Can ginger be potentially used for the treatment of autoimmune disorders? Researchers say ginger supplements can reduce inflammation, a symptom often related to several autoimmune disorders.
Autoimmune disorder is a condition wherein the body attacks its healthy cells by mistake. The treatment often involves controlling the immune response using immunosuppressants and reducing symptoms similar to inflammation.
Researchers of the newest study evaluated the impact of ginger supplements on the form of white blood cells called neutrophils.
Neutrophils release NET or neutrophil extracellular traps in response to triggers similar to infections to kill the disease-causing microorganisms. Other than infections, autoimmune disorders similar to lupus, antiphospholipid syndrome and rheumatoid arthritis also induce excessive release of NET, which may end up in tissue damage, inflammation and clotting.
When the researchers tested ginger supplements on healthy people and autoimmune mouse models, they found a reduced tendency of neutrophils to undergo NETosis – the cell death mechanism related to neutrophils.
“There are a whole lot of diseases where neutrophils are abnormally overactive. We found that ginger might help to restrain NETosis, and this is significant since it is a natural complement that could be helpful to treat inflammation and symptoms for individuals with several different autoimmune diseases,” said Kristen Demoruelle, a senior co-author of the study.
In the course of the clinical trial, the healthy participants got ginger supplements (20 mg of gingerols/day) for every week. The participants showed a rise in a chemical called cAMP throughout the neutrophil. The rise in cAMP eventually helped to inhibit NETosis after they were exposed to triggers related to specific diseases.
“Our study included healthy people which allowed us to verify our findings are applicable to people and never only a finding seen in a test tube. The precise pathway of inflammation that we found ginger was capable of disrupt was related to a particular form of cell called a neutrophil,” Dr. Demoruelle said.
“Our research, for the primary time, provides evidence for the biological mechanism that underlies ginger’s apparent anti-inflammatory properties in people,” senior co-author Jason Knight noted.
Researchers hope the findings will pave the way in which for more discussions in regards to the potential advantages of including ginger supplements within the treatment of autoimmune disorders.
Published by Medicaldaily.com