Practitioners

Breaking News

Red Yeast Rice, Monacolins, and Citrinin Content

Red yeast rice is obtained by a specific process that ferments rice. One of the natural by-products of the rice fermentation process is citrinin, although usually the more sophisticated the fermentation process, the lower the amount of citrinin that is produced as a by-product. Citrinin is a mycotoxin. Because mycotoxins can cause inflammation and other injurious effects in the body, our practitioner-customers and their patients want the assurance that Thorne Research's red yeast rice product – Choleast™ – contains only minimal amounts of citrinin.

In a study published in October 2010 in the Archives of Internal Medicine, 12 red yeast rice products were analyzed for the content of monacolins and citrinin. The results of the analyses demonstrated a high variability of the content of both these substances.

Although Thorne Research's Choleast was not included in the above-noted study, we can confirm to our health-care practitioner customers that we take the utmost care to make certain we are offering the highest quality and purity red yeast rice formula. There are no government standards or guidelines for citrinin content in red yeast rice; however, the generally recognized standard in the industry is less than 1 part per million, and Thorne Research's Choleast regularly tests at less than 0.05 parts per million, which is less than 1/20th of that standard.

In addition, Choleast contains consistent amounts of the naturally-occurring monacolins found in red yeast rice, without standardization or fortification. We know this because we measure all of our raw materials in order to be in compliance with our strict GMP obligations to determine each ingredient's identity, purity, strength, and composition.

At Thorne Research we are committed to the quality of the formulas we offer to you and your patients. Thank you for your continued support.

Lung Cancer Genes are Turned Off by Myo-Inositol

Dateline Boston - On April 8th, reports began to emerge of a lung cancer gene that could be turned off by a simple dietary supplement. Researchers at Boston University reported on an increase in activation of the phosphatidylinositol-kinase (PI3K) gene pathway in patients with lung cancer or even precancerous lesions. This genetic pathway was not affected merely by exposure to smoke or by other lung conditions such as COPD. PI3K up-regulation is apparently specific to lung cancer and predicts susceptibility, helping to explain why only 10 percent of smokers develop lung cancer. Beyond determining genetic predisposition, however, the scientists went a step further and determined this gene could be down-regulated by the supplement myo-inositol. Smokers with precancerous dysplasia in the respiratory tract experienced regression of their precancerous lesions after 2-3 months of taking 18 grams of myo-inositol daily. The researchers also tested respiratory cells from these smokers in vitro and found up-regulation of the PI3K gene, even in normal, non-dysplastic cells. Exposure of these cells to varying concentrations of myo-inositol resulted in down-regulation of PI3K. This news is not a license to keep smoking, as other smoking-related problems like COPD and cardiovascular disease are unaffected by this gene, so would not be expected to be prevented or improved by myo-inositol supplementation.
Sci Transl Med 2010;2:26. http://stm.sciencemag.org/content/2/26/26ra25.full

If You're Going to Eat a High-fat, High-carbohydrate Meal, Be Sure to Bring Along the OJ

Two recent studies examined the effect of orange juice on markers of inflammation and oxidative stress. In one study,[1] the inflammatory effects of orange juice, cream, water, and glucose were compared. Subjects drank water or a 300-calorie drink of orange juice, cream, or glucose. Individuals who drank cream exhibited increases in plasma endotoxins and inflammatory cytokines, glucose resulted in an increase in just inflammatory cytokines, while neither orange juice nor water resulted in any inflammatory activity.

In the second study,[2] normal-weight, healthy subjects were divided into three groups who consumed: (1) a high-fat, high-carbohydrate meal along with water; (2) the same high-fat, high-carbohydrate meal with orange juice (300 calories); or (3) the same high-fat, high-carbohydrate meal with glucose (300 calories). Blood samples were taken 1, 3, and 5 hours after consumption of the meal. Individuals in the glucose and water groups experienced significant increases in inflammatory markers after the meal; whereas, those in the orange juice group did not. Signs of oxidative stress were also considerably lower in the orange juice group. The take home message here: orange juice seems to protect against some of the negative effects of a high-fat, high-carb diet. If you're going to eat junk food, don't forget the OJ.
1. Diabetes Care 2010 Jan 12 [Epub ahead of print].
2. Am J Clin Nutr 2010;91:940-949.

And Don't Forget the Blueberry Juice

It seems that every day we hear of another supplement to aid memory and ward off dementia. Oxidative stress and inflammation are central to the pathogenesis of certain aspects of memory loss, particularly in regard to the etiology of Alzheimer's disease. Thus, with the wide array of fruits and vegetables, as well as nutritional supplements, that boast antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, it is no surprise that many of them can help improve memory. In a recent study, elderly adults with early-stage memory deficits were assigned to daily consumption of wild blueberry juice for 12 weeks. Compared to baseline and to a placebo-juice group, individuals drinking blueberry juice experienced significantly improved memory in the categories of paired associate learning and word list recall. The researchers suggest the benefit conferred by blueberry juice is a result of the anthocyanin content. In addition to antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, anthocyanins have been shown to increase neuronal brain signaling and mediate memory function.
J Agric Food Chem 2010;58:3996-4000.

Red Wine Improves Blood Vessel Functioning Via the Longevity Gene

Evidence suggests the vascular endothelium (lining of the blood vessels) plays a critical role in maintenance of healthy vascular tone. Nitric oxide (NO), one of the mediators of good endothelial function, is formed in the blood vessel lining by the amino acid L-arginine. Endothelial dysfunction can be caused by elevated levels of asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), an L-arginine analog that inhibits NO production. Impaired endothelial function is implicated in numerous conditions, including cardiovascular disease, erectile dysfunction, and peripheral artery disease (PAD). A recent study found red wine decreases ADMA levels. It appears that this occurs via activation of a gene called SIRT1 (often referred to as the longevity gene). In a recent study, all the red wines tested decreased ADMA levels, although it took twice the concentration of German wine to accomplish the ADMA inhibition of French and Italian wines. Because a polyphenol in red wine, resveratrol, has been shown to up-regulate SIRT1, it may be the resveratrol in red wine that is associated with decreased ADMA levels.
Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2009;390:703-709.

Perhaps Everybody Does Need Milk?

Milk, and dairy products in general, have been demonized for years as common allergens, high-fat foods, and sources of hormones, pesticides, and other xenobiotics. But perhaps that cow has a silver lining. Just the fact of being overweight can result in increased oxidative stress and inflammation. In a recent study, two diets were tested to determine whether either diet had an effect on markers of inflammation and oxidative stress in overweight or obese individuals. A group of 20 individuals (10 overweight - BMI 25-29.9; 10 mildly obese - BMI 30-34.9) were randomly assigned to a dairy-based diet group (1,200-1,400 mg calcium daily) or a soy-based diet group (500-600 mg calcium daily). The dairy was provided primarily by three milk-based smoothies daily, while the dairy-free soy group consumed three soy-protein smoothies daily. The study was a crossover design, so after 28 days of consuming one diet and another 28 days for a washout period, the diets were switched. Caloric content of both diets was the same. Markers of inflammation and oxidative stress were measured at baseline and on days 7 and 28 of each diet period. The dairy-based diet resulted in a significant decrease in markers of inflammation and oxidative stress, while the soy diet did not exert any significant effect. The dairy, but not the soy, diet also resulted in an average 20-percent increase in adiponectin, a protein hormone that helps decrease obesity and related conditions, including insulin resistance, fatty liver, atherosclerosis, and type 2 diabetes.
Am J Clin Nutr 2010;91:16-22.