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Background |
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 Heart disease and cerebrovascular disease
(strokes) are respectively the first and the third
leading causes of all deaths in developed parts of
the world, with heart disease accounting for as much
as 30% of all deaths and cerebrovascular disease accounting
for nearly 10%. And these figures are only the tip
of the iceberg in regards to the devastation of these
diseases: for every one who actually dies from them,
there are several others suffering from their ill effects — a
stroke or a heart attack, for example, can leave a
person bedridden. More mild symptoms might include
neck stiffness, chronic headache, cold hands and feet,
breathlessness, chest pains, poor mental function and
dizziness. |
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Any focus on increasing length and quality
of life must look, therefore, at methods to maintain
a healthy vascular system and blood flow. This is fundamental
to good health and was the reason why Daiwa Pharmaceutical
Co. Ltd. started research into the health properties
of a traditional Japanese food called natto which was
supposed to be so beneficial to health and the circulation.
What they discovered was that there is a good good
bacteria in this traditional fermented food, B.
subtilis natto, which contains enzymes that help
the body to maintain optimum blood flow and viscosity
by breaking down a substance in the blood called PAI-1
that interferes with the body's natural processes.
PAI-1 concentrations increase as we get older which
is why our blood gets more sticky as we age and why
we are increasingly at risk from vascular diseases. |
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The problem with natto is is that it
is a very unpleasant food to eat (it has an "acquired"
taste/smell and a slimy texture); it contains high
amounts of vitamin K2 which can interfere with anticoagulants
such as Warfarin; the active enzyme content of natto
can vary enormously from brand to brand (see below)
and it is not easy to get hold of in Western countries.
Daiwa Pharaceutical Co. Ltd., therefore, decided
to extract the active ingredient (in the same way that
good bacteria
is extracted from yogart), remove the vitmain K2 in
the process and to produce a standardized small tablet
that would allow people to enjoy the benefits of natto
without
any of the drawbacks associated with it. They have
called this "natto in a tablet" NKCP
or NattoTabs . |
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Comparison of good bacteria
activity in 89 different natto brands found in
Japan showing the variation in peptidase activity.
Daiwa Pharmaceutical therefore decided to produced
a standardized "natto in a tablet" equivalent. |
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| 2. |
Daiwa Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd. |
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 Daiwa
Pharmaceutical Co. is a new breed of pharmaceutical
company focused entirely on the development
of natural food solutions. Already renowned for producing
what is now the leading serious immune system supplement,
BioBran MGN-3, a food extract made entirely
from rice bran, Daiwa Pharmaceutical have now developed
the highest
quality
and most active
Natto extract (sometimes called nattokinase, although
this is just one of its components) — NKCP
NattoTabs .
What sets Daiwa Pharmaceutical apart from many other
developers of innovative foods and food supplements is
its dedication to high quality research and
production. Daiwa is not afraid to developing
natural (and therefore not patentable) products, something
which most pharmaceutical companies would be reluctant
to do. |
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| 3. |
Manufacturing Process |
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NKCP NattoTabs is manufactured by
culturing B. subtilis natto -- the good bacteria isolated
from the natto food --
in a liquid medium under conditions suitable for the
production of the active protein. The cell bodies, insoluble
matter and low-molecular weight substances (which include
the characterisitic odour molecules) are then removed.
The peptide concentration is then standardized and the
NKCP is powdered and then pressed into tablets. Below
is the manufacturing flow chart for NKCP. |
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| NKCP Manufacturing Flow Chart |
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| Cultivation of a particular
strain of Bacillus subtilis natto culture
on a medium of soybean
protein, glucose and soluble starch |
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| Removal of insoluble
fraction by continuous centrifugation and
filtration by celite |
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| Removal
of ultra-low-molecular weight fraction by
ultrafiltration |
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| Removal of cells by
membrane filtration |
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Powdering & Tableting
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