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prophylaxis. In the noncolorectal group (391 patients), "glucan RADIOPROTECTIVE EFFECTS administration was associated with a statistically significant A search of the National Library of Medicine found 31 journal relative reduction (39%) in serious infections and death". In articles discussing the radioprotective effects of beta-1,3D-glucan. malnourished patients having these operations, infections and The US Army is amongst those who have reported positive death were 44% of 70 patients in the placebo group, 24% of 68 findings on the radioprotective properties of glucan. Some of the patients in the low-dose glucan group, and 17% of 72 patients in effects of nuclear radiation are damage to the bone marrow, the higher-dose glucan group. This represents a 61% reduction in colony-forming cells and haematopoietic progenitor cells that the rate of infection between the controls and the higher-dose manufacture blood cells. Researchers found that glucan exhibite: glucan group of malnourished surgical patients. That would seem a radioprotective effect because of its ability to stimulate recovery to be a remarkable finding for a long studied, yet little used of the bone marrow cells after radiation damage and subsequently natural product. The authors predicted that "glucan would the haematopoietic regeneration of new blood cells.”"* become an important product in infectious disease management". These results have been confirmed by many researchers. For Doctors in Brazil have also conducted double-blind clinical example, M. Hofer et al. described beta-1,3D-glucan extracte: trials which demonstrate the ability of beta-1,3D-glucan to reduce from baker's yeast as "a broad spectrum enhancer of host defence infections in hospital patients and prevent mechanisms stimulating humoral an death. The authors wrote that "Pneumonia cell-mediated immunity". They conclud- occurred in 11 of 20 patients in the control ed from their research into the effects of group and in two of 21 recipients of glucan gamma radiation on animals that "results (p < 0.01)" and that "The mortality rate have demonstrated the ability of glucan to related to infection was 30.0 per cent in . influence positively the course of the patients in the control group and 4.8 per A search of the National acute radiation disease".” If a nuclear cent in the group treated with glucan (p < A AA disaster were to occur, then glucan coul 0.05)".* It is easy to see that glucan, a Library of Medicine mean the difference between life and natural polysaccharide molecule, saved found 31 journal articles death. people's lives during these hospital-based . . Patchen et al. state that "glucans signif- clinical trials by working synergistically discussing the icantly enhanced survival in otherwise with conventional antibiotic medication. radioprotective effects lethally irradiated mice". None of the Researchers from Tulane University, control mice survived the lethal gamma USA, conducted randomised, double-blind of beta-1 ,3D-glucan. radiation, whereas the majority of mice clinical trials of beta-glucan to assess mor- given beta-1,3D-glucan did survive the tality rates in patients due to infection caused by trauma. Browder et. al. found that "the total mortality rate was significantly less in the glucan group (0% versus 29%)" compared to controls, and that "Glucan therapy significantly decreased septic mor- bidity 9.5% versus 49%". They stat- ed that these beneficial effects are attributable to enhanced macrophage function produced by glucan.* This particular study, demonstrating the effectiveness of beta-glucan at mor- tality reduction by enhanced infection control, is over 10 years old, yet few if any general practitioners have ever lethal radiation.” Many of these studies were carried out by the US military at Bethesda, Maryland, USA. Additionally, another radiopro- tective effect was discovered, whereby enhanced recovery was attributed to the free-radical scav- enging ability of glucan. Myra Patchen, PhD, was the first to dis- cover the free-radical scavenging abilities of beta-1,3D-glucan and to show that macrophages were pro- tected from free radical attack dur- ing and after radiation, while con- ducting radiation experiments on The US Army is amongst those who have reported positive findings on the radioprotective properties of glucan. heard of this natural product, beta-1,3D-glucan. animals at the Armed Forces Radiobiology Research Institute, Bethesda, Maryland, USA." DISEASE RECOGNITION Beta-1,3D-glucan has been shown to work synergistically with Activated macrophages can aid in the immune system's identifi- other radioprotective agents. Patchen et al. stated that "it was cation of bacterial or viral invaders. If an activated macrophage demonstrated that the postirradiation administration of glucan, an encounters a virus and phagocytically digests it, the macrophage immunomodulator and haematopoietic stimulant, enhances the will then display part of that virus, called an antigen, on the radioprotective effects of WR-2721".* ™ Tf wm T sall a. eat Library of Medicine found 31 journal articles discussing the radioprotective effects of beta-1,3D-glucan. The US Army is amongst those who have reported Nn eee = eee = eee positive findings on the tadioprotective Ne ane = en nen DISEASE RECOGNITION Activated macrophages can aid in the immune system's identifi- cation of bacterial or viral invaders. If an activated macrophage encounters a virus and phagocytically digi it, the macrophage will then display part of that virus, called an antigen, on the macrophage surface. If an immune system T-cell comes along, it will be able to recognise the antigen being displayed by the macrophage and elicit a specific T-cell response aimed at that par- ticular virus.* The T-cell cannot recognise the virus and initiate that response until after the virus is broken down and its viral anti- gen is displayed on the macrophage surface. In an animal study, researchers concluded that "glucan is capa- ble of increasing survival, inhibiting hepatic necrosis, and main- taining an activated state of phagocytic activity in mice chal- "26 lenged with mouse hepatitis virus" - CHOLESTEROL REDUCTION Beta-1,3D-glucan lowers cholesterol levels. Researchers from the University of Massachusetts, USA, studied the effect of yeast- derived beta-1,3D-glucan on serum lipid levels in obese, hyper- cholesterolaemic men. They concluded that "yeast-derived beta- glucan fiber significantly lowered total cholesterol concentrations and was well tolerated".** Clinical trials of oat-derived beta-glucan and cholesterol were conducted by researchers from the University of Géteborg, 36 + NEXUS RADIOPROTECTIVE EFFECTS A search of the National properties of glucan. FEBRUARY — MARCH 2001