Osteoarthritis
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We created this website writing in language that can be understood by non medical people.
What Causes Osteoarthritis (OA)?
In the past, Osteoarthritis was considered as a wear and tear disease. But new research has shown it is caused by inflammation and the immune system is actively involved in the disease.
View
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4465583/
The immune system protects the body in 2 ways
1. lymphocytes – white blood cells of many types- macrophages, microglia, T cells, plasma cells, etc.
2. Humoral Immunity - involving the substances in the humors or fluid part of the blood
can attack bacteria & microorganisms.
In Rheumatoid arthritis, both the lymphocytes and humor immunity are involved. While in OA, humoral immunity applies but lymphocytes do not directly attack the joints or cartilage.
Research found the presence of complement in OA
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Osteoarthritis and the Complement Cascade
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5805003/
Complement proteins are produced by the liver & our immune system and they function protecting us from foreign invaders. In OA the complement is implicated & attacks the cartilage & synovium ( outer layer of joint cartilage.)
The following are observed in Osteoarthritis
1. Immunoglobulins – also known as antibodies
2. Complement protein ( immune reactive factors )- have names that begins
with C for example C1, C3, C4. Once complement is activated, it goes
through steps called the complement cascade.
3. macrophages & other lymphocytes which are normal parts of the
immune system . They act as protection against all pathogens,
germs, bacteria, fungi, mycoplasmas & viruses.
If one were to observe complement at work using an electron microscope, they usually attach to the cell walls of for example a bacteria and form tiny holes or breaks on the walls.
But complement proteins are unique because when they act, there are several holes on the cell walls and they do not close nor repair. When that happens to bacteria, the holes or breaks leads to leaking of the contents of the cell and that cell is doomed and eventually dies. But the complement can also target antigens in the patient and in OA the target is the joint cartilage.
What exactly is being attacked by the immune system?
Cartilage has many components, for example chondroitin, connective tissue, collagen II, etc.
It is the aggrecan antigen in cartilage that is targeted by immune humors.
View
https://jeo-esska.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40634-014-0008-7
The journal article above is proof that Aggrecan is the Target antigen. The destruction of aggrecan is shown by increased levels of aggrecan fragments in synovial fluid in Osteoarthritis. This results is
aggrecan depletion. The presence of increased levels of aggrecan fragments in synovial fluid is a marker of ongoing cartilage destruction in osteoarthritis.
Complement present in the blood and even in high levels usually do not pose problems to the host since it normally appears in an inactive form.
What activates Complement?
There are 3 pathways
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Classical pathway – through Immunoglobin G and Immunoglobin M
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alternative pathway
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mannose binding pathway.
Alternative pathway & Mannose binding pathway occurs only in response to bacteria & micro-organisms and that leaves the Classical pathway which is the situation involved in Osteoarthritis. The Classical pathway involves antibodies – Immunoglobulin G and Immunoglobulin M. When antibodies attaches or binds to an antigen, it goes through a change and will activate complement if complement is present.
Antibodies bind to specific antigens and above we explained that in Osteoarthritis the target antigen is aggrecan.
The following journal articles show antibodies in OA
Presence of Autoantibodies in Erosive Hand
Osteoarthritis and Association with Clinical
Presentation
https://www.jrheum.org/content/jrheum/46/1/101.full.pdf
Antinuclear antibodies in primary osteoarthritis of the knee: a case-control study
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27847450/
Therefore to explain the whole picture in Osteoarthritis, involves 3 factors
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the target antigen – aggrecan
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the antibody
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complement
When all 3 above are present, it will activate complement.
Some medical staff suggested taking Complement inhibitor/s to fix the problem. Eculizumab, also known as Soliris - a Complement inhibitor was tested on patients. The results showed negative side effects with patients having increased susceptibility to certain infections.
This is not a solution, we must continue to look for other methods to treat diseases.
An Improved Method to treat Osteoarthritis
Did you know that the Immune System has its own controls?
1. The Helper T cell- increases antibody production. It does a wonderful job of killing and eliminating dangerous pathogens in the body. But it is also the one responsible for causing autoimmune &* immune diseases.
2. The Suppressor T cell also known as T Regulatory cell functions to lower antibody production. It is capable of reversing many autoimmune disease simply by lowering antibodies that cause the immune attack.
View the T Regulatory Cell here
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regulatory_T_cell
Can patients actually harness these controls in their bodies to fix their immune disease? The answer is yes but under certain conditions.
The trick is control the situation where an antigen is accepted by the T regulatory cell - will lower antibodies and fix immune reactions including OA.
The method known to research and medical people is Immune Tolerance and under this is Oral Tolerance (OT).
Here is a secret - humans & higher animals have Peyers patches which are lymph nodes located next to the small intestines ; these contain T Regulatory cells which are few in number but this is where oral Tolerance comes to play.
The Oral Tolerance strategy can lead to increases in the levels of T Reg cells.
The Suppressor T Cell can reverse & fix autoimmune & immune disease and even the rejection of organ transplants.
OT is successful in animal experiments
view
Note: The article above states Success includes treating Arthritis!!!
The following experiment is how Oral Tolerance Therapy reversed arthritis
Suppression of type II collagen-induced arthritis by intragastric administration of soluble type II collagen
https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/83/19/7443.full.pdf
Oral Tolerance treatment in above article - researchers induced arthritis in mice by injecting them with type II collagen, then they created Oral Tolerance by feeding the same antigen – type II collagen to the animals.
Notice that the antigen
used to create arthritis in the mice is the same antigen used to cure the illness.
But Oral Tolerance is not successful in humans.
The Research by Dr. Polly Matzinger paved the way to success.
The T cell needs 2 factors or signals for full activation.
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a peptide of the target antigen – aggrecan , the antigen primes or makes ready the T cell. But without the 2nd signal the T cell remains in anergy ( no activity).
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Second signal is co-stimulation – is B7 also known as CD80 (B7-1) & CD86(B7-2) – either one is enough to make the T cell go thru the changes that makes it a fully activated cell.
Second Signal or Co- stimulation is explained at
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Co-stimulation
Matzinger's discovery is called Danger Theory since the only drugs available in Modern Medicine that induce B7 production were vaccines, toxoids, etc., made from dangerous pathogens but produce toxic reactions, high fevers, inflammatory lymphokines and are unsafe for human use.
But Matzinger was not aware of a safe method of stimulating B7 production & this is through the use of herbs.
However, there is an obstacle, Pharmaceutical companies refused to use herbs because herbs are considered little or no profit.
This has resulted in OT experiments not progressing beyond. These situation has dominated all of the years of the nineteen hundreds and even beyond to two thousand.
But with time comes change & with that new possibilities and a new door is opened where there was none before.
In late 1980s and into the 1990s, a new practice was observed. It was called Integrative Medicine.
Integrative Medicine - new graduate doctors of Medicine appeared using their training from Modern Medicine but these doctors also studied other modalities of healing -Example Acupuncture, Reiki , chiropractors, Ayurveda, Western Herbs, TCM herbs, and they included their knowledge of new modalities in treating patients. Even today, these MDs are treating patients & are even getting popular.
The reason for Integrative Medicine is actually an answer to patients going to other methods of treatments because Modern Medicine does not have all the solutions. Modern Medicine
together with the new modalities is the answer and are here to stay.
Today, there are new schools that are now established teaching Integrative Medicine and are part of Medical school training.
It should be made known to everyone that one branch of Modern Medicine started using herbs and that is Stem Cell therapy.
The Fact is Stem Cell therapy has progressed far enough and is the medicine of the future. If people look over Stem Cell therapy, they will find lots and lots of herbs and the use of drugs of herbal origin. In fact, hundreds of drugs new and old from plants are used in Stem Cell therapy and the reason is herbs are the only way to make cells work with safety.
Since Integrative Medicine is now part of todays practice and the fact that Modern Medicine
did not stop Stem Cell therapy which includes herbs, then the system should be ready & give way to combining OT with herbs for success.
Our experiments found that during B7 induction by blood cells, inflammatory lymphokines are also generated & inflammation will result in failure too. This problem is solved by having a second herb to inhibit the inflammation.
At this point, an OT formula is possible which contains the following:
1. aggrecan peptide
2. herbs - 2 herbs are needed, the first to boost production of B7 and the 2nd herb to prevent production of inflammatory lymphokines.
How the formula works.
When Osteoarthritis develops, already there is a large number of Helper T cells that makes the immune system
produce antibodies to cartilage with aggrecan as target antigen.
Oral Tolerance leads to proliferation of new Suppressor T cells, the new cells work against Helper T cells which delete each other, when Helper T cells are reduced, high antibodies to aggrecan go down to normal, each course leads to improvement until complete healing.
Our company and formulas are part of Integratived Medicine. We call our formula the T Cell Therapy - the reason is everytime someone reads about Oral Tolerance, it has not been successful on humans, therefore T Cell Therapy is our treatment and it is successful.
Lux Research – a division of Lux Health Resources has done the research.
The herbs take only 6 days for each course of treatment followed by 15 days of transition – meaning the body makes the necessary changes.
For mild cases 6 -8 courses
For moderate cases – about 9 – 14 courses.
For severe cases – 15 -19 courses of treatment.
Lux Research – a division of Lux Health Resources has done the research.
The healing rate is 68% - with 49% achieved total healing and 19% reporting partial healing. That 68% of healing are positive results considering these are for autoimmune cases where modern medicines are not effective.
The herbs take only 6 days for each course of treatment followed by 15 days of transition – meaning the body makes the necessary changes.
Is Oral Tolerance safe therapy for illness?
Yes, Dr. Howard Weiner, an authority on Oral Tolerance stated it is safe & good for treating autoimmune diseases.
See article
Peptide Antigen (one Oz. - about 28 ml. & enough Herbs to induce & boost B7 production
Cost for the complete formula above.
Adults - UP to 99 lbs- $107
100 to 120 lbs-$127121 to 140 lbs-$147
141 to 160 lbs-$167
161 to 180 lbs-$187
181 to 200 lbs-$207
201 to 220 lbs-$227
221 to 240 lbs-$247
241 to 260 lbs-$267
