Therapeutic Potential of a Synbiotic to Improve Mental Health in Subjects With Obesity.

Recruiting now · Not applicable · Has a placebo group

Conditions studied: Obese Patients (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m²), Anxiety, Depressive Disorder

In brief

Obese individuals are a particularly vulnerable population for mental health problems, especially depression and anxiety. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether the intake of a synbiotic, composed of prebiotics and beneficial intestinal bacterial strains, is capable of producing changes in the gut microbiota and its functionality, improving metabolic and inflammatory parameters, intestinal function and appetite control in patients with obesity and psychological disorders. In addition, the production of neurotransmitters at the level of the gut-brain axis will be studied, as well as mood and quality of life. For this purpose, a prospective, randomized, doubleblind, placebo-controlled intervention study will be carried out in patients with obesity (BMI=30-40 kg/m2) and symptoms of anxiety and/or depression, or patients with obesity but without these psychological disorders (n=120). The groups will be randomly divided into two groups (n=60) according to the intake of a synbiotic (1 capsule/day composed of bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus and tannin-based phytocomplexes) or its corresponding placebo for 12 weeks. Individualized psychological and nutritional follow-up will be carried out, demographic, lifestyle and mental health variables will be collected, and biological samples will be collected before and after the intervention. In addition, all patients will undergo an assessment of body composition and nutritional status, together with cardiovascular risk factors and comorbidities (hypertension, dyslipidemia, DM2, insulin resistance). Inflammatory parameters (IL6, TNF , IL1b, adiponectin, PAI-1, IL10, resistin, adipsin), antioxidant capacity, intestinal function (zonulin, LPS, occludin, LBP, FABP2/I-FABP, -glucan, Reg3A), satiety, appetite control (Leptin, GLP1, GIP, Ghrelin, PP) and neurotransmitter production (cortisol, dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin) in plasma/serum, urine or saliva using ELISA Kits and Luminex XMAP technology will be analyzed. In addiition, the investigators will perform analysis of genetic markers of inflammatory and metabolic pathways (Nanostring technology), metabolomic profiling (NMR spectroscopy and PLS-DA) in plasma, and both content and diversity of the intestinal microbiota (16S rRNA amplicons, and direct metagenomic sequencing, with Illumina MiSeq technology) in faeces will be evaluated. Finally, the investigators will study in vitro the mechanism of action of colonic digest on complex cellular models that simulate the gut-brain axis (organ-on-chip model, OoC).

Key facts

Study ID: NCT06901739
Run by: Celia Bañuls
People needed: 120
Starts: 2025-04-15
Expected to finish: 2027-12-31
Last updated by the study team: 2025-08-05

Who can join

Age: 18 and older, up to 65. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

Patients with BMI 30-40kg/m2, with at least 5 years of diagnosed obesity evolution.
Patients have had stable body weight (<5% of body weight changes) during the 3 months prior to the study.
Participants between 18 and 65 years of age.

You may not qualify if…

All patients with acute or chronic inflammatory diseases, neoplasic disease, secondary causes of obesity (uncontrolled hypothyroidism, Cushing's syndrome), or established liver and kidney failure (according to transaminase levels ±2 SD of the mean and estimated glomerular filtration rate using the CKD-EPI formula >60), previous bariatric surgery, and women during pregancy or lactation, will be excluded.
Participants who have been treated with antibiotics 3 months prior to inclusion.
Patients with different psychiatric disorders apart from anxiety and/or depression, and also those who are already on antidepressants before the inclusion.

Where it is running

FISABIO — Valencia, Valencia, Spain (enrolling)

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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