About this trial
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of a short-term (12-week) prehabilitation strategy combining mazdutide (a novel GLP-1/GCG receptor dual agonist) with lifestyle optimization, compared to lifestyle optimization alone, in potential living liver transplantation donors with metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASLD).
Overweight or obese individuals who intend to donate a portion of their liver but are temporarily disqualified due to hepatic steatosis will be recruited across multiple clinical centers. Participants will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio to either the experimental group (mazdutide subcutaneous injection once weekly plus standardized lifestyle counseling) or the control group (placebo subcutaneous injection once weekly plus standardized lifestyle counseling).
The primary objective is to determine whether the short-term addition of mazdutide can significantly increase the proportion of donors achieving histological resolution of hepatic steatosis without the worsening of fibrosis within 12 weeks. The study ultimately aims to provide high-quality evidence for a rapid, safe, and effective surgical prehabilitation protocol to expand the living donor pool and optimize perioperative outcomes for both donors and recipients.
Eligibility criteria
Qualifiers
Age between 18 and 60 years old at the time of signing the informed consent form.
Overweight, defined as Body Mass Index (BMI) ≥ 24 kg/m².
Diagnosed with MASLD by non-invasive means (conventional ultrasound, FibroScan®, or MRI), with a Controlled Attenuation Parameter (CAP) ≥ 268 dB/m via FibroScan®.
Histologically confirmed MASLD without any liver fibrosis, presenting a NAS ≥ 3, including a steatosis subscore ≥ 2 (subscores for hepatocyte ballooning and lobular inflammation are not limited).
Disqualifiers
Liver biopsy indicates complication with any degree of liver fibrosis.
Failure to diagnose overweight or MASLD by non-invasive means, including BMI < 24 kg/m² and/or CAP < 268 dB/m.
Histological evaluation shows a total NAS < 3 and/or a steatosis subscore < 2.
Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and/or aspartate aminotransferase (AST) > 5 × upper limit of normal (ULN) at screening, and/or ALT or AST levels increase by more than 1 fold compared to baseline during screening, which is considered clinically significant by the investigator.
Trial design
Treatments tested in this trial
- Mazdutide
- Placebo (Normal Saline)
- Lifestyle Optimization
Treatment groups
Sponsors and collaborators
West China Hospital
Lead sponsor
Beijing Friendship Hospital
Collaborator
Anhui Provincial Hospital
Collaborator
The Second Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University
Collaborator
First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University
Collaborator