Abstract

BackgroundHypertension is currently the leading modifiable cause of global morbidity and mortality, leading to substantial health and financial burdens. Although multiple studies of management models and innovative therapeutic strategies for hypertension have been conducted, there are still gaps in the field, with a poor control rate reflecting a lack of novel, effective, clinically translated medication or intervention options. Recent animal and human studies repeatedly confirmed a link between the microbiota and hypertension. Of note is our previous study establishing a cause-and-effect relationship between the gut microbiota and blood pressure elevation. A hypothesis of gut microbiota intervention for treating hypertension is thus postulated, and fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) from healthy donors was performed.MethodsA multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled, blinded clinical trial will be performed in 120 grade 1 hypertensive patients for 3 months. All recruited patients will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to take oral FMT capsules or placebo capsules on day 1, day 7, and day 14 and will be followed up on day 30, day 60, and day 90. The primary outcome is the change in office systolic blood pressure from baseline to day 30. The main secondary outcomes are BP indicators, including changes in systolic and diastolic blood pressure from office and 24-h ambulatory blood pressure monitoring; assessments of ankle-branchial index and pulse wave velocity; profiling of fecal microbial composition and function; profiling of fecal and serum metabolome; changes in levels of blood glucose, blood lipids, and body mass index; and assessment of adverse events as a measure of safety.DiscussionExpanding upon our previous research on the role of the gut microbiota in the pathogenesis of hypertension, this study serves as a clinical translation advancement and explores the potential of fecal microbiota transplantation for treating hypertension. The underlying mechanisms, particularly the roles of specific microorganisms or their postbiotics in blood pressure amelioration, will also be investigated via multiple approaches, such as metagenomic sequencing and metabolomic profiling.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.govNCT04406129. Registered on May 28, 2020

Highlights

  • Background and rationale {6a} Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are currently the leading cause of global health loss, accounting for one-third of deaths worldwide [1], and it is estimated that CVDs will cause 7.8 million premature deaths in 2025 [2]

  • Sample size {14} Sample size calculation was performed via PASS version 15 software before trial initiation based on the following: (1) no relevant current data for the effect of fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) on hypertension; (2) a clinically significant improvement of a decrease in office systolic blood pressure (SBP) at least 5 mmHg associated with reduction in stroke (14%), cardiovascular disease (9%), and mortality (7%) [32]; (3) meta-analysis of the effectiveness of probiotics on hypertension based on randomized controlled clinical trials that revealed a reduction of SBP of 3.56 mmHg [33]

  • Our previous study revealed the transfer of an elevated blood pressure (BP) phenotype from hypertensive patients to GF rodents, which confirmed a cause-andeffect relationship between the gut microbiota and BP elevation [9]

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Summary

Introduction

Background and rationale {6a} Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are currently the leading cause of global health loss, accounting for one-third of deaths worldwide [1], and it is estimated that CVDs will cause 7.8 million premature deaths in 2025 [2]. Fecal microbiota transplantation from multiple hypertensive animal models can increase BP in controls [11]. Of note, modulating intestinal flora via transplantation from healthy rats could dramatically reduce BP in salt-induced hypertensive animals [12]. Oral antibiotics such as minocycline and vancomycin can assist in the treatment of hypertension [13]. Multiple studies of management models and innovative therapeutic strategies for hypertension have been conducted, there are still gaps in the field, with a poor control rate reflecting a lack of novel, effective, clinically translated medication or intervention options. A hypothesis of gut microbiota intervention for treating hypertension is postulated, and fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) from healthy donors was performed

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