Probiotics for pharma: Optibiotix launches heart health supplement range

26 Sep 2018 --- OptiBiotix Health has launched a new cholesterol management range, coined CholBiome, that harnesses probiotics for heart health. The range uses OptiBiotix’s patented probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum (LPLDL), which the company recently enabled to be developed as a biotherapeutic pharmaceutical product for the first time following a deal with an unnamed US-based pharmaceutical company.

“In the past most probiotics have been developed to aid immunity and digestion, but CholBiome harnesses the power of OptiBiotix’s patented probiotics to deliver real heart health benefits. CholBiome offers consumers a scientifically backed, holistic, non-pharmaceutical alternative to traditional cholesterol management products,” says Per Rehné, Commercial Director at OptiBiotix.

The CholBiome range of supplements hopes to provide a natural solution for people wishing to pro-actively reduce and manage cholesterol, reduce blood pressure and promote heart wellness.

As well as the company’s patented probiotic LPLDL, the supplement range will include vitamin B3 and red yeast rice rich in Monacolin K. The probiotic, unlike statins which are often used to treat high cholesterol, should result in no known side effects, according to the life sciences company. 

“The make-up of each individual’s microbiome is determined by everything we are exposed to, and large-scale studies have suggested that environmental causes account for around 85 percent of cardiovascular risk, with hereditary factors contributing just 15 percent, so achieving a healthy, diverse microbiome can help to influence cardiovascular health,” Per Rehné tells NutritionInsight.

Closing the gap between probiotic supplements and pharma
The deal, signed last month with the unnamed US-based pharmaceutical company, was the company’s first licensing partnership for its LPLDL strain outside the food and food supplements market. 

Speaking on the agreement, Per Rehné said at the time: “This deal elevates the importance of our probiotic strain in the industry, demonstrating its true market value and closing the gap between the probiotic food supplements and pharma markets thanks to the scientific evidence backing its performance.”

“This agreement sets LPLDL apart from other probiotics and demonstrates the interest and recognition that the pharmaceutical and medical world now place on the potential of microbiome activity modulation. While OptiBiotix entered the market via food supplements, the scientific models used to develop LPLDL have been according to pharmaceutical protocols, unlike many other probiotic producers,” he adds.

The company also entered into a ten-year licensing agreement with one of Italy's largest pharmaceutical companies, Alfasigma, in June. The agreement will expand the commercial reach of Optibiotix’s LPLD, granting Alfasigma an exclusive license to commercialize food supplements containing LPLDL for cardiovascular health throughout Italy. Per Rehné further tells NutritionInsight that the company has entered commerical partnerships with a number of companies in multiple regions across Europe, the US and Asia.

“We will be focusing on and prioritizing those regions with the largest probiotic markets and are in negotiation with a wide range of potential clients across Europe, US and Asia,” he adds

Although Per Rehné tells NutritionInsight that he doesn't believe there is a general shift in the probiotic industry towards looking into pharma options, he does see “a growing trend in the pharma industry to enter the probiotics/food nutrition market using strains that have been researched with an understood Mechanism of Action and with specific health benefits proven in human trials. The pharma industry is looking to enable self-intervention of the human microbiome.”

The first release in the CholBiome range of products, CholBiome is now available for pre-order.

By Laxmi Haigh