The University of Mississippi (UM) and the Agricultural Research Service — the principal intramural scientific research agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA-ARS) — have licensed the rights for a botanical compound to Irvine, CA-based ChromaDex Corp. The company plans the commercial development of pterostilbene, a compound found in blueberries, grapes, and other small fruits as well as the bark of some trees. In laboratory tests, the compound shows promise for improving cardiovascular health, glucose levels, and cognitive function. “Pterostilbene has the potential to be one of the most significant new ingredients the dietary supplement field has seen in a long time,” says Frank L. Jaksch, Jr., co-founder and CEO of ChromaDex. The company plans to launch the first commercial application of the compound, marketed as pTeroPure pterostilbene, in the coming weeks.
Pterostilbene is chemically related to resveratrol, a compound that is plentiful in the skins of red grapes. Resveratrol is thought to be at least partly responsible for the health benefits attributed to red wine, which include cardiovascular health and cancer prevention. Agnes Rimando, PhD, a research chemist for the Natural Products Utilization Research Unit in the USDA-ARS at UM’s National Center for Natural Products Research, first encountered pterostilbene when she was a graduate student at the University of Chicago. Since 2003, Rimando and colleagues at UM and the USDA-ARS have collaborated on studies of the compound, targeting a particular protein found in cells that is involved in fatty acid metabolism and transport.
Source: Neutraceuticals World