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Not yet recruitingNCT07882901Updated Oct 20, 2026

Effects of Tadalafil on Cognition and Cerebral Hemodynamics in Elderly Patients With Mild Cognitive Impairment

A Phase 2 interventional study of Tadalafil 5 mg in Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), sponsored by Los Angeles Brain Science Project. Not yet recruiting at 1 site in United States. Open to participants aged 60 Years to 90 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-10-20.

Sponsored by Los Angeles Brain Science Project · Phase 2, Interventional, and Treatment

Updated Oct 20, 2026Newly registeredGo to Updates ↓
Phase
Phase 2
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
44
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
60 Years to 90 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine if taking four weeks of a daily low dose of tadalafil is possible and safe in elderly males and females with mild cognitive impairment. Additionally, we aim to determine if this drug that improves blood flow can improve cognition and functionality of the blood vessels in the brain. The main questions the trial aims to answer are:

  1. Will elderly patients with mild cognitive impairment be able to tolerate taking a daily, low dose (5 mg) of tadalafil?
  2. Does 5 mg of daily tadalafil improve cerebral vasomotor reactivity (i.e. vascular function) and cognition?

Participants will to:

  1. Answer questions about your health
  2. Take three short thinking and memory tests
  3. Have your blood pressure and heart rate checked
  4. Have an electrocardiogram
  5. Fill out a thinking questionnaire
  6. Fill out a suicidality questionnaire
  7. Have a brain blood flow test
  8. Get three blood tests throughout the study
  9. Take tadalafil once daily
  10. Monitor your blood pressure twice daily
  11. Record any side effects
  12. Return after 4 weeks and repeat testing
02

Conditions studied

  • Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI)

Keywords

  • Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI)
  • Tadalafil
03

In context

Cognitive Dysfunction

3,930 studies on the registry are indexed under Cognitive Dysfunction; 1,114 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 44 is below the median of 64 across 2,855 interventional studies indexed under Cognitive Dysfunction.

Browse Cognitive Dysfunction studies →

Lead sponsor

This is the only study on the registry with Los Angeles Brain Science Project as lead sponsor.

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

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
60 Years to 90 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

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

  • The participant is between the ages of 60-90 years old.
  • The participant must demonstrate a MoCA score ≥ 18 and ≤ 25.
  • The participant has consented for his/herself.
  • The participant has a caregiver, family member, or qualified individual to help with study tasks
  • The participant is fluent in the English language.
  • The participant is proficient in comprehending verbal and written English.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  1. Any of the aforementioned CMP values meet the exclusion threshold.
  2. Absence of a caregiver, family member, or other appropriately qualified individual that will be available for the entire experimental duration to assist the participant with study tasks, including supervision of medication intake, recording blood pressure, and noting adverse events.
  3. Current use of any form of organic nitrates or nitrite-containing medications, or planned nitrate use within 48 hours of tadalafil dosing.
  4. Known hypersensitivity to tadalafil or to any component of the formulation.
  5. Recent (within prior 3 months) acute cardiovascular events - e.g., myocardial infarction, unstable angina, stroke, or life-threatening cardiac arrhythmia - or decompensated/unstable heart failure according to the New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II-IV.
  6. Resting hypotension (systolic BP \<90 mmHg) or clinically significant symptomatic orthostatic hypotension, or uncontrolled severe hypertension (e.g., systolic BP >170 mmHg or diastolic BP >110 mmHg).
  7. Concurrent use of potent CYP3A4 inhibitors, including but not limited to:

    i. Amiodarone ii. Aprepitant iii. Azamulin iv. Cimetidine v. Ciprofloxacin vi. Clarithromycin vii. Diltiazem viii. Erythromycin ix. Fedratiib x. Fedratinib xi. Fluconazole xii. Itraconazole xiii. Ketoconazole xiv. Letermovir xv. Nirmatrelvir-Ritonavir xvi. Posaconazole xvii. Troleandomycin xviii. Voriconazole xix. Verapamil xx. Grapefruit and Grapefruit Juice xxi. Seville Orange Juice xxii. Pomelo Juice xxiii. Green tea extract xxiv. Curcumin/tumeric xxv. Black pepper extract xxvi. Goldenseal xxvii. Gingko Biloba xxviii. Kava xxix. Kratom xxx. CBD oil xxxi. Ginger xxxii. Elderberry Extract

  8. Concurrent use of alpha-adrenergic blockers (unless on a stable dose and the investigator documents that coadministration is acceptable and that BP monitoring and dosing separation strategies are in place).
  9. Severe renal impairment or end-stage renal disease (ESRD) on hemodialysis, and other renal dysfunction that, per the tadalafil product labeling, would contraindicate or require specific dosing changes for the intended tadalafil regimen.
  10. Documented hepatic impairment, defined by Child Pugh Class A, B, or C.
  11. History of non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), prior vision loss attributed to a PDE-5 inhibitor, or hereditary retinal disorders (e.g., retinitis pigmentosa).
  12. Conditions that predispose to priapism (e.g., sickle cell disease, multiple myeloma, leukemia) if sexually active participants are at risk from prolonged erections.
  13. Medical, neurologic, or psychiatric conditions (including advanced dementia) that, in the investigator's judgment, would preclude safe participation, study compliance, or the ability to provide informed consent.
  14. Participants on guanylate cyclase (GS) stimulators such as riociguat (Adempas)
  15. Participants with left ventricular outflow obstruction (e.g. aortic stenosis, idiopathic hypertrophic subaortic stenosis).
  16. Participants with severe autonomic dysfunction.
  17. Participants with known or suspected pulmonary veno-occlusive disease.
  18. Participants with known hereditary degenerative retinal disorders, including retinitis pigmentosa, and those with underlying non-arteritic anterior ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION) risk factors.
  19. Participants with active peptic ulceration or significant bleeding disorders.
  20. Participants on other phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) inhibitors (sildenafil, vardenafil, avanafil).
  21. Participants with an anatomical deformation of the penis (such as angulation, cavernosal fibrosis, or Peyronie's disease).
  22. Participants with any uncontrolled arrhythmia, as determined by the screening electrocardiogram.
  23. Participants with a creatinine clearance less than 30 mL/min.
  24. Participants with a history of substantial alcohol consumption (≥ 5 units per day)
05

Study design

Phase
Phase 2
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
44 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Tadalafil (5 mg)

    Participants will take a daily dose of 5 mg of tadalafil over a 4 week period

    Drug: Tadalafil 5 mg

Interventions

  • Participants will take a daily dose of 5 mg of tadalafil over a 4 week period

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Compliance (%) with tadalafil

    Assessed as the value equal to 100 x (number of dispensed tablets - returned tablets) / (planned days on trial medication)

    Time frame: From beginning to the end of treatment at four weeks

Secondary outcomes

  1. Cerebrovascular Reactivity to Hypercapnia

    Measured using transcranial doppler ultrasonography (TCD) of the bilateral middle cerebral arteries and breath-holding test (BHT) techniques

    Time frame: Baseline (pre-) and post-intervention at 4 weeks

  2. Resting Heart Rate

    Resting heart rate (bpm) measured using the OMRON BP7000 Evolv Upper Arm monitor

    Time frame: Resting heart rate measured at baseline (pre-) and post-intervention at 4 weeks

  3. Blood Pressure

    Blood pressure (mmHg) measured using the OMRON BP7000 Evolv Upper Arm monitor

    Time frame: Baseline, twice daily throughout the study (i.e. 4 weeks), and post-intervention at 4 weeks

  4. Neurocognitive Testing

    1. Fatigue and Altered Cognition Scale (FACs) - 20 item questionnaire equally divided into 10 categories designed to determine altered cognition and another 10 categories to assess central fatigue within the previous two weeks. Each item operates under a 0 (not at all) - 100 (extremely), with higher scores indicating feeling more aligned with the statement or symptom(s). 2. Creyos Cognitive Assessment - brief assessment of attention, mental rotation, deductive and verbal reasoning, and visuospatial and episodic memory. Each domain is graded on a sex- and age-specific standardized scale with no fixed minimum or maximum value. Distributions operate with a mean score = 100 and standard deviation = 15. Demographic-specific scales are used to describe the results, including scores ≤ 87 described as "Below average," scores ≥ 113 described as "Above average," and all scores between these two bounds described as "Average."

    Time frame: Baseline (pre-) and post-intervention at 4 weeks

  5. Adverse Events

    Any and all adverse side-effects experienced while taking tadalafil will be documented using a written paper-based log. Summarization of adverse events, characterized by frequency and severity, will be facilitated

    Time frame: During the intervention period

07

Study locations

1 site
  • Los Angeles Brain Science Project
    Santa Monica, California 90403, United States
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: Yes — De-identified IPD used in the results of resulting publication(s)

Supporting information: Study protocol, Statistical analysis plan, Informed consent form

Time frame: IPD and supporting information will be available approximately 6 months after publication

Access criteria: IPD and supporting information may be available to additional investigators upon reasonable request, as determined by the principal investigator.

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Updates

1 registry update since Sep 25, 2026
Registered
First appeared on the registry. No changes since
Oct 20, 2026
Show all 1 update
  1. Oct 20, 2026
    First appeared on the registry

From the registry record's own update history. This site started tracking changes on Sep 25, 2026; for anything earlier, see the record history on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT07882901
Lead sponsor
Los Angeles Brain Science Project
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Oct 20, 2026
Start date
Sep 2026 (estimated)
Primary completion
Feb 20, 2027 (estimated)
Completion
Feb 20, 2027 (estimated)
Last update
Oct 20, 2026

Study contacts

Trent Yamamoto, MS
Contact
research@losangelesbrain.com
818-900-0611
Daniel Franc, MD, PhD
principal investigator · Los Angeles Brain Science Project

Oversight

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

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Studies of the drug tested here: Tadalafil

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