Genes, Soy Isoflavones, and Virus (GSV)

September 14, 2026 updated by: Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago

Genes, Soy Isoflavones, and Virus - Preventing Airway Remodeling, Asthma, and Wheezing Study

In this study, we will assess whether children without established asthma who have a variation in the switch for the PAI-1 gene will have higher PAI-1 levels and remodeling / allergic inflammatory pathways in their airways than children who do not have the gene. We will also determine if soy isoflavones given when presenting for an acute respiratory illness can decrease these changes.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Not yet recruiting

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

Pediatric asthma affects 8.3% of U.S. children, accounting for 5.92 billion dollars of U.S. health care expenditure annually. Approximately 80% of the children who progress to have asthma will have wheeze in early childhood, suggesting that primary prevention should target infancy. In particular, severe early life viral lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) shows strong associations with asthma development which are modified by genetic predisposition.1-5 A gain of function plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) promoter variant is present in up to 60% of the population who develop asthma in either homozygote or heterozygote form. If children with ≥1 copy of the PAI-1 risk allele had a respiratory viral illness requiring a physician visit before 2 years old, these subjects had a 12-fold (any virus) to 18-fold (self-reported Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)) increased risk of developing asthma. PAI-1 production increases in the airway at the time of a viral illness and promotes both fibrosis and an allergic airway milieu. We have found that soy isoflavones decrease the production of PAI-1 and decrease rates of asthma exacerbations by 75% in subjects with the risk gene. This pilot will allow for preliminary data to determine if on-demand treatment with soy isoflavone improves epithelial integrity and decreases Th2 airway responses if dosed with onset of illness. This would establish the viability of on demand treatment for early life viral illness which may modulate acute outcomes. In this study, we will assess whether children without established asthma who have the PAI-1 genotype will have higher PAI-1 levels and remodeling / allergic inflammatory pathways in their airways than children who do not have the genotype. We will also determine if soy isoflavones given when presenting for an acute respiratory illness can decrease these changes in children both with and without the genotype. Finally, we will also study these questions in a lung organoid / Air Liquid Interface (ALI) model with cells from subjects with the risk allele, which will allow us to compare soy isoflavone pre-inoculation treatment with treatment post infection in a controlled experiment. These data would be essential to set up the team to assess the effects of on demand treatment of children with LRTI irrespective of asthma after presentation to the ED. This would be an important step forward compared to chronic treatment in high-risk populations which will have barriers to implementation.

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 (Estimated)

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.
60

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 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

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

  • Child

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  1. Parent or guardian must be an adult (≥18 years of age) and able to understand and provide informed consent.
  2. Age: Term infants (≥37 weeks) aged 4 months to 24 months at recruitment.
  3. Admitted to Lurie Children's Hospital or presenting to ED for an acute viral lower respiratory tract infection within 1-3 days of onset.

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Inability or unwillingness of a parent or guardian to give written informed consent or comply with study protocol
  2. Parents who will not include either a puree or some form of bottle feeding such that the infant would be able to take the investigational product in a puree or a liquid (expressed breast milk, supplemental formula, or a small amount of water)
  3. Currently on a soy based formula as determined by the judgement of the study investigators
  4. Breastfeeding mothers who are taking soy supplements or soy enriched foods more than 2 times a week and will not stop this level of ingestion while breastfeeding (assessed by soy intake questionnaire). Note there is no coercion to change dietary practices. This is simply an exclusion criteria if the mother does not want to limit soy intake to this level for the time of the study.
  5. On provider prescribed treatment for recurrent wheezing such as regular or intermittent inhaled steroids
  6. The infant may not have the following specific contraindications: known congenital thyroid disease, or a history of estrogen sensitive clinically relevant mutations in the family (such as BRCA1).

  7. Medication use:

    1. Maternal use of tamoxifen during pregnancy or breastfeeding
    2. Use of immunomodulatory medications such as methotrexate, mycophenolate, azathioprine, or other immunomodulatory agent in the mother if breastfeeding or in the infant.
  8. Use of another investigational agent in the last 30 days prior
  9. Current parent reported diagnosis of mental illness or current self-reported drug or alcohol abuse (in the primary caregiver) that, in the opinion of the investigator, would interfere with the participant's ability to comply with study requirements
  10. Known allergy to soy protein (either by reported allergy or prior positive allergy results and no history of ongoing ingestion) or reported allergy to NovaSoyTM, from which the investigational product is compounded.
  11. The infant is currently participating in another allergic disease (asthma, food allergy, or AD) -related pharmaceutical study or intervention study or who have participated in another asthma-related pharmaceutical study or intervention study in the month prior to enrollment
  12. Past or current medical problems or findings from physical examination or laboratory testing that are not listed above, which, in the opinion of the investigator, may pose additional risks from participation in the study, may interfere with the participant's ability to comply with study requirements or that may impact the quality or interpretation of the data obtained from the study.
  13. Any chronic condition requiring use of systemic corticosteroids or another immunomodulating agent prior to visit 1 (V1).

  14. Non-adherence:

    1. Inability / unwillingness of the parents to facilitate ingestion of the investigational product
    2. Unwillingness of the parents to allow the staff to perform baseline procedures of nasal swabs
  15. Participant is in foster care or is a ward of the state.
  16. Caregiver does not have access to a phone (needed for scheduling appointments or responding to questionnaires)
  17. Plan(s) for the family to move from the area during the study period
  18. The infant's caretaker does not primarily speak English or Spanish.

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: Non-Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Single Group 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: soy isoflavone
soy isoflavone at 1.5 mg/kg divided bid dosed from presentation for 2 - 3 day sof dosing
Drug: Soy Isoflavone Nutritional Supplements
Soy isoflavone will be administered orally at a dose of 1.5 mg/ kg divided bid from presentation to day 7 of illness
No Intervention: observational arm for more severe subjects
these subjects will have endotyping carried out by nasal swab at presentation and day 7

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
Eos3 transcriptional module expression
Time Frame: on day 4-7 of illness after 2-3 days of dosing
The mean expression level of the Th2 and ciliated epithelium (eos3) transcriptional module at day 4-7 of viral illness
on day 4-7 of illness after 2-3 days of dosing

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
Th2 and epithelial module expression
Time Frame: day 4-7 of illness
This will include the mean expression level of other key transcriptional modules representing Th2 and epithelial processes, including expression of m24<squamous epithelium>, squa1 <tight junctions and epithelial integrity>, and m27 <TGFB/SMAD3 regulation of PAI-1> modules at day 4-7 of viral illness of viral illness
day 4-7 of illness

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.
Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago

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.
  • Principal Investigator: Rajesh Kumar, MD, MSCI, Ann & Robert H Lurie Children's hospital of Chicago

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 (Estimated)

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.
October 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

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.
December 31, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

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.
June 30, 2028

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 14, 2026

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 14, 2026

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.
September 18, 2026

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.
September 18, 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.
September 14, 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.
September 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

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.
  • STUDY00001088 (University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

Data will be available on request after publication.

IPD Sharing Time Frame

de-identified data will be available after study close.

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

all investigators who request access after publication of findings will have a deidentified dataset shared with them

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

Yes

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

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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