Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site brl-tgr.ARPA Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!burl!hou3c!hocda!houxm!ihnp4!zehntel!hplabs!hao!seismo!brl-tgr!abc From: abc@brl-tgr.ARPA (Brint Cooper ) Newsgroups: net.med Subject: Re: Arginine and Ornithine -- Information Thereon Message-ID: <4650@brl-tgr.ARPA> Date: Sat, 15-Sep-84 12:00:00 EDT Article-I.D.: brl-tgr.4650 Posted: Sat Sep 15 12:00:00 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 25-Sep-84 06:31:13 EDT References: <2263@tekig.UUCP> Organization: Ballistics Research Lab Lines: 27 >Arginine: > L-Arginine is classified as nonessential for adults, but > essential for growth in children. L-A is known to stregnthen > the immune system and to stimulate the release of growth hormones. > It has also been reported to promote thymus activity as well > as wound healing. The thymus serves as the master immune gland > which coordinated the production of T-Cells that identify foreign > invaders or cancers and direct further immune actions. Also, be advised that the thymus gland is implicated in the neuromuscular disease, myasthenia gravis. The thymus does most of its work in the prenatal being and in very early childhood. By adolescence, the thymus should begin to shrink. In the adult, the normal thymus should be atrophied and dormant. (See modern Physiology texts for confirmation and a better explanation.) Any person suffering from myasthenia who is discovered (by chest CAT scan) to have a large thymus is a good candidate for thymectomy (removal of the thymus). Indeed, if the myasthenia is bad enough (it can kill you via respiratory failure), the thymus is removed anyway - with improvement in about 87% of the cases studied. By the way, this involves sawing open the breastbone as in open heart surgery. If some chemical promises to enlarge the thymus, it probably should be avoided. Brint