Could a common blood pressure pill recharge brain cells in Alzheimer's?
NCT ID NCT07796308
First seen Sep 01, 2026 · Last updated Sep 02, 2026 · Updated 1 time
Summary
This phase 2 trial tests whether terazosin, a drug already used for high blood pressure, can increase energy production in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease. Researchers will give 100 participants either terazosin or a placebo for 78 weeks and measure ATP, the body's main energy molecule, in blood and brain. The study also tracks side effects and changes in blood pressure. If terazosin boosts brain energy, it may offer a new approach to slowing Alzheimer's.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Terazosin hydrochloride, a drug typically used for high blood pressure and enlarged prostate, given as a daily pill.
- What this could lead to
- If terazosin boosts brain energy levels in Alzheimer's patients, it could point toward a new way to slow the disease's progression.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early phase 2 trial with 100 participants, so results may not hold up in larger studies. Terazosin can lower blood pressure, which may cause dizziness or fainting, especially in older adults.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Phase 2
Tests whether the treatment actually works, and watches for side effects, in a larger group.
- Participants
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About 100 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Aug 2027
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Jul 2032
An estimate. End dates often move.
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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50 to 80 years
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. Male or female, aged 50-80 years (inclusive) at the time of consent. 2. Diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease meeting the 2011 NIA-AA clinical criteria for mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's disease or probable Alzheimer's disease dementia, with the clinical syndrome attributable to AD as the primary etiology in the judgment of the site investigator. 3. Alzheimer's disease pathology confirmed by an eligible biomarker: Amyloid PET scan, Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) Alzheimer's disease panel or blood Alzheimer's disease panel. 4. If receiving an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor (AChEI) and/or memantine, the participant must have been on a stable dose for at least 4 weeks before the baseline visit. 5. Early symptomatic AD - that is, mild cognitive impairment due to AD or mild AD dementia - as evidenced by a global Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) score of 0.5 or 1.0 at screening, with a Memory box score ≥ 0.5. EXCLUSION CRITERIA: A participant meeting any of the following at screening is not eligible: Consent and study conduct 1. Unwilling or unable to provide written informed consent or - where decisional capacity is impaired - unwilling or unable to provide assent alongside written consent from a legally authorized representative. 2. Receipt of an investigational agent, or participation in an interventional trial, within 30 days or 5 half-lives (whichever is longer) prior to screening. 3. Contraindication to MRI or otherwise unable to undergo MRI (non-compatible implanted device, retained ferromagnetic material, severe claustrophobia, body habitus exceeding scanner limits). 4. Any circumstance that, in the investigator's judgment, would prevent the participant from attending scheduled study visits or completing study procedures. Neurological 5. Cognitive impairment attributable to a cause other than AD, including dementia with Lewy bodies, frontotemporal dementia, Parkinson's disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, vascular dementia, normal pressure hydrocephalus, intracranial mass, or chronic subdural hematoma. 6. History of traumatic brain injury with loss of consciousness \> 30 minutes, post-traumatic amnesia \> 24 hours, or resulting in persistent cognitive or neurological deficit. 7. Stroke or TIA within 12 months prior to screening, or MRI evidence of significant cerebrovascular disease (territorial infarct, more than one lacunar infarct in a strategic location, or confluent white-matter hyperintensity \[Fazekas grade 3\]). 8. Seizure disorder requiring ongoing antiepileptic therapy. 9. Untreated vitamin B12 deficiency, untreated hypothyroidism, or another unresolved reversible contributor to cognitive impairment. Psychiatric 10. Major depressive disorder, bipolar affective disorder, schizophrenia or other psychotic disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, or another psychiatric condition of sufficient severity to increase adverse event risk or confound neurological and cognitive assessment, in the opinion of the site principal investigator. 11. Beck Depression Inventory-II score \> 21 at screening. 12. Beck Anxiety Inventory score \> 22 at screening. 13. Suicidal ideation within 12 months prior to baseline, as evidenced by a "yes" response to item 4 or 5 of the ideation subscale of the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale, or any suicidal behavior within 2 years prior to baseline. 14. Alcohol or substance use disorder (DSM-5 criteria) within 2 years prior to screening. Cardiovascular and hemodynamic 15. Orthostatic hypotension, defined as a fall of ≥ 20 mmHg systolic or ≥ 10 mmHg diastolic within 3 minutes of standing from supine, with or without symptoms. 16. Seated systolic blood pressure \< 110 mmHg or diastolic \< 60 mmHg at screening. 17. History of syncope or near-syncope, or ≥ 2 falls, within 12 months prior to screening. 18. Clinically significant cardiovascular disease: myocardial infarction or unstable angina within 6 months, NYHA class III-IV heart failure, hemodynamically significant aortic or mitral stenosis, or uncontrolled arrhythmia. 19. Known autonomic failure or neurogenic orthostatic hypotension. Concomitant medications 20. Current use of any α1-adrenergic antagonist (terazosin, doxazosin, prazosin, alfuzosin, tamsulosin, silodosin), or use within 4 weeks prior to randomization. 21. Current use of a phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitor (sildenafil, tadalafil, vardenafil, avanafil), including tadalafil prescribed for benign prostatic hyperplasia or pulmonary hypertension. 22. Known hypersensitivity to terazosin or other quinazoline derivatives. 23. Current treatment with - or planned initiation of, or receipt within 24 months prior to screening of - an anti-amyloid monoclonal antibody (aducanumab, lecanemab, donanemab, or any other approved or investigational agent of this class), or active evaluation for such treatment. 24. Initiation of, or change in dose of, any CNS-active medication (benzodiazepine, antidepressant, antipsychotic, hypnotic, or anticonvulsant) within 30 days prior to baseline. General medical and laboratory 25. Acute or unstable medical, psychiatric, or orthopedic condition that in the investigator's judgment would confound assessment or compromise safety. Stable, adequately controlled chronic conditions common to this age group - including hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, and osteoarthritis - are permitted provided the treatment regimen has been unchanged for ≥ 30 days. 26. Hepatic impairment: ALT or AST \> 3 × ULN, total bilirubin \> 1.5 × ULN, or known cirrhosis (Child-Pugh class B or C). 27. eGFR \< 30 mL/min/1.73 m². 28. Cataract or other intraocular surgery planned during the treatment period. 29. Active malignancy, or treatment for malignancy within 2 years, excluding non-melanoma skin cancer and in-situ cervical carcinoma. Reproductive 30. Pregnancy, breastfeeding, or intention to become pregnant during the study period.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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University of Iowa
Iowa City, Iowa, 52242, United States
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