Does Taurine Supplementation Improve Vascular Function and Orthostatic Responses in Long COVID?
1 other identifier
interventional
30
1 country
1
Brief Summary
Millions have developed Long COVID (LC), and recent findings show an association between taurine deficiency (an amino acid) and symptoms in LC. Cost-effective and accessible interventions are needed to improve welfare and reduce healthcare costs. We will investigate the efficacy of 12-week taurine supplementation, on vascular function and the cardio/cerebrovascular responses to upright posture in LC. We will measure resting vascular function with EndoPAT and ultrasound, resting heart rate variability, and the blood pressure, heart rate, and brain blood flow response to 5 minutes of head-up tilt before and after 12-weeks of taurine supplementation in LC.
Trial Health
Trial Health Score
Automated assessment based on enrollment pace, timeline, and geographic reach
participants targeted
Target at below P25 for not_applicable
Started Apr 2026
1 active site
Health score is calculated from publicly available data and should be used for screening purposes only.
Trial Relationships
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Study Timeline
Key milestones and dates
First Submitted
Initial submission to the registry
December 17, 2025
CompletedFirst Posted
Study publicly available on registry
December 31, 2025
CompletedStudy Start
First participant enrolled
April 1, 2026
CompletedPrimary Completion
Last participant's last visit for primary outcome
December 31, 2026
ExpectedStudy Completion
Last participant's last visit for all outcomes
March 31, 2027
January 6, 2026
December 1, 2025
9 months
December 17, 2025
December 31, 2025
Conditions
Keywords
Outcome Measures
Primary Outcomes (2)
Orthostatic responses
Measure cardiovascular and cerebrovascular responses to upright tilt using beat to beat blood pressure, ECG, and transcranial Doppler.
Baseline and 12-week dietary supplementation.
Vascular function
Flow-mediated dilation and EndoPAT response. These techniques concurrently measure endothelial function using the same protocol.
Baseline and 12-week dietary supplementation.
Secondary Outcomes (1)
Heart rate variability
Baseline and 12-week dietary supplementation.
Study Arms (1)
Taurine supplementation
EXPERIMENTALParticipants will take 12-wks of taurine supplementation (2 x 675mg twice daily).
Interventions
Participants will take 12-wks taurine supplementation (2 x 675mg twice daily).
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if:
- Participants will have had symptoms of Long COVID post-infection for at least 3 months
You may not qualify if:
- Inability to undergo tilt table testing for 5 minutes
- Inability to transport selves to York University from their homes
- Inability to speak English, or provide a translator
- Blood clotting disorders
Contact the study team to confirm eligibility.
Sponsors & Collaborators
- Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)collaborator
- York Universitylead
- Long COVID Webcollaborator
Study Sites (1)
York University
Toronto, Ontario, M3J1P3, Canada
Related Publications (11)
Heart rate variability: standards of measurement, physiological interpretation and clinical use. Task Force of the European Society of Cardiology and the North American Society of Pacing and Electrophysiology. Circulation. 1996 Mar 1;93(5):1043-65. No abstract available.
PMID: 8598068BACKGROUNDThijssen DH, Black MA, Pyke KE, Padilla J, Atkinson G, Harris RA, Parker B, Widlansky ME, Tschakovsky ME, Green DJ. Assessment of flow-mediated dilation in humans: a methodological and physiological guideline. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2011 Jan;300(1):H2-12. doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00471.2010. Epub 2010 Oct 15.
PMID: 20952670BACKGROUNDCorretti MC, Anderson TJ, Benjamin EJ, Celermajer D, Charbonneau F, Creager MA, Deanfield J, Drexler H, Gerhard-Herman M, Herrington D, Vallance P, Vita J, Vogel R; International Brachial Artery Reactivity Task Force. Guidelines for the ultrasound assessment of endothelial-dependent flow-mediated vasodilation of the brachial artery: a report of the International Brachial Artery Reactivity Task Force. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2002 Jan 16;39(2):257-65. doi: 10.1016/s0735-1097(01)01746-6.
PMID: 11788217BACKGROUNDWittes J, Brittain E. The role of internal pilot studies in increasing the efficiency of clinical trials. Stat Med. 1990 Jan-Feb;9(1-2):65-71; discussion 71-2. doi: 10.1002/sim.4780090113.
PMID: 2345839BACKGROUNDSun Q, Wang B, Li Y, Sun F, Li P, Xia W, Zhou X, Li Q, Wang X, Chen J, Zeng X, Zhao Z, He H, Liu D, Zhu Z. Taurine Supplementation Lowers Blood Pressure and Improves Vascular Function in Prehypertension: Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study. Hypertension. 2016 Mar;67(3):541-9. doi: 10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.115.06624. Epub 2016 Jan 18.
PMID: 26781281BACKGROUNDKhoramjoo M, Wang K, Srinivasan K, Gheblawi M, Mandal R, Rousseau S, Wishart D, Prasad V, Richer L, Cheung AM, Oudit GY. Plasma taurine level is linked to symptom burden and clinical outcomes in post-COVID condition. PLoS One. 2024 Jun 5;19(6):e0304522. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0304522. eCollection 2024.
PMID: 38837993BACKGROUNDOikonomou E, Souvaliotis N, Lampsas S, Siasos G, Poulakou G, Theofilis P, Papaioannou TG, Haidich AB, Tsaousi G, Ntousopoulos V, Sakka V, Charalambous G, Rapti V, Raftopoulou S, Syrigos K, Tsioufis C, Tousoulis D, Vavuranakis M. Endothelial dysfunction in acute and long standing COVID-19: A prospective cohort study. Vascul Pharmacol. 2022 Jun;144:106975. doi: 10.1016/j.vph.2022.106975. Epub 2022 Mar 3.
PMID: 35248780BACKGROUNDRatchford SM, Stickford JL, Province VM, Stute N, Augenreich MA, Koontz LK, Bobo LK, Stickford ASL. Vascular alterations among young adults with SARS-CoV-2. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2021 Jan 1;320(1):H404-H410. doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00897.2020. Epub 2020 Dec 11.
PMID: 33306450BACKGROUNDVarga Z, Flammer AJ, Steiger P, Haberecker M, Andermatt R, Zinkernagel AS, Mehra MR, Schuepbach RA, Ruschitzka F, Moch H. Endothelial cell infection and endotheliitis in COVID-19. Lancet. 2020 May 2;395(10234):1417-1418. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30937-5. Epub 2020 Apr 21. No abstract available.
PMID: 32325026BACKGROUNDHoffmann M, Kleine-Weber H, Schroeder S, Kruger N, Herrler T, Erichsen S, Schiergens TS, Herrler G, Wu NH, Nitsche A, Muller MA, Drosten C, Pohlmann S. SARS-CoV-2 Cell Entry Depends on ACE2 and TMPRSS2 and Is Blocked by a Clinically Proven Protease Inhibitor. Cell. 2020 Apr 16;181(2):271-280.e8. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.02.052. Epub 2020 Mar 5.
PMID: 32142651BACKGROUNDBallering AV, van Zon SKR, Olde Hartman TC, Rosmalen JGM; Lifelines Corona Research Initiative. Persistence of somatic symptoms after COVID-19 in the Netherlands: an observational cohort study. Lancet. 2022 Aug 6;400(10350):452-461. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01214-4.
PMID: 35934007BACKGROUND
MeSH Terms
Conditions
Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)
Central Study Contacts
Study Design
- Study Type
- interventional
- Phase
- not applicable
- Allocation
- NA
- Masking
- NONE
- Purpose
- BASIC SCIENCE
- Intervention Model
- SINGLE GROUP
- Sponsor Type
- OTHER
- Responsible Party
- PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
- PI Title
- Associate Professor
Study Record Dates
First Submitted
December 17, 2025
First Posted
December 31, 2025
Study Start
April 1, 2026
Primary Completion (Estimated)
December 31, 2026
Study Completion (Estimated)
March 31, 2027
Last Updated
January 6, 2026
Record last verified: 2025-12
Data Sharing
- IPD Sharing
- Will not share
It is against REB protocol to provide individual data, particularly in small sample size studies.