Look in our library, says Intermed
A German firm with one of the world's largest databases of natural products is looking to partner with ingredients firms or food manufacturers seeking biologically-active ingredients from fungi, plants or bacteria.
Intermed Discovery, which has just signed a cooperation agreement with ingredients giant Cognis, was launched in 2006 by senior executives at Bayer Healthcare's natural products research unit, said md Bernard Becker.
"We had spent 20 years putting together an unrivalled library of active compounds and mixtures from natural products. Someone else could do the same, but we have a 20-year head start!
"Today, we have more than 15,000 pure compounds in our datebase and a team of scientists with years of experience in identifying and developing natural products for the pharmaceutical trade."Now we are taking that expertise into the food, cosmeceuticals and cosmetics markets."
Using proprietary 'bioprofiling' screening technology, Intermed can find natural compounds that mirror the activity of substances known to be active in particular areas, such as lipid metabolism or cognitive function, said Becker.
"We can identify novel active ingredients with specific applications and start testing them knowing that they are likely to have the desired effects. It's not a random process."
Intermed currently has 10 projects exploring natural products benefiting mental function, cardiovascular health and weight management at an advanced stage, and a further 31 projects at an "exploratory" stage, said Becker.
"In several cases, we are already at the patent filing stage. We use our database to select potential compounds of interest, put them through in vitro and in vivo testing to get a proof of concept and then take them to potential partners."
