Isoflavone supplement composition and equol producer status affect gene expression in adipose tissue: a double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled crossover trial in postmenopausal women.

What Was Tested

This randomized controlled trial looks at Genistein and Isoflavones.

The objective was to study the effects of an 8-wk consumption of 2 different isoflavone supplements compared with placebo on whole-genome gene expression in the adipose tissue of postmenopausal women.

Who Took Part

The age groups tagged for this paper are middle-aged adults and older adults, women only.

After the 8-wk isoflavone and placebo period, whole-genome arrays were performed in subcutaneous adipose tissue of postmenopausal women (n = 26 after LG, n = 31 after HG).

Participants were randomized by equol-producing phenotype, and data analysis was performed per substudy for equol producers and nonproducers separately.

How the Study Was Run

The researchers set it up as a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled and crossover study.

Random assignment meant chance, not the researchers, decided who got Genistein and who got the comparison, which limits bias.

Neither the participants nor the staff measuring them knew who was on Genistein, so expectations could not easily colour the readings.

Some participants received a placebo instead of Genistein, giving a reference point.

In the crossover set-up each of the participants took both Genistein and the comparison in turn, acting as their own control.

What Was Measured

Topics PubMed links to this paper include Adipose Tissue, Adiposity, Dietary Supplements, Equol, Gene Expression, Genistein and Isoflavones.

What This Means in Plain Language

The paper is a randomized, double-blind and placebo-controlled study of Genistein and Isoflavones.

Results are reported in around 7 sentences of the abstract; we leave them to the paper itself rather than summarise them.

The publication is from 2014 (The American journal of clinical nutrition), a journal based in United States.

More context: all human trials.