Survey on the Quality of the Top-Selling European and American Botanical Dietary Supplements Containing Boswellic Acids

Meins, Jean-François Le; Artaria, Christian; Riva, Antonella; Morazzoni, Paolo; Schubert‐Zsilavecz, Manfred; Abdel‐Tawab, Mona

doi:10.1055/s-0042-103497

Cited by 18 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…AKBA and KBA are used as markers to ensure the quality of B. serrata dry extracts, but their concentrations show wide variability in commercial products, which in general claim 65% of BAs. In general, BAs represent only a percentage of total organic acids, whose concentrations are determined by unspecific titration methods and, as a consequence, the claimed content of 65% BAs is absolutely unrealistic as recently pointed out also by other authors [ 24 , 25 ]. Very low percentages of KBA and β BA were found in extract G compared to extract A.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anti‐Inflammatory Activity of Boswellia serrata Extracts: An In Vitro Study on Porcine Aortic Endothelial Cells

Bertocchi

Isani

Medici

et al. 2018

Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity

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This study is aimed at investigating the cytotoxicity, anti-inflammatory, and angiogenic activities of two Boswellia serrata extracts on primary culture of porcine aortic endothelial cells (pAECs). Chemical characterization of a dry extract (extract A) and a hydroenzymatic extract (extract G) of B. serrata was performed by HPLC using pure boswellic acids (BAs) as standard. In cultured pAECs, extract G improved cell viability, following LPS challenge, in a dose-dependent manner and did not show any toxic effect. On the other hand, extract A was toxic at higher doses and restored pAEC viability after LPS challenge only at lower doses. Pure BAs, used at the same concentrations as those determined in the phytoextracts, did not contrast LPS-induced cytotoxicity. Extract A showed proangiogenic properties at the lowest dose, and the same result was observed using pure AKBA at the corresponding concentration, whereas extract G did not show any effect on the migration capacity of endothelial cells. In conclusion, an anti-inflammatory activity of B. serrata extracts on endothelial cells was reported, though cytotoxicity or proliferative stimulation can occur instead of a protective effect, depending on the dose and the formulation.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anti‐Inflammatory Activity of Boswellia serrata Extracts: An In Vitro Study on Porcine Aortic Endothelial Cells

Bertocchi

Isani

Medici

et al. 2018

Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity

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“…Furthermore, the wide variations of pharmacologically active molecules in commercial BS formulations could significantly affect the final product [33]. …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antioxidant and Ex Vivo Immune System Regulatory Properties of Boswellia serrata Extracts

Beghelli

Isani

Roncada

et al. 2017

Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity

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Boswellia serrata (BS) is an important traditional medicinal plant that currently represents an interesting topic for pharmaceutical research since it possesses several pharmacological properties (e.g., anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and antitumour). The safety and versatility of this dietary supplement should allow for its use in numerous pathological conditions; however the quality of the extracts needs to be standardized to increase the clinical success rate resulting from its use. In the present study, different commercially available B. serrata extracts were employed to compare their AKBA content and in vitro antioxidant power. Furthermore, their ability to modulate the immune system regulatory properties was investigated. Our results showed that the AKBA content varied from 3.83 ± 0.10 to 0.03 ± 0.004%, with one sample in which it was not detectable. The highest antioxidant power and phenolic content were shown by the same extract, which also exhibited the highest AKBA concentration. Finally, the BS extracts showed the ability to influence the regulatory and effector T-cell compartments. Our results suggest that frankincense should be further investigated for its promising potentiality to modulate not only inflammation/oxidative stress but also immune dysregulation, but attention should be paid to the composition of the commercial extracts.

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“…One study [15] previously validated a high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method for the determination of AKBA and KBA concentrations in market formulations and a second study [16] used liquid chromatography and mass spectrometry to determine total boswellic acid content of seventeen market formulations and AKBA content of five market formulations administered to people. The primary objective of the current study was to determine the concentrations of AKBA and KBA within six human and seven canine market formulations containing B. serrata extract which are administered to dogs, using a derivation of the previously validated HPLC method [15].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Measurement of 3-acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid and 11-keto-beta-boswellic acid in Boswellia serrata Supplements Administered to Dogs

2019

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Background Osteoarthritis is a common canine disease frequently treated with nutritional supplements that often lack independent verification of ingredients, active ingredient concentration, efficacy, or safety. Human supplements containing Boswellia serrata extracts (BSE) with high concentrations of active constituents 3-acetyl-11-keto-β-boswellic acid (AKBA) and 11-keto-β-boswellic acid (KBA) are bioavailable, safe, and efficacious in the alleviation of symptoms of naturally occurring osteoarthritis in people. Thus, oral AKBA and/or KBA supplementation could be a promising novel therapy for dogs with osteoarthritis. The primary objective of this study was to determine the concentrations of AKBA and KBA within six human and seven canine market formulations containing BSE administered to dogs, using a derivation of the previously validated high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) method. The secondary objective was to compare measured concentrations to label claims. Results The mean concentrations of AKBA and KBA within the formulations tested were 42.3 mg/g AF (0.1–155.7 mg/g AF) and 5.2 mg/g AF (0–24.8 mg/g AF), respectively, with four of the formulations containing an undetectable amount of KBA. None of the market formulations had a label claim for KBA. For the five tested formulations with a label claim for AKBA, the mean percentage of detected AKBA was 173% of the concentration listed on the label (range: 114–224%). Formulations claiming to contain AKBA had a mean AKBA concentration of 98.2 mg/g AF, significantly higher than formulations claiming only to contain BSE (7.4 mg/g AF; p = 0.01). Conclusions This study demonstrated a large variation of boswellic acid concentrations in market formulations claiming to contain BSE, with products claiming to contain AKBA containing higher concentrations of AKBA than other products. There was also a large variation in, and overall high, percent difference between label claims and measured concentrations of AKBA. All products met or exceeded label claims. However, differences between label amounts and detected concentrations confirm the need for independent laboratories to quantify concentrations of active ingredients in supplements containing BSE. This would be necessary prior to the use of these formulations in the research or clinical setting.

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Survey on the Quality of the Top-Selling European and American Botanical Dietary Supplements Containing Boswellic Acids

Cited by 18 publications

References 16 publications

Anti‐Inflammatory Activity of Boswellia serrata Extracts: An In Vitro Study on Porcine Aortic Endothelial Cells

Anti‐Inflammatory Activity of Boswellia serrata Extracts: An In Vitro Study on Porcine Aortic Endothelial Cells

Antioxidant and Ex Vivo Immune System Regulatory Properties of Boswellia serrata Extracts

Measurement of 3-acetyl-11-keto-beta-boswellic acid and 11-keto-beta-boswellic acid in Boswellia serrata Supplements Administered to Dogs

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