Multiple Chemical Sensitivity researcher Martin L. Pall’s paper, “How Can We Cure NO/ONOO− Cycle Diseases? Approaches to Curing Chronic Fatigue Syndrome/Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, Fibromyalgia, Multiple Chemical Sensitivity, Gulf War Syndrome and Possibly Many Others,” is published in the February/March 2010 issue of The Townsend Letter: The Examiner of Alternative Medicine. Pall is Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry and Basic Medical Science at Washington State University.
The entire essay is published at the Townsend, here’s an excerpt:
Feb/March 2010 cover of The Townsend Letter
The NO/ONOO− cycle is a biochemical vicious cycle that is thought to cause such diseases as chronic fatigue syndrome/myalgic encephalomyelitis (CFS/ME), multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), fibromyalgia (FM), and possibly a large number of other chronic inflammatory diseases. The chemistry/biochemistry of the cycle predicts that the primary mechanism is local such the depending on where it is localized in the body, it may cause a variety of different diseases.
Previous studies have shown that agents that lower such cycle elements as oxidative stress, nitric oxide, inflammatory responses, mitochondrial dysfunction, tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4) depletion and NMDA activity produce clinical improvements in CFS/ME and FM patients, consistent with the predictions of the cycle mechanism. Multiagent protocols lowering several aspects of the cycle appear to be the most promising approaches to therapy. These include an entirely over-the-counter nutritional support protocol developed by the author in conjunction with the Allergy Research Group.
However, such mulitagent protocols to date have not produced any substantial numbers of cures of these presumed NO/ONOO− cycle disease. Why is that? This paper argues that what is called the central couplet of the cycle, the reciprocal relation between peroxynitrite elevation and BH4 depletion, is not being adequately downregulated by these multiagent protocols. Ten agents/classes of agents are available, each of which downregulates one or the other end of this central couplet. It is suggested, then, that treatments that simultaneously effectively downregulate both ends to the central couplet, when used along with multiagent protocols lowering other aspects of the cycle and avoidance of stressors that otherwise upregulate the cycle, will lead to substantial numbers of cures of these chronic diseases.
Martin L. Pall, PhD
It’s very exciting to see Pall published at The Townsend. I think he’s on the leading edge of MCS research, and I urge you to learn more about his findings.
A major paper on Multiple Chemical Sensitivity by Pall (at left) was published last year as chapter XX 92 in a prestigious reference work for professional toxicologists, General and Applied Toxicology, 3rd Edition (2009, John Wiley & Sons). Pall’s paper, entitled “Multiple Chemical Sensitivity: Toxicological Questions and Mechanisms,” establishes five important facts about MCS: 1) MCS is common; 2) MCS is caused by toxic chemical exposure; 3) the role of chemicals acting as toxicants in MCS has been confirmed by genetic studies; 4) there is a detailed and generally well supported mechanism for MCS, the NO/ONOO- cycle; and 5) MCS is a physiological disease initiated by toxic chemical exposure that has been falsely claimed to be psychogenic.
Pall is located on Pacific time in the U.S. and can be contacted at: 503-232-3883 and at martin_pall@wsu.edu. His web site is: thetenthparadigm.org.
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