Social Experiences and Demographic Factors in the Regulation of Immune Cells

Conditions

• Inflammatory Response
• Perceived Discrimination
• RNA

Eligibility Criteria

Sex

ALL

Age

18 Years - N/A

Healthy Volunteers

Accepted

Interventions

• Cyberball — BEHAVIORAL
  Cyberball™ is a virtual social exclusion game that simulates social interactions and acute discrimination experiences in a controlled laboratory setting. The game involves passing a virtual ball between players represented by images. In this study, only the participant is a real player, while the other "players" are pre-programmed virtual avatars controlled by the experimenter using Cyberball software. The ethnicity of these virtual players can be manipulated by changing the stock photos used to represent them. Participants in the Race-Based Social Exclusion condition play Cyberball with virtual players who appear to be of a different ethnicity from the participant. In the Non-Race-Based Social Exclusion, the participant plays with virtual players who do not have any obvious ethnic differences from the participant, and social inclusion is a washout condition where the participant receives the ball from the virtual players, regardless of the ethnicity of the avatars.

Study Details

Immune-mediated inflammatory diseases are a health burden for approximately seven percent of the population of Western nations. Preliminary data suggest variations in ethnic identity and/or geography influence discrimination experiences and inflammatory response trends. This study investigates how geography, ethnicity, and laboratory manipulation of discrimination experiences affect immune cell function and genomic regulation. Flow cytometry and immune cell stimulation will test monocytes collected from peripheral blood for functional effects. Next-generation transcriptomics and epigenomics will assess genomic and epigenetic mechanisms. The hypothesis is that geography, self-identified race, and ethnicity, interacting with laboratory discrimination conditions during the virtual ballgame Cyberball™, significantly affect immune cell function through genomic and epigenetic mechanisms, with perceived discrimination as a moderating factor on the immune outcomes. The transdisciplinary nature of the proposed study aims to provide valuable insights into differential susceptibility to immune-mediated inflammatory diseases across diverse populations. Uncovering these insights will better inform population-relevant interventions for immune-mediated inflammatory diseases.

Key Dates

Start date

Feb 27, 2025

Status verified

Apr 2026

Primary completion

Jun 3, 2028

Completion

Jun 3, 2028

Study Design

Enrollment

480 participants (estimated)

Allocation

RANDOMIZED

Intervention model

CROSSOVER

Primary purpose

BASIC_SCIENCE

Arms

• Experimental: Mid-Atlantic: Non-Hispanic Black Order 1
  Participants play Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic White. The participant only receives the ball once during the entire game, while all the non-Hispanic White avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball, in which they receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity. During this round, participants play cyberball with virtual players who do not have any obvious ethnic differences from them. The participant again only receives the ball once during the entire game, while the other avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth with each other a number of times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity.
• Active Comparator: Mid-Atlantic: Non-Hispanic Black Order 2
  Participants play Cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participants only receive the ball once during the entire game, but avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth with each other several times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball again but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity. Participants play another session of Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic White. The participant only receives the ball once during the entire game, while all the non-Hispanic White avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants again play Cyberball but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity.
• Experimental: Mid-Atlantic: Non-Hispanic White Order 1
  Participants play Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear non-Hispanic Black, or Hispanic. The participant receives the ball once during the game, while all the non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball, in which they receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity. During this round, participants play cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participant again only receives the ball once during the entire game, while the other avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth several times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity.
• Active Comparator: Mid-Atlantic: Non-Hispanic White Order 2
  Participants play Cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participants only receive the ball once during the game, but avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth with each other several times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball again but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity. Participants play another session of Cyberball with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic. The participant receives the ball once during the game, while all the non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants again play Cyberball but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity.
• Experimental: Mid-Atlantic Hispanic Order 1
  Participants play Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic White. The participant receives the ball once during the game, while all the non-Hispanic White avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball, in which they receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity. During this round, participants play Cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participant again only receives the ball once during the entire game, while the other avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth several times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity.
• Active Comparator: Mid-Atlantic Hispanic Order 2
  Participants play Cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participants only receive the ball once during the entire game, but avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth with each other several times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball again but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity. Participants play another session of Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic White. The participant only receives the ball once during the entire game, while all the non-Hispanic White avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants again play Cyberball but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity.
• Experimental: Southwest Non-Hispanic Black Order 1
  Participants play Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic White. The participant only receives the ball once during the entire game, while all the non-Hispanic White avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball, in which they receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity. During this round, participants play cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participant again only receives the ball once during the entire game, while the other avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth several times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity.
• Active Comparator: Southwest Non-Hispanic Black Order 2
  Participants play Cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participants only receive the ball once during the entire game, but avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth with each other several times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball again but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity. Participants play another session of Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic White. The participant only receives the ball once during the entire game, while all the non-Hispanic White avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants again play Cyberball but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity.
• Experimental: Southwest Non-Hispanic White Order 1
  Participants play Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic. The participant receives the ball once during the game, while all the non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball, in which they receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity. During this round, participants play cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participant again only receives the ball once during the entire game, while the other avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth with each other several times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the different avatars, regardless of ethnicity.
• Active Comparator: Southwest Non-Hispanic White Order 2
  Participants play Cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participants only receive the ball once during the entire game, but avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth with each other several times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball again but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity. Participants play another session of Cyberball with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic Black or Hispanic. The participant only receives the ball once during the entire game, while all the non-white avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants again play Cyberball but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity.
• Experimental: Southwest Hispanic Order 1
  Participants play Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic White. The participant only receives the ball once during the entire game, while all the non-Hispanic White avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball, in which they receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity. During this round, participants play Cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participant again only receives the ball once during the entire game, while the other avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth several times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of their ethnicity.
• Experimental: Southwest Hispanic White Order 2
  Participants play Cyberball with virtual players who do not have any noticeable ethnic differences from them. The participants only receive the ball once during the entire game, but avatars that look similar to them pass the ball back and forth with each other several times. After completing surveys and providing saliva and blood samples, participants play Cyberball again but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity. Participants play another session of Cyberball™ with virtual players who appear to be non-Hispanic White. The participant receives the ball once during the game, while all the non-Hispanic White avatars will pass the ball back and forth with each other many times. After completing surveys and providing blood samples, participants again play Cyberball but receive the ball from virtual players an equal number of times as the other avatars, regardless of the avatars' ethnicity.

Primary Outcome Measure

Frequency of Perceived Discrimination Experiences [ Time Frame: Survey response collected before the first Cyberball Sequence within 30 minutes of arriving at the lab) and score calculated during data analysis ]

Locations (2)

Find similar trials in Baltimore, MD

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