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posted by janrinok on Thursday December 19 2019, @03:59PM   Printer-friendly
from the shouldn't-create-a-stink dept.

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

Chemical compound found in essential oils improves wound healing

IU scientists also reported that skin tissue treated with the chemical compound, beta-carophyllene -- which is found in lavender, rosemary and ylang ylang, as well as various herbs and spices such as black pepper -- showed increased cell growth and cell migration critical to wound healing. They also observed increased gene expression of hair follicle stem cells in the treated tissue. The scientists did not find any involvement of the olfactory system in the wound healing.

Their research was published Dec. 16 in the journal PLOS ONE.

"This is the first finding at the chemical-compound level showing improved wound healing in addition to changes in gene expression in the skin," said Sachiko Koyama, corresponding author on the paper, who, at the time of this research, was an associate scientist at the IU School of Medicine and is currently a visiting scientist in the IU College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Biology. "The way gene expression changed also suggests not only improved wound healing but also the possibility of less scar formation and a more full recovery.

"It's an example that essential oils work; however, it's not through our sense of smell."

Essential oils are natural, concentrated oils extracted from plants. Their use by humans dates back to ancient Egypt, but the scented oils have experienced a resurgence in popularity in the U.S. over the past few years, with many people using them for aromatherapy.

Koyama, whose original field of study is pheromones, said she wasn't interested in essential oils at first. The project started when she saw several students studying the wound healing process in mice in the Medical Sciences Program at the IU School of Medicine-Bloomington. Having previously worked in the IU College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, where scientists are working with cannabinoid receptors, Koyama knew that beta-caryophyllene activates not only olfactory receptors but also cannabinoid receptor 2 (CB2), which has anti-inflammatory impact when it is activated.

"In the wound healing process, there are several stages, starting from the inflammatory phase, followed by the cell proliferation stage and the remodeling stage," she said. "I thought maybe wound healing would be accelerated if inflammation was suppressed, stimulating an earlier switch from the inflammatory stage to the next stage."

This accelerated the wound healing process, she said, but the resulting change in gene expression indicates that the improved healing is not merely achieved through activation of the CB2 receptor.

"It's possibly more complicated," Koyama said. "Our findings suggest the involvements of some other routes in addition to CB2. I hope to clarify the mechanisms of action in the near future."

Beta-caryophyllene enhances wound healing through multiple routes, PLOS ONE (DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0216104)


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  • (Score: 3, Insightful) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 19 2019, @08:30PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 19 2019, @08:30PM (#934353)

    I don't understand the logic behind this one: "time costs (the expected returns that investors forego while a drug is in development) of $1.2 billion."

    Nobody makes money on a thing before it's available to sell. This is not a cost, nor is it a loss. Now if it was the cost of the development work itself, that'd be different - but that's NOT what they're counting.

    It looks like the same logic an old boss used one time. He made money from his business, even after accounting for all of the expenses... just not as much as he'd originally hoped. Instead of saying he made $50k in profits, he grumbled that he'd "lost" $15k because his forecast said he should have made $65k.

    It's not a loss. It's the cost of development, which the drug investors had ALREADY paid. This $1.2billion they're whining about is an illusion.

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  • (Score: 2) by mobydisk on Tuesday December 24 2019, @04:38AM

    by mobydisk (5472) on Tuesday December 24 2019, @04:38AM (#935790)

    Here's why they do that: Suppose the CEO knows the company has X million dollars to spend over the next 5 years. 10 department heads come to the CEO asking for R&D money, each claiming a rate of return. The CEO looks at each one, considering the cost per year, time spent in R&D, risks, likelihood of success, at what rate the return will come in, etc. The CEO will probably fund many departments at once so this is super complicated with lots of voodoo and crystal balls involved.

    So imagine department A says that for $2 million per year for 5 years, they can produce a product that returns $4 million per year for 5 years after product launch. Department B also requests $2 million per year for 5 years, expecting to get $3.5 million per year for 5 years in return after launch. The company can't afford to fund both projects, so the CEO gives the money to department A. 7 years later, department A has returned only $3 million per year, rather than the expected $4 million. The CEO considers that a $0.5 million per year loss, because had they invested in Department B instead of department A, then they would be ahead by $0.5 million per year. But if they promised the stockholders a rate of return of $1 million per year higher than what they are getting, it looks like a $1 million per year loss to the investors. And if the company was relying on that money to fund project B, then they may not be able to start that project on time. So that's yet more money lost per year.