How your body responds to a standard meal
Metabolic Responses to an Oral Mixed Meal Tolerance Test: Intra-individual changes, correlates, and prognostic significance
['FUNDING_R01'] · BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS · NIH-11129911
This project measures how blood metabolite levels change after a standardized mixed meal to find early signs of diabetes, obesity, and heart disease.
Quick facts
| Phase | ['FUNDING_R01'] |
|---|---|
| Study type | Nih_funding |
| Sex | All |
| Sponsor | BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS (nih funded) |
| Locations | 1 site (BOSTON, UNITED STATES) |
| Trial ID | NIH-11129911 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
What this research studies
From your perspective, you would fast, drink a standardized mixed meal, and have blood drawn before and two hours after the meal. Researchers will measure around 600 small molecules in your blood to capture the body’s dynamic metabolic response. The team will compare how these post-meal changes differ within and between people to spot subtle signs of organ dysfunction that aren't visible at rest. Results could help identify who is entering early, more treatable stages of cardiometabolic disease.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults willing to fast and undergo blood draws before and two hours after a standardized mixed meal, including people with various ages and body sizes, would be appropriate candidates.
Not a fit: People with advanced, diagnosed cardiometabolic disease or those unwilling/unable to attend in-person visits and blood draws may not benefit from participating.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could enable earlier detection of metabolic changes that predict diabetes, obesity, or cardiovascular disease before symptoms appear.
How similar studies have performed: Prior studies show fasting metabolite patterns relate to cardiometabolic risk and meal-challenge tests are promising, but applying broad metabolomics to post-meal changes at this scale is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
BOSTON, UNITED STATES
- BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS — BOSTON, UNITED STATES (ACTIVE)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: NAYOR, MATTHEW G. — BOSTON UNIVERSITY MEDICAL CAMPUS
- Study coordinator: NAYOR, MATTHEW G.
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.