Clinical Trial to Assess Tolerability and Availability of a Multi-target Dietary Supplement in an Aging Population

Likely because of the highly complex nature of aging, there has been little success reducing age-related physical and cognitive deterioration. The predominant approach has been to manage emergent symptoms rather than mitigate the cellular mechanisms driving the degenerative processes underlying aging. Additionally, the multifaceted and complex etiology of aging makes it extremely difficult to provide effective interventions within current treatment paradigms. The medical community has established that preventative measures are the most effective means of slowing the progression of age-associated deterioration, however effective methods or interventions have not been established.

The Multi-Target Dietary Supplement (MTDS) was designed to simultaneously target and support the cellular processes implicated in the progression of the aging phenotype (oxidative stress, inflammatory processes, insulin resistance, and membrane and mitochondrial deterioration). The MTDS is unique in that it was specifically designed as a multi-target intervention to support the complex cellular perturbations associated with aging. Components of the formulation were chosen based on scientific consensus of documented effectiveness for one or more of the targeted processes, long-term evidence of safety, and synergistic or additive interactions between components.

In more than 20 years of pre-clinical research, the MTDS has demonstrated significant beneficial impacts in animal models of aging and age-associated disease. The MTDS has resulted in significant reductions in both acute and chronic oxidative stress, greatly improved mitochondrial function and efficiency, significantly reduced inflammatory processes and improved glucose metabolism. Signal transduction is normalized to youthful levels in aged animals, including key pathways implicated in aging (unpublished data). On a functional level, MTDS treatment has resulted in increased longevity of 10 to 28% in normal and accelerated aging phenotypes, respectively. Concomitant improvements in mobility, activity levels, muscle strength (exercise mimetic) and overall body condition in aged animals were observed. Dramatic reductions in the incidence of muscle wasting, arthritic processes, and cataracts were also observed. Sensory and cognitive acuity were protected and frequently enhanced in aged animals, with significant improvements in visual and olfactory function observed in a broad range of tasks. MTDS treatment has demonstrated profound sparing from age-related neuronal losses and corresponding protection of neurogenesis and enhanced synaptogenesis, resulting in dramatically improved cognition in aged animals. The quantity of data indicating MTDS efficacy in pre-clinical studies is considerable, however the effects of the MTDS in humans, although positive, remains anecdotal. This tolerability study is the critical first step to begin assessment of the efficacy of the MTDS in human populations. If even a portion of these protective effects of the MTDS are translatable from mice to humans, the positive impacts for the aging population and Ontario's healthcare system could be profound.

This is a multi-center, three-arm study designed to evaluate the safety of a dietary supplement at three dosing regimes for 90 days. Initially, 45 healthy volunteers will be randomly assigned to one of three dose regimes: 1) 100% of recommended daily dose (RDD), 2) 80% of recommended daily dose or 3) 60% of recommended daily dose. Dosing regimes are based on levels of the MORNING tablet doses, all groups will receive the full recommended dose for both EVENING and OMEGA doses. Written informed consent will be obtained and a medical history and health assessment will be performed. The investigator will determine whether the subject meets all inclusion and exclusion criteria. Health assessments will be made at baseline, 30 days and 90 days. Adverse events, concomitant medications, and product administration will be recorded throughout the study.

Compliance, safety, and tolerability parameters are the primary focus of this study; however the probability of serious adverse events is extremely low given the long safety history of safety of the vitamins and nutraceuticals that comprise the MTDS.