Material and methods
Product characterization
To produce this extract, the biomass is sourced exclusively from Madagascar. It is grinded, extracted, and concentrated; diluted with water, centrifuged, concentrated, and purified with a resin column; and finally filtrated, concentrated, and dried. This novel purified extract is obtained only with food-grade solvents (ie, water and ethanol – it has been Ecocert validated) and is then purified by chromatography. The final result is a standardized extract containing all four triterpenic molecules (over 45%) and a polyphenolic fraction representing 7%–8% of the extract in weight. The extract is characterized by a high-performance liquid chromatography method for the determination of madecassoside, asiaticoside, madecassic acid, and asiatic acid (Indena SpA, data on file, 2009).