Collagen is the most common protein found in the human body. It is the main component of connective tissue and is the most abundant protein in mammals, making up 25-35 percent of total protein. It is found in: hard tissue (ligaments, tendons) soft tissue (skin, intestine) structural tissue (bone, inter-vertebral disc) The protein of collagen reduces as we age. Our bodies lose collagen at a rate of about 1.5 percent per year from the age of 25. This means when we reach 45, we would have lost 30 percent of collagen. Today, with the growth of anti-aging medicine, there is tremendous interest in collagen.
Mammalian Pig and cow have lots of cultural issues. With Australian patents and extraction technology, it allows us to extract collagen from the skin of sheep. Sheep (ovine) collagen faces no cultural or religion issues. Sheep collagen from Australia is sourced from animals that carry a “Disease Free Sheep” certification, the only such certification in the world.   Bird This is a good warm-blooded source. The most common are chicken and duck. However, these animals are not genetically close to mammal. The other concern is disease as there is frequent outbreak of bird disease, the Avian Flu.   Fish Toxic heavy metals in the ocean are global problems that are a growing threat to humanity. These fishes are contaminated to toxins such as metals, mercury, lead and arsenic. Moreover, fish is cold-blooded and not genetically close to human.
In the past, collagen has been manufactured from bovine (cow) and porcine (pig) skins through a process of acid solubilisation and enzymatic digestion to yield hydrolyzed Type I/III collagen. In recent times, bovine collagen has become less desirable due to safety issues surrounding Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies (BSE - Mad cow disease). Products produced from bovine and porcine sources are also not acceptable to all global cultures because of religious reasons. Now ovine collagen is available.
Collagen Sources and their characteristics. COLLAGEN Ovinex Bovine Marine Porcine Source Sheep Cow Fish Pig Tissue Skin Skin Scales Skin Type I/III I/III I/III I/III Disease issue No Mad Cow Disease (BSE) Not Known Many Known Disease Cultural Sensitivity None Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist None Islam, Jewish Halal Yes No Yes No Traceability/QA Yes Yes No Yes Thermal stability High High Low High Mammalian-derived collagen is genetically closest to humans and least likely to cause allergy or rejection. You need to draw collagen from big mammal like sheep, pig and cow that is cultivated domestically in large numbers.
Collagen is the major structural protein found in human connective tissue and is widely accepted as safe and natural biomaterial for the manufacture of a broad range of medical products. In the wound-healing arena, collagen is found in numerous dressings, dermal substitutes and tissue engineered skin equivalents. However, since the advent of Mad Cow Disease, there has been a market need for a safe and acceptable collagen source to replace bovine collagen used in existing collagen-based healthcare products. Ovine (sheep) collagen obtained from an isolated disease-free herd in Australia is the most sensible alternative. It has many advantages over bovine, marine or porcine sources of collagen, including being safe, fully traceable from the “farm to the solution” and culturally acceptable worldwide (acceptable to Muslim, Hindu and Buddhist populations as opposed to porcine and bovine collagen).