by Steve Dillingham
Many believe the ocean is where life first started. Then it is no surprise, perhaps, that the biggest potential source for new, bioactive ingredients for the health and beauty market may originate from the same place. With so many new species of marine life still to be discovered, the potential for new marine-derived compounds and extracts is immense, and the industry is poised for accelerated development in the near future.
Later this year, the final results of the Census of Marine Life will be revealed. This 10-year ambitious initiative, driven by a global network of researchers in about 80 nations, is intended to assess and explain the diversity, distribution and abundance of marine life in the world’s oceans. This massive study will tell us about newly identified marine organisms and marine life not previously known. This news is exciting, as new promising bacteria, organisms and compounds will be likely discovered, providing a potential treasure trove of new marine ingredient products.
SeaQuarius, a marine cosmeceutical company based in Florida, finds this very exciting as well. Rick Fox, president of SeaQuarius, is optimistic about the direction this new discovery effort could lead for his company, and the industry as a whole. Although the bulk of marine bioprospecting activity today is targeted for marine compounds effective in disease prevention and cure, SeaQuarius is hopeful more attention will be given to other applications in the future, such as for cosmetics and personal care. With the recent advancements in DNA sequencing and screening, combined with the increased efforts in marine bioprospecting, the natural expectation is there will be an exponential increase in new compounds of potential interest, including compounds which could exhibit valuable properties for possible use in cosmetics, personal care and nutraceuticals.
Work in this area is currently ongoing in the northern part of Norway through their MabCent consortium, including bioprospecting and screening activities, and a Biobank. MabCent’s discovery area lies off the coast of Northern Norway, which is considered a rich hunting ground for marine species such as bacteria, crustaceans, mollusks, annelids and sponges producing novel compounds of interest. In Scotland, they are opening a new £1.6M Marine Biodiscovery Center this summer, where research will target high-value chemicals for use in such applications as pharmaceuticals, nutraceuticals and personal care products. The activities at both centers promise strong potential for new raw material discoveries and ingredient sources for the cosmetic industry.
There also is a growing interest in marine microalgae, which offer a unique opportunity to deliver functional ingredients for the cosmetic market with the advantages of being plant-derived, natural, sustainable and highly novel. Existing microalgal products include carotenoids and fatty acids, but it is certain that a vast number of new microalgal-based functional ingredients will appear over the coming years. Among these are novel polysaccharide products which could replace existing seaweed-derived polysaccharides and provide a wide range of novel functional saccharides.
GlycoMar Ltd., a Scottish marine biotechnology company, is focused on identifying microalgae species—which will grow heterotrophically (by fermentation)—an approach which will provide novel natural ingredients amendable to industrial-scale production toward markets such as personal care and cosmetics, based on their valuable biological properties, including anti-inflammatory activity.
Aquapharm Biodiscovery Ltd., also based in Scotland, is pioneering the discovery and development of new products derived from marine microorganisms. Through the application of proprietary technologies, the company has been able to culture and investigate previously unculturable microbes, and thus, has built a substantial and specialized collection of unique marine bacteria and fungi. Aquapharm is actively screening its collection for novel functional ingredients, and within personal care, the company is focused on developing marine actives, which provide anti-inflammatory, sun protection, skin whitening, anti-microbial and anti-fungal properties, when applied topically to skin, hair or nails.
Magellan Bioscience Group, a discovery company based in Florida with a library containing more than 13,000 unique marine microbes and 60,000 diverse fungal strains, has seen a 10-fold increase in their marine extract business targeted to personal care and cosmetics over the last eight months. A company traditionally targeting the drug discovery and pharmaceutical markets, Magellan credits the recent surge to a “move to nature” by the personal care industry looking for novel ingredients, and the shorter time to market for a new cosmeceutical ingredient versus a new drug. They expect this positive trend to continue.
Aqua Bio Technology AS, a Norwegian marine biotechnology company, recently announced the global launch of ZONASE X™, a new natural anti-aging ingredient composed of marine enzymes and peptides. The enzyme was first discovered at the salmon hatcheries in Norway, where staff members were noted to have surprisingly smooth hands. The enzyme was found to help break the eggshell during hatching, and has been shown to have a protein structure similar to corneum proteins of human skin. The company has since fully tested the enzyme and peptide mixture, and is now marketing the ingredient as a natural and gentle exfoliant ingredient to the personal care and cosmeceutical market.
The Natural Extracts Team within Plant and Food Research in New Zealand, lead by Susan Marshall, Ph.D., is working to extract, understand and improve the functional characteristics of molecules from shellfish, marine plants and the non-fillet portion of fish. They are currently developing a range of collagen products with different molecular weights from the skin of a sustainably managed, New Zealand deep-water fish called hoki (Macruronus novaezelandiae). At least one of these is destined for the beverages/beauty shots sector, whereas some of the others have more potential in tablets and topical applications. Plant and Food Research places a significant emphasis on analysis and on process development—including the development of enzyme-based technologies to make products with the least possible environmental impact in terms of chemical and energy usage, and waste generation. We expect to see the environment-friendly angle in the commercial scale production of marine ingredients being played much more significantly industry-wide.
New technologies are also on the horizon for incorporating popular nutritional ingredients into cosmetic formulas, including marine-derived ingredients such as omega-3. Among the reported effects of omega-3 on skin is the stimulation of tissue repair and enhancement of collagen production. Omegatri AS out of Norway has developed a technology for the nanoencapsulation of omega-3 fatty acids for use in cosmetic formulations. The encapsulation technology protects the fatty acids against oxidation and, together with an optimized antioxidant mixture, keeps the fatty acids fresh. The nanoencapsulation technology also works as a vehicle for delivering the omega-3 lipids into the skin, and can withstand high temperatures, making it suitable for use in skin care formulation.
What’s been seen and heard in a relatively short period of time is an explosion of activity to develop new marine actives worldwide. This increase is expected to continue over the long haul, based on the input from our global network, clients and collaboration partners, and the discovery efforts going on worldwide. There is an optimistic view on the future potential for marine ingredients within the health and wellness sector—including the personal care and beauty markets—as the time-to-market and costs for developing and commercializing promising new marine active ingredients are much lower than new drug and pharmaceuticals developments.
Steve Dillingham is principal of Strategro International, a go-to-market and business growth consultancy focused on the commercial development of functional ingredients towards the health and wellness sector, including functional foods, nutraceuticals, cosmeceuticals and the life-science sector. Dillingham, an avid Aquapreneur®, with a special passion for marine biotechnology and marine-derived ingredients, actively follows new global developments within these fields, keeping Strategro’s network updated on commercial activities and opportunities via the Aquapreneur.com blog, Linkedin group and Twitter. He can be contacted at [email protected] or (973)324-0700.