Diabetes drug semaglutide may reshape fat in heart and muscles
NCT ID NCT07065383
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study is looking at how semaglutide, a drug used for diabetes and weight loss, changes the amount of fat stored inside the heart and leg muscles. Researchers want to see if semaglutide can shift fat away from these organs, which might improve health beyond just lowering blood sugar. The study will involve 60 adults with type 2 diabetes who are not very active, and they will receive semaglutide along with diet advice and either general physical activity encouragement or a supervised exercise program.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- Semaglutide
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this could show that semaglutide helps rebalance fat storage in the heart and muscles, potentially leading to better diabetes management and reduced cardiovascular risk.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study (60 participants) focused on measuring fat changes, not clinical outcomes. The results may not apply to all people with type 2 diabetes, and semaglutide can cause side effects like nausea and vomiting.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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About 60 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Aug 2025
- Expected to finish
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Jul 2028
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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20 to 75 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: * Patients with a confirmed diagnosis of type 2 diabetes established in the previous 10 years between the ages of 20 and 75 * HbA1c ≥ 53 mmol/mol (7%) typically on diet and/or metformin/sulphonylureas (and/or sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors, Dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitors, thiazolidinediones, but not on insulin) * Patients who do not meet the WHO recommendations on physical activity (≤150 minutes per week) of moderate-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) * Patients who have a BMI of ≥27 but with a body weight of less than 140kgs due to limitations of the scanner table weight limit * Current or recent (within 3 months) eGFR \>30 mL/min/1.73m2) * Able to understand written and spoken English Exclusion Criteria: * Any previously unknown cardiac condition other than mild valvular disease * Any history of known coronary artery disease (including myocardial infarction and myocardial infarction with normal coronary arteries) * Any relevant or untreated endocrine condition (i.e. Cushings) * Impaired renal function (defined as estimated glomerular filtration rate of less than 30 mL/min/1.73m2) * Blood pressure of more than 180/100 mmHg * Patients on any other medication known to influence glucose or fatty acids metabolism (niacin, omega-3 fatty acids, other glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists) * Patients with any dietary habits that may interfere with the investigation (for example high fat vegan diets, as we know form prior research that they have very different intramyocellular fat storage compared to those on no dietary preferences) * Patients with any history of any medical or surgical condition that in the judgement of the investigators may interfere with the exercise regime (i.e. peripheral vascular disease, arthritis), fatty acids metabolism (i.e. lipid storage diseases) or may compromise the safety of the participant (i.e. neurological syndromes for whom an intense exercise program could result in musculo-skeletal injury or accidents due to loss of balance). * Patients with a sensitivity to Semaglutide (known hypersensitivity, diabetic retinopathy, pregnancy, history of pancreatitis or history of any cancer) * Significant asthma or pulmonary disease * Participants unable to cycle on the ergometer * Unable to perform exercise testing (e.g. prosthetic limbs) * Pregnancy, breastfeeding or considering pregnancy. * Patients who have recently had gastrointestinal contrast or radionuclides * Inability to lie flat or remain motionless for scanning procedures * Patients whose girth size cannot allow them to fit in the magnetic resonance scanner (there is no set location to measure as this is different for everyone, but we have a plastic hoop that can be fitted around the largest circumference to check the fit) * Subjects who are not able to engage into a physical training regime or feel that they do not have the interest or sustained motivation to follow one. * Participants currently enrolled in other interventional clinical research * Participants not able to understand written or verbal English
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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 study's own enquiry address
This study publishes an address for enquiries. See it below .
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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
Show contact details
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Genom att skicka in godkänner du våra Användarvillkor
Study contacts
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Contact
Email: •••••@•••••
Locations
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Cardiac Research Office, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary
RECRUITINGAberdeen, Aberdeenshire, AB25 2ZD, United Kingdom
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