Recruiting
Phase 2
Phase 3

Long COVID

Sponsor:

University of Alberta

Code:

NCT06721949

Conditions

Long COVID

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Interventions

Taurine

Placebo

Study Details

Brief summary:

The COVID-19 pandemic has swept across the globe, affecting millions of individuals with varying degrees of severity. While many individuals recover from the acute phase of the infection, a significant proportion continue to experience persistent and debilitating symptoms long after the initial SARS-CoV-2 infection. This condition, known as Long COVID (LC) or sometimes referred to as Post-COVID Condition (PCC) or post-acute sequelae of COVID-19, has emerged as a complex multisystemic condition and challenging health issue, affecting approximately 10% of COVID-19 patients. Various symptoms characterize LC, including fatigue, sleep disturbances, cognitive impairment, and mood disturbances. Some of the symptoms are shared with Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) - a condition marked by debilitating fatigue and a host of other symptoms without precise biomarkers or objective tests for diagnosis. Effective LC treatments remain elusive and LC patients continue to grapple with persistent symptoms that significantly impact their quality of life. Given the lack of effective treatments, it is imperative to explore novel therapeutic approaches that may alleviate the suffering of this patient population.

Conditions

Long COVID

Study ID

NCT06721949

Start date

Nov 18, 2025

Status verified date

Aug, 2026

Completion date

Dec, 2028

Anticipated

Primary completion date

Feb, 2028

Anticipated

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

Sex: All

Age: 18+

Healthy Volunteers: Not accepted

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Age ≥18 years;
2. Positive COVID-19 test by nasopharyngeal swab RT-PCR test, antibody or antigen tests at least 3 months prior to randomization; OR Presumed COVID-19 assessed by the site investigator (no positive COVID-19 test) with acute illness after October 15, 2019, and at least 3 months prior to randomization.
3. If participants have treatable symptoms, they should have had a stable regimen of treatment prior to entering the study (i.e. started treatment for at least 4 weeks).
4. Lingering COVID-19 symptoms beyond 3 months from onset of acute COVID and symptoms have lasted at least 2 months. The onset of COVID is considered the earliest of two dates: the date of positive testing or the date of first symptoms.
5. Lingering symptoms from COVID-19 present at the time of randomization.
6. Individuals of childbearing potential (as assessed by the overseeing Investigator) who are sexually active must agree to practice true abstinence or use at least one highly effective method of contraception while on study treatment. Highly effective methods of contraception must be discussed and approved by the overseeing Investigator (refer to Section 5 Contraception of the Master Protocol, and Section 13.1.2 of this protocol).
7. Must be able to provide informed consent and both willing and able to comply with study requirements.
8. Medications prescribed for treating fatigue or cognition have been discontinued for four weeks prior to enrolment and randomization. These include sildenafil, modafinil (Provigil), or armodafinil (Nuvigil), guanfacine, N-acetyl cysteine, and stimulant medications used for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Exclusion Criteria:

1. Patients who had mechanical ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygen (ECMO) for COVID-19.
2. Current end-organ failure, organ transplantation, or current hospitalization in an acute care hospital.
3. Contraindications to the study intervention.
4. Currently already on study intervention(s).
5. Co-enrolment in another interventional trial (co-enrolment in an observational study is permitted).
6. Currently pregnant or breastfeeding.
7. The participant is currently enrolled in another clinical trial to treat neurocognitive symptoms in LC.

Study Design

Enrollment

300 participants

Anticipated

Allocation

Randomized

Intervention Model

Parallel Assignment

Primary purpose

Treatment

Interventions and Outcome Measures

Arms

experimental: Taurine

Participants randomized to the Taurine arm will receive two 675 mg taurine capsules twice daily for 12 weeks.

placebo comparator: Placebo

Participants randomized to the Placebo arm will receive two placebo capsules twice daily for 12 weeks. The placebo capsules will be visually identical to the taurine capsules.

Interventions

Taurine

Taurine is a naturally occurring amino sulfonic acid commonly found in the body. It is marketed as a natural health product/supplement and plays an important role in the body.

Placebo

The placebo capsule is visually identical to the taurine capsule.

Primary outcome measure

  • Mean change in Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS) from baseline to three months [ Time Frame: Three months ]
  • Mean change in the ratio of the Trail-Making Tests A & B in the TestMyBrain cognitive testing battery from baseline to three months. [ Time Frame: Three months ]

Central Contacts and Locations

Central contacts

Lawrence Richer, MD, MSc

780-492-0943lricher@ualberta.ca

Ellen Morrison, PhD

taurineLC@ualberta.ca

Locations

University of Alberta Hospital, Kaye Edmonton Clinic

Recruiting

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, T6G 2B7

Contacts

Grace Lam, MD

glam@ualberta.ca

BC Women's Hospital

Recruiting

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, V6H 3N1

Contacts

Karen Tran, MD

Karen.Tran@cw.bc.ca

University Health Network

Recruiting

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Contacts

Angela Cheung, MD

Angela.Cheung@uhn.ca

Suzanne Cohen

reclaim@uhn.ca

Institut de recherches cliniques de Montréal

Recruiting

Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Contacts

Liana Falcone, MD

emilia.falcone@ircm.qc.ca

Charlotte Du Sablon

postcovid@ircm.ca

More Information

Sponsor

University of Alberta

Last update posted

Aug 13, 2026

Last verified

Aug, 2026

Keywords

  • Taurine
  • COVID
  • Long COVID
  • randomized trial
  • neurocognitive symptoms

Trial information was received from ClinicalTrials.gov and was last updated on 2026-09-10. This information was provided to ClinicalTrials.gov by University of Alberta on 2026-08-13.