ChromaDex® Announces First Patent Issued for Pterostilbene, the Novel Ingredient in its BluScience™ Line of Dietary Products

IRVINE, Calif., April 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has granted patent #8,133,917 pertaining to the ingredient pterostilbene, which is licensed exclusively to ChromaDex Corp. (OTCBB: CDXC), an innovative natural products company that provides proprietary, science-based solutions and ingredients to the dietary supplement, food & beverage, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries, and marketer of BluScience (www.bluscience.com), its new line of dietary supplements.

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This is the first ChromaDex-licensed patent issued for pterostilbene, while several more patents are pending.

The three key claims of the pterostilbene patent, which encompass both the nutraceutical market and the pharmaceuticals market, relate to:

1. A method of lowering lipid levels and to treat or reduce the risk of dyslipidemias in an individual through an effective amount of edible nutraceutical composition consisting of isolated or chemically-synthesized pterostilbene and a nutraceutically acceptable carrier;
2. A method of lowering lipid levels in an individual through an effective amount of edible pharmaceutical composition consisting of isolated or chemically-synthesized pterostilbene and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier; and 
3. A method to treat or reduce the risk of dyslipidemias in an individual at risk of cardiovascular disease through an effective amount of edible pharmaceutical composition consisting of isolated or chemically-synthesized pterostilbene and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.

The patent application was initially filed in August 2004 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Subsequently, ChromaDex was granted an exclusive worldwide license to all rights in this patent of pterostilbene from the University of Mississippi and the Agricultural Research Service, which is the principal intramural scientific agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The term of the license is up to and including the expiration of various pterostilbene patents and patents pending held by the licensors.

ChromaDex's proprietary pterostilbene, branded as pTeroPure®, was named the 2010 North American Most Promising Ingredient of the Year by the independent research company Frost & Sullivan and is the key novel ingredient in BluScience, ChromaDex's new line of dietary supplements. 

Pterostilbene has superior biological activity, better oral bioavailability and metabolizes more slowly in the body than other antioxidant polyphenols (phytochemicals that tend to prevent or neutralize the damaging effects of free radicals), allowing more time for its antioxidant activities to act. Along with a number of other effects, pterostilbene has shown great promise for supporting cardiovascular health, cognitive function and anti-aging.

Research chemist Agnes Rimando first encountered pterostilbene when she was a graduate student at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Rimando works with the USDA Agricultural Research Service, Natural Products Utilization Research Unit, housed in the University of Mississippi National Center for Natural Products Research. When studies in the 1990s suggested that the compound resveratrol provided substantial health benefits, Rimando began experimenting with pterostilbene in hopes of finding similar activity.

In 2003, Rimando asked Dennis Feller, former University of Mississippi professor and chair of pharmacology, and Wallace Yokoyama at USDA Western Regional Research Center in Albany, Calif., to collaborate on studies of the compound, targeting a particular protein in cells that is involved in fatty acid metabolism and transport called Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor Alpha Isoform (PPAR-alpha). Results of their work were presented at the American Chemical Society meeting in 2004 and attracted widespread attention, including coverage on national and international TV and radio stations, and mentions in Time, Parade and other consumer magazines.

About ChromaDex:
ChromaDex, Inc. is an innovative natural products company that provides proprietary, science-based solutions and ingredients to the dietary supplement, food & beverage, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industries. The company has an expanding pipeline of new ingredients, including its pTeroPure® (www.pteropure.com) pterostilbene for which it has worldwide, exclusive patent pending rights. The company recently launched its BluScience™ line of dietary supplements, now available at a major drug store chain, a national products retailer, and an online retailer. Capitalizing on the diverse potential applications of the product, ChromaDex is also investigating pTeroPure for the skincare and pharmaceutical markets, among others. pTeroPure is currently being studied in a human clinical trial at the University of Mississippi. For more information about pTeroPure visit www.pteropure.com or call 949-600-9694.

Forward-Looking Statements:
Any statements that are not historical facts contained in this release are "forward-looking statements" as that term is defined under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA), which statements may be identified by words such as "expects," "plans," "projects," "will," "may," "anticipates," "believes," "should," "intends," "estimates," and other words of similar meaning.  Many factors could cause our actual activities or results to differ materially from the activities and results anticipated in forward-looking statements. These factors include those described in the companies' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and risks inherent in funding, developing and obtaining regulatory approvals of new, commercially-viable and competitive products and treatments. In addition, forward-looking statements may also be adversely affected by general market factors, competitive product development, product availability, federal and state regulations and legislation, the regulatory process for new products and indications, manufacturing issues that may arise, patent positions and litigation, among other factors. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date the statements were made, and the companies do not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements. We intend that all forward-looking statements be subject to the safe-harbor provisions of the PSLRA.

ChromaDex Investor Contact:                                             

Liviakis Financial Communications, Inc.                                
John M. Liviakis, President                                                     
415-389-4670
[email protected]

Institutions and Analysts Contact:

The Del Mar Consulting Group, Inc.
Robert B. Prag, President
858-794-9500
[email protected]

ChromaDex/pTeroPure/BluScience Contact:

Frank Jaksch, CSO
949-419-0288
[email protected]

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.

SOURCE ChromaDex