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Biotech / Medical : Mining Cholesterol -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: chris714 who wrote (234)	1/21/2007 7:18:57 AM
From: E. Charters	Respond to of 356

cancure.org Beta Glucan is a product of glycose amino glycans (obtained in turn from Chondroiton Sulfate and Glucosamine Sulfcate), which is referred by pharmacological shorthand as an aortic GAG. One of its functions may be to reduce aortic plaque. Beta Glucans and aortic GAGS are talked about in M.T. Murray's tome The Encyclopaedia of Natural Medicine with reference to their alleged therapeutic effect on CVD. This effect may be due to its power to control blood sugar. straightfromthedoc.com "Acute consumption of barley beta-glucan, but not resistant starch, in muffins was effective in reducing glucose and insulin responses in men who were mildly insulin-resistant. Beta-glucan, a non-starch polysaccharide found in oats and barley, has been the subject of increasing attention with some reports showing the soluble fibre can decrease LDL-C levels." raysahelian.com Beta Glucan and Cholesterol Fruit drinks enriched with the soluble fiber beta-glucan can lower levels of total cholesterol and LDL cholesterol, the "bad" cholesterol. Dr. Ronald Mensink, of Maastricht University tested 25 healthy subjects who drank a fruit drink containing beta-glucan from oats and 22 healthy subjects who drank a fruit drink containing 5 grams of rice starch, which served as a placebo. All of the subjects drank the juice every day for five weeks. Compared with the placebo group, total cholesterol was reduced by 5 percent and LDL cholesterol by 7.7 percent in the beta-glucan group. The investigators also found that the beta-glucan drink decreased cholesterol absorption and increased synthesis, without affecting levels of fat-soluble antioxidants. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, March 2006. Beta Glucan is found in oat fibre. eC<:-}

To: chris714 who wrote (234)	1/21/2007 7:46:43 AM
From: E. Charters	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 356

cholesterol.about.com MECHANISM OF ACTION The exact mechanism of oat beta-glucan's possible hypocholesterolemic effect is not clear. Oat beta-glucan does not appear to have any effect on the biosynthesis of cholesterol. It appears to promote increased excretion of bile acids, which could explain, in large part, its possible cholesterol-lowering activity. Oat beta-glucan may also promote cholesterol clearance from the plasma via reverse cholesterol transport. The mechanism of the possible glucose-regulatory activity of oat beta-glucan is also not well understood. Oat beta-glucan may delay gastric emptying time and consequently affect the rate of uptake of D-glucose from the small intestine. This may be one possible mechanism; the high viscosity of oat beta-glucan may delay absorption of glucose, which may be another possible mechanism. Oat beta-glucan has been found to have immunomodulatory activity in tissue culture and in mice. It appears to activate macrophages to release certain cytokines. Such activity, in mice, has been found to be protective against bacterial infection. It is unclear whether oat beta-glucan has immunomodulatory activity in humans. PHARMACOKINETICS Following ingestion, there is virtually no digestion of oat beta-glucan in the small intestine. Some digestion of oat beta-glucan does take place in the large intestine via bacterial beta-glucosidases. Some smaller oligosaccharides produced by the bacterial transformation of oat beta-glucan may get absorbed, but this is unclear. A large percentage of the ingested beta-glucan is excreted in the feces. INDICATIONS AND USAGE Oat beta-glucan has hypocholesterolemic effects and may also favorably affect some other lipids. It has demonstrated some immune-enhancing effects and may be helpful in some with diabetes. RESEARCH SUMMARY Evidence that oat beta-glucan can reduce cholesterol levels was sufficient to induce the FDA to allow health claims on whole oat products that provide at least 0.75 grams of soluble fiber per serving. The allowed health claim is that these products reduce the risk of heart disease by reducing levels of cholesterol. In one study, mildly hypercholesterolemic subjects on a "typical" diet, in which 35% of calories was derived from fat, were given an oat beta-glucan extract containing 1% or 10% oat beta-glucan. There was a significant reduction in total cholesterol levels in those receiving the 10% oat beta-glucan preparation after three weeks. Cholesterol levels declined significantly in the 1% group, as well, but not as quickly. There was also a significant decline in LDL-cholesterol levels in both groups. Triglyceride and HDL-cholesterol levels were not significantly changed. Some other studies have reported similar results. Improved glucose and insulin responses have been reported in a study of moderately hypercholesterolemic healthy subjects. Oat extracts containing 1% and 10% beta-glucan both demonstrated these beneficial effects on glucose tolerance factors. NIDDM patients given varying concentrations of oat beta-glucan also had significantly improved glucose and insulin responses. Higher doses of the oat beta-glucan correlated with greater improvement. There are in vitro and animal studies demonstrating that oat beta-glucan, like those extracted from yeast and other fungi, has favorable immunomodulatory activities. These include the ability to activate macrophages and stimulate their release of interleukin (IL)-1 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, among other activities Intraperitoneal administration of oat beta-glucan has enhanced a non-specific resistance to bacterial challenge in mice. Survival times have been improved in mice pre-treated with oat beta-glucan and then challenged with Staphylococcus aureus. Similarly, resistance to Eimeria vermiformis has been significantly increased in immunosuppressed mice given oat beta-glucan intragastrically or parenterally.