Chicken Collagen (Type II)

Type II collagen is the principal fibrillar collagen of hyaline cartilage, a homotrimer built from three identical alpha-1(II) chains encoded by the COL2A1 gene. Thovek supplies it from the sternal (keel) cartilage of Gallus gallus domesticus, the fraction of the poultry carcass richest in this collagen type. Published characterisation of chicken sternal cartilage collagen places the α1 chain near 130 kDa and the β chain near 270 kDa, and the same cartilage is the origin of the chondroitin sulfate that travels with it, predominantly chondroitin-4-sulfate. CAS 9007-34-5 covers the collagen itself; hydrolysed peptide material is also traded under CAS 9015-54-7. Two commercially distinct grades come out of the same raw material and they are not interchangeable. The native, undenatured grade is processed at low temperature so that the triple helix and its conformational epitope survive; it is assayed by ELISA rather than by crude protein alone, is built into formulations at the tens-of-milligrams level, and must be kept clear of hot-fill, extrusion and high-heat drying steps, because isolated chicken sternal cartilage collagen has been reported to denature at roughly 34-36 °C in solution. The hydrolysed grade is the opposite proposition: enzymatic cleavage to low-molecular-weight peptides, full cold-water solubility, clean flavour at gram-level inclusion, and a natural fit for sachets, stick packs and ready-to-mix beverages. Cartilage-matrix grades sit between the two, standardised on co-extracted chondroitin sulfate and hyaluronic acid rather than on collagen alone. Specify which one the formulation needs, because assay basis, inclusion rate and process window all change with it. Origin and allergen status matter directly for label copy. This is a poultry-derived material: neither vegan nor vegetarian, and not bovine, porcine, fish or other marine collagen. By composition it is free from milk, egg, soy, wheat gluten, fish, crustacean, peanut, tree nut and sesame. Chicken and gelatin both appear on Japan's recommended allergen labelling list, so brands shipping into that market should carry the declaration even though poultry is not a mandatory allergen in the EU or the US. Each lot ships with a certificate of analysis covering assay, heavy metals and microbiology, together with SDS, allergen, origin and TSE/BSE statements on request. Composition and food-technology function only; no therapeutic or disease claim is made or implied.