Phase 3 Clinical Trial Demonstrates Combined Metabolic Activators (CMAs) Accelerates Recovery in Mild-to-Moderate COVID-19
Results of a phase 3, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial assessing whether a mixture of Combined Metabolic Activators (CMAs) targeted at mitochondrial function, could improve metabolic function and aid the recovery of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 infected individuals, are now available in the peer-reviewed journal Advanced Science.
Results Demonstrate Statistically Significant Reductions in Recovery Time
The study, conducted at Umraniye Teaching and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences, Istanbul, Turkey, found that the CMAs, which included nicotinamide riboside (NR), L-serine, N-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC), and L-carnitine tartrate, when delivered in combination with standard of care, experienced a statistically significant, 3.5 day reduction in recovery time in the COVID-19 infected patients.[1]
The study design of this 309 subject trial, dictated that participants be randomly assigned on a 3:1 basis to receive the nutritional protocol or placebo in combination with the Turkish standard of care hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) or favipiravir (FP). Patients received standard of care for 5 days and the nutritional protocol or placebo for 14 days. Clinical status was evaluated through daily telephone visits, and each dose of the CMA contained 1g NR, 3.73g L-carnitine tartrate, 2.55g NAC, and 12.35g L-serine, taken twice a day. These components have been shown to positively impact mitochondrial function in previously published preclinical and clinical studies.[2, 3]
Commenting on his team’s findings, lead investigator Dr. Adil Mardinoglu, professor at KTH—Royal Institute of Technology in Sweden & King’s College London stated, “The nutritional protocol significantly improved the recovery, liver health, and markers of inflammation of patients with COVID-19. Dysfunctional mitochondria have been implicated in worsened progression for COVID-19, and this nutritional intervention helps to remedy the stress put on the body of an infected patient.”
Building on Positive Results
These results further strengthened data from the smaller phase 2 clinical trial published last October, which suggested the same nutritional protocol, also referred to as combined metabolic cofactor supplement (CMCS), delivered in conjunction with the Turkish standard of care therapy (hydroxychloroquine), significantly shortened recovery time of mild-to-moderate COVID-19 infected patients, over standard therapy plus placebo. [2]
These Phase 3 results pave the way for the potential use of the CMAs as a method to reduce the effects of COVID-19 progression as a therapeutic treatment.