Fucoidan: preliminary results from marine bioactive show exciting potential to support gut and heart health

OCEANIUM is on a journey to provide efficacious, functional and clean label ingredients with excellent traceability and provenance, whilst contributing to people health and ocean health.

Exciting preliminary results

OCEANIUM has conducted a small scale, preclinical, ex vivo preliminary study with ProDigest and the results highlight the exciting potential of OCEAN ACTIVES Fucoidan to deliver gut health benefits by increasing the bacterial biomass and species richness of microbiome, which can be associated with an improved immune system, supporting heart health, achieving a healthy weight and preventing and managing diabetes.^1,2 

OCEAN ACTIVES Fucoidan also increased levels of carnitine, which has been known to help reduce obesity and hypertension.³

Additionally, results showed significantly higher levels of propionate and butyrate which could help to reduce cholesterol and fatty acid synthesis in the liver as well as inducing cell differentiation which is related to cancer prevention.^4,5

The ex vivo preliminary study involved three concentrations of OCEAN ACTIVES Fucoidan, which were tested on five donor isolates during a 48-hour period and compared with basal control and inulin positive control.

Further clinical testing

These exciting and encouraging preliminary results lay the groundwork for further clinical testing to to gather additional evidence to support health claims.

OCEANIUM has secured GRAS approval in the US for fucoidan from Saccharina latissima and samples are now available for mission-aligned brands seeking to integrate highly efficacious and sustainable ingredients into their formulations.

OCEANIUM is also conducting in vitro and in vivo studies to validate the efficacy of OCEAN ACTIVES Fucoidan in skincare formulations.

Dr Charles Bavington (PhD), CTO and cofounder at OCEANIUM, commented: “It was a privilege to work with the expert team at ProDigest on this trending and innovative marine ingredient."

"Whilst we acknowledge this is a preliminary study, we’re thrilled to reveal promising health benefits of OCEAN ACTIVES Fucoidan and look forward to ongoing research to validate these claims."

"This is a very exciting step for OCEANIUM as we’re on a mission to develop and produce high-quality, marine-based health and wellness ingredients for brands seeking efficacy coupled with excellent provenance.”

Fucoidan, a family of polysaccharides found in brown seaweeds, has a rich history of nutraceutical use with research literature showing potential benefits across multiple areas of health and wellness including gut health, immune modulation and cardiometabolic health.⁶

Backed by expert R&D, extensive independent scientific research and developing scientific claims, OCEAN ACTIVES Fucoidan is a high purity (75%), robust bioactive in the form of a water-soluble powder, making it an excellent ingredient to integrate into food, beverages and supplements.

Offering excellent provenance and green processing

Sustainably farmed seaweed provides jobs along rural coastal regions, benefits ocean health by absorbing nitrogen and phosphorous, increases biodiversity by protecting nursery grounds and seabeds.

Seaweed farms do not need cleared land, fresh water, pesticide, or fertilizer. Farmed seaweed provides a regenerative source of marine bioactives and ensures the ability to provide high quality ingredients at scale without disrupting natural ecosystems including kelp forests and coastal habitats.

OCEANIUM’s water-based, green processing methods extract OCEAN ACTIVES Fucoidan from a species of brown seaweed (Saccharina latissima) sustainably sourced from regenerative seaweed farms in the North Atlantic.

References

1. A.A. Astudillo and H.N. Mayrovitz, “The Gut Microbiome and Cardiovascular Disease,” Cureus 13(4), e14519 (2021).
2. W.L. Lau, et al., “Diabetes and the Gut Microbiome,” Semin. Nephrol. 41(2), 104-113 (2021).
3. C. Kanitsoraphan, et al., “Trimethylamine N-Oxide and Risk of Cardiovascular Disease and Mortality,” Curr. Nutr. Rep. 7, 207–213 (2018).
4. A. Haghikia, et al., “Propionate Attenuates Atherosclerosis by Immune-Dependent Regulation of Intestinal Cholesterol Metabolism,” Eur. Heart J. 43(6), 518-533 (2022).
5. K. Kaźmierczak-Siedlecka, et al., “Sodium Butyrate in Both Prevention and Supportive Treatment of Colorectal Cancer,” Front. Cell Infect. Microbiol. 12, 1023806 (2022).
6. K. Wang, et al., “Application of Fucoidan as Treatment for Cardiovascular and Cerebrovascular Diseases,” Ther. Adv. Chronic Dis. 13,20406223221076891 (2022).