Glutathione (GSH) deficiency in patients with HIV infection is a strong predictor of poor survival,according to a report published in today's issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Stanford University researchers have also discovered that, when used in combination with CD4 cell counts, Glutathione levels can provide a more accurate means of tracking the progression of HIV disease.
Dr. Leonard A. Herzenberg and colleagues in Stanford, California, report the results of in vitro studies in which they evaluated blood samples from 204 HIV-positive patients. They found subjects with Glutathione deficiency had a markedly decreased survival 2-3 years after baseline data collectionwhen compared with subjects without Glutathione deficiency.
Patients with CD4 T cell counts below 200 per microliter also had lower Glutathione levels compared with subjects in earlier stages of HIV infection.
According to Dr. Herzenberg, this study shows for the first time that people with HIV who have lower Glutathione levels have a much lower probability of surviving over the course of three years than do people with normal Glutathione levels. He has presented preliminary reports of these findings at recent meetings.
Dr. Herzenberg also found that Glutathione levels were replenished following oral administration of the glutathione, which suggests a potential intervention to relieve this impairment. If these findings can be replicated, Dr. Herzenberg writes, "...they will provide the foundation for the use of N-acetylcysteine as an inexpensive, nontoxic adjunct therapy for HIV/AIDS, potentially valuable even in remote locations where only minimal medical supervision is available."
Dr. Herzenberg's group believes that HIV-positive subjects should avoid excessive exposure to UV irradiation, alcohol and drugs, such as acetaminophen, which are known to deplete Glutathione levels. And, based on these findings, Dr. Herzenberg and others have asked the FDA to require drug companies to include labeling on products known to deplete Glutathione because of the potential hazard to HIV-positive patient.
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
Showing posts with label AIDS. Show all posts
Showing posts with label AIDS. Show all posts
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Dietary supplement helps to keep immune system balanced
Stanford researchers have found that giving patients who are infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) a daily dose of a dietary supplement can boost their levels of Glutathione a nutrient essential for proper functioning of the immune system. Restoring glutathione levels to those found in healthy people may help HIV-infected patients fight the AIDS-causing virus and fend off other diseases.
"The importance here is that Glutathione is a central component of all cells, and Glutathione deficiency is associated with poor prognosis in many, many diseases," said Leonore (Lee) Herzenberg, PhD, professor of genetics. She is senior author of a paper describing the new study, published in the October 1 issue of the European Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Lee Herzenberg and her colleagues conducted a clinical trial in which 31 HIV-infected patients were given daily doses of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) a substance that is turned into Glutathione in the body. Thirty others were given a benign sugar pill. At the start of the trial all patients had Glutathione deficiency some patients had only half the amount found in healthy people. At the end of the two-month trial, those taking NAC had increased the amount of Glutathione in their bodies to near-normal levels.
"What we've proven is that giving people NAC replenishes the Glutathione stores," said Lee Herzenberg.
At the completion of the eight-week trial, most patients chose to take NAC for the following six months while the researchers continued monitoring the safety of the supplement. They found that patients suffered no ill effects that could be attributed to daily NAC ingestion.
Glutathione is not an anti-retroviral drug, stressed genetics professor Leonard (Len) Herzenberg, PhD. It does not decrease the amount of virus in patients' blood or increase their number of virus-fighting T cells, but it does restore the immune system, the researchers said.
Previous findings by the Herzenbergs and others show that T cells perform better in HIV-infected patients when their Glutathione levels are replenished. Reversal of Glutathione deficiency is also associated with improvement in many other diseases including diabetes, influenza and cystic fibrosis.
"The level of Glutathione is tightly regulated in cells. If nature has gone to the trouble of maintaining those levels, logic says it should be restored to that level if you can," said Lee Herzenberg. "It's like a vitamin deficiency. Any vitamin deficiency would immediately be corrected, and we believe that this is equivalent to a vitamin deficiency."
The Herzenberg team hopes that the benefits of maintaining normal Glutathione levels will encourage people suffering from long-term diseases to avoid lifestyle factors that deplete Glutathione, such as exposure to ultraviolet light and alcohol consumption. They also recommend limited use of acetaminophen the active ingredient in common painkillers such as Tylenol because the risk of liver damage is increased for those with low Glutathione levels.
The Herzenbergs are confident that the new findings will speed the introduction into the U.S. market of medicinal-quality NAC that AIDS patients and others can take to maintain normal Glutathione levels. BY KRISTIN WEIDENBACH
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
"The importance here is that Glutathione is a central component of all cells, and Glutathione deficiency is associated with poor prognosis in many, many diseases," said Leonore (Lee) Herzenberg, PhD, professor of genetics. She is senior author of a paper describing the new study, published in the October 1 issue of the European Journal of Clinical Investigation.
Lee Herzenberg and her colleagues conducted a clinical trial in which 31 HIV-infected patients were given daily doses of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) a substance that is turned into Glutathione in the body. Thirty others were given a benign sugar pill. At the start of the trial all patients had Glutathione deficiency some patients had only half the amount found in healthy people. At the end of the two-month trial, those taking NAC had increased the amount of Glutathione in their bodies to near-normal levels.
"What we've proven is that giving people NAC replenishes the Glutathione stores," said Lee Herzenberg.
At the completion of the eight-week trial, most patients chose to take NAC for the following six months while the researchers continued monitoring the safety of the supplement. They found that patients suffered no ill effects that could be attributed to daily NAC ingestion.
Glutathione is not an anti-retroviral drug, stressed genetics professor Leonard (Len) Herzenberg, PhD. It does not decrease the amount of virus in patients' blood or increase their number of virus-fighting T cells, but it does restore the immune system, the researchers said.
Previous findings by the Herzenbergs and others show that T cells perform better in HIV-infected patients when their Glutathione levels are replenished. Reversal of Glutathione deficiency is also associated with improvement in many other diseases including diabetes, influenza and cystic fibrosis.
"The level of Glutathione is tightly regulated in cells. If nature has gone to the trouble of maintaining those levels, logic says it should be restored to that level if you can," said Lee Herzenberg. "It's like a vitamin deficiency. Any vitamin deficiency would immediately be corrected, and we believe that this is equivalent to a vitamin deficiency."
The Herzenberg team hopes that the benefits of maintaining normal Glutathione levels will encourage people suffering from long-term diseases to avoid lifestyle factors that deplete Glutathione, such as exposure to ultraviolet light and alcohol consumption. They also recommend limited use of acetaminophen the active ingredient in common painkillers such as Tylenol because the risk of liver damage is increased for those with low Glutathione levels.
The Herzenbergs are confident that the new findings will speed the introduction into the U.S. market of medicinal-quality NAC that AIDS patients and others can take to maintain normal Glutathione levels. BY KRISTIN WEIDENBACH
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
Raised Glutathione Levels Help Balance Immune System
Researchers from Germany and the US have found that Glutathione can boost the natural antioxidant system of the body.
The body carries many antioxidant defense systems, but inside cells a small protein called glutathione is crucial. Glutathione is essential for the function of immune cells, which protect us from viral and bacterial infections.
In people with immune deficiency, glutathione levels fall well below the normal levels in blood and immune cells. Restoring glutathione levels to those found in healthy people is likely to help immune deficient patients.
Two studies have recently been published with research backing up the claims that Glutathione helps fight disease, one in the European Journal of Clinical Investigation, from Stig Froland in Oslo, Norway, and the other by Leonore and Leonard Herzenberg, a husband and wife team from Stanford, California. The results of their work showed that glutathione levels could indeed be restored in AIDS patients and that this may improve the outlook for these patients.
Herzenberg and colleagues conducted a clinical trial in which 31 HIV-infected patients were given daily doses of Glutathione — and 30 others were given a benign sugar pill. According to the study published in the October 1 issue of the European Journal of Clinical Investigation, those taking Glutathione had increased the amount of glutathione in their bodies to near-normal levels at the end of the two-month trial.
“The importance here is that glutathione is a central component of all cells, and glutathione deficiency is associated with poor prognosis in many, many diseases,” said Herzenberg. “What we’ve proven is that giving people Glutathione replenishes the glutathione stores.”
The authors of the report concluded that “Glutathione offers useful adjunct therapy to increase protection against oxidative stress, improve immune system function and increase detoxification of acetaminophen and other drugs. These findings suggest Glutathione therapy could be valuable in other clinical situations in which there is GSH deficiency.”
“It is important to realize that these results are the culmination of over 10 years of research.” states Frank Staal, an immunologist from Rotterdam, The Netherlands, who worked in this field for many years. “The groups of Droge and Herzenberg were the first to demonstrate that Glutathione is low in AIDS and that this defect contributes to poor immune cell function." ImmuneSupport.com
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
The body carries many antioxidant defense systems, but inside cells a small protein called glutathione is crucial. Glutathione is essential for the function of immune cells, which protect us from viral and bacterial infections.
In people with immune deficiency, glutathione levels fall well below the normal levels in blood and immune cells. Restoring glutathione levels to those found in healthy people is likely to help immune deficient patients.
Two studies have recently been published with research backing up the claims that Glutathione helps fight disease, one in the European Journal of Clinical Investigation, from Stig Froland in Oslo, Norway, and the other by Leonore and Leonard Herzenberg, a husband and wife team from Stanford, California. The results of their work showed that glutathione levels could indeed be restored in AIDS patients and that this may improve the outlook for these patients.
Herzenberg and colleagues conducted a clinical trial in which 31 HIV-infected patients were given daily doses of Glutathione — and 30 others were given a benign sugar pill. According to the study published in the October 1 issue of the European Journal of Clinical Investigation, those taking Glutathione had increased the amount of glutathione in their bodies to near-normal levels at the end of the two-month trial.
“The importance here is that glutathione is a central component of all cells, and glutathione deficiency is associated with poor prognosis in many, many diseases,” said Herzenberg. “What we’ve proven is that giving people Glutathione replenishes the glutathione stores.”
The authors of the report concluded that “Glutathione offers useful adjunct therapy to increase protection against oxidative stress, improve immune system function and increase detoxification of acetaminophen and other drugs. These findings suggest Glutathione therapy could be valuable in other clinical situations in which there is GSH deficiency.”
“It is important to realize that these results are the culmination of over 10 years of research.” states Frank Staal, an immunologist from Rotterdam, The Netherlands, who worked in this field for many years. “The groups of Droge and Herzenberg were the first to demonstrate that Glutathione is low in AIDS and that this defect contributes to poor immune cell function." ImmuneSupport.com
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
Monday, January 14, 2008
Glutathione in Health and Disease
Glutathione levels are related to increased survival and longer life in all organisms tested so far, lower levels are related to poorer health and a number of chronic degenerative diseases, including heart disease, arthritis, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, genitourinary, gastrointestinal, and musculoskeletal diseases, age-related macular degeneration (ARMD), preeclampsia, cataracts, chronic renal failure, leukemia, respiratory diseases like COPD and adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), hearing loss, and AIDS.
Lang concluded that decreased GSH is a risk factor for chronic diseases and may be used to monitor the severity and progress of the diseases. Conversely, Dr. Mara Julius of the Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan, in a study of 33 subjects over the age of 60, found that higher Glutathione levels were associated with fewer illnesses and higher levels of self-rated health, lower cholesterol, lower body mass index and lower blood pressures. The author noted that this was the first study that showed an association of higher Glutathione levels with higher levels of physical health in a community-based sample.
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
Lang concluded that decreased GSH is a risk factor for chronic diseases and may be used to monitor the severity and progress of the diseases. Conversely, Dr. Mara Julius of the Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan, in a study of 33 subjects over the age of 60, found that higher Glutathione levels were associated with fewer illnesses and higher levels of self-rated health, lower cholesterol, lower body mass index and lower blood pressures. The author noted that this was the first study that showed an association of higher Glutathione levels with higher levels of physical health in a community-based sample.
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Glutathione and HIV
Studies have shown that reduced levels of Glutathione and its precursor cysteine play a role in HIV’s progression to AIDS.
In one study, researchers analyzed blood samples from healthy volunteers and HIV positive patients undergoing different antiretroviral regimens.
The study authors then determined the viral load in the HIV patients and levels of cysteine and Glutathione. The results indicated that a decrease in Glutathione and cysteine levels was associated with disease progress.
In fact, the greater the viral load, the lower the level of Glutathione and cysteine. Glutathione also can protect against the free radical damage that occurs as the result of standard treatments used in AIDS patients. By Kimberly Pryor
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
In one study, researchers analyzed blood samples from healthy volunteers and HIV positive patients undergoing different antiretroviral regimens.
The study authors then determined the viral load in the HIV patients and levels of cysteine and Glutathione. The results indicated that a decrease in Glutathione and cysteine levels was associated with disease progress.
In fact, the greater the viral load, the lower the level of Glutathione and cysteine. Glutathione also can protect against the free radical damage that occurs as the result of standard treatments used in AIDS patients. By Kimberly Pryor
Click here for more about Glutathione and its benefits to our body.
Antioxidant Supports Lung, Liver, Gastric and Cerebral Health while Guarding Against DNA Damage
Glutathione is the king of all antioxidants.
It rules our body’s cells, for without it, they would be helpless during the fatal onslaught of free radicals.
Glutathione plays a prominent role in regulation of cellular events including gene expression, DNA and protein synthesis, cell proliferation and apoptosis (programmed cell death), and immune response.
Glutathione deficiency contributes to oxidative stress, which is involved in aging and the development of such diseases as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson's, liver disease, cystic fibrosis, sickle cell anemia, HIV and AIDS, cancer, strokes—even H. pylori infections.1-2 Recently, an abundance of research has emerged on Glutathione’s role in health. By Kimberly Pryor
It rules our body’s cells, for without it, they would be helpless during the fatal onslaught of free radicals.
Glutathione plays a prominent role in regulation of cellular events including gene expression, DNA and protein synthesis, cell proliferation and apoptosis (programmed cell death), and immune response.
Glutathione deficiency contributes to oxidative stress, which is involved in aging and the development of such diseases as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson's, liver disease, cystic fibrosis, sickle cell anemia, HIV and AIDS, cancer, strokes—even H. pylori infections.1-2 Recently, an abundance of research has emerged on Glutathione’s role in health. By Kimberly Pryor
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