Aker BioMarine develops new ingredient from krill for cognitive and eye health called Lysoveta

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Aker BioMarine (Lysaker, Norway) has developed a pilot product and production method for lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) – bound EPA and DHA from krill. Currently, there is no commercially available LPC-EPA/DHA product on the market, so Aker will be scaling up the production process at its manufacturing plant in Houston, seeking out research collaborations to investigate the ingredient’s potential, and initiating collaborations with partners to eventually bring the ingredient to market in a finished product. Regulatory processes are underway, and Aker BioMarine expects approvals to launch a dietary supplement product to market by the end of 2022.

Research published in Nature¹ in 2014 discovered that LPC was a primary carrier molecule of DHA across the blood brain barrier, dependent on the LPC transporter protein called Mfsd2A. This uptake mechanism, says Aker, can be applied broadly to other polyunsaturated fatty acids, including EPA, and has been identified in several other organs, such as the eyes. This discovery inspired Aker BioMarine to develop a method to produce LPC-bound EPA/DHA from krill and the resulting production process made a new compound it is calling Lysoveta.

“Our innovation team has spent the last six years working on the science and chemistry with a goal of bringing Lysoveta to the market. With Lysoveta, Aker BioMarine is the first company to produce LPC-bound EPA and DHA from krill. For us, this is a breakthrough in science and product development, launching a completely new platform to improve human health,” said Matts Johansen, CEO, Aker BioMarine, in a press release.

Because this is a new ingredient, more works needs to be done to understand it and unlock the potential for LPC in the dietary supplement space. “The scientific research on the connection between LPC and the targeted delivery of EPA/DHA, combined with our capabilities to produce LPC-bound EPA and DHA from krill at scale, gives us a unique position to be a central player in the development of this completely new product to support brain and eye health,” said Andreas Storsve, PhD, director research and development, human products at Aker BioMarine.

“We will actively seek collaboration with the scientific community and beyond to explore Lysoveta’s full potential and build more knowledge about how it may affect conditions surrounding cognitive and eye health,” adds Storsve. “We are the only company in the world ready to offer a supply of natural raw material to our partners and the research community to continue building our knowledge around LPC.”

Reference

1. Nguyen LN et al. “Mfsd2a is a transporter for the essential omega-3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid.” Nature, vol. 509 (2014): 503-506