OptiBiotix Health plc (LON:OPTI) has filed a patent to add extra protection to a compound it has developed to lessen the risk of heart disease.
The filing provides protection for a combination of OptiBiotix's Lactobacillus plantarum strain with other ingredients that can act together to reduce cardiovascular risks.
The firm said the patent protects it across a broader range of market opportunities and increases the number of partnering opportunities.
Optibiotix said current products for cardiovascular disease tend to focus on single risk factors, largely LDL (bad) cholesterol, but cardiovascular risk is increasingly seen as a sum of a number of factors including triglycerides and blood pressure.
A combination of products with OptiBiotix's cholesterol reducing strain, however, may in one go reduce multiple cardiovascular risks, lower bad cholesterol and reduce statins dosage.
In a study last year, patients taking OptiBiotix's lactobacillus plantarum capsules saw a 7.2% reduction in so-called bad cholesterol (LDL, or low-density lipoprotein), with the female element of the test group seeing a 12.4% reduction.
Stephen O'Hara, OptiBiotix’s chief executive, said: "We are pleased to announce the filing of this patent which adds a further level of protection and value to our cholesterol and blood pressure reducing product.
"Commercial discussions will continue with potential partners across both consumer and pharma to fully exploit the opportunity as a cholesterol and/or hypertension supplement, in isolation, or in combination with existing approaches."
Speaking to Proactive investors, O'Hara said the group was talking to major food and pharma groups, which have cholesterol reducing products.
Some are interested in putting the firm's compound into food, others for use as a probiotic and some pharmas want to combine it with their own products, he said.
"There's a real need out there for additional products," he said, noting that 40 to 50% of people taking statins don't tolerate them for over a year, and they have side effects.
A combination product using the Optibiotix's strain (which has shown that just 0.1g is safe as a low cost cholesterol reducing supplement) could be used by pharmas in a lower cost, lower dose formulation, suggested O'Hara.
Optibiotix shares nudged 1.28% higher at 79p each on the day.