BioAstin®

Carotenoids help bring color to nature. These fat-soluble compounds help put the red in tomatoes, the yellow in fall leaves and the pink in flamingoes. While the pink-tinted carotenoid astaxanthin has not yet achieved the wide consumer recognition of lutein or lycopene, it may be one of the most powerful antioxidant carotenoids, with anti-inflammatory properties and the ability to help mitigate or prevent a number of chronic conditions.

Astaxanthin has a structure similar to that of beta-carotene, but with two additional asymmetric carbon groups attached to the benzoid rings on either end. These R-bonds allow the astaxanthin molecule to be esterified, a unique chemical advantage among carotenoids that permits astaxanthin to span cell membranes, cross the blood-brain barrier and bond directly with muscle tissue. Natural astaxanthin’s carotenoid fraction is approximately 85 percent astaxanthin, with the rest comprised of small amounts of lutein, beta-carotene and canthaxanthin.

One of the leading producers of natural astaxanthin is Cyanotech Corp., which operates the largest microalgae production facility in the world, including 85 culture ponds covering 40 hectares. From these ponds, the company produces its BioAstin® Natural Astaxanthin, extracted from Haematococcus pluvialis microalgae, the richest natural source of astaxanthin. BioAstin is a natural, vegetarian-sourced astaxanthin with applications in areas including inflammation, immune function, skin health and strength/endurance. However, its primary benefit appears to stem from its powerful roles as an anti-inflammatory and antioxidant.

In vitro studies at Creighton University found BioAstin’s free radical scavenging ability was 550 times stronger than vitamin E and 11 times more powerful than beta-carotene. Its anti-inflammatory abilities have been demonstrated in human clinical trials, in which BioAstin showed benefits in patients suffering from acute and chronic inflammatory conditions, such as carpal tunnel syndrome (repetitive stress injury), rheumatoid arthritis, tendonitis (tennis elbow), sunburn and exercise-induced joint and muscle damage.^1,2

Of great interest is another recent unpublished, preliminary human clinical trial in which BioAstin was shown to reduce Creactive protein (CRP) levels by over 20 percent. C-reactive protein is a marker for systemic or silent inflammation in the body, thought to be the cause of maladies such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes, Alzheimer’s and many more.

Cyanotech holds patents for the use of astaxanthin for carpal tunnel syndrome, for cold and canker sores, and as an oral or topical sunscreen, as well as three patents related to microalgae production. BioAstin is produced under c-GMP conditions in an ISO- 9001 facility.

1. Nir Y, Spiller G, Multz C. J Am Coll Nutr. 21:489, 2002.

2. Nir Y, Spiller G, Multz C. J Am Coll Nutr. 21:490, 2002.

Share this article: Email, Slashdot, Digg, Del.icio.us, Yahoo!MyWeb, Windows Live Favorites, Furl
Add this article feed to: RSS, My Yahoo, Newsgator, Bloglines

Read Comments [1]