A feasibility study of the combination of intranasal insulin with dulaglutide for cognition in older adults with metabolic syndrome at high dementia risk – Study rationale and design

Tal Davidy, Iscka Yore, Tali Cukierman-Yaffe, Ramit Ravona-Springer, Abigail Livny, Orit H. Lesman-Segev, Yossi Azuri, Owen Carmichael, Dimitrios Kapogiannis, Henrik Zetterberg, Hung Mo Lin, Mary Sano, Michal Schnaider Beeri

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

2 Scopus citations

Abstract

Introduction: We present the rationale and design of a double-blind placebo-controlled feasibility trial combining intranasal insulin (INI) with dulaglutide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, to improve cognition in older adults with metabolic syndrome (MetS) and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Since both INI and dulaglutide have beneficial effects on the cerebrovascular disease (CVD), we anticipate that improved CVD will underlie the hypothesized cognitive benefits. Methods: This 12-months trial will include 80 older adults aged > 60 with MetS and MCI, randomized to 4 groups: INI/dulaglutide injection, intranasal placebo/dulaglutide injection, INI/placebo injection, and intranasal placebo/placebo injection. Feasibility of combining INI with dulaglutide will be tested by examining the ease of use of INI (20IU, twice/day) with dulaglutide (1.5 mg/week), adherence, and safety profile are the efficacy of combination therapy on global cognition and neurobiological markers: cerebral blood flow, cerebral glucose utilization, white matter hyperintensities, Alzheimer's related blood biomarkers and expression of insulin signaling proteins measured in brain-derived exosomes. Efficacy will be assessed for the intent-to-treat sample. Discussion: This feasibility study is anticipated to provide the basis for a multi-center large-scale randomized clinical trial of the cognitive benefits of the combination of INI with dulaglutide in individuals enriched for CVD and at high dementia risk.

Original languageEnglish
Article number111825
JournalMechanisms of Ageing and Development
Volume213
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2023
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cerebral blood flow
  • Cognition
  • Dulaglutide
  • Intranasal insulin
  • Metabolic syndrome
  • Mild cognitive impairment

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