Effects of Acipimox on Mitochondrial Function in Obesity
Status:
Completed
Trial end date:
2015-01-01
Target enrollment:
Participant gender:
Summary
The purpose of the study is to examine whether a medication called acipimox can improve your
body's mitochondria. Mitochondria are the "power house" of the cell and make energy for your
body.
Obesity is associated with increased risk for developing diabetes. However, the investigators
do not know how obesity leads to diabetes. Previous studies have shown levels of fat in the
blood (free fatty acids or FFA) are higher in obesity, and elevated FFA can affect how our
body uses glucose and responds to insulin. Recent studies have shown that changes in
mitochondria may be involved in the development of diabetes and may be affected by FFA. The
investigators propose to improve the function of mitochondria in obese people with
pre-diabetes by treating with acipimox, a medication which decreases FFA. The investigators
will use state of the art techniques to evaluate the mitochondria, including a new magnetic
resonance imaging (MRI) technique to measure function of mitochondria in muscle.