Stephen O’Hara, CEO of OptiBiotix LON:OPTI, commented: “We are really pleased with the results of this study which opens up opportunities for a single product for both conditions (high cholesterol and high blood pressure) or two different products targeting separate conditions. Given the market opportunity and limitations of existing products such as statins, the commercial potential for this product looks promising. Commercial discussions are progressing with potential partners best positioned to fully exploit the opportunity as a cholesterol and/or hypertension supplement, in isolation, or in combination with existing approaches.”
OptiBiotix Health plc (AIM:OPTI) has told DirectorsTalk that further to its announcement of successful humans studies on its capsular supplement to reduce cholesterol on 28 July 2015, more detail on the results of the study.
The twelve week double blind placebo controlled study recruited fifty volunteers and was designed to establish safety, compliance, and the extent of the cholesterol lowering potential of OptiBiotix’s Lactobacillus plantarum strain in mildly hypercholesterolaemic adults.
When volunteers taking placebo were compared to those taking OptiBiotix’s capsular supplement the results showed a:-
· 7.2% reduction in LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol) averaged across the whole test group
· 12.4% reduction in LDL cholesterol in females volunteers
· 15% reduction in the 50-55 age groups (both sexes)
· 36.7% reduction in volunteers’ who had total cholesterol levels higher than 6mmol/L
· A 6mmHg (5.1%) reduction in systolic blood pressure averaged across the OptiBiotix group
No safety, compliance, or tolerance issues were reported by volunteers during the study in either group.
The results of this independent, blinded study provide early evidence that OptiBiotix’s strain has commercial potential as a safe, easy to use, low cost, cholesterol reducing supplement. These results suggest efficacy across all volunteers similar or greater to 1.5 – 2.4 g plant sterols/stanols per day, and in volunteers with total cholesterol level greater than 6mmol/L an efficacy more typically associated with pharmaceuticals.
