Protandim® Found to Prevent a Process that Causes Blood Vessel Blockage in New Peer-Reviewed Study From The Ohio State University

SAN DIEGO, Jan. 4, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- LifeVantage Corporation (OTC Bulletin Board: LFVN), the maker of science-based solutions to oxidative stress, announced today that a new peer-reviewed study involving its flagship product, Protandim®, sponsored by the American Heart Association and the National Institutes of Health, was published in the scientific journal Free Radical Biology and Medicine.  The study, conducted by researchers at The Ohio State University, examined the biochemical mechanisms that underlie the ability of Protandim® to suppress intimal hyperplasia (over-proliferation of cells that line the vessel wall), a common adverse event that limits the effectiveness of several types of vascular surgery.  Protandim®, a patented dietary supplement comprised of five highly synergistic herbal ingredients, has been shown in earlier studies to activate the transcription factor Nrf2, a signal to the cell's DNA to regulate a network of protective genes. This new study further investigates Protandim's® ability to increase production of the body's Nrf2-regulated protective genes, sometimes referred to as "survival genes", which include most of the antioxidant enzymes.  

The study, titled "Protandim attenuates intimal hyperplasia in human saphenous veins cultured ex vivo via a catalase-dependent pathway" by Binata Joddar, Rashmeet K. Reen, Michael S. Firstenberg, Saradhadevi Varadharaj, Joe M. McCord, Jay L. Zweier, and Keith J. Gooch is published in the journal Free Radical Biology and Medicine and may be found at the following link.  

Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery is performed more than 400,000 times a year in the United States.  Most procedures requiring multiple bypasses still utilize the saphenous vein (taken from the leg) for secondary grafts.  Ten years after CABG surgery, roughly half of the saphenous vein grafts will have become largely, if not completely blocked by processes that may result from intimal hyperplasia.  Previous studies concluded that a major factor causing this condition is the three-to-five-fold higher concentration of oxygen experienced by the graft in its new environment. In this study, treatment with Protandim® significantly increased antioxidant enzyme activity in veins cultured at high oxygen, while reducing free radical levels, lipid peroxidation, and, importantly, reducing intimal proliferation to the level seen in a normal healthy saphenous vein.

"This study was conducted in an ex vivo model using human saphenous veins harvested from patients undergoing bypass surgery—the exact population who might benefit from a therapy to prevent intimal hyperplasia," said Dr. McCord, a co-author of the study.  "Future animal studies will attempt to demonstrate the ability of Protandim® to block post-surgical intimal hyperplasia in vivo, following not only the CABG procedure, but perhaps angioplasty with stent insertion or carotid endarterectomy, as well.  The long-term effectiveness of all three procedures is limited by eventual restenosis, a return of blockage often due to intimal hyperplasia.  The three procedures together affect more than 1.5 million Americans every year."

"Protandim® was shown in an earlier human trial to increase antioxidant enzyme production and to eliminate the age-dependent increase in the most widely used marker of oxidative stress.  The current study, as well as other recent studies, have shown that Protandim® provides benefits to the body that extend beyond its ability to decrease oxidative stress," stated David Brown, LifeVantage President and CEO.  "This study was independently funded by the American Heart Association and by the Heart, Lung, Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health.  LifeVantage greatly appreciates the continuing academic interest in Protandim® shown by researchers such as Dr. Keith Gooch and his colleagues. We continue to be encouraged at the tool that Protandim® has become for researchers of many health conditions associated with oxidative stress."  

About Protandim®

Protandim® is a clinically proven supplement that provides substantial benefits for healthy aging. This patented indirect antioxidant therapy works in a very different way than conventional foods such as red wine, oranges, blueberries or other popular antioxidant supplements. Unlike those types of products that have proven to be largely ineffective in reducing oxidative stress caused by free radicals, Protandim® is an indirect antioxidant therapy, which stimulates the body's production of its own powerful antioxidant enzymes. Protandim® works at the cellular level, triggering cells to naturally increase production of protective antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase, and glutathione synthase.

A peer-reviewed human clinical study showed that after Protandim® was taken for 30 consecutive days, important biochemical markers of aging were decreased by an average of 40%. The study also reported that these markers of aging were reduced in the subjects taking Protandim® to the level of a typical 20 year old. Protandim® is currently the subject of approximately 20 scientific studies at universities and research facilities. The nature and stages of the studies vary.

LifeVantage does not presently market or sell drugs. Before doing so, LifeVantage must obtain approval from the FDA, including its consent for LifeVantage to conduct studies on human subjects.

Under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, Protandim® is considered a "dietary supplement". Protandim® is not intended for the prevention, diagnosis, treatment, mitigation or cure of any disease. For more information about Protandim®, visit www.LifeVantage.com.

About LifeVantage Corporation

LifeVantage Corporation is a publicly traded (OTCBB: LFVN), science-based, nutraceutical company dedicated to helping people reach their health and wellness goals. Founded in 2003 and based in San Diego, CA, LifeVantage develops products, including Protandim®, that are intended to deliver significant health benefits to consumers. Dr. Joe McCord is a consultant to, has a financial interest in, and is on the Board of Directors of LifeVantage. For more information, visit www.LifeVantage.com.

Forward Looking Statements

This document contains forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Words and expressions reflecting optimism, satisfaction or disappointment with current prospects, as well as words such as "believe," "hopes," "intends," "estimates," "expects," "projects," "plans," "anticipates" and variations thereof, identify forward-looking statements, but their absence does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of performance and the Company's actual results could differ materially from those contained in such statements. These forward-looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations and beliefs concerning future events affecting the Company and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause the Company's actual results or outcomes to be materially different from those anticipated and discussed herein. These risks and uncertainties include, among others, the potential failure or unintended negative consequences of the implementation of the Company's network marketing sales channel; the Company's ability to retain independent distributors or to attract new independent distributors on an ongoing basis; the potential for third party and governmental actions involving the Company's network marketing sales channel; the potential for product liability claims against the Company; the risk that government regulators and regulations could adversely affect the Company's business; future laws or regulations may hinder or prohibit the production or sale of the Company's existing product and any future products; unfavorable publicity could materially hurt the Company's business; and the Company's ability to protect its intellectual property rights and the value of its product.  These and other risk factors are discussed in greater detail in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q under the caption "Risk Factors", and in other documents filed by the Company from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company cautions investors not to place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements contained in this document. All forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to the Company on the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this document, except as required by law.

SOURCE LifeVantage Corporation

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