Study of How Repeated Cold Exposure Affects Brown Fat and Body Tissues in Healthy Adults Aged 18 to 40

What this Trial Is About

Researchers are studying how short-term repeated cold exposure affects brown adipose tissue BAT, a heat-producing organ linked to better heart and metabolic health. This study focuses on healthy adults aged 18 to 40 years and aims to understand the molecular and physiological changes in BAT, skeletal muscle, and white adipose tissue WAT following cold exposure. The research seeks to uncover how cold exposure changes cellular makeup and gene activity in these tissues. Participants will undergo a 10-day cold acclimation protocol involving 2 hours of daily exposure using water-perfused cooling blankets. Before and after this period, they will have baseline and follow-up assessments including blood sampling, energy expenditure measurement, muscle activity monitoring, core and skin temperature tracking, and dynamic PETCT imaging during cold exposure. Tissue biopsies from BAT, WAT, and skeletal muscle will be collected under local anesthesia at both time points to assess molecular adaptations. Throughout the study, participants will have multiple evaluations in both warm and cold conditions to measure changes in energy use, temperature regulation, muscle response, and immune cell activity. Continuous core temperature monitoring and repeated PETCT scans will track physiological changes. The primary outcome is tissue gene expression changes due to cold exposure, with additional measures including BAT activity, energy expenditure, temperature, and immune responses. The study is sponsored by the University of Edinburgh and will run until July 2027.

Intermittent Cold Exposure and Brown Adipose Tissue Hyperplasia