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Gut Microbiota-dependent Health Impacts of Haskap Berries

PARTNERSHIP: Elucidating Gut Microbiota-dependent Health Impacts of Haskap Berries to Inform Agricultural Production Practices That Will Maximize Bioactive Potential

Status
Recruiting
Phases
NA
Study type
Interventional
Source
ClinicalTrials.gov
Registry ID
NCT06546020
Acronym
HIH
Enrollment
120
Registered
2024-08-09
Start date
2025-02-26
Completion date
2028-05-31
Last updated
2025-04-02

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Inflammation, Metabolic Disease, Microbial Colonization

Keywords

Microbial metabolism, Gut microbial composition, Serum metabolome, Polyphenols

Brief summary

Polyphenol-rich Haskap berries (Haskap) have untapped therapeutic potential to improve human health, and agricultural producers in northern U.S. states are poised to increase production if consumer demand increases. A critical knowledge gap is that little is known about the interactions between gut microbes and Haskap polyphenols to produce bioactive metabolites linked to downstream health impacts. Additionally, little is known about which Haskap varieties and harvest timing yield the greatest bioactive potential. This study aims to address these gaps by investigating the interaction of bioactive components in Haskap with gut microbiota and the resultant gut and serum metabolites, inflammation, and metabolic health, and then couple this with analysis of berries from different Haskap varieties and harvest times.

Detailed description

The long-term goal of this project is to form a partnership linking the health impacts of Haskap varieties and management practices that maximize health-promoting compounds to benefit both consumers and producers. Specific objectives of this study are to determine 1) the impact of Haskap on the gut microbiome and metabolome, 2) how gut microbiome composition and production of bioactive metabolites from Haskap impacts health and inflammation biomarkers, and 3) which Haskap varieties and growing practices increase production of health-promoting compounds. To accomplish this, a four-armed, randomized, triple-blind, placebo controlled clinical trial of Haskap versus placebo for two separate groups with distinctly low and high metabolic syndrome status will be completed. Participants will be assessed for health biometrics, fat oxidation, gut microbiome composition, inflammation, and both the gut and serum metabolome before and after 8 weeks of intervention. Haskap fruit from twenty varieties will primarily come from the randomized block design field trial and fruit will be harvested at four stages of fruit maturity, then analyzed for polyphenol content. This part of the study will be replicated over three growing seasons.

Interventions

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENTHaskap berry smoothie

A smoothie blend of berries and water

DIETARY_SUPPLEMENTPlacebo comparator

A smoothie with no polyphenolic content and matched in carbohydrate composition to the experimental haskap smoothie

Sponsors

Montana State Agricultural Experiment Station
CollaboratorUNKNOWN
Montana State University
Lead SponsorOTHER

Study design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Investigator)

Masking description

Placebo and haskap interventions were designed to be comparable in taste and appearance.

Eligibility

Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
35 Years to 65 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes

Inclusion criteria

for Metabolically Healthy Group: All of the following: * Waist circumference: men ≤ 40, women ≤ 35 inches * Systolic blood pressure: ≤ 130 mmHg * Diastolic blood pressure: ≤ 85 mmHg * Fasting glucose: ≤ 100 mg·dl-1 * Fasting triglycerides: ≤ 150 mg·dl-1 * HDL: men \> 40, women \> 50 mg·dl-1 Inclusion Criteria for Metabolically Unhealthy Group: Required: \- Waist circumference: men ≥ 40, women ≥ 35 inches AND ≥ 1 of the following: * Systolic blood pressure: \> 130 mmHg * Diastolic blood pressure: \> 85 mmHg * Fasting glucose: \> 100 mg·dl-1 * Fasting triglycerides: \> 150 mg·dl-1 * HDL: men ≤ 40, women ≤ 50 mg·dl-1

Exclusion criteria

* BMI \<18 or \> 40 kg/m\^2 * potential allergy to Haskap or placebo ingredients * use of anti-inflammatory, lipid lowering, glucose lowering, blood pressure, or any other medications that may interfere with study measures * pregnant or lactating woman * diagnosis with type 1 or type 2 diabetes or any other condition that may interfere with study measures * smoke cigarettes * have taken antibiotics in the past 90 days * take supplements including pre/probiotics or superfoods within 30 days of starting the study * are planning on starting a weight loss or exercise regiment change * follow a specific diet such as low carbohydrate, vegan, and vegetarian * consume over 5 servings of fruit/vegetables per day * are unwilling to reduce caffeine intake to one 8 oz serving per day for the durations of the study

Design outcomes

Primary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Exercise Induced Fat Oxidation8 weeksMeasurement in g/min of fat being utilized during exercise at 40-60% of the participants estimated VO2max
16 subunit ribosomal ribonucleic acid (16S rRNA) gut microbial composition8 weeksfecal microbial composition
Inflammation (pg/mL)8 weeksSerum interleukin (IL) IL-1B, IL-6, IL-10, IL-17, IL-23, tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha), granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF), interferon gamma (IFN-gamma)
Lipid Panel (mg/dL)8 weeksSerum triglycerides (TG), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, total cholesterol (CHOL), glucose (GLU)
F2 isoprostanes8 weeksurine
Untargeted metabolomic analysis8 weeksSerum metabolome

Secondary

MeasureTime frameDescription
Anthropometric Assessments8 weekswaist circumference (cm)
Blood pressure8 weeksSBP/DBP (mmHG)
Acute Diet8 weeks24-hour dietary recall using the Automated Self-Administered 24-hour Dietary. Assessment Tool (ASA24). Outcome is macronutrient and micronutrient composition of food entry.
Habitual DietBaselineHabitual diet recall using Dietary History Questionnaire (DHQ) III (1 year recall). Outcome measures are healthy eating index (HEI) scores which include nine components based on adequacy (total fruit, whole fruit, total vegetables, greens and beans, whole grains, dairy, total protein foods, seafood and plant proteins, fatty acids) and four components based on moderation (refined grains, so-dium, added sugars, saturated fats). Each component is ranked 1-10 in order of increasing health. Total HEI score is reported as the sum of all components (100 possible points) with more points indicating increased health of diet.
Estimated VO2 max0 weeksEstimation of participants VO2 max (ml/k/min) from a Fatmax test

Countries

United States

Contacts

Primary ContactMary P Miles, PhD
mmiles@montana.edu406-994-6678
Backup ContactZachary T Miller, PhD
zachariah.miller@montana.edu(406) 961-3025

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: May 7, 2026