Slashdot Mirror

Disclaimer: I too am a skeptic, and for good reason. I would call that a proper scientific attitude.

There appears to be a reason why a search for "Ceragenins" turns up zero results. So far as I can tell, up until this Press Release the term did not exist in the knowledge of the general public. The new compound appears to be named after a company called Ceragenix Pharmaceuticals who performed the laboratory tests on the compund, likely funded associated research at BYU, and was granted the sole license of sale for the compound.

Please don't call HIV/AIDS the "AIDS Virus". This is misleading. AIDS is not a "thing", it is a condition. AIDS can be caused by a wide range of immuno-destructive "things", such as the "HIV" virus which due to a lack of understanding (and intentional dumming down) shares the same namespace as AIDS. To state what is probably obvious, he AIDS condition is a condition where the body doesn't have the resources to remove or kill off something that is damaging the body. The HIV virus must achieve a level of concentration high enough to cause AIDS (now called 'full-blown AIDS' to create distinction). This can happen over time (run your air conditioner at the highest setting 24 hours a day, with all your windows open), or it can happen when some other factor causes an immune deficiency in relation to the progress of the HIV virus (Go outside naked in freezing rain for five or six hours while you have a nasty flu). Eventually the immune system wears down, can't do it's job as well, and something is going to get the better of it. The body is not incapable if destroying HIV, it just isn't geared up for the rate at which it infects healthy cells in the body, healthy immune system or not. Some interesting thoughts come to mind when considering what HIV itself actualy does, in contrast to other infectious viruses. Indirect vs. Direct.

AIDS as you know it today is "Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome". AIDS is also "Auto Immune Deficiency Syndrome" (or Autoimmune Deficiency Syndrome). Today the two terms in long-form are used almost interchangably to refer to HIV or "HIV/AIDS", adding to the confusion. AIDS, as a whole, shares a common set of general symptoms such as wasting, and the general inability of the body to handle with grace the wide range of attacks it endures every day. A person or animal with the so-called "Auto" version of AIDS, is similarly unable to handle the common cold, the flu, a sunburn.. as the person with the "Acquired" version. One might even be tempted to reverse them.. or in frustration throw them both away and create terms that are a little more clear. Anyway, all of this deserves greater research on the part of the public in general to be understood.

I welcome the thought of a compound, a drug, a chemical, a substance, which will work alongside the immune system to combat deadly conditions imposed upon us by our physical nature. I also fear it when it doesn't come from the sometimes delicate hand of nature. Consider the long term effects of drugs like penicillin. Such amazing drugs have saved many lives, reduced symptoms for so many more.. but viruses and bacteria are alive too. They evolve under pressure and become resistant to the drugs we develop to combat them. Imagine a virus similar to HIV, now resistant to the point where we must all take our "ceratabs" every morning in order to stave off the next generation of AIDS causing nasties, whatever we choose to name them at that time.

Clearly the above is not inclusive.

I'll be hopeful, optimistic, concerned, and skeptical. All at the same time.

Proceed with the bashing...

CSA stands for cationic steroid antibiotics and there is a company, Ceragenix, that works on them. Perhaps that's what prompted this made up word?

Unfortunately, BYU doesn't have exclusive rights. This was developed jointly with Vanderbilt University and Ceragenix Pharmaceuticals has been given exclusive license. Even though the research was done at these universities, Ceragenix probably provided the funding and thus got exclusive rights. Maybe some Mormons, Baptists, Catholics, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus, Atheists, Agnostics, and anyone else sense of compassion could get some money together to get a whole lot of this stuff over to Africa and Asia.

Ok, so I missed that word. I did RTFA but I'm still skeptical.

Viruses and bacteria are so different to me, rarely a treatment affects both.

CSA, in fact, stands for Cationic Steroid Antimicrobial and almost every piece of research involving them is centered on attacking bacteria.

How come zero hits turn up for Ceragenins when I search for it?

This article didn't include much of the above information and seemed to give a completely different name for CSAs than what they truly are--compound steroids used to primarily combat bacteria.

Yes, it is patented. It, and the whole class of drugs in its catgeory - Cationic Steroid Antibiotics ("CSA") , has been exclusively licensed by Ceragenix Pharmaceuticals, inc. from Prof. Savage at Brigham Young University.

In my opinion, this is a big dog & pony show based upon very initial findings.

This is being promoted by Ceragenix Pharmaceuticals, inc.. Here is the press release behind this article - Novel Drug Compound Kills Multiple HIV Strains.

"Ceragenix has licensed the exclusive worldwide rights to a patented new class of small molecule compounds from its developer, Professor Paul B. Savage at Brigham Young University."

IF the claims are reproducible, this is a major medical breakthrough and will place Prof. Savage among such immortals as Jonas Salk. However, I'll wait for the independent verification before getting excited though.