This article is sponsored by ChitoLytic, Inc., a North American biotech manufacturer and supplier of chitosan, a linear polysaccharide derived from chitin, which is found in crustacean shells. The company supplies chitosan to research and development, industrial, biomedical, and pharmaceutical companies.
Excess exposure to ultraviolet (UV) radiation is a leading cause of skin cancer. However, conventional chemical-based UV sunscreens, while effective in shielding against UV radiation, can harm living organisms and the environment. To address these issues, it’s important to develop effective, safe, biocompatible, and environmentally friendly alternatives.
An international team of researchers led by Vincent Bulone, Ph.D., director of the Centre for Marine Bioproducts Development and professor at Flinders University in Australia, has developed a novel all-natural sunscreen formulation using two inherently UV-absorbing compounds: chitosan and mycosporines and mycosporine-like amino acids (MMA).
To scale up this groundbreaking technology to market, the research team has partnered with ChitoLytic, Inc., a U.S.- and Canada-based company that is a major supplier of chitosan. The research team is seeking commercializing partners to bring this technology for large-scale market distribution.
“Chitosan is derived from chitin, a natural polysaccharide found mostly in crustacean shells, such as crabs and shrimps, and plant-based sources such as mushrooms,” says Michel Lockhart, CEO of ChitoLytic, Inc. “The MMA are extracted from marine-based algae species. Combining them with chitosan has resulted in chitosan-MMA matrices designed to provide safe, effective protection against the damaging effects of UV-A and UV-B radiations and the use of current chemical-based UV protective products. It’s safe, biocompatible, photo-resistant, and thermo-resistant, and exhibits safe and highly efficient absorption of UV radiations.”
Many current commercial sunscreens contain chemicals like oxybenzone that may harm fish, coral, sea urchins, and other aquatic life. Applied on the skin, these chemicals can cause skin irritation, be absorbed into the body, and disrupt endocrine function.
Dr. Bulone says, “We have demonstrated that the CS-MAA complex is highly effective against both UV-A and UV-B radiation. Based on its properties, it has a potential UV protective capacity surpassing that of current products. In addition, these materials preserve numerous free amino groups on chitosan, enabling further modification of the polymer with other active molecules to create yet other multifunctional materials. It is truly a flexible material in that it can be provided in various forms, e.g., films, creams, liquids, etc.”
ChitoLytic supplies high-grade chitosan, specialty chitosans, and custom chitosan materials. Their chitosan products primarily target cosmetic, nutraceutical, food and beverage, animal feed and agriculture (as a biofertilizer and biopesticide), biomedical, pharmaceutical, and other applications.
Learn more about ChitoLytic and their chitosan products.
