Allicin (a high-dose garlic preparation)
Following the lead of its predecessor DAAIR, NYBC stocks a proprietary extract of garlic bulb from New York area-based supplier Tai He: Allicin.
Allicin is thought to possess the greatest activity of garlic’s various components, and the Tai He preparation has been used in some studies, including the Search Alliance study of cryptosporidiosis in people with HIV (see abstract below). Other reported uses of allicin range from bacterial infections to fungal infections.
See additional reports on allicin and its antibiotic properties at
http://pubs.acs.org/subscribe/journals/mdd/v05/i04/html/04news4.html
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The use of a high-dose garlic preparation for the treatment of Cryptosporidium parvum diarrhea. Fareed G, Scolaro M, Jordan W, Sanders N, Chesson C, Slattery M, Long D, Castro C.
Int Conf AIDS. 1996 Jul 7-12; 11: 288 (abstract no. Th.B.4215).
AIDS Research Alliance, West Hollywood, CA, USA. Fax: 310-358-2431.
A high-dose garlic concentrate (”Allicin,” 30mg) used in hospitals in China to treat refractory diarrhea was mixed and diluted in 90cc distilled water using a disposable container for administration twice daily in 20 patients with Cryptosporidium parvum positive in baseline stool samples and clinically significant diarrheal disease. Patients were instructed to take the first 30mg dose orally and to administer the second 30mg dose (if tolerated) by rectal retention enema. Eighteen patients were evaluable for at least 3 weeks of therapy. Fifteen of these had absolute CD4 counts less than 30 with two patients greater than 50 and one patient with 102 at baseline. Both a reduction in the number of bowel movements over the initial 3 weeks of treatment with a stabilization or mild increase in body weight was observed in 8 of these 18 patients. At six weeks, 10 of 16 evaluable patients continued to show a reduction in stool frequency and a further stabilization or increase in body weight. Among the 8 patients who have remained on the high-dose Allicin treatment for greater than 8 weeks, Cryptosporidium parvum stool exams have been repeatedly negative in 4 of the patients. The preparation was apparently well tolerated in a majority of patients. The major reported side effect was a strong garlic smell and taste, which contributed to one patient withdrawing from the study. Because of the lack of effective current therapies for Crypto-sporidium parvum diarrhea, the use of high-dose garlic concentrates appears to be a feasible therapeutic regimen to consider for HIV+ patients with CD4 counts less than 100. Additional studies to evaluate the optimal dosing and route of administration will be needed to verify the efficacy of this novel agent via a Phase ll clinical trial while efforts are under way to identify the active moiety.
Add comment February 26, 2008
