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Not listed Not applicable Interventional Accepts healthy volunteers

Salt and HMB Study

ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT05515900

Public ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT05515900. Field values are reproduced from the official study page; the official ClinicalTrials.gov record remains the source of truth for eligibility, enrollment, and contact information.

ClinicalTrials.gov public records Last synced Sep 1, 2026, 10:53 AM EDT

Data is sourced from official ClinicalTrials.gov public API records. Always review the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for the latest information.

Official title

The Roles of HMB and Sodium in Blood Pressure Regulation and Gut Microbiome

Brief summary

Reproduced verbatim from the official ClinicalTrials.gov record. Not medical advice.

Hypertension affects one-third of adults in the US. High salt diet is a key risk factor for elevated blood pressure (BP). The associations of gut microbiome with high salt diet and hypertension have been established in both animal and human studies. However, the underlying biological mechanisms linking sodium to BP elevation and gut microbiome alteration are not clear. Increasing evidence supports a pivotal role of leucine metabolism in hypertension. Leucine is initially catalyzed by the branched-chain amino acid aminotransferase enzyme (BCAT), producing α-ketoisocaproate (α-KIC), which can be further metabolized to β-hydroxy-β-methylbutyrate (HMB). Leucine/α-KIC/HMB metabolism pathway shows a promising involvement in the relationships among salt, gut microbiome, and elevated BP. Preliminary studies show that dietary sodium reduction increases circulating HMB, which is further associated with reduced BP, and that HMB treatment decreases Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio, and increases α-diversity and gut microbiota-derived short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). However, the leucine/α-KIC/HMB metabolism pathway has never been targeted in human studies. To establish causality, I propose a double-blind, two-stage randomized, placebo-controlled trial of sodium and HMB supplements for the following specific aims: Aim 1 will determine the effect of sodium supplement on leucine/α-KIC/HMB metabolism pathway. Aim 2 will determine the effect of HMB supplement on office BP and 24-hour ambulatory BP (Aim 2a), and α- and β-diversities and Firmicutes/Bacteroidetes ratio (Aim 2b). Secondary Aim will test the hypothesis that HMB supplement could partially block the detrimental effects of sodium intake on BP and gut microbiota. The proposed project would help to uncover the role of leucine/α-KIC/HMB metabolism pathway in salt-induced hypertension and the alteration in gut microbiome. Most importantly, the project will provide the training opportunities for me as a junior faculty, to study the new area of gut microbiome, acquire new experience and skills to conduct human trials. In addition, this project will generate rich preliminary data on the role of leucine/α-KIC/HMB metabolism pathway in salt-induced BP elevation, and test the feasibility for developing future NIH R01 project.

Study identification

NCT ID
NCT05515900
Recruitment status
Not listed
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Not applicable
Lead sponsor
Augusta University
Other
Enrollment
80 participants

Conditions and interventions

Conditions

Interventions

Dietary Supplement · Other

Eligibility (public fields only)

Age range
18 Years to 65 Years
Sex
All
Healthy volunteers
Accepts healthy volunteers

This page does not interpret eligibility. Detailed inclusion and exclusion criteria are on the official ClinicalTrials.gov record.

Study timeline

Start date
Sep 30, 2021
Primary completion
Sep 29, 2024
Completion
Sep 29, 2024
Last update posted
Aug 24, 2022

2021 – 2024

United States locations

U.S. sites
1
U.S. states
1
U.S. cities
1
Facility City State ZIP Site status
Augusta University Augusta Georgia 30912 Recruiting

Site contact phone numbers, emails, and investigator names are intentionally not displayed here. Open the official ClinicalTrials.gov record for site contact information.

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About this trial record page

What this page shows
Public field values for ClinicalTrials.gov record NCT05515900, including study identification, conditions, interventions, eligibility (age, sex, healthy volunteer), timeline, and U.S. site list.
What this page does not do
No medical advice, eligibility judgments, treatment recommendations, study quality scoring, or AI-generated medical summaries. No site contact phone numbers, emails, or investigator names.
Where the data comes from
Sourced from the official ClinicalTrials.gov public API. The official record is the source of truth.
Last refresh
Last update posted Aug 24, 2022 · Synced Sep 1, 2026

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