Vitamin E Can Be A Treatment For Pneumonia

[haidut]

Ray has written about the immune boosting properties of vitamin E and some forum members have noticed that taking vitamin E gives them flare-ups of their "autoimmune" conditions. Along that line, this study shows that supplementing vitamin E in a human dose of about 600-800 IU provides striking protection against pneumonia in old mice and fully controls the infection without adding any antibiotics or other drugs.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25512603

"...Strikingly, α-Toc supplementation of aged mice resulted in a 1000-fold lower bacterial lung burden and full control of infection. This α-Toc-induced resistance to pneumococcal challenge was associated with a 2-fold fewer pulmonary neutrophils, a level comparable to S. pneumoniae-challenged, conventionally fed young mice. α-Toc directly inhibited neutrophil egress across epithelial cell monolayers in vitro in response to pneumococci or hepoxilin-A3, an eicosanoid required for pneumococcus-elicited neutrophil trans-epithelial migration. α-Toc altered expression of multiple epithelial and neutrophil adhesion molecules involved in migration, including CD55, CD47, CD18/CD11b, and ICAM-1. These findings suggest that α-Toc enhances resistance of aged mice to bacterial pneumonia by modulating the innate immune response, a finding that has potential clinical significance in combating infection in aged individuals through nutritional intervention."

 

[haidut]

Ray has written about the immune boosting properties of vitamin E and some forum members have noticed that taking vitamin E gives them flare-ups of their "autoimmune" conditions. Along that line, this study shows that supplementing vitamin E in a human dose of about 600-800 IU provides striking protection against pneumonia in old mice and fully controls the infection without adding any antibiotics or other drugs.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25512603

"...Strikingly, α-Toc supplementation of aged mice resulted in a 1000-fold lower bacterial lung burden and full control of infection. This α-Toc-induced resistance to pneumococcal challenge was associated with a 2-fold fewer pulmonary neutrophils, a level comparable to S. pneumoniae-challenged, conventionally fed young mice. α-Toc directly inhibited neutrophil egress across epithelial cell monolayers in vitro in response to pneumococci or hepoxilin-A3, an eicosanoid required for pneumococcus-elicited neutrophil trans-epithelial migration. α-Toc altered expression of multiple epithelial and neutrophil adhesion molecules involved in migration, including CD55, CD47, CD18/CD11b, and ICAM-1. These findings suggest that α-Toc enhances resistance of aged mice to bacterial pneumonia by modulating the innate immune response, a finding that has potential clinical significance in combating infection in aged individuals through nutritional intervention."

I found the press release from the university, which talks about the dosage. They say the human equivalent of the dosages used in the study was 200 IU per human per day.

http://now.tufts.edu/news-releases/extr ... -pneumonia

"...The older mice fed a diet containing extra amounts of vitamin E, the equivalent to about 200 IU/day consumed by humans – about 10 times the Recommended Daily Allowance but well below the upper limit – were far more resistant to the bacteria than the older mice that had a normal amount of vitamin E in their diet.

 

[burtlancast]

I have trouble understanding the meaning of the extract you posted: it seems to affirm Vit E prevents neutrophils from crossing the epithelial cells (of blood vessels) to reach the infected pulmonary tissues, and that is attested by twice fewer neutrophils count inside this pulmonary tissue.

But wouldn't this absence of immune cells to combat microbes cause increased infection, instead of decreased ?

 

[haidut]

I have trouble understanding the meaning of the extract you posted: it seems to affirm Vit E prevents neutrophils from crossing the epithelial cells (of blood vessels) to reach the infected pulmonary tissues, and that is attested by twice fewer neutrophils count inside this pulmonary tissue.

But wouldn't this absence of immune cells to combat microbes cause increased infection, instead of decreased ?

I had the same question myself and send the scientists an email but I have not received a response. I think the quote "1000-fold reduction of bacterial burden and full control of infection" as a result of vitamin E is the take-home message here until we hear form them.

 

[Blossom]

This thread reminds me of a newer pharma drug called Daliresp being marketed for an inflammatory lung disease referred to as COPD. That particular drug is supposed to work in part by lowering neutrophils. I'm not advocating for this drug in any way but simply noticed a similarity here between lung inflammation, increased neutrophils and this post pointing toward vitamin E possibly working in a similar manner. The marketing material on the medication mentions that cAMP is increased by the drug. It would be interesting to me haidut if you think the vitamin E might be working similarly to Daliresp.

 

[haidut]

This thread reminds me of a newer pharma drug called Daliresp being marketed for an inflammatory lung disease referred to as COPD. That particular drug is supposed to work in part by lowering neutrophils. I'm not advocating for this drug in any way but simply noticed a similarity here between lung inflammation, increased neutrophils and this post pointing toward vitamin E possibly working in a similar manner. The marketing material on the medication mentions that cAMP is increased by the drug. It would be interesting to me haidut if you think the vitamin E might be working similarly to Daliresp.

If cAMP is increased by the drug and that is the main mechanism of action then caffeine should be able to blow it out of the water since it's one of the most potent cAMP boosters out there. Unsurprisingly, caffeine is often used by people with asthma and COPD.
Yes, I think vitamin E probably has some similar actions since it has also been shown to increase cAMP. However, it likely has a number of other benefits compared to the pharma drug including lowering estrogen and acting as a COX-2 inhibitor.

 

[Blossom]

This thread reminds me of a newer pharma drug called Daliresp being marketed for an inflammatory lung disease referred to as COPD. That particular drug is supposed to work in part by lowering neutrophils. I'm not advocating for this drug in any way but simply noticed a similarity here between lung inflammation, increased neutrophils and this post pointing toward vitamin E possibly working in a similar manner. The marketing material on the medication mentions that cAMP is increased by the drug. It would be interesting to me haidut if you think the vitamin E might be working similarly to Daliresp.

If cAMP is increased by the drug and that is the main mechanism of action then caffeine should be able to blow it out of the water since it's one of the most potent cAMP boosters out there. Unsurprisingly, caffeine is often used by people with asthma and COPD.
Yes, I think vitamin E probably has some similar actions since it has also been shown to increase cAMP. However, it likely has a number of other benefits compared to the pharma drug including lowering estrogen and acting as a COX-2 inhibitor.

Fabulous! Thanks as always for your insight! I had heard about caffeine helping with asthma years ago. It's always good to have more everyday accessible options IMO.

 

[ecstatichamster]

it's been years, but did we ever get closure on this fascinating idea?

 

[ecstatichamster]

Vitamin E Supplementation and In Vivo Immune Response in Healthy Elderly Subjects

Objective. —To determine whether long-term supplementation with vitamin E enhances in vivo, clinically relevant measures of cell-mediated immunity in healthy elderly subjects.

Design. —Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled intervention study.

Setting and Participants. —A total of 88 free-living, healthy subjects at least 65 years of age.

Intervention. —Subjects were randomly assigned to a placebo group or to groups consuming 60, 200, or 800 mg/d of vitamin E for 235 days.

Main Outcome Measures. —Delayed-type hypersensitivity skin response (DTH); antibody response to hepatitis B, tetanus and diphtheria, and pneumococcal vaccines; and autoantibodies to DNA and thyroglobulin were assessed before and after supplementation.

Results. —Supplementation with vitamin E for 4 months improved certain clinically relevant indexes of cell-mediated immunity in healthy elderly. Subjects consuming 200 mg/d of vitamin E had a 65% increase in DTH and a 6-fold increase in antibody titer to hepatitis B compared with placebo (17% and 3-fold, respectively), 60-mg/d (41% and 3-fold, respectively), and 800-mg/d (49% and 2.5-fold, respectively) groups. The 200-mg/d group also had a significant increase in antibody titer to tetanus vaccine. Subjects in the upper tertile of serum α-tocopherol (vitamin E) concentration (>48.4 μmol/L [2.08 mg/dL]) after supplementation had higher antibody response to hepatitis B and DTH. Vitamin E supplementation had no effect on antibody titer to diphtheria and did not affect immunoglobulin levels or levels of T and B cells. No significant effect of vitamin E supplementation on autoantibody levels was observed.

Conclusions. —Our results indicate that a level of vitamin E greater than currently recommended enhances certain clinically relevant in vivo indexes of T-cell-mediated function in healthy elderly persons. No adverse effects were observed with vitamin E supplementation.

 

[ecstatichamster]

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1046/j.1365-2567.2000.00070.x

Compared with young mice, old mice infected with influenza virus have significantly higher pulmonary viral titres, although these can be reduced significantly with dietary vitamin E supplementation. T helper 1 (Th1) cytokines, especially interferon‐γ (IFN‐γ), play an important role in defending against influenza infection. However, there is an age‐associated loss of Th1 cytokine production. Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production, which increases with age, can modulate the T helper cell function by suppressing Th1 cytokine production. To investigate the mechanism of vitamin E supplementation on reduction of influenza severity in old mice, we studied the cytokine production by splenocytes, and PGE2 production by macrophages (Mφ), in young and old C57BL mice fed semipurified diets containing 30 (control) or 500 parts per million (ppm) (supplemented) vitamin E for 8 weeks, and then infected with influenza A/PC/1/73 (H3N2). Old mice fed the control diet had significantly higher viral titres than young mice; old mice fed the vitamin E‐supplemented diet had significantly lower pulmonary viral titres than those fed the control diet (P = 0·02 and 0·001 for overall age and diet effect, respectively). Following influenza infection, interleukin (IL)‐2 and IFN‐γ production was significantly lower in old mice than in young mice. Vitamin E supplementation increased production of IL‐2 and IFN‐γ in old mice; higher IFN‐γ production was associated with lower pulmonary viral titre. Old mice fed the control diet showed significantly higher lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐stimulated Mφ PGE2production than old mice fed the vitamin E diet or young mice fed either diet. There was no significant age difference in IL‐6, IL‐1β, or tumour necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) production by splenocytes. Young mice fed the vitamin E‐supplemented diet had significantly lower IL‐1β (day 7) and TNF‐α production (day 5) compared with those fed the control diet. Old mice fed the vitamin E‐supplemented diet had significantly lower TNF‐α production (day 2) than those fed the control diet. Our results indicate that the vitamin E‐induced decrease in influenza viral titre is mediated through enhancement of Th1 cytokines, which may be the result of reduced PGE2 production caused by vitamin E.

 

[ecstatichamster]

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1046/j.1365-2567.2000.00070.x

This is a review, not a study, but it seems to have some good summary of E and immunity.

Aging is associated with dysregulated immune and inflammatory responses. Declining T cell function is the most significant and best‐characterized feature of immunosenescence. Intrinsic changes within T cells and extrinsic factors contribute to the age‐associated decline in T cell function. T cell defect seen in aging involves multiple stages from early receptor activation events to clonal expansion. Among extrinsic factors, increased production of T cell‐suppressive factor PGE2 by macrophages (Mφ) is most recognized. Vitamin E reverses an age‐associated defect in T cells, particularly naïve T cells. This effect of vitamin E is also reflected in a reduced rate of upper respiratory tract infection in the elderly and enhanced clearance of influenza infection in a rodent model. The T cell‐enhancing effect of vitamin E is accomplished via its direct effect on T cells and indirectly by inhibiting PGE2 production in Mφ. Up‐regulated inflammation with aging has attracted increasing attention as a result of its implications in the pathogenesis of diseases. Increased PGE2 production in old Mφ is a result of increased cyclooxygenase 2 (COX‐2) expression, leading to higher COX enzyme activity, which in turn, is associated with the ceramide‐induced up‐regulation of NF‐κB. Similar to Mφ, adipocytes from old mice have a higher expression of COX‐2 as well as inflammatory cytokines IL‐1β, IL‐6, and TNF‐α, which might also be related to elevated levels of ceramide and NF‐κB activation. This review will discuss the above age‐related immune and inflammatory changes and the effect of vitamin E as nutritional intervention with a focus on the work conducted in our laboratory.

 

[Braveheart]

Haidut and Hamster...thank you for this info...I believe pneumonia is the main cause of death for those with leukemia...

 

[Blossom]

Haidut and Hamster...thank you for this info...I believe pneumonia is the main cause of death for those with leukemia...

Yeah it's no joke. It kills a lot of people. Thank goodness we have access to the helpful information that thoughtful people here share freely.

 

[Braveheart]

Yeah it's no joke. It kills a lot of people. Thank goodness we have access to the helpful information that thoughtful people here share freely.

Yes Blossom, this forum is a little gold mine, and I am forever grateful...

 

[Mateo Wiechers]

Ray has written about the immune boosting properties of vitamin E and some forum members have noticed that taking vitamin E gives them flare-ups of their "autoimmune" conditions. Along that line, this study shows that supplementing vitamin E in a human dose of about 600-800 IU provides striking protection against pneumonia in old mice and fully controls the infection without adding any antibiotics or other drugs.

The α-tocopherol form of vitamin E reverses age-associated susceptibility to streptococcus pneumoniae lung infection by modulating pulmonary neutro... - PubMed - NCBI

"...Strikingly, α-Toc supplementation of aged mice resulted in a 1000-fold lower bacterial lung burden and full control of infection. This α-Toc-induced resistance to pneumococcal challenge was associated with a 2-fold fewer pulmonary neutrophils, a level comparable to S. pneumoniae-challenged, conventionally fed young mice. α-Toc directly inhibited neutrophil egress across epithelial cell monolayers in vitro in response to pneumococci or hepoxilin-A3, an eicosanoid required for pneumococcus-elicited neutrophil trans-epithelial migration. α-Toc altered expression of multiple epithelial and neutrophil adhesion molecules involved in migration, including CD55, CD47, CD18/CD11b, and ICAM-1. These findings suggest that α-Toc enhances resistance of aged mice to bacterial pneumonia by modulating the innate immune response, a finding that has potential clinical significance in combating infection in aged individuals through nutritional intervention."

Hi,
Is it posible that by boosting the immune system with vitamin E one may experience fatigue? Especially if the immune system has been supressed for a while.

Thanks.

 

[Mateo Wiechers]

Ray has written about the immune boosting properties of vitamin E and some forum members have noticed that taking vitamin E gives them flare-ups of their "autoimmune" conditions. Along that line, this study shows that supplementing vitamin E in a human dose of about 600-800 IU provides striking protection against pneumonia in old mice and fully controls the infection without adding any antibiotics or other drugs.

The α-tocopherol form of vitamin E reverses age-associated susceptibility to streptococcus pneumoniae lung infection by modulating pulmonary neutro... - PubMed - NCBI

"...Strikingly, α-Toc supplementation of aged mice resulted in a 1000-fold lower bacterial lung burden and full control of infection. This α-Toc-induced resistance to pneumococcal challenge was associated with a 2-fold fewer pulmonary neutrophils, a level comparable to S. pneumoniae-challenged, conventionally fed young mice. α-Toc directly inhibited neutrophil egress across epithelial cell monolayers in vitro in response to pneumococci or hepoxilin-A3, an eicosanoid required for pneumococcus-elicited neutrophil trans-epithelial migration. α-Toc altered expression of multiple epithelial and neutrophil adhesion molecules involved in migration, including CD55, CD47, CD18/CD11b, and ICAM-1. These findings suggest that α-Toc enhances resistance of aged mice to bacterial pneumonia by modulating the innate immune response, a finding that has potential clinical significance in combating infection in aged individuals through nutritional intervention."

Hi,
Is it posible that by boosting the immune system with vitamin E one may experience fatigue? Especially if the immune system has been supressed for a while.

Thanks.

 

[haidut]

Hi,
Is it posible that by boosting the immune system with vitamin E one may experience fatigue? Especially if the immune system has been supressed for a while.

Thanks.

I think the fatigue may be more due to its effects on the GABA system and sparing progesterone.

 

[Mateo Wiechers]

I think the fatigue may be more due to its effects on the GABA system and sparing progesterone.

OK. Does it has a direct effect on GABA "receptor", or it's effects are throught increasing progesterone?
Thanks.

 

[haidut]

OK. Does it has a direct effect on GABA "receptor", or it's effects are throught increasing progesterone?
Thanks.

AFAIK it is more of the latter but I would not be surprised if it acts on GABA system as well.
https://www.hindawi.com/journals/isrn/2013/851235/
"...The most intriguing developmental role that has been attributed to GABA is the generation and maintenance of activity waves in the period of functional network formation [29]. Elevated levels of GABA-T under the influence of Vitamin E indicate presence of high amounts of GABA available for its metabolic removal. Therefore, elevation of GABA-T encountered in the present study may be referred to as compensatory elevations to remove these high amounts of GABA which otherwise may interfere with the normal neurogenesis in cerebrum leading to overactivation of proliferative and differentiative events."