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. 2017 Jul 20;2(14):e93340.
doi: 10.1172/jci.insight.93340.

Galantamine alleviates inflammation and insulin resistance in patients with metabolic syndrome in a randomized trial

Fernanda M Consolim-Colombo  1   2 , Carine T Sangaleti  1   3 , Fernando O Costa  2 , Tercio L Morais  2 , Heno F Lopes  1   2 , Josiane M Motta  2 , Maria C Irigoyen  1 , Luiz A Bortoloto  1 , Carlos Eduardo Rochitte  1 , Yael Tobi Harris  4 , Sanjaya K Satapathy  5 , Peder S Olofsson  6   7 , Meredith Akerman  8 , Sangeeta S Chavan  6   9 , Meggan MacKay  10 , Douglas P Barnaby  11 , Martin L Lesser  8 , Jesse Roth  12 , Kevin J Tracey  6   9 , Valentin A Pavlov  6   9
Affiliations

Galantamine alleviates inflammation and insulin resistance in patients with metabolic syndrome in a randomized trial

Fernanda M Consolim-Colombo et al. JCI Insight. .

Abstract

Background: Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is an obesity-driven condition of pandemic proportions that increases the risk of type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Pathophysiological mechanisms are poorly understood, though inflammation has been implicated in MetS pathogenesis. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of galantamine, a centrally acting acetylcholinesterase inhibitor with antiinflammatory properties, on markers of inflammation implicated in insulin resistance and cardiovascular risk, and other metabolic and cardiovascular indices in subjects with MetS.

Methods: In this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, subjects with MetS (30 per group) received oral galantamine 8 mg daily for 4 weeks, followed by 16 mg daily for 8 weeks or placebo. The primary outcome was inflammation assessed through plasma levels of cytokines and adipokines associated with MetS. Secondary endpoints included body weight, fat tissue depots, plasma glucose, insulin, homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR), cholesterol (total, HDL, LDL), triglycerides, BP, heart rate, and heart rate variability (HRV).

Results: Galantamine resulted in lower plasma levels of proinflammatory molecules TNF (-2.57 pg/ml [95% CI -4.96 to -0.19]; P = 0.035) and leptin (-12.02 ng/ml [95% CI -17.71 to -6.33]; P < 0.0001), and higher levels of the antiinflammatory molecules adiponectin (2.71 μg/ml [95% CI 1.93 to 3.49]; P < 0.0001) and IL-10 (1.32 pg/ml, [95% CI 0.29 to 2.38]; P = 0.002) as compared with placebo. Galantamine also significantly lowered plasma insulin and HOMA-IR values, and altered HRV.

Conclusion: Low-dose galantamine alleviates inflammation and insulin resistance in MetS subjects. These findings support further study of galantamine in MetS therapy.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov, number NCT02283242.

Funding: Fundação de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) and Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq), Brazil, and the NIH.

Keywords: Clinical Trials; Inflammation.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: VAP and KJT have published patents (US 8,865,641 B2 and US 8,003,632 B2) broadly relevant to this work and have assigned their rights to the Feinstein Institute for Medical Research.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Trial consort flow diagram.
MetS, metabolic syndrome; SBP, systolic BP.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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