“This collaboration is designed to create more value for the brands we serve,” said Devin Stagg, president of PLT Health Solutions. “We can help science-driven brands further differentiate their offerings and create new messaging opportunities specific to their target consumer.”
Through the collaboration, PLT supports trial development as a strategic scientific partner, and the Alethios software platform provides the tools to carry out decentralized, end-to-end clinical research.
From ingredient science to formulation validation
Building on PLT’s existing clinical substantiation platform across its portfolio of over 35 ingredients, the partnership reflects a broader shift in the supplement industry from ingredient-level science toward formula-specific evidence.
While evidence supporting the biological rationale of dietary supplement ingredients is increasingly becoming table stakes, brands are facing growing pressure to demonstrate the efficacy of finished formulations in real-world populations. That demand has helped fuel the emergence of decentralized and technology-enabled clinical research platforms serving the supplement industry over the past five years.
“As the industry evolves, many consumers are becoming savvier and seeking products with clinical validation,” said Jennifer Murphy, head of innovation and clinical science at PLT Health Solutions. “Consequently, brands are seeking ways to highlight the strength and efficacy of their formulations relative to the competition.”
Lowering the barriers to clinical research
To provide the data on a timeline and at a cost aligned with modern product development cycles, the decentralized model presents digital workflows designed to accelerate recruitment, simplify participation and improve study execution through compliance monitoring and data reporting.
Decentralized clinical trials—which aim to reduce many of the bottlenecks and expenses associated with traditional on-site clinical trials—gained traction in the supplement industry in the early 2020s, following broader adoption in pharmaceutical research and the acceleration of remote-study methods during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Consumer health brands assume that clinical research has to be slow, expensive and operationally cumbersome,” said Zeenia Framroze, CEO and founder of Alethios, which launched in 2025. “Our platform exists to lower the barriers to fast, rigorous and high-quality research for all. Partnering with PLT lets us pair that infrastructure with best-in-class ingredient science and commercialization expertise.”
Because studies are developed individually with specific product and business objectives in mind, PLT says study designs are adapted to customer budgets, the target consumer, claims strategy and commercial opportunity.
For some brands, this might entail rapid-turn consumer perception research focused on satisfaction, usage experience or preference insights, or more rigorous clinical designs that use validated questionnaires, biomarker measurements and other outcomes measures in randomized, controlled trials.
