Italian company Indena last week launched a new botanical extract said to be an unparalleled immunostimulant.
The echinacea derivative, Polinacea, is obtained through a patent-pending extraction procedure from the roots of Echinacea angustifolia.
Launching the product at the SupplySide West tradeshow in the US last week, the company highlighted the product's triple standardisation which makes it different to all other echinacea derivatives.
Polinacea is marketed as an immunological response modulator. With direct action on T cells it increases the immune functions.
The company presented both in-vivo and in-vitro studies to support the product. In immunocompetent mice with Leishmania major (one of the most representative experimental animal models used to check the immunobooster capability of drugs) Polinacea reduces the induced symptoms by 25 per cent, claims Indena. The extract also reduces Candida albicans induced mortality in immunocompetent mice by 30 per cent.
The extract is also considered safe, as no toxic effects were reported at any dose levels tested. This means it can be considered as "a high profile candidate as a functional ingredient in the enhanced food category" in several countries, said Indena.