ArticleJMIR research protocols2023
The Influence of Branched-Chain Amino Acid Supplementation on Fatigue and Tryptophan Metabolism After Acute and Chronic Exercise in Older Adults: Protocol for a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.
Article in JMIR research protocols, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05484661 (Mechanisms to Reduce Mental and Physical Fatigue Following Exercise Training in Older Adults), which is not on this map. Cited by 4 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Mechanisms to Reduce Mental and Physical Fatigue Following Exercise Training in Older Adults
Who cites it
4 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.
- Branched-Chain Amino Acids Combined with Exercise Improves Physical Function and Quality of Life in Older Adults: Results from a Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.Dietetics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Effects of branched-chain amino acids on the muscle-brain metabolic axis: enhancing energy metabolism and neurological functions, and endurance exercise in aging-related conditions.Frontiers in nutrition · 2025Review
- Review: Application of Protein-Based Raw Materials in Health Foods in China.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- The effect of high-intensity interval training on type 2 diabetic muscle: A metabolomics-based study.Heliyon · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundFatigue is a strong predictor of negative health outcomes in older adults. Kynurenine, a metabolite of tryptophan, is strongly associated with fatigue. Reductions in fatigue are observed with exercise; however, exercise training does not completely alleviate symptoms. Branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) have been shown to have advantageous effects on exercise performance and compete with kynurenine for transport into the central nervous system. Thus, the combination of BCAA and exercise may exert synergized effects of mental and physical fatigue. Therefore, we hypothesize that BCAA added to exercise will shift kynurenine metabolism toward enhanced synthesis of kynurenic acid, thereby reducing fatigue.
objectiveThis randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial aims to compare the effects of acute (approximately 45 min) and chronic (8 wk) exercise with and without BCAA supplementation on mental and physical fatigue and assess whether the hypothesized outcomes are modulated by changes in kynurenine metabolism in 30 older adults (n=15, 50% per group).
methodsOlder adults (aged 60-80 y) who do not exercise >2 days per week and self-report fatigue (≥3 on a scale of 1-10) will be recruited. Participants will be randomized to either the exercise+BCAA group or exercise+placebo group. Participants will engage in high-volume, moderate-intensity, whole-body exercise training (aerobic and resistance exercise; either in-person or web-based sessions) 3 times per week for 8 weeks. In addition, participants will consume daily either 100 mg/kg body weight of BCAA (2:1:1 leucine:isoleucine:valine) or placebo (maltodextrin) throughout the 8-week intervention. BCAA and placebo powders will be identical in color and dissolved in 400 mL of water and 2.5 g of a calorie-free water flavor enhancer. Muscle biopsies will be collected before and after the intervention after a 12-hour fast to examine changes in the biomarkers of tryptophan metabolism and inflammation. Our primary outcomes include changes in mental and physical fatigue and metabolism after the 8-week exercise training between the 2 groups. Mental and physical fatigue will be measured before and after the intervention. Mental fatigue will be subjectively assessed through the completion of validated questionnaires. Physical fatigue will be measured by isometric handgrip, 1-repetition maximum, chair rise, 400-meter walk, and cardiopulmonary exercise tests.
resultsThe study was funded in March 2022, with an anticipated projected data collection period lasting from January 2023 through December 2023.
conclusionsThe discovery that kynurenine concentrations are associated with fatigue and are responsive to BCAA supplementation during exercise training could have important implications for the development of future interventions, both lifestyle and pharmacologic, to treat fatigue in older adults.
trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov NCT05484661; https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05484661. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/52199.
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