Chelates is a natural means for the body to transport minerals across the intestinal wall after digestion. When minerals become surrounded by and bonded to amino acids in a stable form, this is referred to as chelation.

Inorganic minerals must be broken apart (inonization) and restructured to allow it to be transported through the intestinal wall. Ionized free minerals are known to block the absorption of one another or to combine with other dietary factors to form compounds that are unabsorbable. Chelated minerals show very efficient absorption than inorganic minerals.

There are many products on the market which are reported to be chelates. But simply mixing inorganic minerals with amino acids is not a true amino acid chelate.

An amino acid chelate is not as stable as the dipeptide-like amino acid chelate due to greater exposure of the metal in a single ring.

Two amino acids of a dipeptide-like chelate with a total molecular weight under 1,500 is able to penetrate the cell membrane without requiring additional luminal hydrolysis.

In a depetide like chelates, molar ration of metal ions to amino acids is 1:2. Chelating minerals to amino acids in a dipeptide like form appear to be absorbed at a higher rate than the single-amino acid form. It is because of their special active transport mechanism of absorption.

Innobio has patented processes to assure the chelate bond. Some are only complexed mixture of proteins and minerals.