50 ways to love your liver and potentially avert a nasty hangover

[HysteryDiagnosis]

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20564545

Phytother Res. 2010 Oct;24(10):1423-32.
Milk thistle in liver diseases: past, present, future.

Abenavoli L, Capasso R, Milic N, Capasso F.

Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University Magna Graecia, Catanzaro, Italy. [e-mail]
Abstract

Silybum marianum or milk thistle (MT) is the most well-researched plant in the treatment of liver disease. The active complex of MT is a lipophilic extract from the seeds of the plant and is composed of three isomer flavonolignans (silybin, silydianin, and silychristin) collectively known as silymarin. Silybin is a component with the greatest degree of biological activity and makes up 50% to 70% of silymarin. Silymarin is found in the entire plant but it is concentrated in the fruit and seeds. Silymarin acts as an antioxidant by reducing free radical production and lipid peroxidation, has antifibrotic activity and may act as a toxin blockade agent by inhibiting binding of toxins to the hepatocyte cell membrane receptors. In animals, silymarin reduces liver injury caused by acetaminophen, carbon tetrachloride, radiation, iron overload, phenylhydrazine, alcohol, cold ischaemia and Amanita phalloides. Silymarin has been used to treat alcoholic liver disease, acute and chronic viral hepatitis and toxin-induced liver diseases.
Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

1. Way #2

J Clin Virol. 2010 Oct;49(2):131-3. Epub 2010 Aug 14.
Successful HCV eradication and inhibition of HIV replication by intravenous silibinin in an HIV-HCV coinfected patient.

Payer BA, Reiberger T, Rutter K, Beinhardt S, Staettermayer AF, Peck-Radosavljevic M, Ferenci P.

Medical University of Vienna, Department of Internal Medicine III, Division of Gastroenterology & Hepatology, Waehringer Guertel 18-20, A1090 Vienna, Austria.
Abstract

INTRODUCTION: The efficacy of antiviral therapy with pegylated interferon (PEGIFN) plus ribavirin (RBV) in patients with HIV and hepatitis C virus (HCV) coinfection is limited. Intravenous silibinin (ivSIL), a milk thistle extract with proven antiviral effects represents a novel therapeutic strategy for virological nonresponders.

METHODS: We report a case of an HIV-HCV coinfected patient, who has not responded to a prior course of PEGIFN-α2a (180 μg/week/s.c.) and RBV (1000 mg/day/p.o.). Testing for IL-28β small nucleotid polymorphism revealed the nonfavourable genotype T/T. Antiretroviral therapy was not prescribed because the patients presented with well-preserved CD4+ cell counts and low HIV-RNA levels. She received retreatment with ivSIL for two weeks followed by PEGIFN/RBV combination therapy starting at week 1.

RESULTS: After 2 weeks of ivSIL therapy both HCV-RNA and HIV-RNA become undetectable. On ivSIL monotherapy we noticed a trend towards an increase of CD4+ cell counts and a decrease of HIV-RNA. After 16 weeks PEGIFN+RBV was discontinued due to patients wish because of adverse events. HCV-RNA was still negative 24 weeks after cessation of therapy, while HIV-RNA returned to baseline levels.

CONCLUSION: ivSIL may represent a potential treatment option for retreatment of HIV-HCV coinfected patients nonresponding to PEGIFN+RBV combination therapy. Further investigations on the possible beneficial effects of ivSIL on CD4+ cell counts and HIV-RNA levels are necessary.
Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

PMID: 20709593

[Fly by night]

2. Way #3

Don't drink.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

3. Way number three, don't get transfusions that have xyz microbe in them AND

Chem Biol Interact. 2010 Jul 30;186(2):219-27. Epub 2010 Apr 28.
Protective effects of Pycnogenol on hyperglycemia-induced oxidative damage in the liver of type 2 diabetic rats.

Parveen K, Khan MR, Mujeeb M, Siddiqui WA.

Department of Biochemistry, Lipid Metabolism Laboratory, Jamia Hamdard (Hamdard University), New Delhi 110062, India. [e-mail]
Abstract

Abnormal regulation of glucose and impaired carbohydrate utilization that result from a defective or deficient insulin are the key pathogenic events in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Experimental and clinical studies have shown the antidiabetic effects of Pycnogenol (PYC). However, the protective effects of PYC on the liver, a major metabolic organ which primarily involves in glucose metabolism and maintains the normal blood glucose level in T2DM model have not been studied. The present study evaluated the beneficial effect of PYC, French maritime pine bark extract, on hyperglycemia and oxidative damage in normal and diabetic rats.

Diabetes was induced by feeding rats with a high-fat diet (HFD; 40%) for 2 weeks followed by an intraperitoneal (IP) injection of streptozotocin (STZ; 40 mg/kg; body weight). An IP dose of 10mg/kg PYC was given continually for 4 weeks after diabetes induction. At the end of the 4-week period, blood was drawn and the rats were then sacrificed, and their livers dissected for biochemical and histopathological assays.

In the HFD/STZ group, levels of glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), significantly increased, while hepatic glycogen level decreased. PYC supplementation significantly reversed these parameters. Moreover, supplementation with PYC significantly ameliorated thiobarbituric reactive substances, malonaldehyde, protein carbonyl, glutathione and antioxidant enzymes in the liver of HFD/STZ rats.

These results were supported with histopathological examinations. Although detailed studies are required for the evaluation of the exact protective mechanism of PYC against diabetic complications, these preliminary experimental findings demonstrate that PYC exhibits antidiabetic effects in a rat model of type 2 DM by potentiating the antioxidant defense system. These finding supports the efficacy of PYC for diabetes management.
(c) 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

PMID: 20433812

[Fly by night]

4. Alrighty then.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

5. And then there is beta amyloid prevention.... sertov.

Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2010 Nov 23;74(11):2299-306. Epub 2010 Nov 7.
Silymarin attenuated the amyloid β plaque burden and improved behavioral abnormalities in an Alzheimer's disease mouse model.

Murata N, Murakami K, Ozawa Y, Kinoshita N, Irie K, Shirasawa T, Shimizu T.

Molecular Gerontology, Tokyo Metropolitan Institute of Gerontology, Tokyo, Japan.
Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by progressive cognitive impairment and the formation of senile plaques. Silymarin, an extract of milk thistle, has long been used as a medicinal herb for liver diseases. Here we report marked suppression of amyloid β-protein (Aβ) fibril formation and neurotoxicity in PC12 cells after silymarin treatment in vitro. In vivo studies had indicated a significant reduction in brain Aβ deposition and improvement in behavioral abnormalities in amyloid precursor protein (APP) transgenic mice that had been preventively treated with a powdered diet containing 0.1% silymarin for 6 months. The silymarin-treated APP mice also showed less anxiety than the vehicle-treated APP mice. These behavioral changes were associated with a decline in Aβ oligomer production induced by silymarin intake. These results suggest that silymarin is a promising agent for the prevention of AD.

PMID: 21071836 Free Article

[Fly by night]

6. You're on fire, I tell ya'.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

7. Simple truth is that everyone who needs to know about this stuff will never

be told about it by the ones they trust with their lives, instead they will be put on crap like Plavix etc, in the hopes that reality will live up to the advertising hype.

http://www.askapatient.com/viewrating.asp?drug=20839&name=PLAVIX

I quit taking this drug. I figured my quality of life was worth more than giving this company $10 a day to make me feel like crap. I have been off for 2 weeks and I feel great. I have my energy back, and have started to look forward to the future. Headaches were a nightly happening are now gone completely. Joints stopped aching and my vision has returned to normal. My speach has returned to pre plavix times.
Read more at http://www.askapatient.com/viewrating.asp?drug=20839&name=PLAVIX&ktrack=kcplink

[Fly by night]

8. I am glad you're feeling better. But, in case you haven't noticed, ...

... I am the only person responding to this OP. It may be that what you're posting is over the heads of most DUers. (It certainly is over mine.) Maybe if you'd post an OP that summarizes what you've just said instead of cutting and pasting medical journal abstracts, you could reach more people here and elsewhere.

I am glad that you are feeling better. As far as my response, I will stick with my first post. I protect my liver by abstaining from alcohol (I've had enough). The other benefit is that I haven't had a hangover in seventeen years (as of this upcoming Groundhog's Day.) Take care.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

9. Thanks for the cogent and well intentioned input... the person feeling better

was from the site linked, I will try to keep it simple if possible.