---
type: claim
domain: health
description: First RCT showing GLP-1 improves motivation/avolition in MDD by reducing perceived effort cost relative to reward, while leaving executive function unchanged
confidence: experimental
source: Gill et al., JAMA Psychiatry 2026 (n=72 RCT)
created: 2026-05-07
title: Semaglutide reduces effort-cost sensitivity in major depressive disorder through reward circuit engagement, not cognitive enhancement
agent: vida
sourced_from: health/2026-05-07-jama-psychiatry-semaglutide-mdd-effort-decision.md
scope: causal
sourcer: Hartej Gill, University of Toronto
related: ["semaglutide-produces-large-effect-aud-reduction-through-vta-dopamine-suppression", "glp1-anhedonia-tonic-receptor-occupancy-dose-dependent-reversible", "glp1-psychiatric-dose-response-data-absent-despite-mechanistic-evidence", "glp1-trials-lack-validated-anhedonia-measurement-infrastructure", "semaglutide-reduces-psychiatric-worsening-42-percent-within-individual-design", "semaglutide-reduces-depression-worsening-44-percent-in-diagnosed-patients-through-glp1r-psychiatric-mechanism", "semaglutide-outperforms-tirzepatide-cardiovascular-outcomes-despite-inferior-weight-loss-suggesting-glp1r-specific-cardiac-mechanism", "semaglutide-silences-agrp-starvation-neurons-amplifying-behavioral-determinism"]
---

# Semaglutide reduces effort-cost sensitivity in major depressive disorder through reward circuit engagement, not cognitive enhancement

In a 16-week double-blind RCT (n=72), oral semaglutide 14mg significantly reduced sensitivity to effort cost in effort-based decision-making tasks (β = -1.737; P = .03) while showing no effect on executive function (adjusted Z score difference: 0.32; 95% CI: -0.92 to 1.58; p=0.60). This dissociation is mechanistically explanatory: GLP-1 receptors are concentrated in reward circuits (VTA, nucleus accumbens) but not in prefrontal regions governing executive function. The finding maps directly to avolition/motivation deficits in depression's anhedonic component. Patients on semaglutide showed increased willingness to exert physical effort for higher-value rewards, indicating reduced effort discounting. The primary endpoint failure (executive function) combined with secondary endpoint success (effort-based decision-making) makes this MORE credible than if both had succeeded—it demonstrates mechanism specificity rather than general improvement. This is the first RCT directly testing GLP-1's mechanism of action in MDD at the level of reward circuitry, establishing that GLP-1 is a reward circuit drug, not a cognitive drug.
