AOAC is issuing a new call for dietary supplement ingredients to be added to a list of ingredients for which validated methods are urgently needed.

The list, being developed under a new contract with the National Institutes of Health (NIH), now totals over 75 ingredients. An AOAC Presidential Task Force had previously agreed to beta-carotene, black cohosh, chondroitin, Co Q10, and many others, and from among the top ranked ingredients, some two dozen methods specific to these ingredients have been evaluated within the collaborative study process of the AOAC Official Methods program.

With the renewed contract between NIH and AOAC to determine the best methods for development and validation, new ingredients will be considered for ranking by a subgroup of the Task Force to meet at the AOAC Annual Meeting on Sunday, September 21, 2008, in Dallas, Texas.

Dietary supplement ingredients are ranked in order of need for a validated method, and source of funding is a major driving factor in decisions. Other criteria for ranking ingredients include the relative market share of the ingredient, the general availability of methods from which to select a method, any NIH clinical trials planned or underway requiring a method to characterize the material used in the trial, and any ingredient safety concerns. All ranking factors will be determined and justified by the AOAC Presidential Task Force on Dietary Supplements, and factors and assigned weight may change based on changing needs determined by its members.

AOAC welcomes recommendations of ingredients from the dietary supplement industry, government, and academia. Interested parties are invited to submit their recommendations, with a brief justification/need statement as to why these ingredients should be considered by September 15. Visit the AOAC website at http://www.aoac.org/dietsupp6/Dietary-Supplement-web-site/ingred_call.htm to find the current list of prioritized ingredients, along with a few suggested ingredients that have justifications/need statements that can serve as examples for other write-ups.

For more information, or to submit your suggested ings, e-mail Bob Rathbone, Senior Director of Publications and Method Validation Programs, at rrathbone@aoac.org.

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