TLC uncovers secret of ACTH pharma benefits

One of the secrets of the pharma benefits associated with adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) has been revealed using thin layer chromatography (TLC).

Researchers at Lunds University, Sweden, note the numerous known pharmaceutical benefits of treatment with ACTH.

They include a 30 to 40 per cent reduction in LDL cholesterol and lower levels of lipoproteins which contain apolipoprotein.

ACTH is also known to be beneficial for people with multiple sclerosis and in the treatment of infantile spasms.

However, it is its action on the patient's lipid profile that interested researchers, as the link was known but was not accounted for due to the induction of steroid hormone synthesis.

By extracting secreted lipids and separating them using TLC, the researchers were able to discover that the effect is not a direct interaction between ACTH and lipid synthesis.

Rather, it is mediated by the inhibition of lipoproteins which contain apolipoprotein B, in turn lowering the plasma lipid levels of the individual.