Lyme Disease & Modern Chinese Medicine

This slid shows that the active ingredient of Artemisia Capsule, Artesunate, has very low toxicity and high therapeutic index. It is a very safe remedy that can be quickly metabolized and has no accumulation in the body. Its cure rate for malaria is almost 100%. We borrowed it for treating babesiosis, a malaria like protozoa and it also good for anti-virus, can suppress cytomegalovirus (CMV), herpes, and Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). Its wild spectrum anti-cancer effects have been used for helping cancer survivors to eradicate minimum residual cancer cells after oncotherapy. Its anti-autoimmune effects can be used for treating LD’s autoimmune complications, such as Hashimoto, arthralgia, vasculitis, and so on.

Artesunate is the second most frequently used anti-infection substance in our protocol, which is the first line anti-malaria medicine recommended by World Health Organization and it has saved millions of lives.

About 20 years ago I first borrowed it for treating babesiosis, which is a main co-infection of LD. It is protozoa that infects red blood cells like malaria. Because there was no special anti-babesiosis study has been done, I can only borrow this treatment from medication of malaria.  Conventional medicine did the same but adopted some out of dated anti-malaria drugs, such as Malarone (Atovaqyuone). They are not only ineffective, very expensive, and have a lot of side effects.

The Chinese discoverer of artemisinin, Prof. Du Youyou won 2015 Nobel Prize. Her team now is studying to use artemisinin and its molecular deliveries to treat systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis. In 1995, the Washington State University in Seattle had published their findings that artemisinin and its deliveries have wild spectrum anti-cancer effects.

Because LD needs long term treatment, the anti-infection substances we use have very low toxicity that can be used for long term. Pharmacologically, the toxicity of the any medicinal substance is measured by LD_{50 ( LD 50 is the dose of the substance sufficient to kill 50% of a test population of animals within a certain time frame, it is an indicator of the toxicity of a substance)}  and the safety is measured by therapeutic index (LD₅₀/ED_{50 (ED 50 is the dose of the substance sufficient to have intended effects in 50% of a test population of animals within a certain time frame, it is an indicator of the efficacy of a substance).})When we choice the substances, their safety level is first concern. For example, the main anti-infection substance Allicin (Allitridi) Capsule, its therapeutic index is 67.45 ~ 134.9 that means while use 67.45 ~ 134.9 times of the daily dose will show toxicity. Its LD₅₀ is 134.9 mg/kg; 67.45 ~134.9 times higher than the therapeutic dose (2 mg/kg ~1 mg/kg per day). Its long term use accumulative toxicity has also been studied. Because it has a very short half-life time in the body and can quickly eliminate from the body, there will be no accumulative toxicity.

The therapeutic index for artemisinin is 36.8 and comparatively chloroquine is 28.8. We use artesunate which is a molecular modified derivative of artemisinin that has better therapeutic index than artemisinin. Other anti-infection substances we use all have therapeutic indexes checked to ensure their long-term use safety.

I first learned about Allicin was 41 years ago. I was an orthopedist working in Shanghai Reijing Hospital, the largest teaching hospital of Shanghai Second Medical University. Then my son was six month old and developed very high fever. The pediatrician Dr. Shi was my school mate and he used the best antibiotics he could get but the fever didn’t retreat. Finally, he asked me “Do you mind if I use hospital-made garlic preparation as intravenous infusion?” I asked him, had he used this preparation before and was there any toxicity and side effects. He told me that the substance was safe and he had used for several children and it was quite effective. I told this to my wife and we agreed to use this preparation.

Dr. Shi used the hospital preparation through intravenous infusion. I held my son in my arms and watching the solution dripping into his vein on the forehead slowly and smell the garlic odor from his breath. It took about one hour to finish the dripping, during this time I could see that my son’s face become less red and his body gradually cooling down. One hour after the dripping finished his body temperature was normalized. Just one dose made the high fever retreated.

At that time the solution was called “Garlic Injection” was made by the hospital pharmaceutist. It gave me an unforgettable memory and I would remember for life. It might have saved my son. When I started to treat AIDS patients in late 1980s I remembering to use it to treat and prevent opportunistic infections of AIDS patients. I know that HIV itself is not lethal; it is the opportunistic infections and diseases that kill AIDS patients.

In 1980s the hospital made garlic preparations became formal medicine “Allicin Injection” in China and produced by pharmaceutical factory. It was in solution form. I redesigned it and made it to be enterically coated and time-release capsule to enable it becoming a food supplement and can be dosing easily.    

In September 1993 my patient Denial M. asked me any help I could give for his friend Steven C. an AIDS patient who was literally on death bed. He had zero CD4 T cells, suffered from PCP pneumonia, CMV retinitis, and Kaposi sarcoma. I thought that Steven needed wild-spectrum anti-infection and anti-neoplastic treatment, so I gave Denial ampoules of Allicin solutions, which was made for intravenous infusion in China. I told him to dilute the solution with water and gave Steven as oral drink. Two weeks after started this treatment, Steven was strong enough been able to come to my clinic to see me in person. Since I provided allicin solution for him as daily treatment. He survival from those opportunistic diseases and managed to live for 10 more years mainly relied on the protection of the Allicin. Allicin didn’t eradicate the HIV, it didn’t cure the CMV retinitis and Kaposi sarcoma, it did cure the PCP pneumonia, which was the main life threaten infection. Steven was a massage therapist and he was able to do massage for other AIDS patients again.

To the year 2003, Steven’s CMV retinitis advanced that made his vision very much deteriorated, he lost confidence for further live. He chose to die and stopped the treatment. 

With zero CD4 T cells, the body becomes a culture base, any infectious pathogen contracted can infect the body. They could be bacteria, mycobacteria, fungi, protozoa, and viruses. For Steven Allicin had protected him from opportunistic infections and helped to slow down the development of opportunistic disease.

Steven’s case made me further belief that Allicin is a wonderful substance that can be used as wide spectrum anti infection remedy. During his treatment course, I found that the solution form was not convenient for dosing. Later I developed an oral capsule form of the Allicin now we are using as an enterically coated, time-release capsule.

These two slides show the pharmacology of the Allicin. It has wide spectrum of anti microbial effects and the toxicity is low and the index of therapeutic is high, so it is very safe.

LD is an infectious disease to eradicate the infectious pathogens is vitally important. We have developed Chinese medicinal herbal anti-pathogen remedies, such as Allicin Capsule, Artesunate Capsule, HH Capsule, Coptis Capsule, and R 5081 Capsule etc. The design of them is based on following considerations:

1. Very low toxicity to meet long term treatment requiems of LD.
2. Wide spectrum of anti-microbial effects, for example: Allicin has anti-bacteria, -mycobacteria, -fungi, -protozoa, and -curtain virus effects, to cover all possible co-infections of LD. It will not cause yeast over grow.
3. They can easily penetrate the blood brain barrier (BBB) because they have very small molecular weight, for example: Allitridi’s molecular weight is 162.27 and Artesunate is particularly effective for cerebral malaria therefore it can well penetrate the BBB. The same mechanism can also make them able to penetrate the biofilm.
4. Resistance to them is rare because these substances have not been extensively used.  
5. They killing bacteria is not by destroying bacteria’s cellular wall therefore they can work for cyst form of the bacteria.

In summery our anti-infection substances for chronic LD have very low toxicity can be used for long-term; wild spectrum of anti-multiple pathogen (including fungi) effects that can comprehensively cover co-infections; will not cause yeast over grow; can penetrate BBB and biofilm; resistance is rare; and can work for the cyst form of bacteria.

I will explain individual anti-infection substances in following posts.