ChromaDex Introduces NIAGEN - The First and Only Commercially Available Nicotinamide Riboside

03 Jun 2013 --- ChromaDex Corporation, an innovative natural products company that provides proprietary, science-based solutions and ingredients to the dietary supplement, food & beverage, animal health, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries, announced the launch of NIAGEN, its novel, patented, branded nicotinamide riboside.

ChromaDex's NIAGEN has the potential to be a next generation Niacin (Vitamin B3) and become part of the portfolio of B-vitamin ingredients that are included in products serving multi-billion dollar markets such as multi-vitamins, nutraceuticals, weight-loss, energy drinks, sports nutrition, meal replacements, infant formula, food and beverage products.

NIAGEN may have tremendous appeal to the approximately 150 million Americans who are obese or over weight as well as the 75 million aging baby boomers in the U.S. – both of which are actively seeking new dietary supplement solutions for obesity or healthy aging. These large segments of the U.S. population continue to fuel the growing multi-billion dollar dietary supplement markets.

NIAGEN™ is the first and only commercially available brand of NR. Over the past two years, ChromaDex has built a significant patent portfolio pertaining to NR by separately acquiring patent rights from Cornell University, Dartmouth College and Washington University.  ChromaDex believes its patent rights create a significant and meaningful barrier to entry for would-be competitors in the NR market.

Frank Jaksch, Founder and CEO, states "By solving the immense challenge of producing NR on a commercially viable scale, we have achieved the first step in unlocking the potential of this new vitamin. The formal launch of NIAGEN, our branded nicotinamide riboside, will immediately allow dietary supplement, and food & beverage companies to include NIAGEN in product formulations.  

Jaksch continues, "We are in the final stages of completing the design of our first human clinical study for NIAGEN.  Additionally, we continue to collaborate with several universities and research institutes who have ongoing research activities designed to validate the tremendous health benefits of NR as well as create a strong commercial platform of health claims."

About Nicotinamide Riboside (NR):

Sometimes referred to as the "Miracle Molecule" or "Hidden Vitamin," NR is found naturally in trace amounts in milk and other foods and is a more potent, no-flush version of Niacin (Vitamin B3). The beneficial effects of NR in humans include increased fatty acid oxidation, mitochondrial activity, resistance to negative consequences of high-fat diets, protection against oxidative stress, prevention of peripheral neuropathy and blocking muscle degeneration.

Researchers have shown that NR enhances levels of NAD in the mitochondria of animals. NAD is arguably the most important cellular co-factor for fuel utilization and allows sugars, fats and proteins to be converted into energy. Mitochondria are thought to play a part in the aging process. It is hoped that by stimulating mitochondrial function with the NR molecule, scientists may see increased longevity as well as other health improvements. Groups worldwide continue seminal discoveries in providing evidence for unique properties of NR in neuroprotection, sirtuin activation, protection against weight gain on high fat diet and improvement of blood glucose and insulin sensitivity.

Findings from a recent study by Weill Cornell Medical College and the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland researchers showed mice on a high-fat diet that were fed NR gained 60 percent less weight than mice eating the same high-fat diet without NR. Moreover, unlike the mice that were not fed NR, none of the NR-treated mice had indications that they were developing diabetes and they had improved energy and lower cholesterol levels, all without side effects. The Swiss researchers were quoted as saying the effects of NR on metabolism "are nothing short of astonishing."