How metabolic syndrome harms heart blood vessels
Vascular Dysfunction in Myocardial Ischemia and Metabolic Syndrome
['FUNDING_R01'] · RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL · NIH-11097242
The team is testing whether common diabetes drugs can help blood vessels grow and protect the heart in people with metabolic syndrome and diabetes by studying a pig model that mimics patients.
Quick facts
| Phase | ['FUNDING_R01'] |
|---|---|
| Study type | Nih_funding |
| Sex | All |
| Sponsor | RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL (nih funded) |
| Locations | 1 site (PROVIDENCE, UNITED STATES) |
| Trial ID | NIH-11097242 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
What this research studies
From a patient's view, researchers create metabolic syndrome in pigs with a high-fat diet so the animals closely resemble people with obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes. They will induce reduced blood flow to the heart and then treat some animals with diabetes medicines (including sitagliptin and canagliflozin) while comparing them to lean-diet controls. The study looks at how these treatments change blood vessel behavior, microcirculation, and molecular signals that help new collateral vessels form. Findings are meant to bridge earlier rodent work to larger animals and inform future human treatments.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People with metabolic syndrome, especially those with type 2 diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, or known heart ischemia would be the population most relevant to these findings.
Not a fit: People without metabolic syndrome or diabetes, and anyone seeking immediate clinical treatment, are unlikely to receive direct benefit because the project is preclinical animal research.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to ways to protect or restore heart blood vessels and lower heart attack risk in people with metabolic syndrome and diabetes.
How similar studies have performed: Rodent studies and recent clinical trials of SGLT2 inhibitors have shown cardiovascular benefits, but using large-animal models to study growth of collateral heart vessels is less common and aims to link those findings to humans.
Where this research is happening
PROVIDENCE, UNITED STATES
- RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL — PROVIDENCE, UNITED STATES (ACTIVE)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: SELLKE, FRANK W — RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL
- Study coordinator: SELLKE, FRANK W
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.
Conditions: Adult-Onset Diabetes Mellitus