DolCas Biotech, a New Jersey-based ingredients supplier, announced the launch of a highly-concentrated ginger root extract (Zingiber officinale roscoe) branded as Ginfort. The patented extract, formulated by Olene Life Sciences, contains bioactives targeting digestive support, and carries an approved digestive support claim.
 
DolCas reports that Ginfort’s extraction process solves common challenges formulators encounter, including three key parameters: low-dose actives, high clinical efficacy, and stability. Its high-potency action was reached due to the ingredient’s blend of food-grade inactives applied to a base material of solvent-free extracts of ginger oleoresins. Carbon dioxide is used to isolate and enrich the bioactive compounds of the ginger.
 
“The unique extraction process for Ginfort optimizes the functionality and potency of the oleoresin and other actives in ginger, bringing the millennia-long medicinal uses of ginger to the forefront of science and market development,” Vivek A. Parachur, co-founder and CEO of Olene said.
 
Ginger has long been used in traditional herbal medicine in both China and India for applications related to stomach distress, beyond the culinary properties it has. The underground rhizome of the ginger plant holds the bulk of its beneficial properties, most of which are attributed to the presence of volatile oils.
 
Gingerol is the most predominant bioactive compound of ginger and is responsible for its characteristic pungent flavor, and the 6-gingerol form is the most prominent gingeroid. It is also acclaimed for its spasmolytic (suppresses muscle spasms) activity on the gut wall, and its capacity to normalize gut motility (stretching and contraction of muscles in the GI tract). The phenolic compound is also associated with beneficial anti-inflammatory properties, and benefits to gastrointestinal membranes and other tissue types, DolCas said.
 
Other non-volatile oil components of ginger associated with digestive health support, gingerols and shagaols, make up less than 3% of fresh ginger. In dried extracts, these actives have been enriched to 5-10% in other products, though higher concentrates have caused stability concerns due to heat exposure and lengthy processing methods which could convert these nonvolatiles to less-active compounds. However, Ginfort’s patented production process concentrates the highly lipophilic gingeroids to a standard of 26%, and keeps them stabilized in their respective concentrations without compromising on free-flowing material, DolCas said, indicating that more than half of the 26% of standard bioactives is 6-gingerol.
 
“In the fourth quarter of a tumultuous 2020, and at the crossroads of the most festive, food-centered season, we decided to launch Ginfort as DolCas’ newest patented active, bringing our solution for digestive health to people across the globe,” Dr. Shavon Jackson-Michel, director of medical and scientific affairs, said.
 
DolCas will be holding a webinar on Ginfort through XTalks on Jan. 26, in which it will discuss  the topic of health resolutions and health commitments tied to the end of the holiday season. “Given our success with DolCas in turning Curcugen and Fortiquin into world leaders within the innovative supplement market, it seemed a natural fit to partner with them to bring our Ginfort high purity ginger extract powder in to the digestive health market,” Parachur said.
 
Ginfort has been evaluated for safety per OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) guidelines, and a study endorsing tis beneficial role in indigestion is pending publication within the coming months. “This upcoming study on digestive health will be among many trials to be performed on Ginfort, as the clinical possibilities are endless,” K. G. Rao, DolCas president and CEO, said. “An internal commitment to keep our brands commercially relevant through expanding and evolving science portfolios are key elements of our mission, but foundationally it begins with pioneering collaborations – such as we have developed with Olene.”
 
Ginfort is Halal-certified, and is pending Kosher certification, and can be applied to powder fills, soft gels, and liquid capsules, with integration into lozenges still being assessed.
 
For more information, contact info@dolcas-biotech.com.