None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
Brown fat, unlike ordinary 'white' fat , functions like generators, burning fat to produce heat and dissipate energy. Brown fat protects animals against cold and from developing obesity. In humans it was previously believed that brown fat disappears after infancy. However, research including our own has shown that brown fat is present in most if not all adult humans and is located mainly around the neck. Brown fat activity in humans is detected by a PET scan based on uptake of glucose that is tagged with a small amount of radioactivity. This is a widely used diagnostic method in medicine. Brown fat is more abundant in lean than in obese individuals. Stimulating its activity may be a simple way of controlling body weight in humans. Apart from the cold exposure, very little is known about what can activate brown fat in humans. Our research aims to identify agents that can activate brown fat in humans. Aldosterone is a mineralocorticoid hormone produced from the adrenal glands. In animals, it was found that aldosterone suppresses the activity of brown fat and blocking aldosterone action by a medication called spironolactone increases brown fat activity. In this study, we will study the regulation of brown fat activity by spironolactone in humans and its metabolic significance
Interventions
randomised double-blind placebo-controlled cross-over study of treatment with oral spironolactone 100mg daily for 2 weeks
and 2 weeks wash-out period.
The participants will return the drug bottles after each treatment period.
Sponsors
Professor Ken Ho
Study design
Allocation
Randomised controlled trial
Intervention model
Crossover
Primary purpose
Treatment
Masking
Blinded (masking used) (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to 50 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
healthy adults aged 18-50 years old, BMI<35
Exclusion criteria
Pregnancy eGFR <60
Outcome results
None listed