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Beneficial Effects of a Combination of Korean Red Ginseng and Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy in Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1-Infected Patients
Clinical and Vaccine Immunology, 07/31/09

Sung H et al. – High–level resistance mutations were significantly lower in the combination group than in the group treated with HAART alone. Five patients showed no improvement in viral copy number in the combination group and 9 showed no improvement in the HAART–only group. This data support the clinical utility of KRG intake during HAART therapy.

Exclusive Author Commentary
Young-Keol Cho, 07/31/09

We recognized that the effect of ZDV monotherapy was very limited in Korean patients in 1991. Beginning in late 1991, we had an opportunity to treat HIV-1 infected patients with Korean red ginseng (KRG) for 6 months and observed that KRG-intake had various beneficial effects including increases in the CD4 and CD8 T cell counts. The level of soluble CD8 antigen in serum was dramatically decreased in KRG-treated group, whereas the level of soluble CD4 antigen was not affected by KRG. in other words, KRG attenuates chronic immune activation state by HIV replication. We also found that there are significant inverse correlations between the duration of KRG-intake and the mutation rate in the env gene in vivo, and between the duration of KRG-intake and the progression rate in HIV-1 infected patients. Data analysis over a period of 60 months revealed that KRG-intake more significantly delays the decrease in CD4 T cells than zidovudine monotherapy as well as slowing the development of resistance to antiretroviral drugs. Many patients have maintained their CD4 T cell counts for more than 10 years without antiretroviral drug therapy. Our previous data showed that KRG-intake independently and significantly affected on the slow depletion of CD4 T cells irrespective of HLA class I. Recently, we have reported KRG intake attenuates HIV-1 gene in patients. (It might be difficult to accept as H. pylori's role in gastritis and gastric cancer.) Thus, we have several cases who survived for more than 20 years in the absece of ART. Our long-term clinical observation shows that result of KRG treatment is similar to Sooty-mangabey model. ???? (dongeuibogam, edited by ?? in 1613), the only medical book in the world approved as "memory of world" by UNESCO describes that long-term of ginseng (??) prolongs longevity.

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