Mechanical agitation of very dilute antiserum against IgE has no effect on basophil staining properties

Ovelgönne, J. H.; Bol, Anneke; Hop, Wim C. J.; Wijk, R. Van

doi:10.1007/bf01928175

Cited by 55 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…However, it should be noted that other studies of equal quality have not been able to reproduce these findings. [28][29][30] Another example is a series of studies that found that the administration of an oral dose of a homeopathic preparation of arsenic trioxide protected mice from the detrimental changes in proteins, enzymes, DNA, and RNA caused by one injection of arsenic trioxide of 1mg/kg bodyweight, corroborating the 1997 findings of Weigant et al [31][32][33][34][35][36][37] Overall, the results from studies assessing the ability of very dilute solutions to have biological effects are mixed. Although, high quality research shows that homeopathic preparations do have measurable effects on biological systems; to date, studies have not successfully settled the original dilemma concerning a mechanism of action for very dilute solutions.…”

Section: Physical Experiments In Dilution Researchsupporting

confidence: 65%

“…3,[6][7][8] Pharmacists should also be aware that the data assessing the efficacy of homeopathy are mixed-there are rigorous, reproducible studies that show homeopathy is effective, 39,[42][43][44] and equally scientifically sound studies that show it is not. [28][29][30][80][81][82] A similar situation exists with respect to in vivo studies of homoeopathic products used to treat plants and animals. 83,84 Pharmacists should also be aware that there is currently no plausible mechanism of action postulated for homeopathy; even homeopathic doctors do not claim to know how it works.…”

Section: What Should Pharmacists Know About Homeopathy?mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Where Does Homeopathy Fit in Pharmacy Practice?

Johnson¹,

Boon²

2007

Am J Pharm Educ

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Homeopathy has been the cause of much debate in the scientific literature with respect to the plausibility and efficacy of homeopathic preparations and practice. Nonetheless, many consumers, pharmacists, physicians, and other health care providers continue to use or practice homeopathic medicine and advocate its safety and efficacy. As drug experts, pharmacists are expected to be able to counsel their patients on how to safely and effectively use medications, which technically includes homeopathic products. Yet many pharmacists feel that the homeopathic system of medicine is based on unscientific theories that lack supporting evidence. Since consumers continue to use homeopathic products, it is necessary for pharmacists to have a basic knowledge of homeopathy and to be able to counsel patients about its general use, the current state of the evidence and its use in conjunction with other medications.

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Section: Physical Experiments In Dilution Researchsupporting

confidence: 65%

Section: What Should Pharmacists Know About Homeopathy?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Where Does Homeopathy Fit in Pharmacy Practice?

Johnson¹,

Boon²

2007

Am J Pharm Educ

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“…Davenas et al [2] used this system to demonstrate the effect of extremely high anti-IgE dilutions. Others were at first unable to confirm the described effects [3,4]. In later work these attempts were modified in such a way to permit the examination of basophil reaction to highly diluted histamine with subsequent optimized anti-IgE activation [5][6][7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sensitive Flow Cytometric Method to Test Basophil Activation Influenced by Homeopathic Histamine Dilutions

Lorenz¹,

Schneider

Stolz³

et al. 2003

Complement Med Res

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Objective: In an experimental setting, human basophil degranulation was triggered by anti-IgE to measure the effects from homeopathic solutions in an in-vitro cell system. A 3-color flow cytometric method with enhanced accuracy was established. As an example we looked at the influence of histamine on anti-IgE activation of basophils. Methods: Basophils were identified in the flow cytometer by their physical properties in the forward and side scatter light depiction and by gating on CD2^–, CD14^–, CD16^–, CD19^–, HLA-DR^– negative and CD123-positive cells. CD63 expression on the cell surface of the anti-IgE-activated basophils served as an activation marker. Results: With this method we were able to study basophil function of the 0.6–3.9% basophils out of the mononuclear blood cell fraction and to document their activation status upon anti-IgE activation. Optimal activation occurs at 0.6 µg/ml final anti-IgE concentration; not less than 10,000 basophils have to be counted per batch to reduce the variation of the measurement. The fixation method was able to stabilize activation for two days. After investigation and reduction of the source of measurement variability, an unequivocally inhibited basophil activation was documented in a partly optimized system with homeopathic dilutions of histamine (10^–22M, 10^–23M, 10^–24M, and 10^–25M histamine). Dilutions greater than 10^–20M histamine (Avogadro’s number 6.02 × 10²³) account for less than 1.36 molecules of histamine in the test sample, indicating a true homeopathic effect. Conclusions: This test system is adequate for studying the effects of highly diluted mediators on basophil activation by anti-IgE. The systematic application of this experimental arrangement is recommended to study the effects of homeopathic dilutions on basophils.

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“…A series of experiments was conducted by Benveniste and his laboratory groups, culminating in a final publication postulating the replicability of the effect across laboratories. 27 This publication was heavily criticized, resulting in independent investigations of the paradigm with no clear-cut reproducible effect, 28,29 although other experiments, again, yielded positive results. 30,31 Apparently, even before that, some of the participating laboratories had withdrawn because the effect was not consistent across laboratories.…”

Section: Walach Et Al 814mentioning

confidence: 99%

Research on Homeopathy: State of the Art

Walach

Jonas²,

Ives³

et al. 2005

The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine

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In this paper, we review research on homeopathy from four perspectives, focusing on reviews and some landmark studies. These perspectives are laboratory studies, clinical trials, observational studies, and theoretical work. In laboratory models, numerous effects and anomalies have been reported. However, no single model has been sufficiently widely replicated. Instead, researchers have focused on ever-new models and experiments, leaving the picture of scattered anomalies without coherence. Basic research, trying to elucidate a purported difference between homeopathic remedies and control solutions has also produced some encouraging results, but again, series of independent replications are missing. While there are nearly 200 reports on clinical trials, few series have been conducted for single conditions. Some of these series document clinically useful effects and differences against placebo and some series do not. Observational research into uncontrolled homeopathic practice documents consistently strong therapeutic effects and sustained satisfaction in patients. We suggest that this scattered picture has to do with the fourth line of research: lack of a good theory. Some of the extant theoretical models are reviewed, including placebo, water structure, silica contamination, energy models, and entanglement models. It emerges that local models, suggesting some change in structure in the solvent, are far from convincing. The nonlocal models proposed would predict that it is impossible to nail down homeopathic effects with direct experimental testing and this places homeopathy in a scientific dilemma. We close with some suggestions for potentially fruitful research.

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Mechanical agitation of very dilute antiserum against IgE has no effect on basophil staining properties

Cited by 55 publications

References 12 publications

Where Does Homeopathy Fit in Pharmacy Practice?

Where Does Homeopathy Fit in Pharmacy Practice?

Sensitive Flow Cytometric Method to Test Basophil Activation Influenced by Homeopathic Histamine Dilutions

Research on Homeopathy: State of the Art

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