Daiwa Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. (Daiwa, head office located in Setagaya, Tokyo; president, Mr. Y. Ninomiya) reported the results of an evaluation of rice bran arabinoxylan, the principal ingredient of "Lentin Plus" and their main product, against anti-tumor preparations at an academic conference in the US.

At an academic meeting of ASPET (American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics) held in Boston from 6th though 8th June, 2000, Research and Development Division of the company, presented the results. At the conference, there were as many as 3,000 participants from the US and Europe.

The evaluation was conducted in an American test laboratory, Product Safety Labs, an FDA designated laboratory, between 12th and 23rd July, 1999. The objective of the test was to evaluate the compound's effect against single doses of cisplatin and adriamycin in rats.

The test procedures were as follows. Eighty rats under proper control were selected and placed into 8 groups according to body weight. Rice bran arabinoxylan and a control were administered orally and continuously from Day 0 to 11. Cisplatin, adriamycin and diluents were injected intraperitoneally on Day 3. Body weights were measured on Days 3, 5, 7 9 and 11. After euthanization on Day 11, each animal was autopsied.

Remarkable weight increases were observed among a group of 5mg/kg PO dose and 50mg/kg PO dose (+72%). In groups receiving cisplatin 8mg/kg IP and cisplatin 10mg/kg IP, no increase in weight or a notably small difference in significance was observed (cisplatin: -1.5%; adriamycin: +30%).

In groups receiving rice bran arabinoxylan at two different levels (5mg/kg PO and 50mg/kg PO) plus anti-tumor agents, highly significant differences in body weights were noted compared with those receiving anti-tumor preparations alone.

An increase in body weight of 11% was noted in a group to which rice bran arabinoxylan 5mg/kg plus cisplatin was administered; a 46% increase was observed in another to which rice bran arabinoxylan 5mg/kg plus adriamycin was given; 44% increase was noted in a group receiving rice bran arabinoxylan 50mg/kg plus cisplatin; and 43% increase in a group to which rice bran arabinoxylan 50mg/kg plus adriamycin was administered.

As a result, it has been proven that rice bran arabinoxylan is effective in maintaining body weights at any level of dosage in tests where a certain amount of cisplatin or adriamycin having significant differences in terms of toxicity were administered.

As for rice bran arabinoxylan itself, it has been demonstrated in the studies done so far that it activates NK cells and macrophages that attack cancer cells. In these experiments, the finding has been supported by improving resistance so as to maintain body weight with more specific results than before. This result received a high approval.

In addition, its potential protective power against pathological changes in the liver and other organs induced by anti-tumor agents is also highly rated. As such research progresses, it is expected that the compound will contribute greatly to improvement in the QOL of patients who are subjected to chemotherapy.

The results of the test are to be contributed as an academic report in "Life Science"

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