AzTrials
AzTrials

Healthy MenPhase 4NCT00317993

LDL Receptor Under Ezetimibe and Simvastatin

A Phase 4 study testing ezetimibe, simvastatin and ezetimibe plus simvastatin in people with Healthy Men, run by University of Cologne at 1 site in Germany.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
Search all trials

Trial summary

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of the two lipid -lowering drugs, ezetimibe and simvastatin, on lipid metabolism in humans. In specific, the study will investigate in blood cells whether the enzyme that controls cholesterol synthesis, HMG-CoA reductase, and the receptor that takes up… Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 18 to 60 years, men onlyHealthy volunteers can take part
Conditions the study is for
Healthy Men
What is being tested?
ezetimibe, simvastatin and ezetimibe plus simvastatin
How many people
60 participants
Where
1 siteGermany
Study dates
Apr 2004to Jul 2004
Phase
Phase 4
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 18 to 60 years
  • Men only
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult

Who may be able to join

  • healthy male subjects
  • age between 18 and 60 years
  • body mass index between 18.5 and 30 kg/m2
  • LDL cholesterol smaller than 190 mg/dL
  • triglicerides smaller than 250 mg/dL
  • normal blood pressure

Who cannot join

  • intake of lipid-lowering drugs
  • excessive alcohol intake
  • liver disease
  • kidney disease
  • coronary heart disease
  • eating disorders
  • diabetes or other endocrine disorders
  • medications that interfere with lipid metabolism

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

Germany1 site
  • Medizinische Klinik II und Poliklinik für Innere Medizin

    Cologne, 50924

Other trials in Germany

About this study

Official title: Effects of Ezetimibe and Simvastatin on LDL Receptor Protein Expression and on LDL Receptor and HMG-CoA Reductase mRNA Expression in Mononuclear Cells: a Randomized Controlled Study in Healthy Men

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of the two lipid -lowering drugs, ezetimibe and simvastatin, on lipid metabolism in humans. In specific, the study will investigate in blood cells whether the enzyme that controls cholesterol synthesis, HMG-CoA reductase, and the receptor that takes up cholesterol from the blood, the LDL receptor, are changed during treatment with the aforementioned drugs.

Read the detailed description

Ezetimibe decreases serum total and LDL cholesterol levels by blocking cholesterol absorption in the intestine, causing a compensatory increase in cholesterol synthesis. The exact underlying regulatory mechanisms of the ezetimibe-induced increase in cholesterol synthesis and decrease in serum LDL cholesterol are not known. In addition, it has never been investigated whether changes in LDL receptor expression contribute to the LDL-lowering effect of ezetimibe, as is the case with other agents causing a decrease in cholesterol absorption such as the plant stanols.

In the present study, we plan to examine changes in LDL receptor and HMG-CoA reductase mRNA concentrations during ezetimibe treatment. For comparison, effects of simvastatin and the combined administration of the two will be investigated. Since mRNA expression profiles provide information about effects at the transcriptional but not necessarily at the translational level, we will also analyze changes in the LDL receptor protein at the cell surface of mononuclear blood cells. As a functional marker for HMG-CoA reductase activity the ratio of serum lathosterol to cholesterol concentration will be used since it correlates with HMG-CoA reductase activity and serves also as a marker of total cholesterol synthesis.

In this regard it has been shown that plant sterols, which also act by blocking intestinal cholesterol absorption, increase cholesterol synthesis, decrease LDL synthesis, increase LDL receptor mRNA levels as well as LDL receptor protein concentrations but have no significant effect on HMG-CoA reductase expression or activity in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Aim of this prospective ran-domized parallel study is to examine changes in HMG-CoA reductase activity/expression and in LDL receptor expression/protein concentration in mononuclear blood cells under treatment with ezetimibe.

For this purpose 3 parallel groups of 20 healthy men will be formed. One group will be treated with ezetimibe (10 mg/day), one with 40 mg/day of simvastatin and another with ezetimibe (10 mg/day) plus simvastatin (40 mg/day). Each treatment period will last for 2 weeks. Blood drawing will be per-formed at baseline (before the initiation of treatment) and at the end of the 2 weeks. (storing of the samples at -80°). The measurements involved in this study include the determination of the lipopro-tein concentrations in serum, isolation of the mononuclear cells, measurement of LDL receptor mRNA from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells, measurement of HMG-CoA reductase mRNA levels in peripheral blood mononuclear cells, measurement of the LDL-receptor protein concentrations on the surface of peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Furthermore, the serum latosterol to cholesterol con-centrations will be measured as a surrogate marker of the HMG-CoA reductase activity.

Conditions
Healthy Men
Being tested
ezetimibe, simvastatin, ezetimibe plus simvastatin

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • ezetimibeDrug

  • simvastatinDrug

  • ezetimibe plus simvastatinDrug

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. HMG-CoA reductase activity

  2. HMG-CoA reductase mRNA expression

  3. LDL receptor mRNA expression

  4. LDL receptor protein

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted25 Apr 2006 (estimated)
  2. Study startApr 2004
  3. Primary completionJul 2004
  4. Study completionJul 2004

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 4
Primary purpose
Diagnosis
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
Double blind
Enrolment
60 participants
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00317993
Sponsor's protocol ID
EZE04-003
Status last verified
Dec 2014
First submitted
24 Apr 2006
Last updated
3 Dec 2014
Results posted
No

Publications

  • Berthold HK, Rizzo M, Spenrath N, Montalto G, Krone W, Gouni-Berthold I. Effects of lipid-lowering drugs on high-density lipoprotein subclasses in healthy men-a randomized trial. PLoS One. 2014 Mar 24;9(3):e91565. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0091565. eCollection 2014.

    PubMed 24662777
  • Gouni-Berthold I, Berthold HK, Huh JY, Berman R, Spenrath N, Krone W, Mantzoros CS. Effects of lipid-lowering drugs on irisin in human subjects in vivo and in human skeletal muscle cells ex vivo. PLoS One. 2013 Sep 2;8(9):e72858. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0072858. eCollection 2013.

    PubMed 24023786
  • Berthold HK, Seidah NG, Benjannet S, Gouni-Berthold I. Evidence from a randomized trial that simvastatin, but not ezetimibe, upregulates circulating PCSK9 levels. PLoS One. 2013;8(3):e60095. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0060095. Epub 2013 Mar 27.

    PubMed 23544125
  • Berthold HK, Berneis K, Mantzoros CS, Krone W, Gouni-Berthold I. Effects of simvastatin and ezetimibe on interleukin-6 and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein. Scand Cardiovasc J Suppl. 2013 Feb;47(1):20-7. doi: 10.3109/14017431.2012.734635. Epub 2012 Oct 18.

    PubMed 23013513
  • Berneis K, Rizzo M, Berthold HK, Spinas GA, Krone W, Gouni-Berthold I. Ezetimibe alone or in combination with simvastatin increases small dense low-density lipoproteins in healthy men: a randomized trial. Eur Heart J. 2010 Jul;31(13):1633-9. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehq181. Epub 2010 Jun 6.

    PubMed 20525999

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 4 study testing ezetimibe, simvastatin and ezetimibe plus simvastatin in people with Healthy Men, run by University of Cologne at 1 site in Germany.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 6 inclusion and 8 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 3 Dec 2014. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in Germany. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 4 studies take place after a treatment is approved, to learn more about its long-term benefits and risks in everyday use.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

HMG-CoA reductase activity. The study lists 4 primary outcomes in all. It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00317993, which also lists 5 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 3 Dec 2014.

Free account

Log in to keep searching

You’ve used your 3 free searches. AzTrials is free: log in or create a free account to keep searching clinical trials and save the ones you want to follow.

Create a free accountLog in