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Experimental Overfeeding in Humans

Not Applicable
Completed
Conditions
Obesity
Overfed
Interventions
Other: Isocaloric diet
Other: Overfeeding diet
Registration Number
NCT04065243
Lead Sponsor
University of Copenhagen
Brief Summary

The objective of this study is to determine the homeostatic mechanisms that counteract weight gain in response to experimental overfeeding.

Detailed Description

The homeostatic regulation of body weight implies that biological processes have evolved to protect energy stores from changes to the food environment. Accordingly, many individuals remain remarkably weight stable over years without carefully considering how much they eat or how much energy they expend, which has given rise to the theory that body weight is regulated around an individual biological 'set point'. Notably, overfeeding humans in experimentally controlled conditions, support this phenomenon, but the underlying mechanisms are unknown.

To systematically map out the components of the overfed state, the investigators will execute a 2-week randomized controlled overfeeding trial in lean and overweight individuals. The trial is preceded by a 1-week lead-in period and followed by a 2-wk controlled ad libitum study period. The comparison between lean and overweight subjects, men and women, enables the determination of whether a differential response in overfeeding-induced signals is present in relation to BMI and sex.

Recruitment & Eligibility

Status
COMPLETED
Sex
All
Target Recruitment
24
Inclusion Criteria
  • Male or female otherwise healthy subjects
  • 20-40 years of age
  • BMI (Body mass index) between 22-30 kg/m2
Exclusion Criteria
  • Present or previous cardiovascular disease, diabetes or thyroid-disease
  • smoking
  • more than 3 hours of planned physical activity per week

Study & Design

Study Type
INTERVENTIONAL
Study Design
PARALLEL
Arm && Interventions
GroupInterventionDescription
Control groupIsocaloric dietSubjects in this group will have a daily energy intake equivalent of 100 % of their calculated normal daily energy intake.
Overfed groupOverfeeding dietSubjects in this group will have a daily energy intake equivalent of 150 % of their calculated normal daily energy intake.
Primary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Changes in blood peptide patterns using peptidomics 1 week before, during 2 weeks of overfeeding and 2 weeks after overfeeding5 weeks

Blood will be collected for peptidomics at screening, at baseline, during the overfeeding intervention and during the 2-week ad libitum intervention. Samples will be measured using LCMS instrumentation consisting of a nanoelectrospray ion source to a Q Exactive HF mass spectrometer.

Changes in blood protein patterns using proteomics 1 week before, during 2 weeks of overfeeding and 2 weeks after overfeeding5 weeks

Blood will be collected for proteomics at screening, at baseline, during the overfeeding intervention and during the 2-week ad libitum intervention. Samples will be measured using LCMS instrumentation consisting of a nanoelectrospray ion source to a Q Exactive HF mass spectrometer.

Secondary Outcome Measures
NameTimeMethod
Body weight5 weeks

Body weight will be measured (in kilograms) daily during the intervention using electronic Fitbit Aria 2 weight scale.

Fat biopsy from subcutaneous adipose tissue before and after 2 weeks of overfeeding2 weeks

Fat biopsies are obtained using Bergström biopsy needle from subcutaneous adipose tissue in the abdominal region before and after 14 days of overfeeding to assess regulated enzymes and proteins.

Body composition in 40 subjects before and after overfeeding3 weeks

Body composition will be measured using Dual-Energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA) at screening (1 week before baseline), at baseline and after 14 days of overfeeding. The DXA scan enables the detection of body lean mass and body fat mass in kg.

Microdialysate from subcutaneous adipose tissue before and after 2 weeks of overfeeding. The samples will be used for detection of known and unknown secreted factors2 weeks

Microdialysates are collected from micro dialysis catheters inserted into the subcutaneous adipose tissue in the abdominal region before and after 14 days of overfeeding to assess regulated enzymes and proteins.

Activity profile of 40 subjects during the 5 week study period5 weeks

Assessment of daily physical activity levels (wearables and doubly-labelled water)

Mixed meal test2 weeks

Before and after the intervention a mixed meal test will be performed

Changes in blood metabolome 1 week before, during 2 weeks of overfeeding and 2 weeks after overfeeding5 weeks

Blood will be collected for metabolomics at screening, at baseline, during the overfeeding intervention and during the 2-week ad libitum intervention. Metabolomics will be performed using Mass Spectrometry.

Gut microbiome profile before and after 14 days of overfeeding2 weeks

Feces samples will be collected before and after 14 days of overfeeding and microbiome composition will be analyzed by using UPLC-MS/GC-MS.

Detection of circulating factors5 weeks

The investigators will measure the concentration of known circulating factors from fasted blood samples and from blood samples obtained during mixed meal test, such as: Glucose, insulin, hsCRP, Hba1c, cortisol, ACTH, lactate, fatty acids, triglycerides, glycerol, catecholamines, leptin, ghrelin, adiponectin, glucagon, GDF15, FGF21, FGF19, GIP, GLP-1, PYY, CCK, interleukins, cytokines, tissue-kines, T3, T4, TSH, cholesterol.

Trial Locations

Locations (1)

University of Copenhagen

🇩🇰

Copenhagen, Norrebro, Denmark

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