Clinical studies
Thirty-seven independent studies. The ones we publish in full.
Joint comfort, skin aging, hyaluronic acid in the blood, recovery after training, and safety. These are the human trials and papers from the original clinicals page — not slogans. The composition comparison — how the patented liquid mirrors articular cartilage — lives on the Science page.
7
U.S. and international patents
37
Independent clinical studies
12
Weeks to photographed skin change
89%
Reported improved joint comfort*
Joints
01
89% improved
Joint comfort — 45 days
Eighty-nine adults with joint discomfort took 2 grams of BioCell Collagen daily for 45 days. Eighty subjects (89%) reported improved joint comfort. One person on placebo improved. No adverse events were reported.
02
Up to 40% vs placebo
Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled — 8 weeks
Sixteen subjects with joint discomfort took 2 grams daily for 8 weeks. Using the WOMAC index, BioCell Collagen reduced joint discomfort by as much as 40% compared with placebo. No adverse events. Presented at Experimental Biology, 2004, Washington, D.C.
03
71% had ≥30% less discomfort
Confirmatory joint trial — 10 weeks
Eighty subjects, 2 grams daily, WOMAC index. Significant reduction in joint discomfort, confirming the earlier trial. A minimum 30% less discomfort in 71% of subjects taking BioCell Collagen. No adverse events.
04
Superior to placebo
Osteoarthritis pilot — Miami Research Associates
Dr. Eric Sheldon, rheumatologist and voluntary instructor at the University of Miami School of Medicine, ran a placebo-controlled pilot in 16 men and women with osteoarthritis for 8 weeks. Daily BioCell Collagen II (type II collagen, chondroitin sulfate, and hyaluronic acid) produced clinically meaningful improvements significantly superior to placebo, with no greater incidence of adverse events. “We used a symptom assessment tool that is used routinely in OA drug studies and the results are encouraging.”
Sheldon, E. Miami Research Associates, April 25, 2003
Skin
05
Collagen, hydration, microcirculation
Natural and photoaging of facial skin — 12 weeks
Twenty-six adults undergoing chronological and photoaging of the face took 1 gram daily for 12 weeks. Qualitative and quantitative tools measured wrinkles, fine lines, dermal collagen, hydration, and blood microcirculation. Significant reduction in facial lines, wrinkles, dryness, and scaling; significant increase in dermal collagen. No adverse events.
Absorption
06
Up to 60-fold in blood
Hyaluronic acid bioavailability — 28 days
Subjects taking Liquid BioCell (1,500 mg/day) for 28 days increased steady-state hyaluronic acid in blood as much as 60-fold. Liquid BioCell also deactivates hyaluronidase, the enzyme that degrades HA.
07
Peak 7,008% above control
Peak absorption of HA — 36 hours
Dr. William Judy, SIBR Research, called this “groundbreaking science.” In a 36-hour peak-absorption study, BioCell Collagen II HA rose in blood by four hours and peaked at 7,008.62% above control at 12 hours (P=0.05), then metabolized to two metabolites 1/600th the size of ingested HA. In a 28-day steady-state study, after seven days HA held at 3,542.58% above control and the HA metabolite at 11,890.15% above control (p=0.001). Unlike earlier oral HA forms, this reduced-molecular-weight HA is absorbed.
The FASEB Journal · Judy, W. SIBR, February 2, 2004
Recovery
08
Lower stress markers
Recovery after weight training
Blood markers of muscular stress — creatine kinase, lactate dehydrogenase, and C-reactive protein — improved versus placebo after exercise challenges. Post-challenge performance decrement was smaller in the BioCell Collagen group.
Safety
09
Well tolerated at all doses
Acute and subchronic oral toxicity in rats
Acute: five male and five female Sprague-Dawley rats received a single 5,000 mg/kg dose and were observed 14 days; all survived, normal weight gain, no gross lesions. Subchronic: 80 rats received 0, 30, 300, or 1,000 mg/kg daily for 90+ days; all survived, no toxicologically significant dose-related changes. The hydrolyzed chicken sternal cartilage preparation (collagen type II, chondroitin sulfate, HA) was well tolerated at all four doses.
Schauss AG, Merkel DJ, Glaza SM, Sorenson SR. Food Chem Toxicol. 2007;45(2):315-21 →
Additional papers
The supporting literature next to the trials.
Hyaluronan synthesis and degradation in cartilage and bone
HA participates in joint-cavity formation, longitudinal bone growth, and adult cartilage resilience by immobilizing aggrecan. Synthesis and degradation are tightly regulated; aberrant activity causes disease.
Bastow ER et al. Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences 65:395–413
Immunomodulatory and anti-inflammatory effects of chondroitin sulphate
CS reduces IL-1β-driven signaling (p38MAPK/Erk1/2, NF-κB) and pro-inflammatory cytokines in cartilage, synovium, and bone.
Du Souich P et al. Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine 13(8a):1451–1463 (2009)
Collagen hydrolysate for osteoarthritis and other joint disorders — a review
Orally administered collagen hydrolysate is absorbed, accumulates in cartilage, and stimulates extracellular-matrix synthesis by chondrocytes (p < 0.05). Safe, with improved pain and function in OA.
Bello AE, Oesser S. Curr Med Res Opin. 2006;22(11):2221-32
Role of collagen hydrolysate in bone and joint disease
10 g daily pharmaceutical-grade collagen hydrolysate reduced knee and hip OA pain, increased blood hydroxyproline, and showed preferential cartilage uptake.
Moskowitz RW. Semin Arthritis Rheum. 2000;30(2):87-99
Anti-inflammatory activity of chondroitin sulfate
Rapid absorption with tropism for cartilage; increases synovial HA and viscosity and decreases collagenolytic activity. Generally safer than NSAIDs in the papers reviewed.
Ronca F et al. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 1998;6 Suppl A:14-21
Clinical review of chondroitin sulfate in osteoarthritis
Evidence 1A for knee, finger, and hip OA; slow-acting with carry-over; comparable to NSAIDs for symptoms; structure-modifying signals; well tolerated. 800 mg/day performed similarly to 1,200 mg/day.
Uebelhart D. Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2008;16 Suppl 3:S19-21
Collagen fragmentation promotes oxidative stress in aged human skin
Aged dermis expresses more MMP-1. Fragmented collagen reduces fibroblast stretch, raises oxidant levels, and feeds a cycle of further collagen breakdown.
Fisher GJ et al. on MMP-1 and aged skin fibroblasts
Chronic UVB irradiation causes loss of dermal hyaluronic acid
In mice, 182 days of UVB depleted papillary-dermis HA via down-regulation of HAS1–3 (not hyaluronidases). TGF-β1, which induces HAS enzymes, also fell.
Dai G et al. on UVB and hyaluronic acid synthases
Degraded collagen stimulates type II collagen in chondrocytes
Bovine chondrocytes cultured with collagen hydrolysate increased type II collagen secretion in a dose-dependent way. Native collagen and a wheat-protein hydrolysate did not.
Oesser S, Seifert J. Cell Tissue Res. 2003;311:393-399
Hyaluronic acid in cutaneous intrinsic aging
Alcian Blue staining showed a progressive loss of dermal HA granules and filaments until they were absent around age 60 — a proposed driver of lost turgor, wrinkling, and altered elasticity.
Ghersetich I et al. on HA in aged dermis
Oral type II collagen in rheumatoid arthritis
Multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 274 patients with active RA randomized to placebo or 20, 100, 500, or 2,500 µg/day oral CII for 24 weeks. A novel immune-tolerance approach; listed on the original site as related collagen science, not as a BioCell Collagen trial.
Barnett ML et al. Arthritis Rheum. multicenter CII trial
Hyaluronic acid stimulates fibroblast proliferation in a collagen matrix
Fibroblasts in collagen lattices delayed division until day 4. Adding 150 µg/ml HA stimulated division, raised tubulin, and reduced the 4N DNA block — relevant to how HA and collagen talk to dermal cells.
Greco RM et al. on HA in fibroblast-populated collagen lattices
Summaries of published and presented work on the patented formula. Individual results vary. This is not medical advice. Liquid BioCell® and BioCell Collagen® are trademarks of their owners.