Unigen research confirms safety of joint care botanical ingredient Univestin
The botanical composition UP446, marketed as Univestin, is made out of extracts from roots of Scutellaria baicalensis and heartwoods of Acacia catechu, two ingredients known for its joint care properties that have been used in traditional and contemporary pharmaceutical compounding.
“Univestin has been included in more than 30 different supplements in the US & Canada, and more worldwide although the international markets are only recently starting to open up,” Amanda Orloske, marketing manager at Unigen, told NutraIngredients-USA. “We estimate that there have been over 2.5 billion doses sold.”
According to Unigen’s researchers, extensive toxicological testing of the two extracts has been done. Still requiring clinical evidence was the ingredient’s effects specifically on the respiratory, cardiovascular, and central nervous system functions when the extracts are administered orally, which is what the present study, published in the journal Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology, explores.
Study design
Male beagle dogs and male Sprague-Dawley rats were used for the study. After acclimation, the animals were separated into groups, taking various doses of UP446 orally. Post-supplementation evaluation on rats was done to see the effects on the respiratory and nervous system, while the evaluation on dogs was to analyse cardiovascular effects.
“There was no adverse effect on overall health in rats treated with UP466 at doses of 800, 2000 and 5000 mg/kg/day or beagle dogs treated with UP466 at doses of 250, 500 and 1000 mg/kg/day,” the researchers wrote.
The central nervous system evaluation was done by a functional observational battery carried out by blinded researchers. Respiratory functions were analysed using the whole body plethysmograph method. For the evaluation of cardiovascular functions in the dogs, the animals were surgically implanted with telemetry transmitters.
“No sign of morbidity or mortality was observed during the duration of study. Generally speaking, there were no signs suggestive of test composition related toxicity or abnormality throughout the study period,” the researchers added.
Part of ongoing observations
“We have been researching Univestin for over 10 years,” Orloske said. “We feel it is important to continue to support our existing products and partners by providing them with new research regularly.
“To Unigen, the significance lies largely in the pursuit of more information for our ingredients. We want to offer the most robust scientific packages we can. Additionally, with the lack of certainty as to what changes will occur in the regulatory environment, additional data is a good thing,” she added.
Source: Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology
Published online ahead of print, doi:10.1016/j.yrtph.2016.03.015
Effect of a botanical composition, UP446, on respiratory, cardiovascular and central nervous systems in beagle dogs and rats
Authors: Mesfin Yimam, Young Chul Lee, Qi Jia
