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Bananas Over BanLec

By Richard Jeffreys

March 16, 2010

A study just published in the Journal of Biochemistry has generated a great deal of press coverage because it reports that a compound derived from bananas can inhibit HIV in a lab dish. The substance, a banana lectin known as BanLec, was first discovered twenty years ago and shown to be a potent mitogen (a substance which non-specifically stimulates T cell proliferation). The mechanism of HIV inhibition appears related to its ability to bind to sugar molecules on the viral envelope, thereby blocking virus attachment and entry into target cells. This mechanism is similar to the broadly neutralizing monoclonal antibody 2G12

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Reader Comments:

Comment by: none2pleased (USA) Mon., May. 3, 2010 at 5:59 am UTC
This write-up is pure disinfo. Nowhere does it even suggest T-cell proliferation, and to stretch out something you entirely conjured up to say it could lead to toxicity is mind blowing. Do you own stocks or work for a pharma company. Maybe they should have a warning label on bananas, as according to you they'll make you MORE suseptible to AIDS and are toxic for you!
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Comment by: Edward Herrera (Miami,Fl) Thu., Apr. 22, 2010 at 10:19 pm UTC
how many banana you have to eat to be in the safe side???????????
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