X-Message-Number: 24446
Date: Wed, 28 Jul 2004 22:35:34 -0700 (PDT)
From: Doug Skrecky <>
Subject: thymalin & epithalamin abstracts

Biogerontology. 2000;1(1):55-9
Immunomodulatory synthetic dipeptide L-Glu-L-Trp slows down aging and
inhibits spontaneous carcinogenesis in rats.
  Immunomodulatory molecule L-Glu-L-Trp was isolated from natural calf
thymic peptide complex Thymalin by reverse-phase high performance liquid
chromatography. On the basis of the synthesized dipeptide a
pharmaceutical was designed containing this compound, which later
receives the brand name Thymogen. The agent activated T-cell
differentiation, T-cell recognition of peptide-MHC complexes, induced
changes in intracellular composition of cyclic nucleotides, and activated
neutrophilic chemotaxis and phagocytosis. The effect of dipeptide on
survival, life span and spontaneous tumor development was studied in
female rats. Seventy-six, five-month-old outbred female rats were
randomly subdivided into two groups and were subcutaneously injected with
0.2 ml of normal saline (controls, 32 rats) or with 5 micrograms/rat of
the dipeptide L-Glu-L-Trp, dissolved in 0.2 ml of saline (44
rats), 5 times per week for 12 months. Animals were monitored up to their
natural death and all the tumors discovered were studied microscopically.
Mean life span of rats in both groups was similar but that of 10% maximum
survived control rats constituted 949 +/- 16.1 days, whereas in the
dipeptide-treated rats this value was 1048 +/- 21.1 days (P < 0.001). Six
out of 44 rats treated with the drug survived over the maximum life span
of control rats (965 days). The aging rate indicated as alpha in the
Gompertz equation, was 0.0071 days-1 in controls and 0.0041 days-1 in
rats exposed to L-Glu-L-Trp. Total tumor incidence was 1.5 times lower (P
< 0.01), malignant tumor incidence 1.7 times lower (P < 0.01), and
hematopoietic malignancies (leukemias and lymphomas) 3.4 times lower (P <
0.02) in rats exposed to the dipeptide in comparison with controls. Thus,
treatment with L-Glu-L-Trp delayed aging rate and decreased spontaneous
tumor incidence in rats.

Mech Ageing Dev. 1998 Jun 15;103(2):123-32.
Pineal peptide preparation epithalamin increases the lifespan of fruit
flies, mice and rats.
  Treatment with pineal peptide preparation epithalamin was followed by
the increase of the mean lifespan of female D. melanogaster, SHR mice,
C3H/Sn mice and LIO rats by 11-31% (P < 0.05). Ninety percent mortality as
well as maximum lifespan were increased in fruit flies, C3H/Sn mice and
rats. Mortality rate was decreased by 52% in D. melanogaster, by 52% in
rats, by 27% in C3H/Sn mice. It did not change in SHR mice exposed to
epithalamin. Treatment with the pineal peptide increased MRDT in flies,
C3H/Sn mice and rats. It has been shown that epithalamin increased
synthesis and secretion of melatonin in rats and inhibits free radical
processes in rats and in D. melanogaster. It is suggested that
antioxidative properties of epithalamin lead to increased lifespan of
three different animal species.

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