with a novel treatment approach

From the Editor‘s Desk

Our summer/fall newsletter tackles that perennial autumn subject: asthma, which inevitably spikes during fall pollen season. In this issue, we present a novel hypothesis for a unique mechanism of action in the pathogenesis of asthma. Rather than tackling inflammation, Ba Hoang, MD, PhD, suggests that bronchopulmonary hyperexcitability may be at the root of many asthma symptoms. This approach may lead to new, effective, and less toxic treatment strategies and interventions.

We also discuss the strong science behind a versatile polysaccharide from the sea. Even though it has been available for years, it is only now gaining attention. I think you will enjoy reading about the far-reaching activity of fucoidan extract from seaweed.

We interview a nutritional therapist who offers up a novel use of a Chinese herbal blend to address adrenal dysfunction, and we look at the scientific research demonstrating the efficacy and safety of that innovative blend.

Lastly, a topic always at the forefront of my own clinical practice: the use of nutritional supplementation to enhance and optimize the function of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. I have used phosphatidylserine in my practice to help my patients with memory concerns, anxiety, insomnia, ADD/ADHD, and generalized stress, but have noticed that when combined with phosphatidic acid, the results are even more profound.

— Dr. Todd A. Born, ND, CNS Editor-in-Chief

The Neuroelectric Origins of Asthma

Ba Hoang, MD, PhD, Hopes to Vanquish Asthma with a Novel Treatment Approach

FOCUS: You have a unique approach to asthma. Rather than focus on inflammation, your model is similar to that for epilepsy, where seizures are the result of hyperexcitability in the tissue.

BA: Yes, during my practice in St. Petersburg in the 1990’s, I treated refractory asthma in children with natural, herbal anti-epileptic agents and dietary changes. When I was working in St. Petersburg, I found that the EEG of children with a history of life-threatening asthma attacks showed signs of hyperexcitatory brain activity, such as a slow dysrhythmia and occipital focal spikes or sharp waves. The paroxysmal, spasmodic character of asthma attacks may be similar to seizures.

FOCUS: How would you describe asthma?

BA: The primary clinical symptoms of asthma are attacks of shortness of breath, wheezing, and coughing resulting from excessive and inappropriate constriction of the airway smooth muscle. I propose that asthma is caused by a toxic buildup of both exogenous and endogenous excitotoxins that primarily accumulate in smooth muscle tissue in our lungs. These excitotoxins can stem from infections, allergies, hyperventilation, pollutants, mental/physical stress, and exercise, as well as hormonal, nutritional, and environmental factors. The genetic and environmental elements in the development of severe asthma are poorly understood. The pathology of severe asthma demonstrates a range of findings, including eosinophilic inflammation and other pathological changes that are likely due to airway remodeling.2 I do not think, however, that they are the cause of asthma.

FOCUS: How might excitotoxins trigger asthma?

BA: This new asthma model goes beyond descriptive studies of inflammatory immune mediators or abnormalities in smooth muscle function, and looks deeper at the dysfunction in the electrical potential of the cell membrane. The amino acids glutamate and aspartate are abundantly present in the central nervous system of mammals, and they are major excitatory

I propose that asthma is caused by a toxic buildup of both exogenous and endogenous excitotoxins that primarily accumulate in smooth muscle tissue in our lungs.

neurotransmitters. Glutamate receptors have been found in the lungs and airways.3 Glutamate and the activation of glutamate receptors have led to increased airway secretions.4 So it is possible that excitotoxins might be an important mechanism of the airway inflammation and hyperreactivity found in asthma.5

There are no formal studies to investigate the role of the glutamate response modulator in asthma and other respiratory diseases, or to conclusively prove that asthma is a syndrome of inducible or genetically predisposed membrane hyperexcitability. But there is convincing evidence that this framework is valid. I call it a form of bronchial epilepsy.6 I have found that certain herbs that are capable of modulating the excitatory activity of smooth muscles, and increasing the capacity of the patient’s serum to bind to allergic mediators, can reduce the severity and frequency of asthma attacks.

I have also found that these herbs can have remarkable efficacy in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). I am in the process of translating into English a study conducted with my colleagues at the National Hospital of Traditional Medicine in Vietnam. We examined 60 patients diagnosed with C-level COPD according to the guidelines of the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD). Patients were treated for one month with an herbal formula that contained the natural herbal compound Sophora flavescens, which reduces membrane hyperexcitability. The treatment group’s improvement was significantly better than that of the control group.

This new asthma model goes beyond descriptive studies of inflammatory immune mediators or abnormalities in smooth muscle function, and looks deeper at the dysfunction in the electrical potential of the cell membrane.

FOCUS: What inspired you to study herbs in an academic and scientific setting as you do today at the Keck School of Medicine?

BA: My family practiced medicine for three generations in Vietnam, where I grew up. My grandfather had an innate talent for healing and traditional medicine from a young age. He saved many lives, and when I was a child he conveyed his philosophy that one can vastly reduce suffering by understanding the deeper cause of a disease and trying to reverse it with gentle, nontoxic molecules that support the body’s own healing ability. In this way, you can address functional declines in chronic and degenerative diseases. Fortunately, and happily, I can report to you now, after much practice and research, that my grandfather was correct. 

One can vastly reduce suffering by understanding the deeper cause of a disease.

References

1 Letter sent to Mary Tarnowka, Consul General-designate, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. 2016 Aug 30.

2 Wenzel S. Mechanisms of severe asthma. Clin Exp Allergy. 2003;33:1622-8. PMID: 14656346

3 Said SI, Berisha HI, Pakbaz H. Excitotoxicity in the lung: N-methyl-D-aspartate-induced, nitric oxide-dependent, pulmonary edema is attenuated by vasoactive intestinal peptide and by inhibitors of poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 1996;93:4688-92.

4 Haxhiu MA, Chavez JC, Pichiule P, et al. The excitatory amino acid glutamate mediates reflexly increased tracheal blood flow and airway submucosal gland secretion. Brain Res. 2000;883:7786. PMID: 11063990

5 Dickman KG, Youssef JG, Mathew SM, et al. Ionotropic glutamate receptors in lungs and airways: molecular basis for glutamate toxicity. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol. 2004;30:139-44. PMID: 12855408

6 Hoang BX, Levine SA, Graeme Shaw D, et al. Bronchial epilepsy or broncho-pulmonary hyper-excitability as a model of asthma pathogenesis. Med Hypotheses. 2006;67(5):1042-51. PMID: 16797869

BIOGRAPHY Ba Hoang, MD, PhD, is a senior medical research associate at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, where he works with a team of scientists at the Nimni-Cordoba Tissue Engineering and Drug Discovery Laboratory. Formerly a pediatric hematologist in St. Petersburg, Russia, he was awarded a fellowship by Swedish Pharmacy Research Foundation for his work on a method for detecting IgE-binding capacity in the serum of children with allergic disorders. In 1996, Dr. Ba was granted a United States visa for a person with extraordinary ability in science. His work “uses natural molecules to regulate cell energy metabolism … the major breakthrough discoveries have already shown positive effects in both preclinical and clinical applications,” according to USC’s Bo Han, PhD, and Marcel Nimni, PhD.1 Dr. Ba holds several patents, including one on a novel treatment approach to asthma. He comes from three generations of doctors, and learned about the medicinal power of herbs from his grandfather, a revered and widely respected folk healer. Dr. Ba is currently collaborating with Michael Roth, PhD, Director of the Pulmonary Cell Research group at Basel University in Switzerland. They are developing a naturally derived agent for asthma and COPD that restores normal function in smooth muscle tissue.