{"id":610232,"date":"2026-07-29T16:29:17","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T16:29:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/610232\/"},"modified":"2026-07-29T16:29:17","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T16:29:17","slug":"uconn-made-protein-supplement-is-being-studied-what-its-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/610232\/","title":{"rendered":"UConn-made protein supplement is being studied. What it’s for."},"content":{"rendered":"

A six-month study on an amino-acid supplement shake developed by UConn School of Medicine<\/a> researchers for Parkinson\u2019s patients at UConn Health<\/a> is underway and seeking more participation.<\/p>\n

The study is testing the potential impact benefits of the shake, which is designed to correct amino-acid deficiencies, improve long term health, reduce inflammation and encourage a healthy metabolism.<\/p>\n

UConn is looking for Parkinson\u2019s patients between 60 and 80 years old to take a shake daily for six months. Participants would also be asked to share periodic blood samples as well as completing physical function assessments and questionnaires.<\/p>\n

UConn applied to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration<\/a> for a new investigational drug application and are now principal investigators for the FDA. The clinical study compares the UConn-made shake to others available over-the-counter. UConn researchers found which amino-acids are low in Parkinson\u2019s patients and created the shake.<\/p>\n

New Britain resident and UConn Health patient Jose Figueroa was diagnosed with Parkinson\u2019s disease in 2012. His condition had been deteriorating in recent years, but due to exercising at least two hours a day, five days a week, he\u2019s able to walk without a cane and get on the ground to play with his grandchildren, he said.<\/p>\n

\"JoseJose Figueroa has been a longtime patient at UConn Health following his Parkinson’s disease diagnosis in 2012. Figueroa has taken part in three clinical studies for Parkinson’s patients including one for a targeted-amino acid protein shake that has been developed at UConn. (Courtesy)<\/p>\n

These are activities he would have struggled with prior to his regular exercise. He also pointed to the targeted, amino-acid protein shake developed by UConn Health and targeted to those with Parkinson\u2019s, giving him the energy needed to be so active. Last year, he took part in a three-week nutritional supplement study of the amino-acid protein shake developed by UConn researchers Dr. Jacob Earp<\/a> and Dr. Cristina Col\u00f3n-Semenza<\/a>. The shake\u2019s intent is to reduce inflammation and provide nutrients.<\/p>\n

Figueroa said the shake gave him energy and he would take it again if it were available.<\/p>\n

Putting on muscle<\/p>\n

Figueroa, 66, said he has benefited from the research by the Brain and Spine Institute\u2019s faculty and Dr. Bernardo Rodrigues<\/a> at the UConn School of Medicine as well as researchers at the UConn Department of Kinesiology<\/a> and the dedicated Movement for Life Lab<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In addition to being a researcher, Earp is also a professor of Kinesiology at UConn.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy research mainly focuses around improving muscle in older adults. We look at what we call muscle quantity and quality, making sure that people retain enough muscle mass so that they can retain physical function,\u201d Earp said. \u201cFor some people, we focus on the muscle quality more, and some people, we focus on the muscle quantity more, based on what that population needs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earp has been at UConn for five years and his background comes from strength conditioning and sports science. He previously was a muscle researcher and a strength coach at the U.S. Olympic Training Center.<\/p>\n

He worked with several Olympic programs to help athletes \u201cput on the muscle they wanted to improve.\u201d At UConn his focus on helping those with Parkinson\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n

He said that protein was something that was focused on a lot and enhancing the recovery from exercise. Earp also researched with the U.S. Dairy Council to compare whey and soy protein, and which works better for putting on muscle growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe found that the higher Leucine<\/a> content and whey protein was actually helping our people to improve muscle mass more than soy protein or a placebo beverage. We know that the amino acid composition was important,\u201d Earp said. \u201cThat goes into our current study about\u00a0Parkinson\u2019s disease. There\u2019s been a lot of research saying that older individuals with Parkinson\u2019s really need to be active and they should be exercising more and there\u2019s all these additional health benefits of exercising.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earp said older adults, including those with Parkinson\u2019s disease, tend to struggle to meet protein demands but that many of the average population in the U.S. are typically over-consuming protein. He said that older adults also have increased demand for protein because of \u201cless absorption\u201d and \u201cdecreased transit speed\u201d and a number of other factors.<\/p>\n

Parkinson\u2019s patients are asked to exercise more, and Earp said that they already have increased protein demands and the exercise increases those demands.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe UConn-made targeted-amino acid protein shake that is seeking UConn health patients to take part in a study to check the supplements safety.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to make sure we are adequately fueling the patients. For some individuals with Parkinson\u2019s disease, eating protein actually has its own inherent risk,\u201d Earp said. \u201cNot a risk as in, they shouldn\u2019t be doing it, but a risk as the primary medication for Parkinson\u2019s disease is Levadopa<\/a>. It is an amino acid, and it is absorbed in the same way as many of our other essential amino acids.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe primary medication that is only controlling symptoms is not actually treating the disease, is amino acid based, so it does compete for absorption with the foods that you\u2019re eating that have proteins. You need those proteins to live. But if you eat proteins, then it can actually spike your symptoms because it can interfere with that medication. For that reason, you might find physicians are prescribing either protein restricted diets or protein redistribution diets for people with Parkinson\u2019s,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Earp said some Parkinson\u2019s patients are using a protein redistribution diet. He describes it as Parkinson\u2019s patients eating all of their protein before bed because symptoms will spike while they are sleeping and will be more manageable.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom my exercise sports science background, that was very much the opposite of what we were telling our athletes. We know that you can\u2019t adequately absorb large boluses of protein. Certain amino acids that transmit a little bit faster. With the Parkinson\u2019s patient population, we wanted to essentially create a more efficient way of fueling people with Parkinson\u2019s or helping them meet their protein needs \u2013 especially if they have those challenges around consumption,\u201d Earp said.<\/p>\n

Active lifestyle<\/p>\n

Earp said Figueroa\u2019s success has more to do with him living a physically active and engaged life.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat we\u2019re hoping to do is just make sure that he has the adequate nutrition so that he can maintain that activity and he can keep being involved in the exercise program. What we\u2019re trying to do is not treat or cure anything. What we\u2019re trying to do is make sure that someone has the nutrition that they need to be able to do those things that will help them keep healthy,\u201d Earp said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m the scientist. We don\u2019t know if anything actually works. Socrates says the only thing I know is I know nothing. I\u2019m very hopeful in what we\u2019re doing. I think for him with the active lifestyle being involved in the community and his passion for cooking \u2013 all those things I think contribute more than what we do,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Earp said the data they have so far is still preliminary and he is not ready to draw any conclusions.<\/p>\n

UConn has been recruiting since January for this study, and the hope is to have it completed by next March. The target is to get 24 people with 12 taking the placebo and the other 12 on the supplement.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you are someone who struggles with eating protein or considering a protein redistribution diet, I think supplements will definitely be one of the solutions. I think our supplement compared to other protein supplements [that] are already on the market,\u201d Earp said. \u201cI think that it\u2019s going to help with balancing the medication. We don\u2019t want this to be viewed as a drug. We want this to be viewed as a nutritional supplement, and healthy nutrition can do a lot of these things already.\u201d<\/p>\n

Figueroa said in the last 18 months he\u2019s been working out in the gym and has trimmed down from 205 pounds to 140 pounds.<\/p>\n

\"UConnUConn Health patient Jose Figueroa, who has Parkinson’s disease, with his wife Emily. The couple lives in New Britain. (Courtesy)<\/p>\n

\u201cMy shaking went down a lot. My arm doesn\u2019t jump out anymore. I still get a little shake but not as bad,\u201d Figueroa said. \u201cI took the protein shakes for three months with the study. When I wasn\u2019t taking that protein, I didn\u2019t have energy like I do right now. I\u2019m up to 12 miles a day on the treadmill\u2026There was a time I couldn\u2019t even walk and I was falling. I used to cane and they were about to put me on a walker\u2026I still lose my balance but not as bad. I\u2019m strong enough to hold myself up.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel these shakes can be helpful. I felt a difference in energy,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

His wife, Emily, said she has seen the improvement firsthand.<\/p>\n

\u201cI could see a big difference, compared to when he was diagnosed because I remember in the bed with him sleeping and I can actually, it felt like an earthquake on my bed. That\u2019s how bad he was shaking, even in his sleep. He could barely move. He would get tired fast. He would lose his balance. It\u2019s just a different person now,\u201d Emily Figueroa said.<\/p>\n

Highest quality of life<\/p>\n

Jose Figueroa said he\u2019s proud of his accomplishments because of his exercise dedication. With his health improvements he was able to take a trip to Europe last year. He said his asthma also has improved greatly with his weight loss.<\/p>\n

He was a chef for 32 years but said he had to retire due to his Parkinson\u2019s. He used to cook for 350 patients at an East Hartford nursing home. He cooked last week for 100 people at a Jack & Jill party; his first time cooking for a big crowd since his retirement.<\/p>\n

\u201cI enjoyed it and was so happy I was able to do it,\u201d Jose Figueroa said. \u201cI was able to concentrate on what I was doing.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople have got to accept help,\u201d he added. \u201cAt first, I was laying on the sofa. But I accepted the help and things worked out. If you just stay on the sofa \u2013 nothing is going to happen, and it just gets worse.\u201d<\/p>\n

The New Britain couple has two children and seven grandchildren.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have more energy,\u201d Jose Figueroa said. \u201cI have a 7-year-old granddaughter that takes me all over the place. I couldn\u2019t get on the floor to play with her and now she puts me on the floor, and I get up no problem.\u201d<\/p>\n

Col\u00f3n-Semenza is a doctor in UConn\u2019s physical therapy program housed within the Department of Kinesiology and College of Agriculture, Health, and Natural Resources at UConn-Storrs. She\u2019s been in this position since 2020 and has worked with Figueroa.<\/p>\n

Among her responsibilities include, \u201cteaching all of the neurological rehabilitation content to our doctor\/physical therapy students, as well as conducting research.\u201d She is also the principal investigator for the Movement for Life Lab at UConn.<\/p>\n

The focus is the use of\u00a0exercise and physical activity and the management of neurodegenerative diseases, especially in Parkinson\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe combination of Dr. Earp\u2019s areas of expertise and my use of exercise and physical activity in the management of Parkinson\u2019s disease,\u201d Col\u00f3n-Semenza said. \u201cDr. Earp\u2019s expertise in terms of muscle quality and supplementation in terms of health and wellness for athletes, while his expertise was more in the athletic population. We combined our areas of expertise to help address this gap to help people with Parkinson\u2019s disease live at the highest quality of life.\u201d<\/p>\n

Col\u00f3n-Semenza also said the combination of the intense exercise and medication that manages the symptoms of the disease compete against each other for Parkinson\u2019s patients.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe evidence tells us that people with Parkinson\u2019s disease should be exercising, and they should be exercising intensely,\u201d she said. \u201cThere\u2019s this challenge where they often are not getting the nutrition that they need to exercise at that high intensity. There\u2019s a problem where the dietary protein that your intake competes with the primary and most effective medication for people with Parkinson\u2019s disease.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis often leaves people undernourished for the demand they need to exercise in their lives,\u201d Col\u00f3n-Semenza said. \u201cWe are trying to fill that gap. We have come up with a tailored supplement to meet the needs. We\u2019re looking at the effects of this amino acid supplement over a six-month period.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe scientific process is slow and thorough, but that\u2019s really in everybody\u2019s best interest. I know it can be frustrating to individuals who are living with the disease, and who want effective interventions now, but obviously, we have to ensure that these are effective and if they are safe and that it will actually improve individuals\u2019 quality of life and outcome\u2026We are in the very early stages of the scientific process to help us determine if this is an effective intervention.\u201d<\/p>\n

Col\u00f3n-Semenza said Parkinson\u2019s is the second most common neurodegenerative disease to Alzheimer\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n

\"TheThe UConn-made targeted-amino acid protein shake that is seeking UConn health patients to take part in a study to check the supplements safety.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose numbers are really, kind of frightening in terms of what, what the future holds, if we don\u2019t do something to better manage the disease and reduce the risk of the disease,\u201d Col\u00f3n-Semenza said. \u201cIt\u2019s a terrible disease that has effects across practically every system in the human body with both motor and non-motor symptoms.\u201d<\/p>\n

Col\u00f3n-Semenza said Jose Figueroa is a poster child for what she wants to do with her research, social support, community connection and physical activity regarding disease management.<\/p>\n

Col\u00f3n-Semenza said recruiting for this study is ongoing and they seek to have more participants at UConn Health in Farmington or on the UConn campus in Storrs.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe scientific process is always hopeful. We\u2019re always asking new questions and hopefully addressing the needs and gaps in service and interventions. When we\u2019ve spoken to (Parkinson\u2019s) support group participants about it. People are very excited. Because they\u2019re saying, \u2018yeah, that\u2019s me, I don\u2019t eat my steak\u2019 or \u2018I don\u2019t eat as much protein because I worry that then my symptoms get worse because it interferes with my medication.\u2019 The need is there. It has a clear and important impact, and I think we need to remain hopeful.\u201d<\/p>\n

For more information about the study, contact Carlos Rehbein by phone at (860) 634-8203 or by email movementforlifelab@gmail.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A six-month study on an amino-acid supplement shake developed by UConn School of Medicine researchers for Parkinson\u2019s patients…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":610233,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[277],"tags":[6429,50978,38395,257684,18,539,257686,38394,135,19,17,3136,149820,257685,5,508,13128,170,74330,172,7990,103130,164768,257683],"class_list":["post-610232","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nutrition","tag-amino-acid","tag-connecticut-news","tag-ct-news","tag-department-of-kinesiology","tag-eire","tag-exercise","tag-foos","tag-hartford-courant","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-local-news","tag-max-image-preview","tag-movement-for-life-lab","tag-news","tag-nutrition","tag-parkinsons","tag-protein","tag-protein-supplement","tag-research","tag-supplement","tag-uconn","tag-uconn-health","tag-uconn-school-of-medicine"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@ie\/117004217916200311","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/610232","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=610232"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/610232\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/610233"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=610232"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=610232"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=610232"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}