Thursday, March 1, 2012

Online Clinical Trial Opportunity


I get a lot of emails through this blog, but a recent one stood out. According to a company representative, "Quincy Bioscience has recently launched a distance trial to study the effects of apoaequorin on migraines after hearing several anecdotal reports that the use of a popular over-the-counter supplement reduced the symptoms of migraines."

"Distance trial" means that the trial is conducted online using migraine assessment surveys. Apoaequorin is a protein found in a type of jellyfish, which I think is neat because I've always believed that the sources to many of our ailments can be found in nature (I credit God).

According to the website, "Intracellular calcium dysregulation has been cited as an important mechanism as a source of migraine headaches. Experts have identified abnormally functioning calcium channels, which transport electrical calcium into the brain cell, as a reason for excessively high levels of calcium and subsequent overstimulation as a key contributor to migraine headaches. Apoaequorin is a safe non-toxic dietary supplement which has been available for over-the-counter purchase in health food stores and pharmacy chains for over four years. Apoaequorin is a naturally occurring calcium-binding protein, which is very similar to endogenous proteins that have been shown to deplete with age. In laboratory experiments conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, apoaequorin proved highly neuroprotective. In human trials of generally healthy adults, apoaequorin have shown to improve cognition, quality of life through reduction of pain, greater mobility, increased energy, better sleep and additional quality of life measures."

If you want to participate, the trial lasts 90 days and no travel is required. Eligibility and other info can be found on this page.

I'm interested to see the results of this trial down the road!