A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled Trial of Curcumin in Leber's Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON)

December 20, 2012 updated by: Mahidol University

Background Leber's Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON) is a maternally inherited ocular disorder associated with a mutation in mtDNA . The common manifestation is visual loss which caused by the respiratory chain enzymes complex dysfunction resulting in increased oxidative stress enzymes production.

Purpose To determine whether curcumin which is an antioxidant agent is beneficial to the patients with 11778 LHON mutation.

Material and Method Seventy patients with 11778 LHON mutation were randomly treated with oral curcumin (500 mg/day) and placebo for 1 year. The visual acuity, computerized visual field, electrophysiologic parameters and oxidative stress enzymes in plasma were compared before and after treatment at 3, 6, and 12 months interval.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) is a maternally inherited disease that is characterized by a simultaneous or more common sequential bilateral loss of central vision, which typically occurs during the teenager years or early adulthood. The disease may be progressive and the patients eventually become blind. In contrast to blindness in patients caused by congenital diseases, the patients who develop blindness caused by LHON will have more trouble in their life because they previously had better vision. Although LHON is associated with mitochondrial DNA mutation at a variable nucleotide position but no certain mechanism of optic nerve injury has been found. It has been postulated that a defect in a complex of respiratory chain enzyme which is caused by mitochondrial DNA dysfunction, results in an increase of free radical substances that interfere with optic nerve function in LHON. Some antioxidant substances have been used to decrease the progression of visual impairment. However, there have been few therapeutic trials for LHON.

Curcumin, a component of tumeric, which comes from the root Curcumin longa has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-carcinogenic activities. There is some evidence which suggests that curcumin contributes to the in vitro removal of free radical gradients in thalassemic serum and to a clinical improvement of thalassemic patients. We propose a randomized controlled trial study of curcumin, which is an antioxidant substance, for LHON. This study will provide not only an insight into the therapeutic efficacy of curcumin, a kind of Thai herb, for LHON but also the development of future therapeutic strategies to prevent blindness.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

70

Phase

  • 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

  • Thailand
      • Bangkok, Thailand, 10700
        • Professor Wanicha Chuenkongkaew

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

Ages Eligible for Study

6 years and older (Child, Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • LHON patient with 11778 point mutation

Exclusion Criteria:

  • LHON patient with other point mutation

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: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: 2
  1. curcumin
  2. placebo
Drug: curcumin
curcumin 250 mg twice a day in the first group. placebo 1 capsule twice a day in the second group.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
visual outcome
Time Frame: 1 year
1 year

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Mahidol University

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Professor Wanicha L Chuenkongkaew, MD, Mahidol University

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

May 1, 2005

Study Completion (Actual)

December 1, 2007

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 11, 2007

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 11, 2007

First Posted (Estimate)

September 12, 2007

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

December 24, 2012

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 20, 2012

Last Verified

August 1, 2004

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 123/2547

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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