EnWave Corporation has announced the completion of successful animal feeding trials with Neova Technologies Inc. of Abbotsford, British Columbia, a division of Bioseutica, plc. The study used EnWave's Radiant Energy Vacuum (REV) dehydration technology to dry encapsulated lysozyme, a natural anti-microbial enzyme, to determine whether it can be used as a replacement for antibiotics in chicken feed. The trials showed that the dried, encapsulated enzyme permitted the same level of infection resistance as is normally obtained with pharmaceutical antibiotics. Countries around the world have been looking for ways to eliminate the routine usage of antibiotics in animal feed in order to reduce the perceived risk of anti-microbial resistance in human and animal populations. Anti-microbial resistance is a serious concern in the global medical field as an increasing number of harmful micro-organisms such as bacteria, yeasts and parasites are becoming immune to the most effective measure to treat them, antibiotics.

Encapsulation is a common technique by which a sensitive material is coated or embedded in a stabilizing material in order to provide protection from harsh processing or storage conditions, as is the case with pelleted chicken feed. Researchers first encapsulated samples of Bioseutica's Entegard^TM by suspending the enzyme formulation in a stabilising hydrocolloid gel, and then dehydrated the mixture in a modified version of EnWave's nutraREV® food dehydration technology. The resulting powder was then incorporated into chicken feed and fed to chickens to test their response to clostridial necrotic enteritis, a common poultry disease. The encapsulated Entegard medication gave protection equal to the antibiotic medication that is the common industry solution to this problem in North America.

Dr Tim Durance, EnWave's Co-CEO, said: "These results show that REV can be used as an effective, high-speed method of dehydration for encapsulated enzymes, which adds another positive result to those already received from our testing on live and active organisms including certain bacteria, viruses, antibodies and non-encapsulated enzymes. Furthermore, we already have commercial equipment available that is capable of drying this product for Bioseutica on a large scale."

Bioseutica's proprietary Entegard is a purified preparation of lysozyme, a natural anti-microbial enzyme extracted from chicken egg white. Several mammals, including humans, produce lysozyme in saliva, milk and tears, where it plays an important role in the immune system, protecting against infection. This makes it a safe and natural antimicrobial for both food and pharmaceutical applications, where it has been successfully used for almost thirty years.

Stefano Ferrari, president and CEO of Bioseutica, commented: "We are excited that EnWave's technology increases the stability and enhances the effectiveness of Entegard in providing a natural, efficient, and safe alternative to antibiotics in poultry. The companies will continue testing and exploring opportunities for REV dehydration of this and other Bioseutica products."

Bioseutica is a vertically integrated international specialty pharmaceutical group. The company’s Animal Health division is at the forefront of reliable scientific research leading to innovative products and proprietary technologies. Bioseutica has manufacturing capabilities for the extraction and purification of natural proteins from hen egg white used as API, animal health ingredients and food additives. Bioseutica's other leading products include Lysoshield for food protection, Lysolac, for use in cheese, and recoup 90, the first omega-3 sports supplement.

Using proprietary technologies developed in conjunction with the University of British Columbia, EnWave is focused on the development of new methods of dehydrating food and biological materials using Radiant Energy Vacuum technology under its nutraREV, powderREV®, bioREV® and freezeREV® brands. REV technology combines microwave energy transfer under vacuum to dehydrate and alter structures and drive chemical reactions, thereby creating unique product characteristics for both food products and medical applications that include fruit, vegetables, probiotics, enzymes, proteins, food cultures, vaccines and antibodies.

Further Reading

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Find out more information on necrotic enteritis by clicking here.