What this means
This trial will give 84 older adults with depression either L-serine or a placebo for 48 weeks. Researchers will check thinking skills, mood, brain activity, and body samples, but the results are not in yet.
Plain-English summary written by an AI model from the registry listing.
- Status
- Recruiting
- Who can join
- Ages 65–85 · 84 older adults with late-life depression (trial recruiting, no results posted)
- Where
- 1 site
The science
- Registered title
- Effects of Specific Amino Acid Supplementation and Lifestyle Factors on Brain Ageing
- Trial ID
- NCT07497347 ↗
- Phase
- Not applicable
- Study type
- interventional
- Conditions
- Late-Life Depression
- What is tested
- L-serine supplementation, Placebo
- Sponsor
- IRCCS Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli
- Ages
- 65 Years to 85 Years
- Dates
- First posted Mar 27, 2026 · updated Mar 27, 2026
Registry summary
The aim of this clinical trial is to investigate the effects of L-serine supplementation on cognitive decline and psychosocial functioning in older adults with late-life depression (LLD). The study will evaluate changes in depressive symptoms, neural and cognitive functioning, and will assess neurophysiological, metagenomic, and biochemical alterations associated with L-serine supplementation compared with placebo.
The main research questions are:
- Does L-serine supplementation affect cognitive function, depressive symptoms, and neural functioning in individuals with late-life depression?
- What biological mechanisms may underlie the effects of L-serine on cognitive decline? Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two study arms: an intervention group (total n = 42) receiving L-serine at a dose of 6 g/day for 48 weeks, and a placebo group (total n = 42) receiving 6 g/day of maltodextrin for the same duration.
All participants will be assessed at three time points: T0 (baseline, prior to trial initiation), T18 (after 18 weeks), and T48 (after 48 weeks, at the end of the trial).
At each assessment, participants will:
- complete clinical questionnaires and a neuropsychological assessment;
- provide blood, fecal, and urine samples;
- undergo electroencephalographic (EEG) recordings.
Sites (1)
- IRCCS Centro San Giovanni di Dio Fatebenefratelli, Brescia, Italy