Guest guest Posted December 3, 2003 Report Share Posted December 3, 2003 FOR THOSE of you CALLING SCHWARZ Please continue to call Schwarz Pharma at ~~ 1.800.319.8400 to let them now how much KUTAPRESSIN is needed for our children. Please see the information below. `````````````````````````````````````````````````` From Gurwitz to the list ~~ I've been calling Schwarz Pharma on a regular basis to determine when Kutapressin will be available again. Although officially still on backorder, with a hoped-for release date of the end of the 1st quarter of 2004, I have been told by more than one customer service rep that Schwarz Pharma staff has been in meetings " all week " to determine " when and whether " Kutapressin will be manufactured once again. When I asked if they are considering discontinuing the product, they said that was " certainly a possibility, " depending on manufacturing issues. Needless to say, I am sick about this. **** I suggest that everyone who reads this call customer service at 800/319-8400 to let them know that continued manufacture of Kutapressin is extremely important to your children. ***** Gurwitz *************************************** Attached below are 2 articles that may be helpful in speaking with Schwarz to explain the importance of Kutapressin for our children => ~ Cyn McL _______________ _________________________ In Vivo. 1996 May-Jun;10(3):313-8. ___ Potential in vitro activity of Kutapressin against Epstein-Barr virus. Rosenfeld E, Salimi B, O'Gorman MR, Lawyer C, Katz BZ. *** Department of Pediatrics, Northwestern University Medical School, Children's Memorial Hospital, Chicago, IL 60614, USA. *** BACKGROUND: Kutapressin (KU), a porcine liver extract with bradykinin-potentiating effects but no vitamin B 12 activity, has been used in the treatment of Herpes zoster. We examined a phenol- free preparation of this drug for in vitro activity against Epstein- Barr Virus (EBV). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Immortalization-inhibition assays were used to assess EBV infectivity. Mitogen stimulation and cell viability assays were used to assess kutapression toxicity. Lytic replication assays and flow cytometry were used to assess the mechanism of drug activity. RESULTS: Seventy-five hundred mcg/ml of KU blocked the infection of 2 x 10(5) human umbilical cord mononuclear cells when added together with two strains of EBV (B95-8 and FF41). Doses as low as 250 mcg/ml were occasionally effective as well. Unlike acyclovir, KU does not inhibit viral DNA polymerase nor does it appear to compete with EBV as it binds to its receptor on the B-cell surface. CONCLUSIONS: The mechanism whereby KU may inhibit EBV immortalization remains to be determined. KU, a drug which is safe in humans, deserves further study as an agent with potential to block EBV- induced immortalization of B-lymphocytes. PMID: 8797033 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] ------------------------------ ------------------------------ In Vivo. 1994 Jul-Aug;8(4):581-6. ___ Antiviral activity in vitro of Kutapressin against human herpesvirus-6. Ablashi DV, Berneman ZN, Lawyer C, Kramarsky B, Ferguson DM, Komaroff AL. *** National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD 20892. *** The recently discovered human herpesvirus-6 (HHV-6) is being associated with an increasing number of conditions in which there is evidence of immunologic dysfunction. A number of widely available antiviral agents have shown little or no activity against the virus. We found that Kutapressin (KU), a drug that has been available to practicing physicians for over 50 years, has potent, previously unexpected antiviral effects. Cells known to allow replication of HHV-6 were infected with the virus, under various conditions. Either pretreatment of the cells prior to infection or treatment shortly after infection, inhibited viral replication by > 90%. Indirect evidence suggests that KU may inhibit viral attachment to cellular receptors, and inhibit intracellular maturation of the virus. Given these in vitro findings, and the low frequency of toxicity reported with the use of KU, clinical trials of this drug in patients with evidence of reactivated HHV-6 infection would seem to be warranted. PMID: 7893985 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] -------------------------------------------- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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