The Californian olive polyphenol expert was granted patent number 8,216,599 for a “Method for Treatment of Inflammation”.
“We believe that CreAgri’s Inflammation patent has established the first commercial rights to the “field of use” for hydroxytyrosol and we hope that it will have an impact on the Company’s business worldwide,” said Roberto Crea, PhD, founder and CEO of CreAgri.
“Hydroxytyrosol is being proposed as an amazing natural molecule with potential profound impact on human health and the nutraceutical industry.”
Health benefits
Hydroxytyrosol is thought to be the main antioxidant compound in olives, and believed to play a significant role in the many health benefits attributed to olive oil.
One of just a handful of bioactive ingredients to secure a positive health claims opinion polyphenols from the European Food safety Authority (EFSA), hydroxytyrosol is claimed to reduce oxidized LDL cholesterol, an emerging risk factor for atherosclerosis.
As the oxidation of LDL leads to a series of events that result in fatty streaks in artery tissue, which in turn morph into arterial plaques, OxLDL levels are seen by some scientists as a more useful predictor of risk for developing cardiovascular disease than total cholesterol or LDL-cholesterol.
Data has also suggested the compound may boost eye health and reduce the risk of against macular degeneration.
However, hydroxytyrosol is also known for its anti-inflammatory powers, with a recent study published in Planta Med showing it inhibited the pro-inflammatory compounds nitric oxide (NO) and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in mouse cells.
Game-changer
Crea said that the new patent represents a “game changing moment also for the nutraceutical industry because for the first time its products are validated for use in fields that before were traditionally dominated by the pharmaceutical industry.
“There’s a clinical imperative to identify novel targets, and new approaches to inflammation and fibrosis, and to translate these developments into new clinical applications and revolutionary OTC consumer products.”
Hidrox coverage
CreAgri’s Hidrox-branded olive extract was the subject of its first anti-inflammatory patent application in 2002, said the company.
“For the first time a leading US official body recognize a pivotal role for a botanical solution in the management of very serious and widely diffused health conditions,” said Crea. “Hidrox is the first natural hydroxytyrosol formulation to be ever associated to the treatment of inflammation, and the patent issued extends commercial protection not only to the fruit of the olive tree but also to the other sources of hydroxytyrosol found in nature.”
Inflammation
Chronic inflammation is brought about by an over-expression or lack of control of the normal protective mechanisms.
In a review in Nutrition, Metabolism & Cardiovascular Diseases (2004, Vol. 14, pp. 228-232), Italian scientists noted that “obesity, insulin resistance, and diabetes are associated with a pro-inflammatory state, which in turn is associated with increased cardiovascular risk”.
Chronic inflammation has also been linked to a range of conditions linked to heart disease, osteoporosis, cognitive decline and Alzheimer's, type-2 diabetes, and arthritis.