NCT07148726

EFFECTS OF PYRROLOQUINOLINE QUINONE (PQQ) SUPPLEMENTATION ON NON-ENDURANCE TRAINED ATHLETES

EFFECTS OF PYRROLOQUINOLINE QUINONE (PQQ) SUPPLEMENTATION ON METABOLIC AND PHYSIOLOGICAL ADAPTATION AT REST AND DURING SUBMAXIMAL EXERCISE IN NON-ENDURANCE-TRAINED ATHLETES: A RANDOMIZED PLACEBO-CONTROLLED TRIAL

• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 24 (actual)
• Sponsor: University of Padova · Academic / Other
• Sex: All
• Age: 18 Years – 40 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of six weeks of PQQ supplementation in non-endurance-trained individuals on: 1. physiological and metabolic response during a FATmax-VO₂peak exercise test 2. resting energy expenditure, body composition and blood biomarkers (fasting glucose, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), creatine phosphokinase (CPK) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels) 3. blood and urine omics markers of oxidative metabolism 24 basketball players will be randomized to consume a supplement containing 20 mg/day of PQQ or placebo (PLA) during a six-week intervention. Subjects will be encouraged to maintain their usual diet and training schedule. Body composition will be assessed by dual-energy-x-ray-absorptiometry and bioimpedance analysis. Aerobic exercise performance will be evaluated through a graded exercise protocol (six 5-minutes steps followed by n 2-minutes steps until exhaustion; the initial workload was 60 watts and increased by 35 watts at the end of each step) performed on a cycle ergometer. Capillary blood lactate samples were collected at the end of each step. Blood and urine samples were also collected, and metabolomics analysis will be performed.

Conditions

• Mitochondrial Biogenesis
• Inflammation

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DIETARY_SUPPLEMENT	Pyrrole Quinoline Quinone (PQQ)	Subjects will be provided with 84 capsules of the PQQ or the placebo supplement. Both supplements were in capsule form and identical in size, shape and color. The PQQ content per capsule was 10 mg. The indication was to take two capsules every evening for 6 weeks. The duration of the supplementation protocol was assessed based on a previous study (Hwang et al., 2020), while the dose was chosen according to EFSA recommendations (Turck et al., 2017).
OTHER	Placebo	Subjects were provided with 84 capsules of placebo. The indication will be to take two capsules every evening for 6 weeks.

Timeline

• Start date: 2024-09-01
• Primary completion: 2025-08-15
• Completion: 2025-08-15
• First posted: 2025-08-29
• Last updated: 2025-09-10

Locations

1 site across 1 country: Italy