The Effects of the Food Preservative Propionic Acid in Post-prandial Metabolism (Walnut)

September 19, 2014 updated by: Amir Tirosh, Brigham and Women's Hospital

Pilot Study to Study the Effects of the Food Preservative Calcium Propionate on Postprandial Hormonal and Metabolic Milieu

Propionic acid (PA) is used as a preservative in foods such as cheeses, baked goods, or additive for artificial fruit flavors. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency considers it safe and therefore, has no limitation on its use. Since PA has been shown before to serve as a substrate for glucose production in the liver, the purpose of this study is to find out if PA intake causes changes in levels of glucose, insulin and other important hormones following a meal.

This research study will compare PA to placebo. The placebo looks exactly like the active substance, but it does not contain any active agent (PA). Placebos are used in research studies to see if the results are due to the study drug or to other reasons.

The investigators plan to have 20 subjects take part in this study at the Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH).

Study Overview

Status

Unknown

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

-To test whether PA, added as food supplement to humans, results in altered post-prandial metabolism. The investigators propose to conduct a double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled, cross-over study in which blood levels of metabolites and hormones will be measured in healthy volunteers following a mixed meal test without or with PA.

Study design:

This is a double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled, cross-over study. Twenty volunteers who meet the inclusion/exclusion criteria will be randomized into two groups, provided with a mixed meal without or with calcium proprionate (also known as E282). A week later, participants will be provided with a mixed meal again, following cross-over of the groups. Blood will be collected at baseline, and every 30 minutes for 4 hours.

Study Subjects:

20 healthy male and female volunteers (ages 18 to 65 years) with a body mass index (BMI) of 20 to <30 Kg/m2.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

20

Phase

  • Not Applicable

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
    • Massachusetts
      • Boston, Massachusetts, United States, 02115
        • Recruiting
        • Brigham and Women's Hospital
        • Principal Investigator:
          • Amir Tirosh, MD PhD

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

18 years to 65 years (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Age 18-65 years
  • Good health as evidenced by history and physical exam
  • BMI: 20-29.9 kg/m2

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Fasting plasma glucose >110 mg/dL
  • HbA1c >6.0%
  • Significant current illness other than treated hypothyroidism
  • BP >135/85 or systolic BP <90 mm Hg
  • Hepatic disease (transaminase > 3 times normal)
  • Renal impairment (Creatinine clearance <60 ml/min)
  • History of drug or alcohol abuse
  • Participation in any other concurrent clinical trial
  • Pregnant women
  • History of food allergies.

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: Basic Science
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Crossover Assignment
  • Masking: Double

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: Calcium propionate
Addition of calcium propionate (PA arm) in a capsule (1000 mg) consumed together with a mixed meal of 500 kCal in the morning following an overnight fast. Blood is taken at baseline and every 30 minutes for 4 hours. This arm is compared to a placebo capsule (following identical protocol). Following a washout period of a week, the arms will be crossed over and the PA arm participants will repeat the same protocol in the 'placebo arm'.
Dietary supplement: Calcium propionate
Placebo Comparator: Placebo
Addition of placebo (PA arm) in a capsule consumed together with a mixed meal of 500 kCal in the morning following an overnight fast. Blood is taken at baseline and every 30 minutes for 4 hours. This arm is compared to the PA arm (PA, 1000 mg in a capsule). Following a washout period of a week, the arms will be crossed over and the PA arm participants will repeat the same protocol in the 'placebo arm', and vice versa.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Post prandial insulin levels
Time Frame: During 4 hours after consumption of a meal
During 4 hours after consumption of a meal

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Brigham and Women's Hospital

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Amir Tirosh, MD PhD, Brigham and Women's Hospital

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

August 1, 2013

Primary Completion (Anticipated)

June 1, 2015

Study Completion (Anticipated)

June 1, 2015

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 26, 2013

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 27, 2013

First Posted (Estimate)

June 28, 2013

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

September 22, 2014

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 19, 2014

Last Verified

September 1, 2014

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 2013P001197

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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