Last week Chemi Nutra reported that it had gained rights to the intellectual property on the use of soy-derived phosphatidylserine for suppressing cortisol, a catabolic stress hormone that can inhibit the use of protein by muscles and impair recovery.
The company will offer nutrition product manufacturers a non-royalty sub-license on the patent, giving them the opportunity to make applicable claims as well as list the patent number on labels.
Phosphatidylserine (PS), more widely known as a memory-enhancing agent, could therefore add some spark to the sports nutrition industry, which has seen few new ingredients in recent years.
"The pipeline of new ingredients in this segment has really slowed down so the industry is hungry for novel products," Scott Hagerman, president of Chemi Nutra, told NutraIngredientsUSA.com.
Sports nutrition has been characterized by innovation and became known as one of the most dynamic segments of the nutraceuticals industry. But while it is still growing at a healthy rate, annual growth is slowing with some of the traditional products such as creatine and protein powders seeing the biggest decline.
In a recent report on sports nutrition, Frost & Sullivan advised that 'the industry needs to provide novelty in the products'.
Hagerman added: "In this segment in particular the consumers are really testing the products and looking for efficacy."
This makes scientific claims and patents key to product marketing.
Phosphatidylserine's ability to suppress cortisol has been known for some time.
Two studies carried out at the University of Naples in Italy during the 90s revealed that PS supplements reduced cortisol production by 30 per cent compared to placebo after exercise.
Another trial from California State University, Chico, on subjects participating in an intensive exercise program, found that cortisol levels were 20 per cent lower in the subjects taking PS and this group also had less muscle soreness.
Some companies are already marketing PS for this use but the new patent, awarded to inventor Robert Fritz after seven years work supported by Chemi, will significantly raise the profile of the ingredient in the sports nutrition market, allowing marketers to add new claims to products based on the patent.
"Everyone knows that excess cortisol does damage," noted Hagerman. But he added that the PS benefits need not be limited to people engaged in exercise.
"This is a product beneficial to anyone since the psychological and physical states of stress affect everyone to certain degrees. Everyone is exposed to the negative effects of stress so taking supplements and foods containing PS will aid general good health and well being."
Chemi currently has the dominant share of the global PS market and holds three patents relating to its production of soy-derived PS.