Alendronate to Prevent Loss of Bronchoprotection in Asthma (ALFA)

December 13, 2017 updated by: dave mauger, Milton S. Hershey Medical Center

Proof of Concept Study of Alendronate for Asthma

Beta-2-agonists are effective in reducing airway narrowing in asthma and protecting against stimuli that produce bronchoconstriction. The combination of long-acting beta agonists (LABA) and inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) has become the most commonly used asthma controller medication class in the United States, but unfortunately, even when LABAs are added to ICS and used regularly, 58-81% of patients with asthma fail to achieve total control. Regular use of beta-agonists, both short and long-acting, reduces the ability of these agents to protect against the airway narrowing that occurs in asthma in response to bronchoconstrictor stimuli. We refer to this reduced effect as loss of bronchoprotection. In this proof of concept trial we aim to determine if alendronate, which diminishes beta-2 adrenergic receptor internalization, can reduce the loss of bronchoprotection that occurs with regular use of LABAs, even when used in combination with ICS.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
78

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Phase 2
  • Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Arizona
      • Tucson, Arizona, United States, 85724
        • University of Arizona College of Medicine
    • California
      • San Francisco, California, United States, 94143
        • University of California - San Francisco
    • Colorado
      • Denver, Colorado, United States, 80206
        • National Jewish Health
    • Illinois
      • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60612
        • University of Illinois at Chicago
      • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60637
        • University of Chicago
      • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60611
        • Northwestern Memorial Hospital
    • Massachusetts
      • Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02115
        • Brigham & Women's Hospital
    • Missouri
      • Saint Louis, Missouri, United States, 63110
        • Washington University
    • North Carolina
      • Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States, 27157
        • Wake Forest University Health Sciences
    • Wisconsin
      • Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 53972
        • University of Wisconsin

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

18 years to 80 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Clinical history consistent with moderate asthma for >1 year
  • Asthma is controlled with ICS, with an FP dose ≤ 1000mcg/day and >100mcg/day (or equivalent)
  • Able to perform reproducible spirometry according to ATS criteria
  • Baseline FEV1 ≥ 50% of predicted and ≥1L.
  • If FEV1 <80%, a minimum 12% increase in FEV1 post-bronchodilator or a MCh PC20 ≤ 8 mg/mL
  • If FEV1 ≥80%, a MCh PC20 ≤ 8 mg/mL
  • Salmeterol protected MCh ≤ 16 mg/mL

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Uncontrolled asthma, as suggested by an ACT score <18 while on high-dose ICS (FP daily dose >500mcg or equivalent)
  • Non-ICS controller medication or LABA use within 4 weeks of study entry.
  • Contraindications to use of bisphosphonates: history of intolerance to bisphosphonates, history of esophageal ulcers, history of hematemesis, uncontrolled gastro-esophageal reflux disease, inability to stay erect for 30 minutes after oral drug, history of osteonecrosis of the jaw, dental extraction or root canal in prior 8 weeks, or anticipated during the study
  • Calculated GFR of less than 35 mL/min
  • History of smoking (cigarettes, cigars, pipes, marijuana or any other substances) within the past 1 year, or > 10 pack-years total if ≥ 18 years of age
  • Systemic corticosteroid treatment for any condition within 4 weeks of enrollment at Visit 1, history of significant asthma exacerbation requiring systemic corticosteroids within 4 weeks of Visit 1 or more than five courses of systemic corticosteroids in the past year, history of a life-threatening asthma exacerbation requiring intubation, mechanical ventilation, or resulting in a hypoxic seizure within the last 2 years
  • History of a respiratory tract infection within 4 weeks of Visit 1
  • Receiving hyposensitization therapy other than an established maintenance regimen defined as a continuous regimen for ≥ 3 months prior to enrollment

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Alendronate
Alendronate in 10mg capsules taken once daily
Drug: Alendronate
Other Names:
  • Fasomax
Placebo Comparator: Placebo
Placebo capsule taken once daily
Drug: Placebo

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Salmeterol Protected Methacholine Challenge PC20
Time Frame: 8 weeks after randomization
Following administration of Salmeterol, the concentration of Methacholine required to produce a 20% drop in FEV1 - measured in mg/ml and reported on log base 2 scale.
8 weeks after randomization

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Peripheral Blood Mononuclear Cell ADRB2 Cell Surface Density
Time Frame: 8 weeks after randomization
8 weeks after randomization
Beta-2 Adrenergic Receptor Agonist-induced cAMP Production
Time Frame: 8 weeks after randomization
Peripheral blood mononuclear cells cAMP concentrations measured using isoproterenol (ISO) as a beta-2 adrenergic receptor agonist, and using phosphate buffered saline (PBS) as a positive control. The outcome is expressed as the ratio of cAMP concentration using ISO relative to cAMP concentration using PBS.
8 weeks after randomization

Other Outcome Measures

Other Outcome Measures

For clinical trials, a planned measurement described in the protocol that is used to determine the effect of an intervention/treatment on participants. For observational studies, a measurement or observation that is used to describe patterns of diseases or traits, or associations with exposures, risk factors, or treatment. Types of outcome measures include primary outcome measure and secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Salivary Alpha Amylase Ratio (Post-Salmeterol / Pre-Salmeterol)
Time Frame: 8 weeks after randomization
Salivary Alpha Amylase (sAA) levels from saliva samples obtained through passive drooling, before and 1 hour after Salmeterol administration. The outcome is expressed as the ratio of the Post-Salmeterol to the Pre-Salmeterol sAA levels.
8 weeks after randomization
Asthma Control Test (ACT)
Time Frame: 8 weeks after randomization
Asthma Control Test : Score calculated as the sum total of a 5-item questionnaire. Each item ranges from 1 (poor control) to 5 (good control) so that the range of the total score is 5 to 25. Scores below 20 indicate that asthma is not well controlled.
8 weeks after randomization
Fractional Exhaled Nitrix Oxide
Time Frame: 8 weeks after randomization
8 weeks after randomization

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Milton S. Hershey Medical Center

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Study Director: Juan Carlos Cardet, MD, Brigham and Women's Hospital

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Helpful Links

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2015

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
September 1, 2016

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
September 1, 2016

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
August 29, 2014

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 29, 2014

First Posted (Estimate)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
September 3, 2014

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
January 12, 2018

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
December 13, 2017

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
December 1, 2017

More Information

Terms related to this study

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • AsthmaNet 009
  • U10HL098115 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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