Articles about Herbal Remedies, research etc

Herbal Remedy Essiac? And Cancer

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19 Aug 2006

Essiac? is an herbal formula that has been used by North American cancer patients. Its recorded history dates back to the 1920s when Canadian nurse Rene Caisse blended a tea of burdock root, sheep sorrel, slippery elm bark, and turkey rhubarb root, and offered it to her cancer patients. It is believed she received the formulation from an Ojibwa Indian woman. The name Essiac is Caisse spelled backwards.

Despite its relatively widespread use, there is little published research about this herbal remedy in the scientific literature. As a result, two teams of Canadian researchers launched research efforts.

The first group of researchers utilized a series of assays to determine the validity of some of Essiac?'s purported activities in vitro; the second group used an animal model to investigate the effects of the mixture on the stomach, liver and immune system. Both studies were funded by an educational grant from the manufacturer of Essiac?. The company had no role in the collection or analysis of the data.

Both research teams are presenting their findings at the 21st Annual Meeting of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (http://www.Naturopathic.org)∞, being held August 9-12, 2006 at the Oregon Convention Center, Portland, OR.

Study 1: In Vitro Analysis of Herbal Compound Essiac?

The first study entitled, An In Vitro Analysis of the Herbal Compound Essiac?, was conducted by Deborah A. Kennedy, MBA, ND (Cand.), Division of Clinical Epidemiology, The Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, Toronto, CN; Stephen P. Myers, PhD, BMed, ND, Phillip A. Cheras, Ph.D., BAppSc., David Lin, Ph.D., Rachel Li, PhD, Trudi Cattley, BAppSc., and Petta-Anne Paul Brent, BSc., all of the Australian Centre for Complementary Medicine, Southern Cross University, Lismore, NSW, AU; Dugald M.R. Seely, ND, MSc. (Cand.), Division of Clinical Epidemiology, The Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, Toronto, CN and the Institute of Medical Science, University of Toronto, CN; and Blair J.N. Leonard, MD, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, CN.

Methodology

The purpose of the study was to utilize a series of assays to determine several of Essiac?'s purported activities in vitro. The activity of Essiac? was measured using established in vitro assays to quantify: (1) antioxidant activity; (2) platelet aggregation inhibition; (3) anti-microbial activity; (4) arachidonic acid pathway inhibition; (5) cell-based immunomodulation; (6) neoplastic cell specific cytotoxicity; (7) fibrinolytic activity; and (8) inhibition of enzymes of the CYP450 pathway.

Results

Highlights of the findings showed:

-- there was significant antioxidant activity in the ABTS assay, with 1 ml of Essiac? having the anti-oxidant activity of 3mm Troxol, a vitamin E analogue;

-- Essiac? at 20-fold dilution showed significant immunomodulatory effects;

-- Essiac? showed significant cell specific cytotoxicity towards ovarian epithelial carcinoma cells;

-- after hydrolysis with beta glucosidase, Essiac? showed increased cytotoxicity towards prostate adenocarcinoma cells;

-- a 20-fold dilution of Essiac? showed significant inhibition of several cytochrome P450 enzymes;

-- Essiac? demonstrated dose-dependant inhibition of clot fibrinolysis; and

-- Essiac? showed no specific activity in the platelet aggregation or anti-microbial assays.

Conclusions

This analysis of Essiac? indicates significant antioxidant and immunomodulatory properties, as well as neoplastic cell specific cytotoxicity consistent with the historical properties ascribed to this compound. Importantly, significant cytochrome P450 and fibrinolysis inhibition was also observed. These data represent the first comprehensive investigation of the in vitro effects of Essiac?.

Study 2: An In Vivo Analysis of the Herbal Compound Essiac?

The second study entitled, An In Vivo Analysis of the Herbal Compound Essiac?, was conducted by Blair J.N. Leonard MD, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON; Deborah A. Kennedy, MBA, ND (Cand.), Division of Clinical Epidemiology, The Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, Toronto, CN; Fong-Chi Cheng, MDS Pharma Services-Taiwan Ltd., Taipei, TW; Keng-Kuang Chang, MDS Pharma Services-Taiwan Ltd., Taipei, TW; and Dugald M.R. Seely, ND, MSc. (Cand.), Division of Clinical Epidemiology, The Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, Toronto, CN and the Division of Hematology/Oncology, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, CN.

Methodology

The study aimed to assess some of Essiac?'s purported effects on the liver, stomach and immune system. To do so, the researchers administered Essiac? liquid extract to Wistar rats under established rodent experimental models. The rats received Essiac? 30-minutes prior to a physical challenge to the liver, stomach or immune system. The rats were dosed again with the compound at 4, 8 and 24 hours. Also at 24 hours they were sacrificed and specific levels were measured, including body weight.

Results and Conclusions

Essiac? showed significant effects in gastric protection and non-significant changes with other properties. Thus, the researchers concluded that Essiac? administered in established in vivo experiments did not significantly demonstrate the purported physiological modifying effects. These results are significant as they represent the first published investigation on the in vivo effects of Essiac? consumption.

The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) was founded in 1985 to provide alternative methods for healing human diseases and disorders than have been traditionally offered in the United States. Members of the AANP must have graduated from one of North America's six accredited graduate schools of naturopathic medicine.

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A Mushroom Extract May Impact The Body's Immune System

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19 Aug 2006

Can the extract of a mushroom that is commonly found in the woods of North America, Asia and Europe have a beneficial impact on the human immune system? A small study using ?Turkey Tail? mushroom (Trametes versicolor) extract, has found that it may.

The ?Turkey Tail? mushroom is too tough to eat, but it may be ingested in the form of liquid or powdered extracts. One such extract produced by Kureha, Inc., Tokyo, Japan, is Polysaccharide Krestin? (PSK), a protein-bound polysaccharide fraction. The PSK extract has been found to have a beneficial effect in the treatment of certain types of cancers, especially when used in conjunction with chemotherapy. In order to determine its effects on the human immune system, a team of researchers sought to use a proteomic approach to identify the immunologically relevant proteins stimulated by treatment with the mushroom extract in human immune cells.

A New Study

The authors of the study ?Cross Validation of Influence of Polysaccharide Krestin? (PSK) Extract of Trametes versicolor on Protein Expression in Human Primary Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes? are John S. Finnell, M.S., Daesong Yim, Ph.D., Masa Sasagawa, N.D., and Cynthia A. Wenner, Ph.D., all from the School of Natural Health Sciences, Bastyr University, Kenmore, WA; Animesh Nandi , Ph.D., Prem Gurnani, and Kevin P. Rosenblatt, M.D., Ph.D., from the Department of Pathology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX.

This study was funded in part by a grant from the National Institutes of Health - National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), as well as an Institutional Seed Grant from Bastyr University.

The team will present preliminary findings during the 21st Annual Meeting of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (http://www.Naturopathic.org)∞, being held August 9-12, 2006, at the Oregon Convention Center, Portland, OR.

Methodology

Immune cells were isolated from blood taken from nine healthy human volunteers and were cultured in vitro. The immune cell samples were treated under three different conditions: one set with no treatment, which served as the negative control; another set treated with the PSK mushroom extract; a third set treated with phytohemagluttin (PHA), a mitogen known to stimulate activation of immune cells; and a final set treated with both the mitogen and mushroom extract, in combination. Separate portions of cell lysates and supernatants (the liquid medium in which the cells were cultured) were collected at 0, 1 and 24 hours, flash-frozen, and stored at -80?C. Samples were analyzed at pH3 on immobilized metal affinity capture (IMAC30) ProteinChip? arrays, using both low-performance and high-performance mass spectrometry (MS). Statistical analyses of low- and high-resolution MS data were cross-validated to determine whether changes in immunologically relevant proteins occurred that were attributable to treatment with the mushroom extract.

Results

Statistical analysis of the spectra showed significant differential post-translational modification or expression of proteins, in the range of 1-30 kilodalton (kDa - a unit of measure of the atomic mass of the proteins), in the treated sets of cell cultures, as compared to untreated, negative control samples. Many immunologically relevant proteins, including many known to regulate immune responses, fall within the 1-30 kDa range.

Conclusions

The findings from this research study suggest that protein-bound, polysaccharide-rich fractions of Trametes versicolor PSK may modulate the post-translational modification or expression of proteins in healthy human immune cells. The next step is to extract and sequence the proteins of interest to determine their specific function in immune cells. The results invite further research to determine how selected extracts of medicinal mushrooms may be effective in strengthening the body's immune system against diseases, such as cancer.

The American Association of Naturopathic Physicians (AANP) was founded in 1985 to provide alternative methods for healing human diseases and disorders than have been traditionally offered in the United States. Members of the AANP must have graduated from one of North America's six accredited graduate schools of naturopathic medicine.

For more information about naturopathic physicians, log on to
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