Effect of Equol Supplementation on Arterial Stiffness and Cognition in Healthy Volunteers
Status:
Not yet recruiting
Trial end date:
2026-04-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
The ACE Trial, funded by the National Institute on Ageing/National Institutes of Health
(NIH), is a multicenter clinical trial. The ACE Trial will determine if taking the dietary
supplement Equol could slow the progression of stiffening of the arteries, small blood vessel
disease in the brain and memory decline. Equol is a soy-based supplement that has plant
estrogen-like compounds in it.
Equol is a metabolite of soy isoflavone. Our studies in Japan and other studies suggest that
Equol may slow mechanisms related to memory decline. No previous studies in the United States
have tested the effect of Equol on these mechanisms or memory decline. Supplementation of
Equol in the ACE Trial is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Wake Forest
University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, are
recruiting participants.
The ACE Trial will ask participants to complete 7 clinic visits over a two-year period. The
participants are asked to take Equol tablets daily for 24 months. Clinic procedures include
Pulse Wave Velocity (to measure arterial stiffness), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of the
brain and tests of awareness and thinking.