Sea Water Activates the Immunological System and Exerts a Protective Effect on the Body
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During this time, numerous studies have been launched which have demonstrated clear beneficial health effects at various levels, which could be mediated in part by different actions on the immune system.
Researchers at the University of Alicante, in collaboration with Quinton Laboratories, exclusively devoted to preparing microfiltered cold seawater, are conducting a study that shows that sea water activates the immune system to exert a protective effect by strengthening the body against viruses, low defenses, bacteria, and other seasonal pathogens.
The study, called "Estudios in vitro para evaluar la actividad inmunomoduladora de la solución isotónica e hypertónica Quinton en células humanas de sangre periférica" (In vitro studies to evaluate the immunomodulatory activity of isotonic and hypertonic Quinton in human peripheral blood cells) has been conducted through a research agreement between Quinton Laboratories and the Research Group in Immunology of the University of Alicante, group led by Dr. José Miguel Sempere.
Sea water contains many minerals with known antioxidant and immunomodulatory effects, such as selenium, silicon and zinc. The sodium and chloride are essential for the normal functioning of all body cells, including the cells involved in the immune response.
In Quinton products, there still exists a greater bioavailability of these elements up to a total of more than 78 elements, allowing us to ratify that their ionomineral quality is superior to any other products currently existing on the market. The use of microfiltration in cold sterilization method is a plus. Quinton Laboratories is the only pharmaceutical company in the world that uses this technique in the treatment of seawater. The main advantage is that it provides a safeguard of the natural properties of seawater, to lessen the appearance of free radicals.
The research undertaken, leading to results which confirm significant immunomodulatory activity of Quinton products both in vitro (isotonic solution) and in vivo (physiological saline) which had not been studied to date so throughly, and the most relevant results of this study has been exposed by Dr. Sempere, in the XIV International Conference of Immunology, under the slogan Inmunología en el siglo veintiuno: derrotando la infección, autoinmunidad, alergia y cáncer (Immunology in the twenty-first century: defeating the infection, autoimmunity, allergy and cancer) held in Kobe (Japan) last year.
Study Results
As noted by Dr. Sempere, "the results of this study have been obtained by a proliferation test in vitro cell proliferation," which is one of the most commonly used tests to analyze the effect of different drugs on the immune system , always looking for a possible immunomodulatory effect of the study drug."
The study confirms that leukocytes cultured in vitro with isotonic solution, maintain their morphology and viability during the culture, without added stimuli producing cell activation, leading to immune response and show a clear increase in the production of some of intracytoplasmic cytokines related major activation of cellular immunity.
Cellular immunity is especially effective in the removal of infectious agents predominantly intracellular growth, as is the case of some viruses and bacteria and parasites. "It also plays a key role in the elimination of many tumors and in the recognition of self," says Dr. Sempere.
Another finding of this research is the protective / conservative on the red blood cells throughout the cell culture, as evidenced by the virtual absence of release of hemoglobin to the medium during the 120-144 hours of culture. This represents the starting point for further study in vitro and in vivo with the product, searching even a possible beneficial effect thereof in organ preservation.
The study also revealed that the hypertonic solution Quinton, administered orally to healthy individuals is able to activate the immune system, increasing the expression of leukocyte activation markers and adhesion molecules, depending on the needs of the organism at all times.
"Following the results obtained so far in our investigation conceivable that Quinton products may be used in many diseases, not only as preventive and palliative treatment, but also complementing other drugs to reduce its adverse effects," concludes Dr . Jose Miguel Sempere.
