The high-phospholipid krill ingredients are intended for use as a source of omega-3 fatty acids in a number of food categories including beverages, cereals, cheese, dairy products, and other nutritional foods. The company is actively exploring functional food applications in the U.S. as well as in Europe where Superba™ Krill Oil is recognized as safe under the Novel Foods regulation.
“The health benefits demonstrated by Superba Krill phospholipid EPA & DHA in clinical research will now be available in food applications,” stated Hoem. “Now the superior bio-efficiency, tolerability, and stability provided by krill’s phospholipid omega-3 fatty acids will benefit consumers in convenient food products.”
In handing its belated response to Ovos’ new dietary ingredient (NDI) petition that was lodged more than 18 months ago, FDA issued a seven-page document detailing why homotaurine is not an amino acid and did not fit any other dietary ingredient category as listed under section 201(ff)(1) of the Food, Drugs and Cosmetics Act (FDCA).
FDA said that for the purposes of that section of the FDCA, “the term ‘amino acid’ refers to analpha-amino carboxylic acid used as a constituent of proteins or peptides. Homotaurine is agamma-amino sulfonic acid. It is not an alpha-amino carboxylic acid or a constituent of proteins.”
It therefore could not be considered for NDI status, FDA said, adding that the fact Ovos’s homotaurine form was synthetically manufactured also disqualified it.
FIS.com: Researchers at the Gaiker-IK4 Basque technological Center and other research institutes in Mexico and Portugal are working on the development of a food container with antimicrobial and antioxidant properties made from shellfish waste.
Scientists aim for this new packaging – made with elements taken from the exoskeleton of shrimp – to prolong the life of food, preserving their original properties. This international project is led by scientists at the Technological Institute of Sonora, Mexico.
Also involved is the Research Centre for Food and Development and the company Bioderpac, both of which are from Mexico, in addition to the University of Santiago de Compostela, Spain, and the Dr. Ricardo Jorge National Health Institute, Portugal.
The innovative packaging is a material containing molecules of chitosan and astaxanthin, which have antimicrobial and antioxidant capacity, respectively.
These agents are obtained from the head and the exoskeleton of shrimp, by extraction and purification after lactic fermentation. Later, these compounds are incorporated into plastic matrices to prepare polyethylene and polyamide active packaging.
VeroMara has been contracted by BioPol in Iceland to provide them with training, documentation, and support services for the implementation of shellfish toxin rapid testing. This will be the first time shellfish toxin testing has been conducted in Iceland, and will provide the basis for future monitoring and end product testing of shellfish produced in Icelandic waters.
BioPol is a marine biotechnology research station established on 1 September 2007. The implementation of shellfish toxin rapid tests is part of the EU FP7 MPP project.
VeroMara will provide training in all aspects of shellfish toxin testing using ELISA tests and Jellett rapid tests. VeroMara will also be providing supporting documentation and ongoing technical back up. VeroMara is a distributor in the UK & Eire for Biosense Laboratories and for Jellett Rapid testing. VeroMara also offers UKAS accredited testing services to the shellfish industry. VeroMara’s Manager commented, “we are delighted to be working with BioPol, which is our first contract outside the UK.
Medical device maker Medtronic Inc. said Friday it purchased a chitin gel technology that could be used to control bleeding and speed up healing in surgical procedures that treat sinus conditions.
Medtronic said the gel is a polymer produced from the chitin of shellfish and squid. Chitin is found in the exoskeletons of insects and some crustaceans. In humans, it is used to aid the healing of wounds and as a biodegradable surgical thread. The technology was developed by Robinson Squidgel Ltd., the University of Adelaide in Australia, and the University of Otago in New Zealand.
Medtronic, which is the world’s largest medical device company, did not disclose terms of the deal.
The company believes the gel technology could be used in functional endoscopic sinus surgery, a type of procedure used to treat conditions including recurring acute or chronic infective sinus inflammation. Fiber optic scopes are used to diagnose and assist in the procedure, and computer models help identify diseased areas in the patient’s sinuses. Medtronic said that around 525,000 procedures are performed in the U.S. each year, and the most common side effects are bleeding and adhesions, or scars that form at the surgical site.
Purpose: This present study tested a Maritech® extract formulation, containing a blend of extracts from three different species of brown algae, plus nutrients in an open label combined phase I and II pilot scale study to determine both acute safety and efficacy in osteoarthritis of the knee.
Results & Conclusions: Eleven participants completed 12 weeks and one completed 10 weeks of the study. Using a multilevel linear model, the average COAT score was reduced by 18% for the 100 mg treatment and 52% for the 1000 mg dose at the end of the study. There was a clear dose response effect seen between the two treatments (P≤0.0005) on the average COAT score and each of the four COAT subscales (pain, stiffness, difficulty with physical activity and overall symptom severity) (P≤0.05).
The seaweed extract nutrient complex when taken orally over twelve weeks decreased the symptoms of osteoarthritis in a dose-dependent manner. It was demonstrated to be safe to use over the study period at the doses tested. The efficacy of the preparation now needs to be demonstrated in a phase III randomized controlled trial (RCT).
Citation: Myers, SP, O’Connor, J, Fitton, JH, Brooks, LO, Rolfe, MI, Connellan, PA, Wohlmuth, H, Cheras, PA & Morris, CA 2010, ‘A combined phase I and II open label study on the effects of a seaweed extract nutrient complex on osteoarthritis’, Biologics: Targets and Therapy, vol. 4, pp. 33-44.
NineSigma reports that they are looking for proposals for the purchase of natural compound collections for screening. The compounds may be pure or extracts (fractionated or not) or semi-synthetic but must be derived from sustainable natural sources. They are interested in compound collection acquisition, licensing, supplier agreement. Co-development of any discovered activities is also possible.
Description
Collection(s) will be screened in assays relevant to the development of consumer care products. As such, compounds should be potentially suitable for such applications and must either be currently available or have a reasonable likelihood of being available on sustainable commercial scales (tons).
Possible approaches:
- Samples may be pure or semi-pure, including extracts (preferably fractionated).
- Among others, libraries of commodity natural products, natural product components, and consumer care ingredients are all possible sample sources.
- Developing nations with unique biota that could be sustainably developed may present with interesting avenues of investigation.
- Low, medium, and/or high molecular weight compounds are all of interest provided they are derived from acceptable natural sources.
Approaches not of interest:
- Synthetic chemical libraries
- Collections of pharmaceutical drugs
- Compounds derived from animal sources unless they are obtained “without harm”
- Biological agents
- Compounds or extracts that cannot be supplied (or potentially supplied) on sustainable commercial scales.
Dai-Hung Ngo, Isuru Wijesekara, Thanh-Sang Vo, Quang Van Ta and Se-Kwon Kim
Recently, a great deal of interest has been developed by the consumers towards natural bioactive compounds as functional ingredients in the food products due to their various health beneficial effects. Hence, it can be suggested that antioxidative functional ingredients from marine foods and their by-products are alternative sources for synthetic ingredients that can contribute to a consumer’s well-being, as a part of nutraceuticals and functional foods. This contribution presents an overview of the marine food-derived antioxidants such as bioactive peptides, chitooligosaccharide derivatives, sulfated polysaccharides, phlorotannins and carotenoids with the potential utilization in the food industry.
Twelve weeks of spirulina supplementation were associated with increased counts of white blood cells, foot soldiers of the immune system, with older women reported to respond more rapidly, according to findings published in Cellular & Molecular Immunology.
“The study does add to the growing body of scientific research demonstrating that Spirulina improves immune system response, especially in older individuals whose immune function naturally declines,” said Gerry Cysewski, PhD, chief science officer and executive vice president at Cyanotech, and co-researcher in this study.
Spirulina, a blue-green vegetable alga, is a rich source of protein, amino acids, phytonutrients, iron, antioxidants and B-vitamins. Cyanotech’s spirulina is grown in Hawaii, and has GRAS (generally recognized as safe) status, meaning it can be used as a functional ingredient in foods and beverages.
DKSH’s Business Unit Performance Materials, a leading specialty chemicals and food ingredients distributor, will offer its Market Expansion Services to Algea, the world’s largest producer of seaweed products. Under this exclusive distribution agreement, DKSH will globally support Algea’s market expansion in France, India, Thailand, the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, and China. Thanks to DKSH’s excellent industry network and credentials as a first-class service provider, the Swiss-based company was selected to market Algea’s high-quality seaweed products.
Algea is based in Norway and started to manufacture seaweed products in 1937, harvest Arctic Ascophyllum Nodosum, and supply unique seaweed products to various industries, including human consumption, animal feed, and agriculture. Algea food products are natural phytocomplexes of fucoidans, alginates, iodine, vitamins, minerals, and trace elements from Norwegian Ascophyllum Nodosum. The ingredients are provided for functional food and food supplements and have polyvalent impacts on human health since they contain elements like fucoidans, iodine, alginates, vitamins, and minerals. A noteworthy attribute of the product is the unique and sustainable harvesting method utilized by Algea, guaranteeing that only fresh and contamination free seaweed is used for production.
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