Waitaki Biosciences Finds Growth Factors in Joint Care Ingredients

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand—Waitaki Biosciences, an innovative developer and manufacturer of ingredients for the nutritional supplement and personal care market, announced the results of an in-house study on the growth factor content of its cartilage-based joint care products, Soluble Collagen II Complex and Chondroitin Sulphate Complex.
Growth factors are small peptides with numerous important biological functions in the body. Cartilage derived growth factors have been shown to positively influence the formation of the extracellular matrix that provides strength to the joint.
In a collaborative research effort with WuHan Institute of Virology, China, three different kinds of growth factors were found to be present in samples of Waitaki Biosciences Soluble Collagen II and Chondroitin Sulphate complex.
Craig McIntosh, Waitaki, CEO, said, “We knew that growth factors were important in bone health supplements, and this prompted us to investigate if there were growth factors in our cartilage based materials.” He added, “We are delighted to see that, although we know growth factors are sensitive to processing, particularly when heat is involved, our gentle, low temperature manufacturing is preserving growth factor content in our finished material.”
Soluble Collagen II and Chondroitin Sulphate Complex, are two of a range of specialized materials produced at Waitaki’s purpose-built facility. They are natural complexes of low-molecular weight hydrolysed type II collagen, native collagen and chondroitin sulphate.
“We know that complex biological materials offer the advantage of supplying a range of biologically active compounds, and offer a synergistic effect not found in single extracts. This research represents an important step forward in our understanding of the composition, and efficacy of our joint health ingredients,” McIntosh said.