but the bulk supersaponins sold here is a form of Trib?
Yes, as Jacob says above it is a 50/50 mixture of sapogens from the Chlorophytum plant, and Tribulosin extract from Tribulus Terrestris. Here a small write-up I wrote in the past about the Chlorophytum plant:
PureSAP:
The powerful plant sterols Stigmasterol, Hecogenin,Desoxydiosgenin, Tigogenin, Neotigogenin from the Velvet Bean Plant, are thought to have a dual effect on hormonal homeostasis; a) by directly raising endogenous levels of Testerone via AR (androgen receptor) binding [1,3]; and, b) by serving as non-hormonal intermediates in the biosynthesis of cholesterol derivatives [1,2,3]. While research is not abundant, the current data hypothesizes that the triterpene sapogenins – primarily Stigmasterol – contained in Chlorophytum Borivillanum, undergo enzymatic conversion of the Testes in order to produce Testoserone [1, 3]. It is thought this action is possible via the incredibly similar structure of Stigmasterol to Testerone. Further, the other sapogenins found in C.B., have been found to bind directly to AR [1] without exerting intrinsic action at the receptor site – that is, while the compounds bind and therefore increases steroidal mRNA expression, and thereby increase protein synthesis and muscle mass, they do not modulate negative feeback loops. The limited clinical data reflects only increases, and not decreases, to endogenous Testosterone production from C.B., [3].
Literature:
[1] Salvi VS, Mukhurjee D, Engel CR (1986). Steroids and related products LIV. The synthesis of 11-oxa steroids VI. The Synthesis of 11-oxatestosterone. Steroids 48(1-2):47-53.
[2] Johns W (1970) The 12a,13b-Etiojervance Analog of Testosterone. J. Org. Chem. 36(5): 711-19.
[3] Kaushik, N (2005) Saponins of Chlorophytum Species. Phytochemistry Reviews. 4(2-3): 191-196.
To answer your question, though, I still would not recommend an AI with this stack. While Testosterone will be increased, Chlorophytum promotes a healthy hormonal milieu more than a unilinear increase in Tesosterone.
