ClinicalTrials.gg
RecruitingNCT06129110Updated May 15, 2026

Effect of Weight Loss on Intermuscular Adipose Tissue (IMAT) Signaling

An interventional study of Diet Weight Loss in Obesity, Insulin Sensitivity and Muscle Weakness, sponsored by University of Colorado, Denver. Recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 70 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-05-15.

Sponsored by University of Colorado, Denver · Not applicable, Interventional, and Basic science

From the registry’s dates

  • Started Jan 2024; still recruiting 2 years 9 months later.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
70
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years to 70 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The goal of this intervention study is to learn about how weight loss impacts molecular signaling of intermuscular adipose tissue (IMAT) in individuals with obesity. The main question it aims to answer is how inflammatory molecules secreted by IMAT promote muscle insulin resistance and inflammation, and how these same molecules are diminished after weight loss. Following screening visits involving body composition measures, blood testing, strength testing, and a thigh muscle biopsy, participants will go through a 12-week dietary intervention for weight loss. After 12 weeks, this will be followed by the same testing and biopsies that were completed before the intervention. Researchers will then compare outcomes of individuals who lost weight to individuals who did not lose weight.

02

Conditions studied

  • Obesity
  • Insulin Sensitivity
  • Muscle Weakness
  • Adiposity
  • Insulin Resistance

Keywords

  • IMAT
  • Intermuscular Adipose Tissue
  • Weight Loss
  • Diet
03

In context

Obesity

11,522 studies on the registry are indexed under Obesity; 2,033 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 70 is close to the median of 67 across 9,006 interventional studies indexed under Obesity.

Browse Obesity studies →

Lead sponsor

University of Colorado, Denver is the lead sponsor of 1,543 studies on the registry; 317 are open to participants now.

Of its 147 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 92 (63%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 70 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
Yes

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Generally healthy men and women aged 18-70
  • between 30-40
  • Less than 1 hour of exercise per week
  • Women:

    1. may be pre or post menopausal

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes
  • Thyroid disease
  • History of lung disease
  • Active use of nicotine
  • Severe plasma lipid disorders
  • Taking hormone replacement drugs, blood thinners, or thiazoladinediones
  • Women:

    1. Currently going through menopause or peri-menopause
    2. Pregnant or breastfeeding
    3. History of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(1)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

BMI (body mass index)

Weight in kilograms divided by height in metres squared. Example: 70 kg and 1.75 m gives 70 ÷ (1.75 × 1.75) ≈ 22.9.

What counts as overweight or obesity differs between countries (some use lower cut-offs), so go by the range the study states.

05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Basic science
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single (Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
70 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Diet Weight Loss

    Low calorie meal replacement shakes

    Behavioral: Diet Weight Loss

  • No intervention
    Delayed Intervention

    Normal feeding

Interventions

  • BehavioralDiet Weight Loss

    Low calorie diet of meal replacement shakes

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Insulin Sensitivity

    Participants will undergo a standard 3-hour hyperinsulinemic/euglycemic clamp with insulin infused at 80 mU/m2/min, and glucose clamped at 90 mg/dl with a variable dextrose infusion.

    Time frame: 12 weeks

  2. Body Weight

    Participant weight will be measured using BodyTrace scales during the 12 week intervention.

    Time frame: 12 weeks

  3. IMAT Content

    A multi-slice MRI will be used to quantify IMAT and muscle content in both legs with acquisition of \~20 axial images (10 mm thickness) with 10 mm spacing between images starting superior to the patella. IMAT content will be quantified using the well-validated Sirlin 6-echo method and normalized to muscle volume.

    Time frame: 12 weeks

  4. Muscle Mass

    A multi-slice MRI will be used to quantify IMAT and muscle content in both legs with acquisition of \~20 axial images (10 mm thickness) with 10 mm spacing between images starting superior to the patella. Muscle volume will be quantified using standard methods with anatomical cross-sectional area evaluated in each T1 weighted, high resolution, gradient echo profile scan, and multiplied by the length of the muscle.

    Time frame: 12 weeks

  5. Muscle Strength

    Participants will perform quadriceps muscle strength testing using an isokinetic dynamometer.

    Time frame: 12 weeks

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • University of Colorado Anschutz
    Aurora, Colorado 80045, United States
    Recruiting
    • Bryan Bergman, PhD · Contact
    • Bryan Bergman, PhD · Principal investigator
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Started Jan 2024 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Aug 2028, 54 months after the start.

Of 3,680 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Obesity, half reached primary completion within 23 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 10 and three quarters within 43. This study's planned 54 months is above that.

Counting every sponsor, half of 3,843 studies reached it within 22 months; a quarter within 10 and three quarters within 42.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Nov 8, 2023
First posted
Nov 13, 2023
StartActual
Jan 31, 2024
Primary completionEst.
Aug 1, 2028
CompletionEst.
Sep 1, 2028
Last update
May 15, 2026
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on May 15, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT06129110
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Nov 13, 2023
Start date
Jan 31, 2024
Primary completion
Aug 1, 2028 (estimated)
Completion
Sep 1, 2028 (estimated)
Last update
May 15, 2026

Study contacts

Bryan Bergman, PhD
Contact
bryan.bergman@cuanschutz.edu
3037243919
Sophia Bowen
Contact
sophia.bowen@cuanschutz.edu
3037240487

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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