How ketones and a diabetes pill affect heart and muscle energy
Ketones, Muscle Metabolism, and SGLT2 Inhibitors
This project gives people with type 2 diabetes and heart failure controlled ketone infusions and the diabetes pill dapagliflozin to see how their hearts and muscles use energy.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Texas Hlth Science Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (San Antonio, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11311854 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would come to the clinic for controlled ketone infusions and advanced heart and muscle imaging to measure how your heart and muscles take up and use fuels. In one part we give three different infusion rates of beta‑hydroxybutyrate and use cardiac MRI and PET scans to measure heart function, blood flow, and glucose uptake, plus muscle fuel use. In the second part people take dapagliflozin or placebo for three months and then have repeat MRI and PET scans, including a PET tracer for ketone uptake. The scans and tests compare how ketones and the drug change heart energy use and function.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adults with type 2 diabetes who have heart failure with reduced ejection fraction and can travel for imaging and infusion visits.
Not a fit: People without type 2 diabetes, without heart failure, or with preserved ejection fraction are unlikely to be eligible or to benefit directly from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could show ways to improve heart energy use in people with heart failure and diabetes and guide treatments that reduce symptoms and hospitalizations.
How similar studies have performed: Large clinical trials have already shown SGLT2 inhibitor drugs reduce heart‑failure hospitalizations and deaths, but the idea that raised ketone levels explain those benefits is a newer, not yet proven hypothesis.
Where this research is happening
San Antonio, United States
- University of Texas Hlth Science Center — San Antonio, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Defronzo, Ralph a — University of Texas Hlth Science Center
- Study coordinator: Defronzo, Ralph a
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.