The Effect of New Zealand Blackcurrant (NZBC) Supplementation on Recovery Following Strenuous Exercise (CurraNZ_MD)

The Effect of New Zealand Blackcurrant (NZBC) Supplementation on Indices of Muscle Damage Following Strenuous Exercise

The study aims to examine the effect of a New Zealand blackcurrant (NZBC) supplement on markers of muscle damage and recovery following strenuous resistance exercise. The investigation will compare responses between an experimental (NZBC capsule, 300 mg/day) and placebo (PLA capsule, 300 mg sugar) group. Participants will attend a screening session where they will consent to the study, complete a pre-activity medical questionnaire and have their height, weight and resting blood pressure measured. If the participants meet the inclusion criteria they will perform a familarisation session on the muscle strength assessment. Participants will be randomized to NZBC or placebo groups, and consume one capsule in the morning (between 6-10 am) for 12 days. This is a double-blinded study, which means that the participant and the study team will not know which group the participants are assigned to until the study is over. On day 8 participants will perform a strenuous bout of upper body resistance exercise on the isokinetic dynamometer (exercise device). Muscle strength and soreness, arm circumference, and elbow range of motion will be measured, and a fasted blood sample will be collected, before and 24, 48, 72 & 96 hours after the muscle fatigue protocol (on days 9, 10, 11 & 12). A marker of muscle damage (creatine kinase [CK] concentration) will be measured in the blood samples. Participants will also be asked to complete a 6-day dietary record, beginning on day 7 and ending on the final day of testing (day 12).

Study Overview

• Status: Completed
• Conditions: Muscle Damage
• Intervention / Treatment: Dietary supplement: New Zealand blackcurrants (NZBC); Dietary supplement: Placebo (PLA)

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Actual): 27
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

Study Locations

• United Kingdom
  • Surrey
    • Guildford, Surrey, United Kingdom, GU2 7AD
      • Surrey Human Performance Institute

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: 18 years to 45 years (ADULT)
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Males and Females
• 18 - 45 years old
• BMI: 19 - 29.9 kg/m2
• Healthy: no active disease process that could interfere with endpoints measured as determined by medical history

Exclusion Criteria:

• Smoking and tobacco use
• Takes medication [excluding contraception]
• BMI ≥ 30 kg/m2
• Hypertensive (diastolic > 90 and/or systolic blood pressure > 140 mmHg)
• History of musculoskeletal upper limb injuries
• Performs regular resistance exercise (> 2 sessions per week)
• Uses dietary supplements that could influence muscle recovery or function (e.g. protein supplements, antioxidants etc)

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: PREVENTION
• Allocation: RANDOMIZED
• Interventional Model: PARALLEL
• Masking: DOUBLE

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: New Zealand blackcurrants (NZBC); 1 NZBC capsule (containing 300 mg active cassis containing 105 mg of anthocyanins, i.e. 35-50 % delphinidin-3-rutinoside, 5-20 % delphinidin-3-glucoside, 30-45 % cyanidin-3-rutinoside, 3-10 % cyanidin-3-glucoside), consumed in the morning, for 12 days.	Dietary supplement: New Zealand blackcurrants (NZBC); NZBC capsules containing anthocyanin-rich blackcurrant extract; Other Names: NZBC extract supplement (Health Currancy Ltd [UK] / CurraNZ Ltd [NZ])
PLACEBO_COMPARATOR: Placebo (PLA); 1 placebo capsule (containing 300 mg microcrystalline cellulose M102), consumed in the morning, for 12 days.	Dietary supplement: Placebo (PLA); Placebo capsules containing microcrystalline cellulose; Other Names: Placebo capsules

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change from baseline in creatine kinase (CK) concentration at 72 hours post-exercise	Serum biomarker for muscle damage	At baseline (pre-exercise) and 72 hours post-exercise.
Change from baseline in creatine kinase (CK) concentration at 96 hours post-exercise	Serum biomarker for muscle damage	At baseline (pre-exercise) and 96 hours post-exercise..

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Change in maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) from baseline to 96 hours post-exercise	Muscle function measure; maximal voluntary isometric contraction (torque, Nm) performed on isokinetic dynamometer	At baseline (pre-exercise) and post-exercise time points (at 0, 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours respectively).
Change in rating of Delayed Onset of Muscle Soreness (DOMS) from baseline to 96 hours post-exercise	Self-reported perception of muscle soreness using a visual analogue scale (VAS), from 'no soreness' [0 mm] on the left anchor point to 'extremely sore' [100 mm] on the right	At baseline (pre-exercise) and post-exercise time points (at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours respectively).
Change in joint range of motion (ROM) from baseline to 96 hours post-exercise	Elbow ROM measured using a goniometer	At baseline (pre-exercise) and post-exercise time points (at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours respectively).
Change in mid arm circumference (MAC) from baseline to 96 hours post-exercise	Mid-upper arm circumference measured at the midpoint of the distance from the acromion process (acromiale) to the olecranon process (radiale).	At baseline (pre-exercise) and post-exercise time points (at 24, 48, 72 and 96 hours respectively).

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: University of Surrey
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Julie EA Hunt, PhD, University of Surrey

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (ACTUAL): June 10, 2016
• Primary Completion (ACTUAL): September 1, 2018
• Study Completion (ACTUAL): September 1, 2018

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 6, 2021
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 17, 2021
• First Posted (ACTUAL): August 18, 2021

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (ACTUAL): August 18, 2021
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 17, 2021
• Last Verified: August 1, 2021

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Oxidative stress; Recovery; Supplementation; Anthocyanin; Exercise-induced muscle damage; New Zealand blackcurrant
• Other Study ID Numbers: UEC/2015/112/FHMS

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO
• IPD Plan Description: Will provide basic data spreadsheet upon request.

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No