BioActor and UM establish a Public Private Partnership to study the benefits of Aronia on cognition
Press release
BioActor already collaborates with Maastricht University in several areas, but this Public Private Partnership marks the start of an ambitious and comprehensive joint research programme, which will last three years, and aims to unravel possible mechanisms that make Aronia Melanocarpa such a powerful bioactive to improve brain fitness
The joint research programme will study the benefits of Aronia on cognition
BioActor and Maastricht University (“UM”) established a Public Private Partnership (“PPP”) to study the effects of Aronia Melanocarpa on brain fitness and cognition. This PPP received a competitive grant from Health Holland and will last for 3 years.
BioActor already collaborates with UM in several areas, but this PPP marks the start of an ambitious and comprehensive joint research programme to unravel possible mechanisms that make Aronia Melanocarpa such a powerful bioactive to improve brain fitness.
The PPP will be led by Dr. Peter Joris and Professor Jogchum Plat of UM’s Department of Nutrition and Movement Sciences. BioActor will make available a senior scientist, Sanne Ahles, who has already coordinated a previous clinical study with BioActor’s proprietary aronia extract Brainberry®.
The research programme will comprise a comprehensive clinical study, where besides cognitive parameters and blood biomarkers, brain scans will be made by Scannexus, specialist in Ultra High-Field MRI.
Dr. Peter Joris, Assistant Professor at UM comments:
“I’m very pleased with the establishment of this partnership with BioActor as it will allow us to explore mechanisms underlying beneficial effects of Aronia Melanocarpa on cognitive function, which may contribute to the prevention of cognitive impairment and ultimately dementia. Focus will be on brain insulin-sensitivity and vascular function assessed with brain MRI imaging in people at increased risk of cognitive impairment.”
Dr. Yala Stevens, Chief Scientific Officer of BioActor comments:
“This partnership with UM underscores our commitment to science and our passion for exploring research areas that have hitherto not been touched by others. That’s why we have decided to take a deep dive together with Dr. Peter Joris into the effects and mechanisms of aronia melanocarpa in the cognition and brain fitness space. I’m really curious what will come out of this research programme and excited to be able to share the results with the global nutrition science community.”
About BioActor:
BioActor is a life science company based on the Maastricht Health Campus and dedicated to research, develop and sell health ingredients addressing healthy ageing and active living. BioActor has a targeted portfolio of patented and branded health ingredients that are all based on food crops, clinically researched and produced in Europe.
For more info: www.bioactor.com
About Maastricht University:
The current project is performed at the Department of Nutrition and Movement Sciences within the School of Nutrition and Translational research in Medicine (NUTRIM), and will be integrated within an excellent scientific environment that offers facilities to perform state-of-the-art multi-disciplinary research, such as a unique Metabolic Research Unit (MRUM) and advanced MRI systems at Scannexus – an internationally focused brain MRI imaging center – facilities in Maastricht.
