Biologically active oils

Abstract

A process for the production of fats or oils and their extracts containing biologically-active chemical compounds from a lipid substrate, the process comprising: a) inoculation of a lipid substrate with fungally derived lipolytic enzymes b) incubating the inoculated substrate for a period of between about 7-120 days at a temperature of between about 4-35° C., at a humidity of between about 75-100%, and C) processing said substrate mixture to obtain a biologically active fat or oil.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD [0001] The present invention relates to fungal metabolism / transformation of lipid substrates to produce fats and more particularly oils and their extracts containing biologically-active chemical compounds for the treatment or prophylaxis of diseases, disorders or conditions in humans and other animals. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] With the growth of the alternative / complementary medicine industry and the general perception in some areas that the products are “snake oil” remedies, there is a pressing need to ensure that products supplied by this alternative industry have reproducible efficacy and are safe for use by the general public. However, due to recent adverse publicity by the press and government regulators there is an absolute requirement for alternative medicines to meet strict guidelines regarding the quality of the raw materials and the method of manufacture. One of the major difficulties with alternative medicines is that the ingredients used are oft...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0036] Typically, the fungi inoculated onto the lipid substrate will have been isolated from the substrate (ie is endogenous to the lipid substrate) and found to transform the specific or similar substrates. Such fungi are typically found in the sexual and asexual states of the Phyla Zygomycotina, Ascomycotina and Basidiomycotina. This is therefore understood to cover the fungi Deuteromycetes which is the asexual state of the main phyla. Fungi also typically found to transform lipid substrates include Phoma sp, Cladosporium sp, Rhodotorula mucilaginosa, Cryptococcus albidus, Trichosporon pullulans, Mucor spp, Epicoccom purpurescens, Rhizopus stolonifer, Penicillium chrysogenum, Nigrospora sphaerica, Chaetomium globosum. Fungi demonstrating the ability to transform or having this potential may be typically improved by either traditional or molecular genetic techniques to enhance enzyme formation and activity.

[0050] Typically, the biologically active oils produced can be used to treat and / or prevent a wide range of diseases, disorders or conditions in humans and other animals. Typical diseases, disorders or conditions which may be treated or prevented include: respiratory diseases or conditions such as asthma, bronchial disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), vascular diseases or conditions such as atherosclerosis, coronary artery diseases, hypertension and sickle cell disease-associated vaso-occlusion, skin diseases or conditions such as various dermatitis, psoriasis and atopic eczema, all types of burns, gastrointestinal diseases or conditions such as ulcers, gastric reflux, inflammatory bowel disease, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, pancreatitis and periodontal disease, cancers including bowel cancer and prostate cancer, sarcoidosis, septic shock, musculo-skeletal diseases or conditions such as arthritis including osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, chronic joint and ligament pain, leukemia, diabetes, allergy including otitis media and ocular allergy, uveitis, dysmenorrhoea, kidney diseases or conditions including glomerulonephritis and nephritic syndrome and prostate diseases or conditions such as benign prostate hyperplasia, and a wide variety of inflammatory disorders. The biologically active oils produced can also increase bone mass density and improve bone strength and connective tissue disorders.

[0062] The biologically active oils produced have also been noted to synergistically enhance the efficacy of a variety of pharmaceuticals including dexamethasone and prednisone. Such synergy is of great clinical benefit as raised levels of pro-inflammatory leukotrienes or 5-lipoxygenase are associated not only with asthma but also with rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, scleroderma and inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn's disease, and the administration of an active oil of the present invention allows lower doses of steroids to be used. (See FIG. 4 for the synergistic action of a lipoxygenase inhibitor plus a steroid.)

Problems solved by technology

However, due to recent adverse publicity by the press and government regulators there is an absolute requirement for alternative medicines to meet strict guidelines regarding the quality of the raw materials and the method of manufacture.

One of the major difficulties with alternative medicines is that the ingredients used are often composed of materials which in most cases may contain many different chemical compounds.

Hence there is an enormous challenge involved to ensure efficacy and safety of the products for use by society.

One of the major reasons for the lack of knowledge of the effectiveness of these products is that the alternative and complementary medical industry generally pride themselves on the fact these products are not animal tested, hence their claims cannot be validated.

However, many oils such as olive, evening primrose oil, flaxseed oil, cod liver oil and emu oil are used to treat a variety of medical conditions and diseases but virtually no attention has been paid to the difficulty in reproducing efficacy and safety data for these type of products.

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