Absorption Profile and Hormonal Influence of Fertilized Egg Yolk Ingestion in the Human.
Fertile egg yolks contain significant concentrations of follistatin. In an effort to identify whether this orally ingested source of naturally occurring follistatin is actually absorbed and pharmacokinetically active in the human model, this study was undertaken. A male subject was chosen because the normal baseline male physiology does not regularly contain any measurable concentration of follistatin. Follistatin rich fertile egg yolk powder properly processed to preserve active follistatin was used.
After initial blood draw and subsequential oral follistatin dosing, serum follistatin levels were qualitatively and quantitatively measured as an indicator of absorption. In addition, since we know follistatin is a negative modulator of myostatin, serum myostatin levels were qualitatively and quantitatively measured as an indication of hormonal influence and thus true pharmacokinetic activity. Testing utilized follistatin and myostatin standardized for verification. Confirmations were run by ELISA and quantitations by Liquid Chromatography Tandem Mass Spectrometer with third degree fragmentation.
Results showed as predicted, a zero level of follistatin at baseline with a myostatin level of 46 pg/ml, 12 hours after follistatin dosing. Serum follistatin measured 57.1 pg/ml with a decline of myostatin to 34 pg/m1, 24 hours after the initial dosing, follistatin levels began to predictably drop from the time of initial dosing to 11.4 pg/ml. Yet myostatin continued to decline slightly with a 24-hour level of 31 pg/ml. These results clearly indicate that a fertile egg yolk powder properly processed to preserve active follistatin, when orally ingested, results in detectable serum follistatin. Furthermore, this resultant follistatin presence has significant pharmacokinetic activity is shown by the hormonal down regulation of serum follistatin.