BioActor Acquires Arabinoxylan-Assets from DF3-WITAXOS

BIOACTOR has acquired patents, know-how and clinical data relating to short-chain wheat arabinoxylans from DF3-WITAXOS. BIOACTOR’s arabinoxylan ingredient obtained positive EFSA opinion for glycaemic control.

16 April 2012 --- BIOACTOR B.V. has acquired certain patents, manufacturing know-how and clinical data from DF3-WITAXOS. Moreover, DF3-WITAXOS’ managing director, Yann Dugenet, has joined BIOACTOR as Director Product Development.

BIOACTOR has already a long-chain Arabinoxylan ingredient derived from wheat endosperm in its portfolio, NAXUS, which recently obtained a positive EFSA Opinion for glycaemic control, and for which promising scientific evidence was recently obtained towards other health endpoints. Hans van der Saag, BIOACTOR’s managing director comments; “The addition of short-chain Arabinoxylans which are derived from the same raw material source as our long chain Arabinoxylans-ingredient, further strengthens our portfolio of patented specialty fibers with clinically proven health effects”.

DF3 WITAXOS obtained excellent clinical data on prebiotic effects of its short-chain Arabinoxylans in a collaborative clinical trial with Institut Pasteur in Lille. Those results were consistent with earlier positive results from in-vitro experiments and in vivo tests on animal models. The integration of this ingredient in the NAXUS range of Arabinoxylan specialty fibers will allow for economies of scale in manufacturing and offers customers more choice in application possibilities.

EFSA has issued a positive opinion for a health claim on glycaemic control in connection with arabinoxylans produced from wheat endosperm. EFSA proposes the following wording for the health claim: “Consumption of arabinoxylan contributes to a reduction of the glucose rise after a meal”. NAXUS is wheat endosperm derived arabinoxylan, which has been tested in several human studies and directly benefits from this health claim.

NAXUS is also being studied for immune modulation in the context of a 6 million Euro European research project – FIBEBIOTICS –, which is coordinated by Wageningen University (www.fibebiotics.eu).