Posted on 04/21/2024 8:18:59 PM PDT by ConservativeMind
Researchers from the University of Cologne have found a new use for cnicin, a substance produced in blessed thistle.
Blessed thistle (Cnicus benedictus) is a plant in the family Asteraceae and also grows in our climate. For centuries, it has been used as a medicinal herb as an extract or tea, e.g. to aid the digestive system.
Researchers at the Center for Pharmacology of University Hospital Cologne and at the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Cologne have now found a completely novel use for cnicin under the direction of Dr. Philipp Gobrecht and Professor Dr. Dietmar Fischer. Animal models as well as human cells have shown that cnicin significantly accelerates axon (nerve fibers) growth. The study was published in Phytomedicine.
Regeneration pathways of injured nerves in humans and animals with long axons are accordingly long. This often makes the healing process lengthy and even frequently irreversible because the axons cannot reach their destination on time. An accelerated regeneration growth rate can, therefore, make a big difference here, ensuring that the fibers reach their original destination on time before irreparable functional deficits can occur.
The researchers demonstrated axon regeneration in animal models and human cells taken from retinae donated by patients. Administering a daily dose of cnicin to mice or rats helped improve paralysis and neuropathy much more quickly.
Compared to other compounds, cnicin has one crucial advantage: it can be introduced into the bloodstream orally (by mouth). It does not have to be given by injection.
"The correct dose is very important here, as cnicin only works within a specific therapeutic window. Doses that are too low or too high are ineffective. This is why further clinical studies on humans are crucial," said Fischer.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
From the study:
They gave cnicin as an intravenous application of the compound at 2 µg/kg.
“Retinal cultures were incubated with cnicin (0.25-5.0 nM in DMSO).”
“To investigate cnicin's bioavailability, the same dose (800 µg) was administered orally. In this case, peak plasma concentrations reached 29.5 ± 9.3 µM and were approximately 6 times lower than after intravenous application…The absolute bioavailability for oral administration of cnicin was high, reaching 84.7% (point estimate). This is consistent with similar pharmacodynamic effects following both intravenous and oral administration.”
cnicin works on what nerves, all nerves? Like neuropathy from chemo? In the spine? In the eyes? Repair the brain?
Were these doses administered to mice or humans. I appear to hav damaged one optic nerve by violent coughing over a 3 1/2 month coughing/bronchial illness about a year ago. I have added NAC and Inositol to my usual supplements, and now am considering adding Blessed Thistle, but what dose?
Is that 800ug per kg? 800ug = 0.8 mg. In my case, that would be 61 mg. A quick look at supplements on Amazon shows that most capsules contain 750 to 1,100 mg each.
That probably refers to the amount of whole herb, not the active ingredient.
Link below refers to “Blessed Thistle (Cnicus benedictus) (aerial parts) 400 mg”. I get my supplemnts from Swanson but am not taking this one...
https://www.swansonvitamins.com/p/swanson-premium-full-spectrum-blessed-thistle-400-mg-90-caps
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.