Both unpublished studies were jointly conducted by Spanish firm Bioiberica using B-2cool collagen and presented at the World Congress on Osteoporosis, Osteoarthritis and Muscoskeletal Diseases held in Milan last week.
In the first study researchers from the pharmacology department of Florence University found that a daily dose of 10 mg/kilogram body weight helped alleviate pain and reduce inflammation and joint degeneration in rats with osteoarthritis.
The scientists injected monoiodoacetate (MIA) into the right knee joint to achieve equal levels of osteoarthritis.
For two weeks rats in the collagen group were given increasing doses of type II collagen with carboxymethylcellulose sodium salt (CMC) while the control group was given CMC only. The scientists then measured weight bearing capacity and motor performance.
"The results show that a dose of just 10mg/Kg per day of type II native collagen (b-2Cool) alleviates pain and motor skills and reduces inflammation and joint degeneration," said the study.
Human data
The second study, by Turkish researchers of Eskisehir Osmangazi University, tested the efficacy of the supplement in human subjects.
Thirty-nine patients diagnosed with osteoarthritis of the knee were assigned to one of two groups – over a three-month period half the patients were treated with 10 mg/day of B-2cool collagen and 1500 mg/day of paracetamol while the control group received 1500 mg/day of paracetamol alone.
Using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS) to measure mobility and the Western Ontario McMaster (WOMAC) to quantify pain, the scientists reported significant improvements in joint pain and mobility for the group taking collagen and paracetamol. However neither group showed an improvement in cartilage degradation.
“The results show that type II native collagen can afford additional benefit to conventional therapy,” said Daniel Martínez, R&D director at Bioiberica.
Type 11 native collagen is the primary protein present in joint cartilage which provides resistance and strength but in osteoarthritis the protein is broken down leading to further degradation of the joints. Type II collagen is thought to help by regulating the inflammatory response.
Previous studies have found hydrolysed collagen to be beneficial for alleviating osteoporosis while calcium and collagen supplementation can help postmenopausal osteopoenia.
Source:
“Low dose chicken native type II collagen is active in a rat model of osteoarthritis”
Authors: L. Di Cesare Mannelli, M. Maresca et al.
"Effects of oral native type II collagen treatment in knee osteoarthritis: A randomized controlled trial”
Authors: F. Bakilan, O. Armagan et al.
Both presented at conference