University
of Iowa Health Care. "First human clinical trial for nicotinamide
riboside: Vitamin safely boosts levels of important cell metabolite linked to
multiple health benefits." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 10 October 2016.
<www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/10/161010135418.htm>.
In the first controlled clinical trial of
nicotinamide riboside (NR), a newly discovered form of Vitamin B3, researchers
have shown that the compound is safe for humans and increases levels of a cell
metabolite that is critical for cellular energy production and protection
against stress and DNA damage.
Studies in mice have
shown that boosting the levels of this cell metabolite -- known as NAD+ -- can
produce multiple health benefits, including resistance to weight gain, improved
control of blood sugar and cholesterol, reduced nerve damage, and longer
lifespan. Levels of NAD+ diminish with age, and it has been suggested that loss
of this metabolite may play a role in age-related health decline.
These findings in
animal studies have spurred people to take commercially available NR
supplements designed to boost NAD+. However, these over-the-counter supplements
have not undergone clinical trials to see if they work in people.
The new research,
reported Oct. 10 in the journal Nature Communications, was led by
Charles Brenner, PhD, professor and Roy J. Carver Chair of Biochemistry at the
University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine in collaboration with colleagues
at Queens University Belfast and ChromaDex Corp. (NASDAQ: CDXC), which supplied
the NR used in the trial. Brenner is a consultant for ChromaDex. He also is
co-founder and Chief Scientific Adviser of ProHealthspan, which sells NR
supplements under the trade name Tru NIAGEN®.
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