Diet-induced ThermogenesisSENSATIONNCT07409025
Sensory Stimulation as a Driver of Diet-induced Thermogenesis
A study testing sensory exposure and sensory deprivation in people with Diet-induced Thermogenesis and Sensory Function, run by University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland at 1 site in Switzerland.
Trial summary
This study aims to assess the influence of sensory stimulation on diet-induced energy expenditure by way of a clinical cross-over trial in 24 healthy participants either receiving a meal bolus with (orally) and without sensory stimulation (nasogastric-tube). Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 18 to 40 yearsHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Diet-induced Thermogenesis, Sensory Function
- What is being tested?
- sensory exposure and sensory deprivation
- Type of treatment
- Pill or oral medicine, Surgery or procedure
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 24 participants
- Where
- 1 siteSwitzerland
- Study dates
- 27 Jul 2026to Jan 2028
- Phase
- Interventional
- Are there results?
- Not yet: the study is under way
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 18 to 40 years
- All sexes
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult
Who may be able to join
- healthy volunteers of any gender
- BMI between 18-25 kg/m2
- age between 18 and 40 years
Who cannot join
- concomitant medication except for prescription free analgetics (paracetamol, NSAIDs) and oral contraceptives
- clinically significant concomitant disease states (e.g. renal failure, hepatic dysfunction, cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus),
- allergy to local anaesthetic or any of the study meal ingredients
- known or suspected non-compliance, drug or alcohol abuse
- smoker / habitual tobacco use
- habitual excessive alcohol consumption
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- inability to follow the procedures of the study
- participation in another study with investigational drug within the 30 days preceding and during the present study
- previous enrolment into the current study
- enrolment of the investigator, his/her family members, employees and other dependent persons
- uncontrolled hypo- or hyperthyroidism
- pregnancy or lactation
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
Switzerland1 site, 1 recruiting
- Recruiting
University Hospital Basel, Department of Endocrinology
Basel, 4031
Matthias Betz, Prof., 0041 61 556 56 54, matthias.betz@usb.ch
About this study
Official title: SEnsory stimulatioN aS A Driver of dieT-induced Thermogenesis - the SENSATION Trial
This study aims to assess the influence of sensory stimulation on diet-induced energy expenditure by way of a clinical cross-over trial in 24 healthy participants either receiving a meal bolus with (orally) and without sensory stimulation (nasogastric-tube).
Read the detailed description
Here, the investigators postulate sensory stimulation (i.e. the sight, smell, auditory and tactile properties, as well as the taste of food) to be drivers of diet induced thermogenesis, an insufficiently understood mechanism of body weight regulation. Research into this area to date has focused on macro-nutrient composition delivered unphysiologically (i.v. or in form of unpalatable solutions). Thereby neglecting the bulk of food-intake associated sensory stimulation and thus the contribution of the brain itself.
The investigators aim to gain insight into the role of sensory stimulation in this context by means of a cross-over proof-of concept exploratory clinical trial. Comparing 24 healthy human volunteers receiving a meal bolus with (orally) and without sensory stimulation (nasogastric-tube) by indirect calorimetry, tissue-adjacent temperature measurements and ex vivo analyses.
- Conditions
- Diet-induced Thermogenesis, Sensory Function
- Being tested
- sensory exposure, sensory deprivation
- Keywords
- Diet-induced thermogenesis, Sensory Stimulation
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
sensory exposureProcedure or surgery
Administration of a full meal orally ("regular eating") in study visit A
sensory deprivationProcedure or surgery
Administration of a full meal via nasogastric tube in study visit B (thereby masking it from the senses)
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Sensory Exposure | Experimental | Administration of a full meal orally Receives: Procedure: sensory exposure |
| Sensory Deprivation | Experimental | Administration of the same meal as for the sensory exposure visit by way of a nasogastric tube Receives: Procedure: sensory deprivation |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Diet-induced energy expenditure
diet-induced thermogenesis as determined by indirect calorimetry measurements of VO2 in the sensory exposure condition (full meal) as compared to the sensory deprivation condition (same meal via nasogastric tube)
Measured: data will be collected from baseline (30 minutes before meal bolus administration) up to 300 minutes post-administration, divided into five segments: four 30-minute intervals and one 75-minute interval.
Secondary outcomes (1)
Skin temperature
brown adipose tissue activity as measured by supraclavicular skin temperature in response to both trial conditions It will be measured using wireless temperature sensors (iButton Thermochron) attached to the skin at 11 pre-defined locations
Measured: data will be collected from baseline (60 minutes before meal bolus administration) up to 300 minutes post-administration
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted13 Feb 2026
- Study start27 Jul 2026
- Primary completionJan 2028 (estimated)
- Study completionJan 2028 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Diet-induced ThermogenesisStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- More trials run by University Hospital, Basel, SwitzerlandThe sponsor's other registered studies.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Crossover
- Model description
- Randomized, cross-over trial in healthy volunteers with random sequence of the two study interventions.
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 24 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Sophia J Wiedemann, Dr. phil. Dr. med. M.Sc., Principal investigator, University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07409025
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- SENSATION_V3
- Acronym
- SENSATION
- Status last verified
- Jul 2026
- First submitted
- 29 Jan 2026
- Last updated
- 30 Jul 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No
Study at a glance
From the registry record, last updated by the sponsor on 30 Jul 2026. Recruitment status is as the sponsor reported it: confirm with the study team.
- Official title
- SEnsory stimulatioN aS A Driver of dieT-induced Thermogenesis - the SENSATION Trial
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07409025
- Acronym / sponsor ID
- SENSATION / SENSATION_V3
- Conditions
- Diet-induced Thermogenesis, Sensory Function
- Keywords
- Diet-induced thermogenesis, Sensory Stimulation
- Study type
- Interventional
- Recruitment status
- Recruiting
- Enrolment
- 24 participants (estimated)
- Lead sponsor
- University Hospital, Basel, SwitzerlandUniversity, hospital or other
- Study start
- 27 Jul 2026 (actual)
- Primary completion
- Jan 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion
- Jan 2028 (estimated)
- First posted
- 13 Feb 2026 (actual)
- Results
- Not posted in the source record
Clinical summary
The research question as the sponsor registered it. This describes what the study plans to test, not what it found.
This study aims to assess the influence of sensory stimulation on diet-induced energy expenditure by way of a clinical cross-over trial in 24 healthy participants either receiving a meal bolus with (orally) and without sensory stimulation (nasogastric-tube).
Detailed description
Here, the investigators postulate sensory stimulation (i.e. the sight, smell, auditory and tactile properties, as well as the taste of food) to be drivers of diet induced thermogenesis, an insufficiently understood mechanism of body weight regulation. Research into this area to date has focused on macro-nutrient composition delivered unphysiologically (i.v. or in form of unpalatable solutions). Thereby neglecting the bulk of food-intake associated sensory stimulation and thus the contribution of the brain itself.
The investigators aim to gain insight into the role of sensory stimulation in this context by means of a cross-over proof-of concept exploratory clinical trial. Comparing 24 healthy human volunteers receiving a meal bolus with (orally) and without sensory stimulation (nasogastric-tube) by indirect calorimetry, tissue-adjacent temperature measurements and ex vivo analyses.
Study design
- Primary purpose
- Basic science
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Crossover
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Number of arms
- 2
- Model description
- Randomized, cross-over trial in healthy volunteers with random sequence of the two study interventions.
| Arm | Type | Receives |
|---|---|---|
| Sensory Exposure | Experimental | Procedure: sensory exposureAdministration of a full meal orally |
| Sensory Deprivation | Experimental | Procedure: sensory deprivationAdministration of the same meal as for the sensory exposure visit by way of a nasogastric tube |
Who may qualify
- Ages
- 18 to 40 years
- Sex
- All
- Healthy volunteers
- Accepted
- Age groups
- Adult
Key inclusion criteria (3 listed)
- healthy volunteers of any gender
- BMI between 18-25 kg/m2
- age between 18 and 40 years
Key exclusion criteria (12 listed)
- concomitant medication except for prescription free analgetics (paracetamol, NSAIDs) and oral contraceptives
- clinically significant concomitant disease states (e.g. renal failure, hepatic dysfunction, cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus),
- allergy to local anaesthetic or any of the study meal ingredients
- known or suspected non-compliance, drug or alcohol abuse
- smoker / habitual tobacco use
Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening; this overview does not establish that a patient qualifies. Full inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Interventions
| Intervention | Type | Arms |
|---|---|---|
| sensory exposureAdministration of a full meal orally ("regular eating") in study visit A | Procedure or surgery | Sensory Exposure |
| sensory deprivationAdministration of a full meal via nasogastric tube in study visit B (thereby masking it from the senses) | Procedure or surgery | Sensory Deprivation |
Primary outcome
Diet-induced energy expenditure
Time frame: data will be collected from baseline (30 minutes before meal bolus administration) up to 300 minutes post-administration, divided into five segments: four 30-minute intervals and one 75-minute interval.
diet-induced thermogenesis as determined by indirect calorimetry measurements of VO2 in the sensory exposure condition (full meal) as compared to the sensory deprivation condition (same meal via nasogastric tube)
1 secondary outcome
Skin temperature
Time frame: data will be collected from baseline (60 minutes before meal bolus administration) up to 300 minutes post-administration
Results and safety
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
Research links
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govLast updated by the sponsor 30 Jul 2026.
- Individual participant dataSharing planned: No
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Referral and contact
AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals. Contact the study team or a site listed below; they decide who can take part.
Sophia J Wiedemann, Dr. phil. Dr. med. M.Sc. principal investigator
University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland
1 site in 1 country: see every site and its status.
Questions about this trial
What is this clinical trial studying?
A study testing sensory exposure and sensory deprivation in people with Diet-induced Thermogenesis and Sensory Function, run by University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland at 1 site in Switzerland.
The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.
Who may be eligible to take part?
The sponsor lists 3 inclusion and 12 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.
Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?
The record says: looking for participants now, as of the sponsor's last update on 30 Jul 2026. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.
Where is the study taking place?
The record lists 1 site in Switzerland. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.
What are the possible benefits and risks?
They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.
Are results available for this study?
This study is still under way. Results are not available in the source record yet.
How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?
Contact Matthias Betz, Prof. (0041 61 556 56 54, Matthias.Betz@usb.ch), or a site near the patient. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.
What does the primary outcome measure?
Diet-induced energy expenditure (time frame: data will be collected from baseline (30 minutes before meal bolus administration) up to 300 minutes post-administration, divided into five segments: four 30-minute intervals and one 75-minute interval.). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.
Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?
No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.
How often is this information updated?
AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 30 Jul 2026.