California-based ChromaDex Corp. recently launched the Niagen+ NAD+ Test Kit, an offering available exclusively through the company’s healthcare practitioner (HCP) channel.
The goal of the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) kit is to provide practitioners with a reliable method for measuring patient blood NAD+ levels so that they can create more personalized and effective patient protocols using ChromaDex’s NAD+-boosting HCP products, Tru Niagen and Niagen+.
These products are based on Niagen (nicotinamide riboside or NR), a patented NAD+ precursor. Niagen, ChromaDex’s branded NR has been shown to increase NAD+ levels safely and efficaciously in numerous published human trials.
HCP history
"Our healthcare practitioners have requested a tool to measure blood NAD+ levels, and we believe this is the best product now available on the market,” said Rob Fried, CEO of ChromaDex and founder of Tru Niagen.
ChromaDex launched its dedicated Tru Niagen HCP channel in 2018, but the company said practitioners were recommending their NAD+-boosting HCP products to patients long before then.
“In addition to offering Tru Niagen to consumers, we also have a very important healthcare practitioner network (HCPs) that recommends Tru Niagen products to patients,” said Mona Rosene, MS, RD, global director of scientific affairs at ChromaDex and Tru Niagen.
“We understand the importance of biomarker testing in health management; therefore we developed a tool to measure blood NAD+ levels to provide our HCPs with more accurate information to support their patients. Our NAD+ test kit offers a unique technology that stabilizes NAD+ on the card allowing for a more accurate assessment, and we believe this is the best product currently available on the market.”
Why test?
NAD is an important cellular co-factor for improvement of mitochondrial performance and energy metabolism.
Rosen explained that NAD+ declines with age due to everyday metabolic stressors such as alcohol consumption, high-fat diet, sun exposure and more. This decline leads to a decrease in mitochondrial health followed by age-related health issues.
“But when the body is compromised by immune health challenges, NAD+ can plummet by up to 80%,” she said.
By boosting NAD, NR may increase mitochondrial health and induce the creation of new mitochondria.
“By more accurately tracking a patient’s NAD+ changes over time, practitioners can gain more insight into what’s causing NAD+ augmentation and can provide patients with personalized and effective protocols,” Rosene added.
Features
- Test card technology: Dried blood spot (DBS) assay technology ensures the stability of NAD+ throughout the transport process and ensures accurate measurement.
- Baseline and progress tracking: While each HCP will determine the patient protocol, the test can be used to understand NAD+ levels before Tru Niagen NAD+-boosting and/or Niagen IV and injections to establish a baseline and again after NAD+ boosting therapy to track changes.
- Validated results: Analyses are conducted at a Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) and the College of American Pathologists (CAP) accredited clinical genomics and biochemical testing laboratory with expertise in mass spec-based assays.
- Precision analysis: NAD+ measurements are conducted on the blood sample affixed to the DBS card using the gold standard analytical method, high-resolution liquid chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS).
How it works
HCPs can provide patients with an at-home Niagen+ NAD+ Test Kit, which patients can register on the 1health platform. Once registered, the patient will follow the instructions in the kit to procure a sample with the DBS card and send it to the lab using a prepaid envelope. Results are available to both patients and doctors in about two weeks via 1health.
The cost for HCPs is $149.95 and includes the lab testing fee.
“This collaboration provides invaluable insights for practitioners aiming to optimize their patients' NAD+ levels, enabling personalized and effective NAD+ boosting protocols, such as Tru Niagen oral supplementation and soon Niagen IV and injection, to maximize therapeutic outcomes,” said Mehdi Maghsoodnia, CEO at 1health.
