Microbiome Derived Metabolism and Pharmacokinetics (MDM-PK)

April 27, 2026 updated by: Luigi Brunetti, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Incorporating Drug Metabolism by the Human Gut Microbiome Into Personalized Medicine

The investigators will perform single-dose pharmacokinetic (PK) studies in humans following administration of drugs with known microbiome derived metabolism (MDM) in parallel with preclinical studies. By directly comparing laboratory measurements to clinical results, the investigators will be able to confirm the relevance of MDM in vivo, create microbiome-dependent PK profiles of the MDM positive drugs, and establish methodology to capture the contribution of MDM to inter-individual variability in clinical drug PK profiles.

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.

Detailed Description

The human gut microbiome has been shown to play an important role in the observed inter-individual variability in therapeutic response, including both efficacy and toxicity. One of the mechanisms by which the gut microbiome exerts these effects is through the direct biochemical transformation of orally administered drugs into more or less active or toxic metabolites, termed herein microbiome-derived drug metabolism (MDM). Recent systematic studies have revealed an enormous and largely unexplored biochemical capacity of human gut bacteria - cultured in ex vivo microbial communities or as single isolates - to metabolize dozens of orally administered drugs but the clinical relevance of the observed MDM remains unmapped. This gap in knowledge is a result of overt disconnect between preclinical and clinical studies: MDM studies performed in the laboratory are removed from direct clinical comparisons, and human studies performed during drug development and therapeutic interventions almost completely ignore microbiome contribution. Moreover, there is currently a lack standardized experimental methods and mathematical models to start incorporating MDM into clinical decisions. Our PK studies are aimed at developing such strategies into clinical practice.

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.
17

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 1

Contacts and Locations

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

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • United States
    • New Jersey
      • Somerville, New Jersey, United States, 08876
        • Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset

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 65 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • 18 to 65 years of age
  • Body mass index between 18.5 - 29.9 kg/m2

Exclusion Criteria

  • Estimated creatinine clearance < 50 mL/min
  • Liver impairment (liver enzymes > 2 times upper limit)
  • Antibiotics in the past 3 months
  • History of gastrointestinal disease
  • History of autoimmune disorder
  • Chronic viral infection
  • Smoker
  • Alcohol intake (defined as having up to 1 drink per day for women and up to 2 drinks per day for men)
  • Use of immune modulating medications
  • Diabetes mellitus
  • Any history or contraindication to the study medications
  • Additional exclusion criteria will be based on the FDA approved prescribing information for selected drugs (i.e., contraindications)

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: Other
  • Allocation: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Crossover Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

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: Tolcapone
Tolcapone 100 mg by mouth once
Drug: Tolcapone 100 MG
Tolcapone 100 mg by mouth once
Experimental: Duloxetine
Duloxetine 20 mg by mouth once
Drug: Duloxetine 20 MG
Duloxetine 20 mg by mouth once

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
Drug area under the plasma concentration versus time curve (AUC)
Time Frame: After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
We will calculate the plasma area under the curve for the microbiome derived metabolism positive probe drugs
After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
Drug peak plasma concentration
Time Frame: After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
We will measure the peak plasma concentration for microbiome derived metabolism positive probe drugs
After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
Drug trough plasma concentrations
Time Frame: After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
We will measure the trough plasma concentration for microbiome derived metabolism positive probe drugs
After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
Drug volume of distribution
Time Frame: After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
We will calculate the volume of distribution for microbiome derived metabolism positive probe drugs
After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
Drug half-life
Time Frame: After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
We will calculate drug half-life for microbiome derived metabolism positive probe drugs
After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
Drug plasma clearance
Time Frame: After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
We will calculate drug plasma clearance for each microbiome derived metabolism positive drug.
After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)

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
Quantitation of microbiome derived metabolism positive drug metabolites in urine
Time Frame: After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
The concentration of microbiome derived metabolism positive drug metabolites in urine will be measured
After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
Quantitation of microbiome derived metabolism positive drugs in urine
Time Frame: After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)
The concentration of microbiome derived metabolism positive drugs in urine will be measured.
After a single dose of a microbiome derived metabolism positive drug (over an 8 hour period for each drug)

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.
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

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 (Actual)

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.
February 1, 2022

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 23, 2025

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 23, 2025

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).
September 13, 2021

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.
September 22, 2021

First Posted (Actual)

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.
October 4, 2021

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.
April 29, 2026

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.
April 27, 2026

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.
April 1, 2026

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.
  • Pro2021000945

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.

No

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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