Patent Abstract:
the present invention relates to a nutraceutical formulation useful for increasing the concentrations of circulating stem cells in a mammal . disclosed are compositions of matter for increasing the concentrations of circulating stem cells in the blood , consisting of a mixture of natural compounds comprising : ashwagandha , milk thistle , vitamin d3 , fucoidan , and garcinia indica . one embodiment of the present invention describes a method for increasing circulating concentrations of stem cells in a mammal using an oral delivery vehicle containing said combination of natural compounds .

Detailed Description:
the invention teaches various compositions of herbs , vitamins and natural products for stimulation of stem cell numbers in circulation . therapeutic effects of augmenting circulating stem cell numbers derived from data demonstrating that augmentation of said numbers results in a beneficial effect in degenerative conditions such as stroke , ischemic cardiomyopathy , critical limb ischemia , and myocardial infarction . in the area of tissue regeneration , one application that comes to mind is mobilization of bone marrow stem cells in order to increase the amount of cells that enter the area of tissue injury . for example , it is known in many situations that injured tissue releases chemotactic signals that induce “ homing ” of stem cells . on example of this is after myocardial infarction there is a documented rise in plasma vegf , which is associated with stem cell mobilization and entry into the peripheral circulation , theoretically on the way to the damaged myocardium [ 39 - 42 ]. such injury induced stem cell mobilization has also been documented in stroke [ 32 , 33 ], liver failure [ 43 ], renal ischemia reperfusion injury [ 44 ], and transplantation [ 45 ]. now the question is , if tissue injury can promote accelerated mobilization of stem cells to the injured area , and if in some cases more mobilization equals more protection from pathology [ 32 , 33 ], then would it not make sense to simply use g - csf administration to mobilize bone marrow stem cells with the idea of augmenting existing natural processes ? unfortunately numerous toxicities and expense limit this approach in one particular embodiment , the therapeutic composition provided is a mixture of ashwagandha , milk thistle , vitamin d3 , fucoidan and garcinia indica . said ingredients can be mixed at a ratio determined by one skilled in the art to elicit the desired amount of stem cell mobilization , which causes stem cells to enter into the circulatory system from bone marrow . mobilization of stem cells may be assessed by techniques known in the art , said techniques include flow cytometry to assess number of cells with a size , density and / or phenotypic profile of the desired stem cell population . it is apparent to one of skill in the art that if augmented numbers of hematopoietic stem cells are desired , then the practitioner may assess levels of cd34 , cxcr4 , cd133 , stem cell antigen or aldehyde dehydrogenase bright cells . additionally , methods are known in the art to assess circulating stem cell numbers based on ability of said cells to generate differentiated progeny in vitro . for example , if the practitioner of the invention is seeking to identify endothelial progenitor cells ( epc ), numbers of these cells in circulation may be assessed by flow cytometry to identify markers such as vegfr2 , or alternatively , to identify ability of the cells to form endothelial colonies in vitro . said endothelial colonies may be quantified by morphology or ability to uptake acetylated ldl . for the purposes of the current invention , within the definition of the term “ stem cell ” we include not only hematopoietic , endothelial , and mesenchymal stem cells , but also progenitor cells that have been committed to a certain lineage , for example , myeloid progenitor cells or lymphoid progenitor cells . other tissue - committed cells in circulation are also covered by our definition of the word “ stem cells ”. in one specific embodiment , the therapeutic composition contains approximately 5 - 3000 mg ashwagandha , 50 - 10000 iu vitamin d3 , 10 - 10000 mg fucoidan , and 5 - 5000 mg of garcinia indica . in one specific embodiment , the therapeutic composition contains approximately 50 - 300 mg ashwagandha , 500 - 2000 iu vitamin d3 , 100 - 1000 mg fucoidan , and 50 - 500 mg of garcinia indica . in another embodiment said therapeutic composition is comprised of approximately 100 mg ashwagandha , 1000 iu vitamin d3 , 500 mg fucoidan , and 250 mg of garcinia indica . in certain embodiments ingredients may be added or extracted . for example , in patients with known high levels of oxidative stress , such as dialysis patients , antioxidants may be added to the therapeutic composition . said antioxidants may be natural , synthetic , or recombinant . specific antioxidants are well known in the art and may be determined by experimentation . example antioxidants include flavanoids , genistein , 1 - carnosine ;, carotenoid ; co - enzyme q10 , green tea or extract thereof , vitamin a , vitamin b , vitamin c , vitamin e , zinc , selenium , resveratrol , lipoic acid , chlorophyll , gogji berries and extracts thereof , fish oil , and a superoxide dismutase . the compositions of the present invention may be administered in combination with a nutraceutically acceptable carrier . the active ingredients in such formulations may comprise from 1 % by weight to 99 % by weight , or alternatively , 0 . 1 % by weight to 99 . 9 % by weight . “ nutraceutically acceptable carrier ” means any carrier , diluent or excipient that is compatible with the other ingredients of the formulation and not deleterious to the user . the embodiments of the compositions described in the invention can be formulated in any suitable product form . such product forms include , but are not limited to liquid , aerosol spray , cream , dispersion , emulsion , foam , gel , lotion , ointment , powder , solid and solution . the present compositions preferably include a vehicle . a useful vehicle is one that is medically acceptable for ingestion or topical application . useful vehicles may include , but are not limited to , one or more aqueous systems , glycerin , alcohols , fatty alcohols , fatty ethers , fatty esters , polyols , glycols , vegetable oils , mineral oils , water , fruit juices , cultured dairy products , ( e . g ., yogurt ), dairy products ( e . g ., milk ), carbonated or non - carbonated beverages , and mixtures of the aforesaid . the powder compositions of the invention may be conveniently incorporated into a variety of liquids or solid compositions including , but not limited to , powders and other solids , liquid beverages ( teas , mineral water , milk and other dairy products ), capsules , tablets , ointments , skin creams , personal care products , pastas , soups , nutrient bars , cookies , breads , and other bakery items . for use in wound healing or treatment of other acute or chronic conditions of the epidermis , mixture of the ingredients ashwagandha , milk thistle , vitamin d3 , fucoidan and garcinia indica is formulated for topical administration . the vehicle for topical application may be in one of various forms , e . g . a lotion , cream , gel , ointment , stick , spray , or paste . these product forms can be formulated according to well known methods . they may comprise various types of carriers , including , but not limited to , solutions , aerosols , emulsions , gels , and liposomes . the carrier may be formulated , for example , as an emulsion , having an oil - in - water or water - in - oil base . suitable hydrophobic ( oily ) components employed in emulsions include , for example , vegetable oils , animal fats and oils , synthetic hydrocarbons , and esters and alcohols thereof , including polyesters , as well as organopolysiloxane oils . such emulsions also include an emulsifier and / or surfactant , e . g . a nonionic surfactant , such as are well known in the art , to disperse and suspend the discontinuous phase within the continuous phase . the topical formulation may contain one or more components selected from a structuring agent , a thickener or gelling agent , and an emollient or lubricant . frequently employed structuring agents include long chain alcohols , such as stearyl alcohol , and glyceryl ethers or esters and oligo ( ethylene oxide ) ethers or esters thereof . thickeners and gelling agents include , for example , polymers of acrylic or methacrylic acid and esters thereof , polyacrylamides , and naturally occurring thickeners such as agar , carrageenan , gelatin , and guar gum . examples of emollients include triglyceride esters , fatty acid esters and amides , waxes such as beeswax , spermaceti , or carnauba wax , phospholipids such as lecithin , and sterols and fatty acid esters thereof . the topical formulations may further include other components as known in the art , e . g . astringents , fragrances , pigments , skin penetration enhancing agents , sunscreens , etc . in other embodiments , the nutraceutical compositions comprising of ashwagandha , milk thistle , vitamin d3 , fucoidan and garcinia indica may also be formulated for administration parenterally , transdermally , or by inhalation . an injectable composition for parenteral administration typically contains the active compound in a suitable iv solution , such as sterile physiological saline . the composition may also formulated as a suspension in a lipid or phospholipid , in a liposomal suspension , or in an aqueous emulsion . the therapeutic properties of the various components of the composition have been previously described , however , utilization of these compositions for stimulation of stem cell function has not been reported . in the current invention , therapeutic compositions seem to be associated with additive / synergistic effects of the named ingredients to augment stem cell mobilization , as well as to stimulate function and inhibit stem cell inhibitory activities such as oxidative stress or inflammatory mediator production . in one embodiment of the invention , the nutraceutical composition is utilized as an adjunct to stem cell therapy . numerous types of stem cell therapies exist and are known in the art that may be utilized in combination with the current invention . for example , said nutraceuticals can be used in combination with autologous bone marrow stem cell therapy , as currently practiced using devices such as the harvest , arteriocyte , tissue genesis , or bio - met device . a 38 year old healthy male was administered twice daily a combination of 100 mg ashwagandha , 1000 iu vitamin d3 , 500 mg fucoidan , and 250 mg of garcinia indica . before initiation of administration , the subject &# 39 ; s circulating cd34 cells , cd133 , and kdr - 1 positive cells were quantified by flow cytometry as described below . on day 5 of treatment , a 33 %, 54 % and 23 % increase in cd34 , cd133 , and kdr - 1 positive cells was seen in circulation compared to baseline , respectively . on day 10 of treatment a 44 %, 41 %, and 34 % increase in cd34 , cd133 , and kdr - 1 positive cells was seen in circulation compared to baseline , respectively . on day 15 of treatment , a 51 %, 49 %, and 79 % increase in cd34 , cd133 , and kdr - 1 positive cells was seen in circulation compared to baseline , respectively . flow cytometry was performed as followed : peripheral blood mononuclear cells ( pbmc ) were isolated by the ficoll - hypaque ( fisher scientific , portsmouth nh ) method . briefly , blood samples were diluted two - fold with pbs and layered onto ficoll - hypaque in 50 - ml conical tubes ( corning , acton , ma .). each tube was centrifuged at 400 g for 30 min and the lymphocytes at the interface were collected . cells were washed twice with rpmi 1640 medium containing 100 u / ml penicillin , 100 μg / ml streptomycin , and 2 mm l - glutamine , and subsequently resuspended in 100 ul ( 0 . 5 m cells per 100 ul ) of buffer ( pbs + 0 . 5 % bsa ). cells were stained with anti - cd45 - fitc ( bd pharmingen ), antihuman - kdr - pe , anti - cd34 - pe ( bd pharminogen ), cd133 / ac133 - pe ( miltenyi biotec ), or isotype controls recommended by manufacturer . specifically , 10 ul of antibody was added per 100 ul of resuspended cells and refrigerated in the dark for 15 min ( 4 - 8 ) c . cells were washed in 2 ml of pbs with 0 . 5 % bsa and resuspended in 100 ul of buffer for analysis . flow cytometry was performed using a cell lab quant sc system ( beckman coulter ) equipped with 22 mw argon laser tuned at 488 nm , with the total number of cells counted cells being 30 , 000 per sample . the percentage of cd133 and cd34 positive cells was calculated based on the measured number of leukocytes ( cd45 - 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