WHAT: Even with effective anti-HIV therapies, doctors still have not been able to eradicate the virus from infected individuals who are receiving such treatments, largely because of the persistence of HIV in hideouts known as viral reservoirs. One important reservoir is the gut, where HIV causes much of its damage due to the large number of HIV target cells that reside there. These cells, known as CD4+ T cells, are largely contained in lymph nodes and patches of lymphocytes that collectively are called gut-associated lymphoid tissue, or GALT.
Because of the importance of the gut to HIV disease, scientists hoped that long-term treatment with antiretroviral drugs could eradicate HIV from the GALT. A new NIAID study, published online by The Journal of Infectious Diseases, has found that this goal seems unlikely with current antiretroviral drugs.
Tae-Wook Chun, Ph.D., of the NIAID Laboratory of Immunoregulation (LIR), Anthony S. Fauci, M.D., LIR chief and NIAID director, and their colleagues intensively studied eight patients receiving effective antiretroviral therapy for up to 9.9 years. In each of these of these individuals, therapy had consistently kept their blood levels of HIV at undetectable levels. Sensitive tests, however, detected the persistence of HIV as well as lowered CD4+ T cell levels in the GALT that did not completely rebound in response to therapy. Levels of virus were higher in the GALT than in immune cells in the blood, where HIV also was consistently found. In addition, the scientists found evidence of cross infection between the GALT and the lymphocytes in the blood, suggesting that one reason the virus persists in the blood is because of ongoing cycles of replication in the GALT.
A second study from the Fauci laboratory, conducted by Susan Moir, Ph.D., and her colleagues and also published online by The Journal of Infectious Diseases provides additional insights into the effects of antiretroviral therapy on the HIV disease process.
In most HIV-infected individuals, the virus replicates at high levels and CD4+ T-cell numbers decline. These two factors also strongly affect B cells, the cells of the immune system that make antibodies and help protect against infection. Dr. Moir and her colleagues demonstrated that prior to treatment with antiretroviral therapy, B-cell numbers in the blood of HIV-infected individuals who have been infected for several years are low, and the B cells also include several dysfunctional subsets.
After one year of effective treatment with antiretroviral therapy, B-cell numbers returned to normal, and several of the dysfunctional subsets also normalized. However, those B-cells that provide long-term protection against infection--so-called memory B cells--did not return to normal levels. Dr. Moir notes that these findings strengthen the notion that while antiretroviral therapy improves many aspects of immune function in HIV-infected individuals, important deficiencies remain, especially in individuals who wait several years before initiating therapy.
Mark Konlee
The latest release from the NIH in February, 2008, published in the Journal of Infectious Diseases, that HIV remains in the gut despite long term drug therapy for the virus is no surprise to us. We reported research several years ago that the AIDS Research Alliance found that 80% or more of the HIV in a person is found in the intestinal tract and that the virus prefers that location as its center of primary activity. Drugs used to treat HIV today are designed to lower HIV levels in the blood, not in the intestinal reservoirs. There is no standard test to measure HIV in the intestinal lymph nodes. The lymph nodes of the colon (large intestines) are the primary source of new HIV viruses produced in the body and most HIV drugs are absorbed before they reach the colon.
Current drug treatment strategies to eliminate HIV could be compared to killing ants in your back yard. You could chase ants with a fly swatter 24/7 but unless to get to the ant hill, the reservoir and source of the problem, and destroy it, you will never eliminate all the ants. This is the weak link in current HIV treatments. The drugs are designed to be absorbed into the blood stream and none are designed to target the colon where most of the newly formed HIV is located. New treatments could be designed to treat HIV in the gut that would be more effective and have fewer side effects.
The effectiveness of HIV drugs could be improved if they were designed to target the virus reservoirs in the large intestines. This could be accomplished by-
1. Coating (enteric coating) the drugs with a substance to prevent absorption and breakdown in the stomach and small intestines and to instead release them in the large intestines (the colon).
2. Another way would be to pelletize the drugs to bypass the stomach acids and to disperse them in a timed release fashion.
3. The drugs could also be dispersed more effectively in the colon by taking them with a fiber formula. (E.G. psyllium husks) and before, during or after meals.
By releasing the antiviral drugs in the colon, they will more effectively target the area where the highest concentration of HIV exists. This will cause the HIV viral loads in the blood to drop as there will be less HIV to be absorbed into the blood supply and with lower foreign antigens, a less active immune response further reducing HIV activity.
A further benefit from this new treatment concept is that the side effects from the drugs will diminish substantially as there will be less HIV drugs for the liver to process. If the absorption rate of the drugs is 20%, then we could expect an 80% reduction in adverse effects. If the drug absorption could be blocked 100%, then there could be up a 100% reduction in adverse effects. Then all the drugs would be excreted in the stools and HIV activity in the colon (the main reservoir) could be reduced close to 100%. This approach would also reduce HIV levels in the blood serum and lymph.
A further benefit could be a reduction in drug dosage. By targeting more effectively the highest concentration of the virus, the amount of drugs used could be reduced. This could lower the cost of treating persons with HIV. Another question is what effects besides killing HIV would a drug have on the colon itself and the intestinal flora?
What effect would HIV drugs have on friendly flora like acidophilus or bifidus? In the early 1990's, I was given an AZT tablet and decided to find out for myself. I blended the tablet with some milk and yogurt cultures and placed it in a yogurt maker. To my surprise the yogurt formed as though there was no AZT present. The AZT had no effect at all on the yogurt cultures in this experiment.
Since AZT was reported in published literature to be toxic to the mitochrondia, I chose not to report the results of this experiment at the time. Each HIV drug will need to be tested to determine what effect, if any, it has on the intestinal flora. No one should assume because one drug had no toxic effects on the friendly flora that all of them will yield the same benign results. There are now nearly 30 drugs or drug combinations to test.
It should be noted that if AZT kills HIV in the colon and is not absorbed in the blood stream, it would most likely have no negative effect on the mitochrondia elsewhere in the body.
The idea of redesigning existing HIV drugs to target the virus in the colon is a new concept. Will anyone listen?
Mark Konlee
Increased HIV activity in the colon depends on increased immune surveillance of the byproducts of digestion. Because of this direct relationship, consuming anti-viral meds with meals or a high fiber drink would be the most effective strategy to target HIV activity in the intestines.
Some over the counter (OTC) supplements with strong anti-viral properties are available that could be adapted to a timed released protocol for HIV. While published studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of low dose prednisolone to down regulate the immune response to save the CD4 cells, the following treatment possibilities need to be studied to find a low cost and safe alternative to the present array of expensive HIV drugs, many of which have serious side effects.
In the early 1990's, we done a survey among readers and found that almost unanimously when the stools floated and were large in diameter, the CD4 counts increased and when the stools sank, the CD4 counts decreased. Not much has changed in the past 15 years. Persons with chronic candidiasis and cancer also reported that their health deteriorated when the stools sank and improved when they floated.
We previously published research that shows the virus does not replicate efficiently in a acidic environment (pH below 6.0). We cited individual cases and research where the use of vinegar or lemon juice has inactivated the HIV virus.
Lemon juice or real lemonade taken with a meal could acidify the food in the digestive tract and this may inhibit viral replication in the colon. (HIV replicates when the stools in the colon are alkaline). A variety of acids (hydrochloric, vinegar, lactic, butyric, citric etc) will either disintegrate or damage receptor cites on the viral envelope and inhibit replication.
Sauerkraut to the rescue? Maybe not with every meal, but once a day could do the intestines a lot of good. Remember the report of sauerkraut curing the bird flu. Eating a sour dill pickle or other pickled vegetables or using apple cider vinegar daily can also acidify the digestive tract and colon. Red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar may be used on salads. How about using it along with tahini or sesame seed oil?
Because of the lack of commitment of the federal government to develop low-cost treatments for AIDS, cancer and dozens of other illnesses, people will need to roll up their own sleeves and try these one at a time as our government is clearly asleep at the switch. They are too busy sleeping with the pharmaceutical mega-giants. However, inspite of our governments failures, creative ideas based on sound reasoning give us hope that the search for safe and effective low-cost treatment breakthroughs will become tomorrow's reality.
Persons with CD4 counts above 200 have the luxury to try various regimens including self-treatment options listed here while those below 200 are encouraged to take a conventional treatment approach (prescription anti-virals) combined with an anti-inflammatory immune modulator like low-dose hydrocortisone or prednisolone to increase their CD4 counts. Some other immune modulators include transfer factor (Immune Balance), low dose naltrexone, fish oil capsules, shiitake and other raw mushrooms, rice bran oil and sesame seed oil.
Note: Some readers have been getting excellent results with individual diets, supplements and immune based therapies and have published their protocols on our message board at keephopealive.org. Check them out and remember to post your own experiences, protocols and results. Keep the faith and share results.
Ref:1. Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine. 2006 March;79(1): 19-26
From Science Daily (Feb. 4, 2008)
A compound that naturally occurs in grapefruit and other citrus fruits may be able to block the secretion of hepatitis C virus (HCV) from infected cells, a process required to maintain chronic infection. A team of researchers from the Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Engineering in Medicine (MGH-CEM) report that HCV is bound to very low-density lipoprotein (vLDL, a so-called "bad" cholesterol) when it is secreted from liver cells and that the viral secretion required to pass infection to other cells may be blocked by the common flavonoid naringenin. If the results of this study extend to human patients, a combination of naringenin and antiviral medication might allow patient to clear the virus from their livers.
"By finding that HCV is secreted from infected cells by latching onto vLDL, we have identified a key pathway in the viral lifecycle," says Yaakov Nahmias, PhD, of the MGH-CEM, the paper's lead author.* "These results suggest that lipid-lowering drugs, as well as supplements, such as naringenin, may be combined with traditional antiviral therapies to reduce or even eliminate HCV from infected patients."
HCV is the leading cause of chronic viral liver disease in the United States and infects about 3 percent of the world population. Current antiviral medications are effective in only half of infected patients, 70 percent of whom develop chronic infection that can lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer. Since the virus does not integrate its genetic material into the DNA of infected cells the way HIV does, totally clearing the virus could be possible if new cells were not being infected by secreted virus.
"Identifying the route by which HCV is released from cells introduces a new therapeutic target," says Martin Yarmush, MD, PhD, director of the MGH-CEM and the paper's senior author. "That pathway's dependence on cholesterol metabolism could allow us to interfere with viral propagation to other cells and tissues, using tools already developed for atherosclerosis treatment." Yarmush is the Helen Andrus Benedict Professor of Surgery and Bioengineering at Harvard Medical School (HMS).
Grapefruit's bitter taste is caused the presence of the flavonoid naringin, which is metabolized into naringenin, an antioxidant previously reported to help lower cholesterol levels. Considerable research has suggested that HCV infects liver cells by, in essence, "hitching a ride" onto the natural lipoprotein-cholesterol metabolic pathway. Since earlier evidence has shown that naringenin can reduce secretion of vLDL from liver cells, the researchers examined whether the compound might also lower HCV secretion from infected cells.
Their experiments confirmed that naringenin does reduce the secretion of HCV from infected cell lines and showed that the compound inhibits the mechanism for secreting a specific lipoprotein that binds HCV.
"This work presents the possibility that non-toxic levels of a dietary supplement, such as naringenin, could effectively block HCV secretion," says Raymond Chung, MD, MGH director of Hepatology and one of the study authors,
"This approach might eventually be used to treat patients who do not respond to or cannot take traditional interferon-based treatment or be used in combination with other agents to boost success rates."
JOI editor's note: Grapefruit juice is bitter and the seed extract is even more bitter. Clinical research has demonstrated that grapefruit seed extract inactivates a wide range of viral, fungal and bacterial infections. The rind is another part of the grapefruit that contains bioflavinoids, pectin and the bitter faction naringin.
The presence of naringin could partly explain the antiviral properties of the whole lemon/olive oil drink that has been reported to be beneficial by readers for several years. Naringin may due more than stop HCV, it may also inactivate HIV. We have had many reports in the past 15 years of CD4 increases when HIV+ persons consume the whole lemon olive oil drink or even drink lemonade with their meals 2 or more times a day.
It should be noted that grapefruit also slows down the rate with which the liver breaks down pharmaceutical drugs, thereby increasing their effectiveness. Persons eating grapefruit daily while on drugs may need to reduce the amount of the drugs they use. Dosages of many drugs could be reduced if grapefruit (juice) is made part of the treatment regimen. However, specific research as to how much grapefruit to eat or drink daily is lacking because pharmaceutical companies are not interested in reducing the sales of their profitable patented drugs by advising people to drink grapefruit juice or eat the fruit. Their solution protects the bottom line - they tell doctors to tell their patients not to eat grapefruit at all thereby insuring no reduction in sales.
D. Sankar,a* M. Ramakrishna Rao,b G.et al. Chennai, Tamilnadu, India
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Non-Commercial No Derivatives License, which permits for noncommercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any digital medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not altered in any way.
The study was undertaken to investigate the effect of sesame oil in hypertensive patients who were on antihypertensive therapy either with diuretics (hydrochlorothiazide) or ß-blockers (atenolol).
Thirty-two male and 18 female patients aged 35 to 60 years old were supplied sesame oil (Idhayam gingelly oil) and instructed to use it as the only edible oil for 45 days. Blood pressure, anthropometry, lipid profile, lipid peroxidation, and enzymic and non-enzymic antioxidants were measured at baseline and after 45 days of sesame oil substitution.
Substitution of sesame oil brought down systolic and diastolic blood pressure to normal. The same patients were asked to withdraw sesame oil consumption for another 45 days, and the measurements were repeated at the end of withdrawal period. Withdrawal of sesame oil substitution brought back the initial blood pressure values. A significant reduction was noted in body weight and body mass index (BMI) upon sesame oil substitution. No significant alterations were observed in lipid profile except triglycerides. Plasma levels of sodium reduced while potassium elevated upon the substitution of sesame oil.
Lipid peroxidation (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances [TBARS]) decreased while the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and the levels of vitamin C, vitamin E, ß-carotene, and reduced glutathione (GSH) were increased. The results suggested that sesame oil as edible oil lowered blood pressure, decreased lipid peroxidation, and increased antioxidant status in hypertensive patients.
Ref: Yale J Biol Med. 2006 March; 79(1): 19-26. Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine
Sankar D, Sambandam G, Ramakrishna et al
Clin Chim Acta. 2005 May;355(1-2):97-104.
Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Science, Annamalai University, Tamilnadu, India.
BACKGROUND: Free oxygen radicals and insufficiency of antioxidants have been implicated in the pathogenesis of hypertension. We determined the effect of edible oils on blood pressure, lipid profiles and redox status in hypertensive patients given antihypertensive therapy (nifedipine-calcium channel blocker).
METHODS: 530 patients medicated with nifedipine were divided into 3 groups (356 patients-sesame oil; 87 patients-sunflower oil; 47 patients-groundnut oil) and the control group (n=40) received only the drug, nifedipine. The respective oils were supplied to the patients and instructed to use as the only edible oil for 60 days, which comes to 35 g of oil/day/person.
Blood pressure, lipid profiles [total cholesterol (TC), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) and triglycerides (TG)], lipid peroxidation [thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS)], enzymatic [superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPx)] and nonenzymatic [(vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene and reduced glutathione (GSH)] in blood were measured at baseline and after 60 days of oil substitution.
RESULTS: TC, LDL-C and TG decreased while HDL-C elevated in sesame and sunflower oil groups. Increases of HDL-C and TG were noted in groundnut oil group. TBARS levels reduced in all the groups whereas the reduction was remarkable in sesame oil group.
Activities of SOD elevated in the 3 oil groups whereas GPx and CAT increased only in sesame oil group. Levels of vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-carotene and GSH increased in sesame oil group whereas vitamin E and beta-carotene were elevated only in sunflower and groundnut oil groups. GSH increased in drug control group also.
CONCLUSION: Among the 3 oils, sesame oil offers better protection over blood pressure, lipid profiles and lipid peroxidation and increases enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants.
Conrad LeBeau
Soured milk or yogurt made with L helveticus produces two tripeptides that helps to normalize blood pressure in mildly hypertensive persons but has no effect on persons with normal blood pressure.
The two tripetides are Valyl-prolyl-proline (VPP) and Isoleucyl-prolyl-proline (IPP). Several studies have been done and they find a small dose of as little as 5 mg daily significantly decreases high blood pressure in persons (1)with hypertension for long periods of time without side effects. Studies have been done on both rats and humans. Hydrolyzed casein with VPP and IPP were used in a Japanese study with 131 persons with both mild and high normal hypertension. The researchers found that the two peptides had better effects lowering systolic blood pressure than diastolic. The results were dose dependent. (2). Two other studies found that protein digested royal jelly and sardines yielded other peptides that also lowered blood pressure in hypertensives.
Jarrow Formulas makes a product called "Pressure Optimizer" that contains the two tripeptides, VPP and IPP, derived from milk fermented with L Helveticus. In conjunction with a diet low in sodium and daily exercise with adequate hydration (water consumption), the product can help persons with mild hypertension restore normal blood pressure.
Ref:Reviewed by: Heather S. Oliff, PhD
Date: January 31, 2008 American Botanical Council
Bitter melon (Momordica charantia) is also known as bitter gourd, balsam pear, karela, and pare. It grows in tropical areas of the Amazon, East Africa, Asia, India, South America, and the Caribbean. The fruit has a bitter taste that becomes more pronounced as it ripens.
Traditionally, the seeds, fruit, leaves, and root have been used to treat microbial infections, sluggish digestion and intestinal gas, menstrual stimulation, wound healing, inflammation, fever reduction, hypertension, and as a laxative and emetic (induces vomiting). Current uses for bitter melon extracts (primarily from the fruit) include diabetes, dyslipidemia, microbial infections, and potentially as a cytotoxic agent for certain types of cancer. Research is still ongoing, but the primary active ingredients include charantin, insulin-like peptide, cucurbutanoids, momordicin, and oleanolic acids.
Most research focuses on the use of bitter melon in diabetes. Animal models show that bitter melon extract, especially the active ingredient charantin, increase glucose utilization by the liver, decrease gluconeogenesis (formation of glucose), improve glucose oxidation, enhance cellular uptake of glucose, promote insulin release and potentiate its effect, and increase the number of insulin producing beta cells in the pancreas of diabetic animals.
The monograph describes four clinical trials involving people with diabetes; three of which had positive outcome (n = 9, 12, 18 per study) and one with a negative outcome (n = 40). The study with the negative results was a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, three-month trial. In this study, bitter melon extract or placebo (two capsules three times daily; exact dosage not disclosed) was administered to 20 patients in each group. There was no statistically significant effect on HbA1C (glycosylated hemoglobin, a measure of blood glucose), fasting blood sugar, or total cholesterol. The authors comment that the amount of bitter melon given may have been insufficient to affect improvement, but this is purely a hypothesis since the dosage was not disclosed in the original article.
There are no human studies examining bitter melon's effect on dyslipidemia. However, several in vivo studies indicate that bitter melon extract decreases triglycerides and low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and increases high density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol.
In vitro studies have demonstrated that bitter melon and MAP30 protein isolated from the seeds have broad-spectrum antimicrobial activity against gram-negative and gram-positive bacteria, including Escherichia coli, Salmonella, Shigella, Staphylococcus, Pseudomonas, Streptobacillus, Streptococcus, and Helicobacter pylori, and parasitic organisms E. histolytica and Plasmodium falciparum. The extracts also inhibit infection and growth of viruses, namely, HIV, Herpes simplex, and Epstein Barr virus.
No clinical trials have been conducted in patients with cancer, but bitter melon fruit and seed extract have been shown to inhibit the growth of cancer cell lines (prostate adenocarcinoma, human colon cancer, and the highly metastatic breast cancer cell line MDAMB 231). The extract contains a potent inhibitor of guanylate cyclase, which is present in high amounts in many types of tumor cells.
Considering that bitter melon extracts may potentiate the effects of insulin and oral hypoglycemic medications, patients should closely monitor blood sugar when adding bitter melon to their diabetes treatment regimen. Long-term consumption of the fruit in Asian cultures indicates that oral ingestion of bitter melon fruit is safe. Bitter melon extracts are not recommended for use in pregnancy.
According to the article, dosage recommendations depend on the form of bitter melon being consumed. The dose of fresh juice is 50-100 mL but it is extremely bitter and difficult to drink. The standard dose for dry powder is 3-15 g daily. The standardized encapsulated extract dosage is 100-200 mg three times daily.
The article concludes that before any of the traditional or current uses of bitter melon can be recommended more clinical trials are needed to prove efficacy, to determine efficacious dosages, and to record the adverse side effect profile.
Conrad LeBeau
Bovine Colostrum is the first milk given by a cow to her calf upon birth. All mammals including humans produce colostrum which nature provides in the first two milking after their offspring are born. Whether colostrum is from cows, goats or humans, it transfers passive immunity to the offspring. There are many immune factors contained in colostrum including immunoglobulins and very small molecular weight proteins called "transfer factor" or "proline-rich polypedtides or PRPs. Colostrum provides passive humoral and cell-mediated immunity to the newly born and balances the TH1 and TH2 immune responses.
We have written about transfer factor and colostrum periodically for the past several years. We have had case reports of improvement in various health conditions with the use of colostrum but especially transfer factor which is derived from colostrum. We have had reports of cures of cryptosporidium using "Colostrum Specific" by Jarrow Formulas. Anti-cancer effects have shown up in both the scientific literature and in various case reports. Chislom Biologicals have made transfer factor specific to various viruses including hepatitis C, herpes and others. Readers who have used various brands of Colostrum have reported increases in their CD4 helper cell counts. A colostrum based product called "Coloplus" has alleviated HIV associated diarrhea (1).
Immune Balance: A reader called to tell me her CD4 count had increased by 100 points since using Immune Balance, a kind of liquid transfer factor that is sprayed and absorbed in the mouth. I decided to learn more by contacting the manufacturer, Pharmalox. A spokesman indicated that the colsotrum derived product improved all types of immune responses. The product was not just recommended for persons with deficient cell-mediated immunity but dysfunctional humoral immunity as well. It was recommended for anyone with the onset of a cold or the flu.
Since Christmas, 2007, I had been dealing with a lingering cold and sinus infection that never seemed to completely go away. The common cold is suppose to last 10 days, not 10 weeks and mine had already surpassed that by 2 weeks. A cold that seems to never go away indicates a weak humoral or antibody response. On March 28th, I began using the "Immune Balance"(2) spray from Pharmalox, spraying 3 sprays in my mouth 3 times a day. After one week I can say that my condition has dramatically improved. I am no longer coughing up yellow mucus. My sinuses are open and all soreness in the sinus and throat area is completely gone. My breathing is normal again. The fatigue associated with the cold is also gone. I guess I can say that as of today, I am over it finally.
Immune Balance is well tolerated by persons, even those with lactose intolerance. The removal of the PRPs from the colostrum concentrates the most important immune factors in one solution. The product has no immumoglobulins. It has a clear appearance and a pleasant taste. It is basically a liquid transfer factor.
I also learned that the colostrum derived product is sold to the government of Kenya that distributes it to persons with HIV. It is also privately labeled under the names Nutrilox and Immunolox. Because there are so many potential uses for this product from autoimmune conditions to allergies to autism to alzheimers to cancer to AIDS to arthritis to the common cold, where would you start a study and where would you stop?
Ref:A proline-rich polypeptide (PRP), later called colostrinin (CLN), was originally found as a fraction accompanying sheep colostral immunoglobulins. Extensive in vitro and in vivo studies in mice revealed its interesting T cell-tropic activities. The polypeptide promoted T cell maturation from early thymic precursors that acquired the phenotype and function of mature, helper cells; on the other hand, it also affected the phenotype and function of mature T cells.
In particular, PRP was shown to recruit suppressor T cells in a model of T cell-independent humoral immune response and suppressed autoimmune hemolytic anemia in New Zealand Black mice. Subsequent in vitro studies in the human model revealed that CLN regulated mitogen-induced cytokine production in whole blood cultures. A discovery that CLN promoted procognitive functions in experimental animal models, supported by other laboratory findings, indicating prevention of pathological processes in the central nervous system, led to application of CLN in multicenter clinical trials. The trials demonstrated the therapeutic benefit of CLN in Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients by delaying progress of the disease.
Mitogenic properties of a proline-rich polypeptide were investigated. The mitogenic action of PRP was compared with the mitogenic action of Il-1. PRP was not mitogenic for thymocytes at doses 0.01-50 micrograms/ml. PRP, at doses 0.1-50 micrograms/ml, augmented the proliferative response of thymocytes to Con A in a similar fashion as Il-1. At doses higher than 10 micrograms/ml, PRP induced proliferation of lymph node cells and splenocytes as well as T cells from the lymph nodes.
It did not, however, cause significant proliferation of B cells from the lymph nodes, at the doses used. PRP did not induce proliferation of an antigen specific Lyt 1+ T cell clone. Il-1 behaved in a similar way as PRP in all the tests described. We consider a possibility that under physiological conditions, at a very early stage of postneonatal life, PRP may replace some functions of Il-1.2.
Milk and colostrum are rich in proteins and peptides which play a crucial role in development of the immune system in mammalian offspring. Immunotropic properties of these compounds prompted investigators to search for their utility in prevention and therapy of various disorders in humans.
The following constituents of milk are of particular interest:
There is no comparison with any store bought cranberry sauce to this raw enzyme rich tasty home made cranberry sauce recipe Ingredients: One 12 oz bag of cranberries - fresh or frozen.
Wash cranberries and pass them through a food processor (e.g. Championor) or hand grinder. Peel the orange and pass the wedges through the processor as well. Add the sugar and walnuts to the mixing bowl and stir all the ingredients together.
Store in a refrigerator for up to one week. This is a great side dish for turkey and chicken dishes or for just a tasty dessert. Enjoy.
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