Development of a Combined Bovine Colostrum and Immune-StimulatoryCarbohydrate Nutraceutical for Enhancement of Endogenous Stem CellActivity

摘要

There is increasing interest in the use of functional foods to activate natural stem cell associated repair pathwaysresulting in improved health and well-being. Bovine Alpha Lipid colostrum, a proprietary formulation, induced stemcell associated cytokines and growth factor, GCSF, IL-6 and VEGF and also enhanced the differentiation of bone marrowstem cells in vitro. To boost colostrum activity, commercially available natural extracts of immune stimulatory carbohydrateswere screened for their capacity to induce GCSF and IL-6. Combining selected extracts with colostrum, showedsynergistic cytokine induction in vitro. In a mouse feeding study, a trial formulation of Alpha Lipid colostrum combinedwith selected carbohydrate extracts, was shown to increase the frequency of bone marrow hematopoietic stem cells to agreater extent that was seen with the colostrum alone, as assessed by CFU assay. Furthermore, a pilot human studyshowed there were alterations in circulating hematopoietic and mesenchymal/stromal stem cell numbers following consumptionof the trial formulation compared to subjects receiving a placebo supplement. These data indicate that is possibleto influence the endogenous stem cell niche by oral supplementation with a combination of colostrum and highly potentsources of immune stimulatory carbohydrates.