Nicola Volpi, Associate Professor of Biochemistry at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia (Italy), has recently led a group of scientists in the human evaluation of the bioavailability and pharmacokinetic profile of a new formulation in tablets of the Non-Animal, fermentation-derived Chondroitin Sulfate Mythocondro® compared with the animal Chondroitin Sulfate.
Prof. Volpi is internationally recognized as an eminent expert of Chondroitin Sulfate (CS). He has worked in the field of complex macromolecules, i.e. polysaccharides, glycosaminoglycans, glycoproteins and proteoglycans since 1990, for over 25 years, and this gave him an undeniable worldwide reputation in the field of CS. In particular, the studies he published about the different analytical profiles, the chemical characterizations and the human clinical impacts of different origins and qualities of CS, had a great impact on the international scientific community and in the marketing of CS.
The new study – single-center, single-dose, open-label, randomised, two-way crossover – was centered on the evaluation of how the chondroitin sulfation pattern, in particular in position 6 of the disaccharide chain (ΔDi6S), and the charge density of Mythocondro®, may influence the capacity of CS to interact with various extracellular molecules and allow exerting more pronounced chondroprotective effects than a CS of extractive origin, as already demonstrated in an animal model study.
The study represents a turning point in the use of low molecular weight non-animal CS. In fact, the enhanced pharmacokinetics characteristics of Mythocondro® allow it to be used at reduced daily dosage (600 mg/day instead of the current suggested 1,200 mg/day) and offers a once-a-day alternative to larger CS pills that need to be taken two times a day.
The results of the work will be shortly available in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacology in Drug Development with the title of "Oral bioavailability and pharmacokinetic of non-animal chondroitin sulfate and its constituents in healthy male volunteers".
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