and symptoms are prone to spontaneous return. Pharmacologically facilitating fear extinction could potentiate the effects of exposure-based therapy. Here, we explored whether targeting the endocannabinoid (eCB) system, a neuromodulatory system critically involved in fear extinction, would promote the efficacy of exposure-based CBT. Specifically, we tested the effects of elevating the eCB ligand anandamide (AEA) via inhibition of its main degradative enzyme, fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH). In this double-blind, placebo-controlled study, patients with PTSD (N = 100; 85 women) were randomized to the FAAH inhibitor (FAAHi) JNJ-42165279 (25 mg b.i.d.) or placebo for 12 weeks. In weeks 5-12, all participants completed an internet-delivered CBT that included exposure-based modules. The primary outcome was clinician-assessed PTSD symptom severity (CAPS-5). Secondary outcomes included self-reported symptoms of PTSD, depression, anxiety, and sleep quality. Blood samples were taken to measure levels of drug and eCBs. Overall, PTSD symptoms improved over time. While FAAHi increased AEA levels, there was no effect of FAAHi on PTSD symptoms or any secondary measure. FAAHi combined with internet-delivered CBT did not improve PTSD symptoms to a greater extent than internet-delivered CBT alone. Thus, FAAH inhibition does not appear to be a suitable adjunct treatment for enhancing CBT in PTSD. This study was registered as Eudra-CT 2020-001965-36.
创伤后应激障碍(PTSD)是一种严重的心理健康障碍,治疗选择有限。金标准治疗包括认知行为疗法(CBT),该疗法通过让患者接触创伤性记忆来促进消退。CBT对PTSD可能有效,但效果并不完全,症状容易自发复发。从药理学角度促进恐惧消退可能会增强基于暴露的疗法的效果。在此,我们探讨了针对内源性大麻素(eCB)系统(一种在恐惧消退中起关键作用的神经调节系统)是否会提高基于暴露的CBT的疗效。具体而言,我们测试了通过抑制其主要降解酶脂肪酸酰胺水解酶(FAAH)来提高eCB配体花生四烯乙醇胺(AEA)水平的效果。在这项双盲、安慰剂对照研究中,100名PTSD患者(85名女性)被随机分为FAAH抑制剂(FAAHi)JNJ-42165279(25毫克,每日两次)组或安慰剂组,为期12周。在第5至12周,所有参与者完成了一项基于互联网的CBT,其中包括基于暴露的模块。主要结局是临床医生评估的PTSD症状严重程度(CAPS-5)。次要结局包括PTSD、抑郁、焦虑的自我报告症状以及睡眠质量。采集血样以测量药物和eCB的水平。总体而言,PTSD症状随时间有所改善。虽然FAAHi提高了AEA水平,但FAAHi对PTSD症状或任何次要指标均无影响。FAAHi与基于互联网的CBT联合使用并未比单独使用基于互联网的CBT更能改善PTSD症状。因此,FAAH抑制似乎不是增强PTSD中CBT疗效的合适辅助治疗方法。本研究已注册为Eudra-CT 2020-001965-36。