SCIENCE Trials and Tribulin

Scan page 10

concerned with the welfare sants). This test was also *Enzymes are large stance and less calming sub- than before - you are 1 NONE 102. concerned with the welfare of their fellow animals as well as of their fellow humans (and not solely for humane reasons, so I was pleased to read in a recent New Scientist that in testing drugs for certain activities the use of animals may give way to the use of the unfeeling moong bean.

The particular test is to see if various new drugs are anti-convulsants (potentially useful in treating epilepsy). This involves inducing convulsions in animals, and seeing if the drug will stop them. Now, as well as being rather cruel, such tests are not very reliable, so pharmacologists have been trying to develop a reliable test.

One new test involved separating a special enzyme* from the ends of nerve cells in rat brains and seeing if the drugs being tested slowed down the work of the enzyme (this being the effect sants). This test was also rather unreliable, as well as calling for the killing of large numbers of rats Then someone had a brainwave. Enzymes very similar to the rat-brain enzyme are found in various plant roots - why nọt see if anti-convulsants affected these? Well, they didn't but another enzyme found in the roots of moong beans was affected, reliably, by anticonvulsants.

Doing the test with this enzyme, 11 of 14 known anti-epilepsy drugs were correctly identified, and a new anti-convulsant drug was discovered. It was also found that a group of antidepression drugs. the tricyclics) had the opposite effect on the moong bean enzyme..

So, this test can be used to identity new drugs of two well as sparing types. as laboratory animals from *Enzymes ате large protein molecules found in all living things. Each enzyme has a special funetion either making or breaking up a particular chemical substance. The enzyme in question breaks up an energy-rich chemical, releasing this energy to drive nerve impulses.

Benzodiazepine (Valium) has been used to treat anxiety for two decades, but only now are researchers finding out how it works.

Like other physiological systems in our bodies, emotional states seem to be maintained by a balance of opposing factors.

In the case of the calm/ anxiety system, it is thought that one factor is a "calming substance" with an effect similar to Valium, balanced by an "anxiety substance"

So, if you are under stress, your body makes stance and less calming substance. Your brain feels anxiety or panic and initiates action to reduce the stress, whereupon the levels of the two substances return to normal.

However, in this society, many people are unable to change stressful situations (because they need the money, or there's no job to be found or no help in the home, etc.

Rather than urge changes in society, the response of capitalist medicine is to supply an external source of calming substances • (i.e. Valium). But it doesn't work very well.

The effect is that the body "thinks" there is too much calming substance and not enough anxiety substance, given the stress being experienced, so it produces more of the latter and less of the former.

If you now stop taking than before - you are now addicted!

Professor Merton Sandler of. Queen Charlotte's Hospital, Chiswick, now reports that the anxiety substance has been found. It is called tribulin (from tribulation, I imagine). It has a known chemical effect in the body and is present in all people. Higher than usual amounts are found in people subject to stress.

The opposing effects of tribulin and Valium are shown in that volunteers, who had taken tribulin and suffered uncontrollable panic, calmed down when given Valium.

And to confirm the theory of Valium addiction, patients who suffered withdrawal symptoms after taking Valium for a long time were found to have increased tribulin levels!

Scan page 11

Socialist Organiser no.92 July 8, 1983 Page 11