Thymalin is a manufactured version of Thymulin, which is hypothesized to be involved in regulating inflammation and pain. Research suggests Thymalin may boost immune function, fight heart disease, and regulate sleep-wake cycles. It has also gained traction in aging research for its potential to reduce all-cause mortality in mouse models and prolong lifespan.
What Is Thymalin Peptide?
Thymalin is the synthetic version of Thymulin isolated from the thymus in 1977. Thymalin has been speculated to regulate inflammation and pain, may have neuroprotective impact, and may be important in immune function. Early research purported that Thymalin and other thymus and pineal gland extracts may prolong life.
Thymalin Peptide and Aging
Research in Russia at the turn of the 21st century suggested that Thymalin may have a normalizing effect on several baseline physiologic functions in elderly research models. Findings imply that older models in the study appeared to have experienced improvements in cardiovascular, immune, and nervous system function. They also suggested improved metabolism and a trend toward homeostasis typical of a much younger research model. Overall, the study suggested major decreases in acute respiratory illness, hypertension, osteoporosis, ischemic heart disorder, and signs of arthritis. The results also suggested there appeared to be a 2-fold reduction in the mortality rate in the research models given Thymalin throughout the experiment.
Thyamlin appears synergistic with certain other thymic and pineal gland isolates, allegedly decreasing mortality rate by as much as 4-fold when combined with Epithalmin. This is not surprising given that the thymus and pineal gland have been linked to one another in the aging process. When functioning optimally, the pineal gland is considered to protect the thymus from the degenerative effects of age.
Thymalin Peptide and the Immune System
Much research into the potential impact of Thymalin on the immune system has suggested that the peptide may primarily alter cellular immunity, change levels of lymphocyte subpopulations, affect cell differentiation, and alter natural killer (NK) cell activity. This is important as several conditions, such as diabetes, typically lead to imbalances in cellular immunity that slowly evolve into serious immunosuppression with resultant increased susceptibility to everything from infection to cancer.
In research models with diabetic retinopathy, Thymalin presentation is hypothesized to lead to immune correction and T-lymphocyte proliferation, leading to decreased inflammation and slower disease progression. This same property may apply to the chronic immunodeficiency/immune dysregulation of HIV. Study findings suggest that combining highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) with Thymalin may potentially reverse damage to the immune system and increase the number of CD4+ T-cells in HIV research.
Thymalin is also being investigated as a potential adjuvant to an HIV vaccine, as research suggests that it may boost T-cell responses to vaccines and lead to greater protection. This potential function of Thymalin may make it one of the most important vaccine adjuvants ever developed, allowing vaccines to be presented less often and in lower quantities using less virulent pathogens. However, research in this focus is still ongoing.
Research in rats undergoing thyroid gland removal purports that they may usually experience a decline in thymic function followed by weight loss and reductions in cell proliferation. Researchers speculate that Thymalin may potentially reverse these changes or prevent them from occurring in the first place. The net results are hypothesized to be improved immune function, reduced risk of infection, and overall better health.
Thymalin Peptide and Cancer
Investigation in mice proposes that Thymalin may be a potential adjuvant to pulsed laser radiation used to manage certain types of cancer. Neodymium lasers frequently manage cancerous and precancerous skin lesions (including melanoma) with average to heightened success rates. The procedure is especially useful for preventing metastasis. However, the properties of pulsed laser therapy may be extended through the simultaneous presentation of Thymalin, which has been speculated to boost the number of antibody-producing cells in the spleen when given with laser therapy. This may have a greater suppressive impact on the tumor and help achieve higher remission rates or cure.
Thymalin Peptide and the Kidneys
Research suggests that research models of inflammatory kidney disease chronic glomerulonephritis may yield positive results from Thymalin influence. In an experimental study, research models given Thymalin appeared to show improvements in kidney function and blood indices of inflammation. They also seemed to show improvements in immunologic measurements of the disease that may lead to an overall decrease in damage to the kidney and thus remission or, at the very least, a delay in the time to dialysis/transplant.
Thymalin Peptide and Atherosclerosis
Heart disorder is easier to avert than it is to treat. Present understanding of the disorder indicates that once present, heart disease can only be reversed through extreme dieting, and even then, the process takes much time and dedication. Research in rabbits suggests that Thymalin may prevent and invert heart disease by reducing lipid levels and directly affecting the lymphocytes responsible for removing plaque from the walls of arteries.
Additional research suggests that Thymalin for sale may normalize T-cell suppressor activity and sensitivity to the very things that cause atherosclerosis in the first place, reducing or eliminating the immune dysfunction that leads to plaque formation. In short, Thymalin is hypothesized to reduce the dysfunction that normally causes the immune system to fail to combat heart disease.
References
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[ii] V. K. Khavinson and V. G. Morozov, "[Geroprotective effect of thymalin and epithalamin]," Adv. Gerontol. Uspekhi Gerontol., vol. 10, pp. 74–84, 2002.
[iii] N. S. Lin'kova, V. O. Poliakova, I. M. Kvetnoĭ, A. V. Trofimov, and N. N. Sevost'ianova, "[Characteristics of the pineal gland and thymus relationship in aging]," Adv. Gerontol. Uspekhi Gerontol., vol. 24, no. 1, pp. 38–42, 2011.
[iv] J. Bach, M. Bardenne, J. Pleau, and J. Rosa, "Biochemical characterisation of a serum thymic factor," Nature, vol. 266, no. 5597, pp. 55–57, Mar. 1977.
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[vi] H. D. Zhaboiedov, N. H. Bychkova, R. L. Skrypnik, and M. V. Sydorova, "[Evaluation of cellular and humoral immunity and individual sensitivity of T-lymphocytes to immunocorrectors in patients with diabetic retinopathy]," Lik. Sprava, no. 1, pp. 53–56, Feb. 2001.
[vii] E. Montomoli, S. Piccirella, B. Khadang, E. Mennitto, R. Camerini, and A. De Rosa, "Current adjuvants and new perspectives in vaccine formulation," Expert Rev. Vaccines, vol. 10, no. 7, pp. 1053–1061, Jul. 2011.
[viii] A. P. Kozlov and K. G. Moskalik, "Pulsed laser radiation therapy of skin tumors," Cancer, vol. 46, no. 10, pp. 2172–2178, Nov. 1980.
