by Anu Desai, PhD Pollution and toxic elements Environmental pollution and toxins from plastics, pesticides, smoke, contaminated water, and food have the potential to greatly impact human health.1 These toxic loads cause inflammatory and autoimmune responses, including neurodegenerative conditions including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and multiple sclerosis (MS).2-4 More recently, some efforts have been made to minimize the exposures to pollutants in the long run, such as: using BPA-free plastics, attempting to reduce greenhouse gasses, and incorporating clean-energy…

by Noelle Patno, PhD What is lactoferrin? Lactoferrin is an iron-binding glycoprotein found in most body fluids (including saliva, tears, bile, small intestine secretions, vaginal secretions, and more) and highly similar across species. First identified in bovine milk in 1939, it was later isolated from human milk in 1960 and other fluids as well as blood plasma (specifically, the immune cells called neutrophils). The highest concentration may be found in human colostrum at 8 mg/mL with breast milk levels at…

by Noelle Patno, PhD Lactoferrin (LF) has been advocated by researchers1–3 as a potential method to prevent or treat COVID-19. These recent reviews promote a hypothesis that the natural, endogenous compound which has shown antiviral capabilities for other viruses including SARS-CoV may be effective against the SARS-CoV-2 virus as well. With over 70 years since the discovery of this glycoprotein, this iron-scavenging milk protein now deserves greater attention. The current literature demonstrates that LF has many anti-inflammatory, immunomodulatory, and even…

As part of this conversation, Gabrielle Fredman, PhD describes what is meant by the failure of resolution, and the mechanisms that can drive this failure in atherosclerosis. Dr. Fredman ends by outlining the potential for specialized pro-resolving mediator (SPM) therapies in the management of vascular disease. Gabrielle Fredman, PhD is Associate Professor at Albany Medical College, Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology. From the 16th International Conference on Bioactive Lipids in Cancer, Inflammation and Related Diseases, October 2019 in St…

by Milene Brownlow, PhD Nutritional psychiatry is a rapidly growing medical field studying the connection between the role food and diet quality plays in  how we feel.1 We intuitively understand the body-mind connection and how it affects our day-to-day. We get butterflies in our stomach when nervous, our heart races when we are excited, and our mindset quickly goes south when we have digestive problems. This connection has led researchers to investigate lifestyle modifications that may optimize mental and cognitive…

by Molly Knudsen, MS, RDN From a culinary perspective, mushrooms are a very polarizing food. You either love or despise them, and you either order a meal based on their inclusion or veer far away from it. There are rarely feelings of indifference. However, the notion that medicinal mushrooms are beneficial for health isn’t as divisive as their presence on the dinnerplate. Typically taken in as an extract, fungal varieties considered to be a medicinal mushroom have been used in…

by Michael Stanclift, ND Introduction Many clinicians who know andrographis (Andrographis paniculata) know its anticancer properties; however, its antimicrobial mechanisms have recently caught researchers’ eyes.1-3 Andrographis has been used for its medicinal benefits in traditional Chinese medicine and Ayurveda for centuries, mostly for effects related to infections and/or the immune system.1,3 Based on computer models, some researchers hypothesize andrographolide, a major bioactive compound of andrographis, might have a role in the current COVID-19 pandemic.2,3 Andrographis demonstrates antiviral activity against a…

by Lewis Chang, PhD Introduction “Damned if I don’t get more tired every day. Tired of what I do. Following arcs, like lobbed rocks. The inevitability of truth. But the complexity and the grey lie not in the truth, but what you do with the truth once you have it.”—Detective Benoit Blanc (played by Daniel Craig, in the 2019 film Knives Out) The current pandemic is not showing any sign of slowing in the US and many parts of the…

by Noelle Patno, PhD Introduction Recent findings show that not only respiratory disease but also hypertension and diabetes are prevalent comorbidities associated with COVID-19 infection.1 In fact, multiple meta-analyses indicate that individuals with high blood pressure, diabetes, or cardiovascular diseases have a higher risk for the COVID-19 disease.2–4 Metabolic disease and the immune response to infections are closely tied together in the gut, from which digestion and defense originate, as the oral route into the intestine is one major way…

by Milene Brownlow, PhD Overview We are beginning to understand the wide-ranging impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on multiple facets of life. The outbreak that started late in 2019 was officially declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization and sent most of the world’s population into confinement. Beyond healthcare, this pandemic has drastically altered life as we know it. Originally presented in the form of pneumonia of unknown etiology in Wuhan, China, it has since been determined that…