In a landmark achievement, the food variant of Omani frankincense has bagged the approval of the Swiss Drug Authority (SDA).
Named FrankOman, this is the first product of frankincense to have gained such recognition. FrankOman has been developed by Dhofar University and manufactured by the Swiss company AlbinaMed AG. The product can be used for arthritis, colon, and lung infections.
Certified by the SDA and manufactured according to the Swiss Medicines Authority and GMP standards requirements, FrankOman is a dietary supplement in the form of tablets to be taken orally.
This achievement comes after more than a year of cooperation between Dhofar University and the Swiss Company for Drugs and Dietary Supplements.
The studies included joint studies that involved chemical analysis of the active substances in Omani frankincense gum with advanced and sophisticated equipment in each of the company’s laboratories and Dhofar University independently.
“Comparisons were made between the active substances responsible for the anti-inflammatory activity, especially those infections associated with the immune system, in the gum of both Indian frankincense and Omani frankincense represented by boswellic acids and yobelk acids,” said Professor Luay Jamil Rashan, Principal Researcher at the Dhofar University Research Center.
“In addition to many other studies conducted by the University of Dhofar, which included determining the effectiveness of the product in terms of biological and pharmacological aspects, and integrated toxicological studies as well as its effects on genes, according to international protocols and other studies,” adds he.
Indian frankincense is the only internationally approved and registered with the Swiss Drugs Authority and other international institutions. More than 70 food supplement products use Indian frankincense manufactured by German, Swiss, Austrian, American, Indian, and other companies and sold in many countries of the world.
Professor Luay told the Observer that this outstanding achievement of Omani frankincense would open the doors for its global adoption, as is the case with the Indian frankincense. It can be used in the pharmaceutical industries, nutritional supplements, and cosmetic preparations by international companies.
“It is hoped that as many as seven products will be produced from Omani frankincense developed by Dhofar University during the year 2021 and are manufactured and marketed in the US market as a first step by the US company Pars Bioscience. Four of those products will be in capsule form for cases of bronchitis and joints, IBS and BPH. The other products will be in the form of ointments for external use cases of arthritis, muscle spasms, wounds, burns, and haemorrhoids,” Professor Luay added.
