Steffen Oesser’s research while affiliated with Citrus Research Institute and other places

Objective Osteoarthritis (OA) is the most common joint disorder in humans and dogs. Due to its chronic progressive nature, the predominant clinical signs after a certain point are pain and immobility. The similar pathogenesis allows conclusions to be drawn from canine to human OA. Current treatments are limited and often attempt to treat OA symptoms rather than improve joint structure and function. Collagen hydrolysates as oral supplements are a promising therapeutic option to achieve this advanced therapeutic aim in both species. The effects of oral supplementation were therefore investigated in canine OA patients. Method In a systematic, placebo-controlled, double-blind interventional study in 31 dogs with naturally occurring OA, the efficacy of oral supplementation of specific bioactive collagen peptides (BCP) was tested in comparison to the approved combination of the active substances omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin E. The dogs were examined on a horizontal treadmill with 4 integrated piezoelectric force plates at the beginning and end of a twelve-week test period. At both points, the owners completed a specific questionnaire containing the validated Canine Brief Pain Inventory (CBPI) and the dogs were fitted with accelerometers to record total daily activity data. Results Only the oral supplementation of BCP resulted in a significant improvement of several kinetic parameters measured using a force-plate fitted treadmill, and the quality of life assessed by CBPI, while accelerometry was unaffected by the intervention. Conclusion The results of this three-month BCP supplementation study using objective measurement parameters in dogs with naturally occurring OA demonstrate an efficacy, suggesting the therapeutic use of BCP in canine OA patients and demonstrating the relevance of this collagen hydrolysate formulation for the treatment of OA in human patients as well.

Conservative therapy options in canine osteoarthritis (OA) are largely limited to pain relief, which can be associated with undesirable effects. Beneficial effects of a specific BCP have been demonstrated in equine OA patients and in in-vitro studies with canine chondrocytes based on an increase in cartilage matrix molecules and downregulating of inflammatory cytokines and degenerative matrix metalloproteases1,2. A positive impact of specific BCP on joint cartilage was also detected by magnetic resonance imaging3. In a double blinded, placebo-controlled field study, effects of a 12 wk supplementation with this specific BCP vs. n3-fatty acids plus vitamin E (n3FA) on the gait were investigated in dogs with OA. The assessment of pet owners on the quality of life (QoL) was evaluated using the validated Canine Brief Pain Inventory4 Score. Privately owned adult dogs (n = 31) previously diagnosed with OA were randomly allocated to group BCP (PETAGILE, GELITA, Germany), n3FA, or placebo (PLA). The supplements were dosed according to body weight (BW; ≥ 200 mg BCP or PLA/kg BW; ≥ 550mg n3FA + 2mg vitamin E/kg BW). Inclusion criteria were a BW between 10 and 60 kg and restricted use of anti-inflammatory medication or nutraceuticals. Initially and after 12 wk, the dogs were examined on a custom-made treadmill equipped with 4 modified Kistler pressure plates. Differences between the groups, time points as well as the affected and contralateral limbs were evaluated using a generalized linear model. The improvement in QoL was greater in BCP than n3FA and PLA. The treadmill, as more objective method5, showed a significant difference of vertical force (PVF), vertical impact and standing phase between affected and contralateral limbs in group BCP. The improvement of the applied pressure, measured as relative difference of PVF, was significantly better in BCP as in PLA. In the placebo group, all measured parameters tended to worsen whereas in group n3FA no systematic differences between both time points were detected. The results of this study demonstrate that oral administration of a specific BCP can slow down the progression and improve clinical signs after only 12 wk in canine OA patients. Therefore, this safe nutritional therapy option should be considered in dogs with OA. References:[1] Dobenecker, B., Reese, S., Jahn, W. et al. (2018). J Anim Physiol Anim Nutr, 102, 16-23. [2] Schunck, M., Louton, H., & Oesser, S. (2017). J Anim Sci, 7, 254 [3] McAlindon, T. E., Nuite, M., Krishnan, N. et al. (2011). 19(4), 399-405. [4] Brown et al. (2008). J Am Vet Med Assoc, 233(8), 1278-1283. [5] Brown et al. (2013) J Vet Int Med, 27(1), 22-30.

In a double blinded, placebo controlled field study, effects of a 12 week supplementation with this specific BCP vs. n3-fatty acids plus vitamin E (n3FA) on the gait were investigated in dogs with OA. The pet owners’ assessment of the quality of life (QoL) was evaluated using the validated Canine Brief Pain Inventory4 sore.

The intake of specific collagen peptides (SCPs) has been shown to decrease activity-related knee pain in young, physically active adults. This trial investigated the effect of a 12-week SCP supplementation in a wider age range of healthy men and women over 18 years with functional knee and hip pain during daily activities. A total of 182 participants were randomly assigned to receive either 5 g of specific collagen peptides (CP-G) or a placebo (P-G). Pain at rest and during various daily activities were assessed at baseline and after 12 weeks by a physician and participants using a 10-point numeric rating scale (NRS). The intake of 5 g SCP over 12 weeks significantly reduced pain at rest (p = 0.018) and during walking (p = 0.032) according to the physician’s evaluation. Participants in the CP-G also reported significantly less pain when climbing stairs (p = 0.040) and when kneeling down (p < 0.001) compared to the P-G. Additionally, after 12 weeks, restrictions when squatting were significantly lower in the CP-G compared with the P-G (p = 0.014). The daily intake of 5 g of SCP seems to benefit healthy adults with hip and knee joint discomforts by reducing pain during daily activities.

Introduction Collagen peptide supplementation in conjunction with exercise has been shown to improve structural and functional adaptations of both muscles and the extracellular matrix. This study aimed to explore whether specific collagen peptide (SCP) supplementation combined with a concurrent training intervention can improve muscular stress after exercise-induced muscle damage, verified by reliable blood markers. Methods 55 sedentary to moderately active males participating in a concurrent training (CT) intervention (3x/week) for 12 weeks were administered either 15 g of SCP or placebo (PLA) daily. Before (T1) and after the intervention (T2), 150 muscle-damaging drop jumps were performed. Blood samples were collected to measure creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), myoglobin (MYO) and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) before, after, and at 2 h, 24 h and 48 h post exercise. Results A combination of concurrent training and SCP administration showed statistically significant interaction effects, implying a lower increase in the area under the curve (AUC) of MYO (p = 0.004, ηp² = 0.184), CK (p = 0.01, ηp² = 0.145) and LDH (p = 0.016, ηp² = 0.133) in the SCP group. On closer examination, the absolute mean differences (ΔAUCs) showed statistical significance in MYO (p = 0.017, d = 0.771), CK (p = 0.039, d = 0.633) and LDH (p = 0.016, d = 0.764) by SCP supplementation. Conclusion In conclusion, 12 weeks of 15 g SCP supplementation combined with CT intervention reduced acute markers of exercise-induced muscle damage and improved post-exercise regenerative capacity, as evidenced by the altered post-exercise time course. The current findings indicate that SCP supplementation had a positive effect on the early phase of muscular recovery by either improving the structural integrity of the muscle and extracellular matrix during the training period or by accelerating membrane and cytoskeletal protein repair. Clinical trial registration https://www.clinicaltrials.gov/study/NCT05220371?cond=NCT05220371&rank=1, NCT05220371.

Introduction It has been shown that short-term ingestion of collagen peptides improves markers related to muscular recovery following exercise-induced muscle damage. The objective of the present study was to investigate whether and to what extent a longer-term specific collagen peptide (SCP) supplementation combined with a training intervention influences recovery markers following eccentric exercise-induced muscle damage. Methods Fifty-five predominantly sedentary male participants were assigned to consume either 15 g SCP or placebo (PLA) and engage in a concurrent training (CT) intervention (30 min each of resistance and endurance training, 3x/week) for 12 weeks. Before (T1) and after the intervention (T2), eccentric muscle damage was induced by 150 drop jumps. Measurements of maximum voluntary contraction (MVC), rate of force development (RFD), peak RFD, countermovement jump height (CMJ), and muscle soreness (MS) were determined pre-exercise, immediately after exercise, and 24 and 48 h post-exercise. In addition, body composition, including fat mass (FM), fat-free mass (FFM), body cell mass (BCM) and extracellular mass (ECM) were determined at rest both before and after the 12-week intervention period. Results Three-way mixed ANOVA showed significant interaction effects in favor of the SCP group. MVC ( p = 0.02, ηp ² = 0.11), RFD ( p < 0.01, ηp ² = 0.18), peak RFD ( p < 0.01, ηp ² = 0.15), and CMJ height ( p = 0.046, ηp ² = 0.06) recovered significantly faster in the SCP group. No effects were found for muscle soreness ( p = 0.66) and body composition (FM: p = 0.41, FFM: p = 0.56, BCM: p = 0.79, ECM: p = 0.58). Conclusion In summary, the results show that combining specific collagen peptide supplementation (SCP) and concurrent training (CT) over a 12-week period significantly improved markers reflecting recovery, specifically in maximal, explosive, and reactive strength. It is hypothesized that prolonged intake of collagen peptides may support muscular adaptations by facilitating remodeling of the extracellular matrix. This, in turn, could enhance the generation of explosive force. Clinical trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov , identifier ID: NCT05220371.

Einführung: Mögliche konservative Therapien der caninen Osteoarthrose (OA) sind weitestgehend auf die Schmerzlinderung begrenzt und oftmals mit unerwünschten Wir-kungen verbunden. In Studien an Pferden und Hunden sowie durch in-vitro Studien an caninen Chondrozyten (Vermehrung extrazellulärer Matrixmoleküle; Senkung inflammatorischer Zytokine und degenerativer Matrixmetalloproteasen) konnten positive Effekte von oral verabreichten BCP festgestellt werden 1,2. Diese positiven Effekte auf den Gelenkknorpel konnten auch im MRT nachgewiesen werden 3. Ziel dieser Studie war es, die Effekte einer 3monatigen Supplementierung mit BCP auf das Gangbild von Hunden mit OA mit der Wirkung eines anderen Verums (n3-Fettsäuren, Vit. E) und eines Placebos (doppelblind) zu vergleichen.

Non-surgical therapy options in canine osteoarthritis (OA) are limited mostly to pain management, some of which bear the risk of serious side effects. Bene¬ficial effects of a specific BCP have been demonstrated for example in horses and dogs with OA as well as in in vitro studies with canine chondrocytes by increasing extracellular cartilage matrix molecules (type II collagen) and downregulating of inflammatory cyto¬kines and degenerative matrix metalloproteases1,2. McAlindon et al. confirmed a positive effect of specific BCP on joint cartilage, measured by the gold standard magnetic reso¬nance imaging3. In a double blinded, placebo controlled field study, effects of a 12 week supplementation with this specific BCP in comparison with a mixture of n3-fatty acids and vitamin E (n3FA), respectively, on the gait of dogs with OA were investigated.

High prevalence of OA with its considerable impact on the quality of life of the patient underlines the necessity to have safe and effective treatment options. The efficacy of nutraceuticals for OA treatment is often evaluated using owner questionnaires1,2. However, the assessment by this method has been shown to be subjective1. Additionally to an owner questionnaire, we used accelerometer measurements as presumably more objective method as well to evaluate the effects of specific bioactive collagen peptides (BCP) and another verum in dogs with OA.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of specific collagen peptides (SCP) combined with resistance training (RT) on changes in tendinous and muscular properties. In a randomized, placebo‐controlled study, 40 healthy male volunteers (age: 26.3 ± 4.0 years) completed a 14‐week high‐load resistance training program. One group received a daily dosage of 5g SCP while the other group received 5g of a placebo (PLA) supplement. Changes in Achilles tendon cross‐sectional area (CSA), tendon stiffness, muscular strength and thickness of the plantar flexors were measured. The SCP supplementation led to a significantly (p = 0.002) greater increase in tendon CSA (+11.0%) compared with the PLA group (+4.7%). Moreover, the statistical analysis revealed a significantly (p = 0.014) greater increase in muscle thickness in the SCP group (+7.3%) compared with the PLA group (+2.7%). Finally, tendon stiffness and muscle strength increased in both groups, with no statistical difference between the groups. In conclusion, the current study shows that the supplementation of specific collagen peptides combined with RT is associated with a greater hypertrophy in tendinous and muscular structures than RT alone in young physically active men. These effects might play a role in reducing tendon stress (i.e. deposition of collagen in load bearing structures) during daily activities.