ClinicalTrials.gg
RecruitingNCT07527793MicroFastFoodUpdated Apr 14, 2026

Monitoring Changes in Blood Circulating Metabolites Using Minimally Invasive Techniques

An interventional study of Burger and Daily blood microsampling in Healthy Participants, sponsored by Örebro University, Sweden. Recruiting at 1 site in Sweden. Open to participants aged 18 Years to 65 Years, including healthy volunteers. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-04-14.

Sponsored by Örebro University, Sweden · Not applicable, Interventional, and Screening

From the registry’s dates

  • Primary completion was expected by May 2026, 5 months ago, but the record still lists the study as recruiting.
  • Started Jan 2026; still recruiting 9 months later.
Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
35
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
18 Years to 65 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

This study investigates short-term intra- and inter-individual variability in human blood metabolism under real-life conditions. Using minimally invasive finger-prick blood sampling, dietary records, and wearable devices, we will longitudinally monitor blood-circulating metabolites and glucose levels in healthy individuals over a four-week period without dietary or lifestyle intervention. The study focuses on metabolic transitions between pre- and postprandial states during habitual daily activities and routine meals. Mass spectrometry-based metabolomics will be used to characterize metabolite profiles and their associations with diet, physical activity, sleep, and stress. In parallel, the study evaluates the feasibility of microsampling approaches, wearable-derived physiological data, and isotope-labelled standards for robust and cost-effective metabolite quantification. The results will inform the design of larger longitudinal studies using minimally invasive blood sampling in non-controlled settings.

Read the detailed description

Human metabolism is highly dynamic and continuously influenced by food intake, physical activity, sleep, stress, and other routine physiological factors. Following meal consumption, individuals enter a postprandial metabolic phase characterized by digestion, absorption, and metabolic handling of ingested nutrients. The magnitude and duration of postprandial metabolic responses vary substantially within and between individuals and reflect the individual capacity to maintain metabolic homeostasis. Although many metabolomics studies rely on controlled diets and fasting conditions to reduce variability, most individuals in Western societies spend the majority of their daily lives in a non-fasted, fed state. Therefore, understanding metabolic variability under routine, non-controlled conditions is essential for a more comprehensive characterization of human metabolism.

This pilot study aims to investigate short-term intra- and inter-individual variation in blood-circulating metabolites under real-life conditions. Healthy participants will be followed longitudinally over a four-week period without dietary or lifestyle intervention. Minimally invasive finger-prick blood sampling will be combined with dietary records and wearable devices to collect repeated metabolic and physiological measurements during habitual daily activities.

Blood glucose levels will be measured to capture postprandial responses, and finger-prick blood samples will be collected for mass spectrometry-based metabolomics analysis. Metabolite profiles will be examined in relation to recorded dietary intake, physical activity, sleep patterns, and self-reported stress levels. In addition to characterizing metabolic variability, the study will evaluate the feasibility of microsampling strategies and the integration of metabolomics data with wearable-derived physiological measures. From an analytical perspective, isotope-labelled standards will be applied to support robust and cost-effective quantification of circulating metabolites.

Overall, this study aims to generate methodological and biological variation insights that explore personalize metabolism and support the design of larger medium- and long-term longitudinal studies using minimally invasive blood sampling in non-controlled, real-world settings.

02

Conditions studied

  • Healthy Participants

Keywords

  • Metabolomics, lipidomics, mass spectrometry, microsampling
03

In context

Lead sponsor

Örebro University, Sweden is the lead sponsor of 86 studies on the registry; 14 are open to participants now.

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

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 65 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

  1. Age: 18-65 years old
  2. (BMI): 18.5-29.9 kg/m2
  3. Weight stability within the previous 3 months (self-reported).
  4. Positive intention to maintain usual routine physical activity and eating habits during the study.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Presence of acute chronic diseases, inflammatory or functional gastrointestinal disorders, or any diagnosed disease condition that disrupt daily routine activities.
  2. Routine use medications or supplements that could potentially interfere with the study outcomes
  3. History of eating disorder
  4. Recent use of antibiotic medication within the last 3 months prior to the first visit
  5. Active efforts to lose weight
  6. Smoking
  7. Consumption of alcoholic drinks exceeding nine standard cups per week and/or more than three standard cups per occasion
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
Screening
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
35 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Assessment of Daily Variability in Exposomics and Metabolomics and Associated Metabolic Responses to

    Participants will be screened before the study, and eligible individuals will begin at week +1. They will receive 52 microsampling kits to collect daily finger-prick blood samples before breakfast for 28 days, along with a wearable device to monitor sleep, stress, and physical activity. Once per week, participants will record one habitual weekday lunch and collect additional blood samples at 15 min, 30 min, 1 h, 2 h, and 4 h after the meal, using a portable capillary glucose meter to measure glucose levels before and after eating. In total, each participant will collect 52 blood microsamples over 28 days (28 fasting and 24 postprandial). Questionnaires on diet, exposures, food response, and physical activity will be completed at the start (day 0), mid-point (\~day 14), and end (day 28) of the study.

    Dietary Supplement: Burger · Device: Daily blood microsampling · Device: Daily glucose monitoring

Interventions

  • Dietary supplementBurger

    Each week, participants will eat one burger and collect finger blood before adn after consuming the burger 15 min, 30 min, 60 min, 120 min, 240 min

  • DeviceDaily blood microsampling

    Finger-prick will be performed using a disposable pressure-activated lancet (Sterilance Press II, Vitrex; 21G, 2.8 mm incision) on which the lancet cannot be reactivated, and it returns to a safe plastic compartment after puncture. This mechanism reduces biohazard risks and risk of needlestick injuries. The finger-prick blood samples will be collected using a Capitainer quantitative dry blood spot (qDBS) micro sampling device (Capitainer). The total amount of blood obtained per time will be 20 - 100 µL. The micro sampling device has two inlet ports, and when a drop of blood encounters the inlet port of the device, blood flows by capillary forces in a microchannel and 10 -50 µL of blood is absorbed in a pre-perforated paper disk. This principle allows the collection of a fixed volume of blood and overcomes the hematocrit bias. Metabolite in microsamples will be extracted and analyzed using LC-MS platforms

  • DeviceDaily glucose monitoring

    An automatic glucose readings will be attached to participant to monitor daily glucose levels. Data will be acquired by the sensor and shared with the researcher

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Intra- and inter-individual metabolome variation

    Evaluate intra- and interindividual short-term variability in blood-circulating metabolites of healthy individuals using minimally invasive blood collection methods and metabolomics.

    Time frame: Four weeks

  2. Postpradial blood circulating metabolites levels

    During the study, the participants will also be asked to provide, once a week, a dietary record of one habitual/non-controlled meal they had for lunch during a weekday and collect blood samples from finger prick at defined time points after the ingestion of the selected lunch meal (15 min, 30 min, 1 h, 2 h and 4 h). Participants will also receive a portable capillary glucose meter to measure glucose levels when collecting samples before and after the selected lunch meal. Metabolites (e.g., bile acids, amino acids) will be measured in the collected blood using mass spectrometry platform.

    Time frame: Four weeks

Secondary outcomes

  1. Postprandial Measurement of Short-Chain Fatty Acids and Tryptophan-Derived Metabolites in Blood

    Short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) and related microbial metabolites were measured following burger consumption. Primary outcome metabolites included SCFAs as well as tryptophan-derived metabolites such as indole compounds. These metabolites were quantified in blood samples collected from participants over a 4-hour postprandial period after the meal using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS)-based analytical platforms.

    Time frame: four weeks

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • School of Medical Sciences
    Örebro, 70281, Sweden
    Recruiting
    • Anh Hoang Nguyen, Ph.D. · Contactanh-hoang.nguyen@oru.se · +46723747116
    • Matej Oresic, Ph.D. · Principal investigator
08

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reached

Started Jan 2026 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for May 2026, 4 months after the start.

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

Registered
Apr 7, 2026
First posted
Apr 14, 2026
StartActual
Jan 21, 2026
Primary completionEst.
May 25, 2026
CompletionEst.
Dec 31, 2026
Last update
Apr 14, 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 Apr 14, 2026, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT07527793
Lead sponsor
Örebro University, Sweden
Responsible party
Matej Oresic (Professor, Örebro University, Sweden) — Principal investigator
First posted
Apr 14, 2026
Start date
Jan 21, 2026
Primary completion
May 25, 2026 (estimated)
Completion
Dec 31, 2026 (estimated)
Last update
Apr 14, 2026

Study contacts

Anh Hoang Nguyen, Ph.D.
Contact
anh-hoang.nguyen@oru.se
+46723747116
Matej Oresic, Ph.D.
principal investigator · School of Medical Sciences, Orebro University

Oversight

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

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