RETRACTED ARTICLE: γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) administration improves action selection processes: a randomised controlled trial

Abstract

This article was retracted on 25 May 2022

The Editors have retracted this article.An investigation by Universiteit Leiden has concluded1 that that data from 16 participants were excluded from the results of the trial reported in this article. The exclusion of these data is not disclosed in the article. The Editors therefore no longer have confidence in the results and conclusions presented.Laura Steenbergen, Roberta Sellaro, Ann-Kathrin Stock, and Christian Beste agree with this retraction. Lorenza S. Colzato disagrees with this retraction.

In order to accomplish a task goal, real-life environments require us to develop different action control strategies in order to rapidly react to fast-moving visual and auditory stimuli. When engaging in complex scenarios, it is essential to prioritise and cascade different actions. Recent studies have pointed to an important role of the gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-ergic system in the neuromodulation of action cascading. In this study we assessed the specific causal role of the GABA-ergic system in modulating the efficiency of action cascading by administering 800 mg of synthetic GABA or 800 mg oral of microcrystalline cellulose (placebo). In a double-blind, randomised, between-group design, 30 healthy adults performed a stop-change paradigm. Results showed that the administration of GABA, compared to placebo, increased action selection when an interruption (stop) and a change towards an alternative response were required simultaneously and when such a change had to occur after the completion of the stop process. These findings, involving the systemic administration of synthetic GABA, provide the first evidence for a possible causal role of the GABA-ergic system in modulating performance in action cascading.