Resistant Maltodextrin for Gut Microbiome in Parkinson's Disease: Safety and Tolerability Study

April 10, 2026 updated by: Roneil Malkani, Northwestern University

Gut Microbial Remodeling With Resistant Maltodextrin for Motor and Non-motor Symptoms in Parkinson's Disease: Safety and Tolerability Study

This study will evaluate the safety and tolerability of a dietary fiber, resistant maltodextrin, in people with Parkinson's disease. It will also evaluate the fiber's effect on the gut microbiome and potential effects on motor function and non-motor functions. Half of the participants will receive resistant maltodextrin and the other half will receive a control substance, maltodextrin.

Study Overview

Status

Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Intestinal microbiota may play in important role in Parkinson's disease (PD). Colonic bacteria play roles in multiple functions including gut motility and secretion of metabolites which can have systemic effects on the body. Recent evidence has shown that people with PD have an altered distribution of gut bacteria that healthy controls. These changes are associated with differences in various metabolites, including butyrate, that are involved in maintaining the gut barrier integrity and even gait and balance function. Microbiota dysbiosis could potentially exacerbate or even contribute to the pathogenesis of PD. Probiotic and dietary interventions may improve gut function and the motor symptoms in PD, but neither have been examined for their effect on the gut microbiome. Prebiotic treatments have been shown to order the microbiome in some populations, but have not been assessed for tolerability or efficacy in PD.

The objective of this study is to examine the safety and tolerability of resistant maltodextrin (RM), a prebiotic non-digestible fiber, and its effect on the microbiome and motor in non-motor symptoms and PD. The investigators will conduct a randomized, parallel-group double-blinded controlled trial assessing RM 50 g daily compared to maltodextrin (an easily digestible glucose polysaccharide) over 4 weeks. Patients will be dosed with 25 g daily for 1 week and then titrated to 50 g daily for the remaining 3 weeks.

The goals of this study include: 1) To determine the safety and tolerability of RM compared to maltodextrin in patients with PD; 2) To determine if RM will remodel the gut microbiome in patients with PD; 3) (exploratory) To determine if RM administration will improve motor and non-motor symptoms in PD.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

30

Phase

  • Phase 2

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
    • Illinois
      • Chicago, Illinois, United States, 60611
        • Northwestern University

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

60 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Men and women age ≥60 years
  • Diagnosis of PD based on United Kingdom PD brain bank criteria, Hoehn and Yahr stage 1-3.
  • Stable dose of PD medications for 30 days prior to study and for duration of study
  • If used, stable dose of melatonin, sedative/hypnotic or stimulant medications

Exclusion Criteria:

  • use of other prebiotic or probiotic treatment for 30 days prior to or during the study
  • unstable medical or psychiatric disorder
  • history of diabetes mellitus or current use of medication for diabetes
  • cognitive impairment based on Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) <25.
  • current or recent (within previous 3 weeks) use of laxatives
  • use of antibiotics in the past 30 days
  • participation in another clinical trial in the past 30 days.

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
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Resistant Maltodextrin
Resistant maltodextrin (RM) powder 25 g during days 1-7 and 50g during days 8-28, each dose dissolved in 8 oz of water once daily in the morning.
Dietary supplement: Resistant maltodextrin
Resistant maltodextrin powder
Placebo Comparator: Maltodextrin
Maltodextrin 25g for days 1-7 and 50 g for days 8-28, each dose dissolved in 8 oz of water once daily in the morning.
Dietary supplement: maltodextrin
maltodextrin powder

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Adverse events
Time Frame: 4 weeks
Adverse event frequency and severity based on diary reports, phone calls, and in-person assessments.
4 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Gut microbial remodeling
Time Frame: 4 weeks
Change in fecal butyrate-producing bacteria based on high-throughput amplicon sequencing of the V4 variable region of the microbial 16s ribosomal ribonucleic acid (RNA) gene.
4 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Sponsor

Northwestern University

Collaborators

University of Illinois at Chicago

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Roneil G Malkani, Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine Department of Neurology

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

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)

November 6, 2018

Primary Completion (Actual)

June 30, 2022

Study Completion (Estimated)

October 31, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

September 10, 2018

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 11, 2018

First Posted (Actual)

September 12, 2018

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

April 15, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

April 10, 2026

Last Verified

April 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • STU00207142

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

No

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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