ClinicalTrials.gg
Status unknownNCT06268353CAPUpdated May 8, 2024

Is the Plasma Concentration of CAPGDF15 Increased in Pregnancy? A Pilot Study

An interventional study of blood sampling in Pregnancy Related, sponsored by University of Copenhagen. Status unknown at 2 sites in Denmark. Open to female participants aged 18 Years to 40 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2024-05-08.

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

The sponsor has not verified this record recently (last verified May 2024), so the status shown — last known as Recruiting — may be out of date.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
6
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
18 Years to 40 Years
Sex
Female
01

Study summary

Background and Purpose During pregnancy, the hormone GDF15 rises between 100-200 times higher than before pregnancy. The significance of this dramatic increase is not clarified, but it has been shown that pregnant women with insufficient increase in GDF15 have a higher risk of spontaneous abortion. CAPGDF15 is a small peptide consisting of 12 amino acids recently found in plasma in both mice and humans, and this peptide is part of the prohormone from which GDF15 is synthesized. Therefore, the assumption is that CAPGDF15 is secreted simultaneously with GDF15. The significance of CAPGDF15 in the organism is completely unknown, except that injection into mice reduces food intake. Therefore, the investigators are interested in investigating whether there is a similar dramatic upregulation of CAPGDF15 as with GDF15 itself. The investigators will not set up a large-scale study without having some prior knowledge of whether this is indeed the case. Therefore, the investigators will conduct a pilot study on 3 pregnant women and 3 control women to examine whether there is any reason to proceed with an actual scientific experiment. Since the increase in GDF15 itself is very large at least100 fold, a pilot study involving only 3 pregnant women and 3 non-pregnant women will be sufficient to gain an impression of whether there is also a significant increase in CAPGDF15. The data will be used to assess whether an actual research project is worth establishing.

Purpose:

The purpose of conducting this pilot study is to investigate whether there is an upregulation of CAPGDF15 similar to that of the hormone GDF15 during pregnancy. By conducting a pilot study on 3 pregnant women and 3 control women, the investigators will see if this is actually the case before setting up an actual scientific experiment.

Read the detailed description

Experimental Protocol

A total of 6 healthy and fit women will be included in the experiment, 3 pregnant and 3 non-pregnant fertile women matched for age and weight.

Recruitment of Subjects Subjects and matched control subjects will be recruited via Flyers (appendix) posted at the University of Copenhagen.

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Healthy and fit pregnant women in the 3rd trimester.
  • Healthy control subjects will be matched based on age and weight and must not be taking medication.

Exclusion Criteria:

* Ongoing illness and/or medication intake

Recruitment Procedure and Oral Participant Information The initial contact with a potential participant will be used to address questions about the study. Subsequently, a pre-screening will be conducted over the phone, where inclusion and exclusion criteria will be assessed. Individuals who do not meet the inclusion and exclusion criteria or who do not wish to participate after the initial pre-screening will not be further inconvenienced.

Experimental Day On the 1st and only visit to the experimental site The participant's pregnancy status, gestational week, and age are noted. Weight A routine venous blood sample is taken from one arm vein.

Maximum 1 hour

Outcome Parameters and Method There is no intervention in this experiment. A routine blood sample of 3 ml will be taken from 3 pregnant women and 3 matched non-pregnant control women.

Statistical Considerations:

No formal power calculation has been made, but since the increase in GDF15 itself is significant, 3 pregnant women and 3 non-pregnant women are expected to be sufficient to gain an impression of whether there is also a significant increase in CAPGDF15.

Ethical Considerations:

The project primarily has a basic research perspective. Therefore, there will be no benefits for the participants in participating in the project. The expected basic scientific contribution, in our opinion, will outweigh the discomfort experienced by the participants. Informed consent will be obtained from all participants in accordance with the guidelines of the ethics committee. The experiment, which consists of collecting a single blood sample, will not entail any significant health risks for the participants. If significant information about the participant's health status emerges during the trial period, the participant will be informed, provided consent has been given during the information session. The participant can at any time obtain information about the data - and after the end of the trial information about the result. The trial has been approved by the Ethics Committee RegionH under journal number: Hxxxxxxxx.

Side Effects, Risks, and Disadvantages:

Simple measurements of the body, such as weight and height, are performed using appropriate measuring equipment. These measurements are not expected to entail any risk or discomfort. Blood samples will be taken by the responsible physician. Mild pain may occur at the injection site. In addition, there is a small risk of swelling and tenderness and a small bruise at the injection site, which will disappear after a few days.

02

Conditions studied

  • Pregnancy Related
03

In context

Lead sponsor

University of Copenhagen is the lead sponsor of 465 studies on the registry; 63 are open to participants now.

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

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 40 Years
Sexes eligible
Female
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

  • Healthy and fit pregnant women in the 3rd trimester.
  • Healthy control subjects will be matched based on age and weight and must not be taking medication.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Ongoing illness and/or medication intake
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Basic science
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Sequential assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
6 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    pregnancy

    Non-pregnant and pregnant women are compared

    Other: blood sampling

Interventions

  • Otherblood sampling

    Measure CAPGDF15 in plasma of 3 pregnant and 3 non-pregnant women

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. CAPGDF15 levels in plasma

    single sample

    Time frame: 1 year

07

Study locations

2 of 2 sites recruiting
  • August Krogh Building
    Copenhagen, 2100, Denmark
    Recruiting
  • University of Copenhagen, August Krogh Section for Molecular Physiology
    Copenhagen, Østerbro 2100, Denmark
    Recruiting
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on May 8, 2024, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT06268353
Collaborators
Stanford University
Responsible party
Erik Richter (Professor MD DMSci, University of Copenhagen) — Principal investigator
First posted
Feb 20, 2024
Start date
Mar 15, 2024
Primary completion
Mar 15, 2026 (estimated)
Completion
Mar 15, 2026 (estimated)
Last update
May 8, 2024

Study contacts

Erik A Richter, MD
Contact
erichter@nexs.ku.dk
+4528751626

Oversight

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

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This study is status unknown, as verified in May 2024. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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