A preclinical study showed that supplementation with vitamin B3 nicotinamide riboside (NR, or Niagen from ChromaDex Corp.) may help maintain heart function. In a model using mice, it was found that NR stimulated a conserved cellular response called the “mitochondrial unfolded protein response” (UPR^mt) that helps maintain mitochondrial function. The study also presents preliminary human data to support future testing of NR in humans.
 
Conducted by Principal Investigators Prof. Ajay M. Shah and Dr. Ioannis Smyrnias, Kings College London, the independent study results were published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC). This study follows clinical results from last year highlighting the potential for NR supplementation to improve cardiovascular health.
 
“NR supplementation is a new and exciting intervention that merits testing in the human treatment of heart failure and other cardiac conditions,” said Shah. “These study findings showing the potential of NR to activate UPR^mt are extremely encouraging and merit further research into the potential for NR to impact human cardiac health.”
 
In several complementary experiments, the authors found that increasing NAD levels with NR stimulated the UPR^mt in cells and mice. Additionally, NR helped improve mitochondrial function and maintained the heart’s ability to pump blood. To begin to investigate whether these findings might translate to humans, the study authors collected heart tissue samples from people and found positive correlations between increased UPR^mt activation and markers of healthy heart function. Human studies were performed under institutional ethical approval and with informed consent.
 
NR is clinically proven to boost NAD, a critical coenzyme for cellular energy production and mitochondrial function. Previous research has demonstrated that NR can improve mitochondrial and cardiac function in mice, and multiple clinical studies are currently registered to investigate the possible effects of NR in heart failure patients. This preclinical study provides new insight into the relationship between NR, mitochondrial function, and cardiac stress.
 
“There is a significant and fast-growing body of data supporting the health benefits of Niagen and our consumer product Tru Niagen,” said ChromaDex CEO Rob Fried. “This important study underscores the role that Niagen may play in human heart health and we look forward to further research.”