Company patents seaweed ingredient said to fight arterial plaques

01-Dec-2021 - Last updated on 01-Dec-2021 at 17:50 GMT

©Getty Images - Giang Nguyen

An Arizona-based supplement company has announced a patent on a seaweed ingredient covering its effects in maintaining a healthy endothelium resulting in less plaque aggregation.

Algal ingredient

The Scottsdale company, called Calroy Health Sciences, has been developing an ingredient extracted from Monostroma nitidum, a marine algae species. Branded as MonitumRS, the ingredient is a proprietary extract of rhamnan sulfate, which the company refers to as a ‘specialized sulfated polysaccharide.’ The ingredient is sold as a standalone dietary supplement branded as Arterosil in the practitioner channel.

The new patent, No. 11,135,238, is titled “Methods to Stabilize and Reverse Atherosclerotic Lesions by Sulfated Polysaccharides.” It refers to the science-backed effect of the ingredient in maintaing a healthy endothelium.

The core of the story, company says, is supporting the function and integrity of a specific portion of the endothelium, which is the layer of cells and cell structures that line the blood vessels. At the surface of this layer, where it meets the blood, is the glycocalyx, a microscopically thin, gel-like layer that coats the entire luminal side of the vascular endothelium. The glycocalyx is a made up of a polysaccharide-proteoglycan matrix

Rudolf K. Virchow, a nineteenth century German physician first proposed in 1856 the trinity of factors governing arterial and venous thrombosis. His factors were pathological changes in (1) blood flow, such as abnormal increase and decrease of shear stress; (2) blood components, such as abnormal activation of platelets, blood coagulation, and fibrinolysis factors; and (3) vessel wall, such as abnormal vascular endothelial inflammation.

Calroy’s research focuses on the latter factor. Local injury to the glycocalyx can allow cholesterol molecules to adhere to the endothelial wall directly, starting the cascade that leads to large plaques made up of cholesterol and calcium and stiffening blood vessels, a condition that in advanced stages can lead to heart attacks and strokes.

Establishing clinical value

“The patent is a critical milestone as we establish the exceptional clinical value of Arterosil,” said Ed Hoyt, President and CEO of Calroy Health Sciences. “Not only does it reflect the product’s unique scientific innovation, but it confirms Calroy’s commitment to our expanding research agenda. I believe it will help us establish additional educational opportunities and strategic partnerships.”

Calroy, which says it manufactures the product in the US, advertises a number of studies on its website. Some of these were tissue studies verifying the ingredient’s glycocalyx-regenerating properties. Another was a retrospective study of patients in a functional medicine practice which found an average 52% reduction in arterial plaques after use of the supplement for four to 11 months. Another more recent human clinical trial done at teh Baylor Health Clinic found an 89% increase in arterial elasticity.

“Calroy is committed to developing safe and effective products through robust scientific research,” said Chen Chen, Ph.D., Chief Scientific Officer of Calroy Health Sciences. “Arterosil is the first commercial product specifically designed to regenerate the endothelial glycocalyx, and now, the first and only dietary supplement with a US patent targeting vulnerable plaque.”