HPV Prevention Update - Carrageenan

[joreth]

The topic of HPV and other STIs comes up quite often on poly forums.  I usually throw my two cents in, but it's been a few months since I did my own research, so I figured I should go out there and look at what new developments there may or may not be in HPV treatment and prevention.

Rather than re-quote all the basic stuff again, I refer you to my previous entry on the subject, http://joreth.livejournal.com/21110.html, where I discuss how Carrageenan, a gel made from red algae and found in food and some sex lubes, was found to be a massively successful HPV inhibitor.

Check that out for the basic info.  From here, I will assume everyone has the same minimum level of knowledge about carrageenan that I do.

New stuff I found out on this round of research (and by "research", I mean a cursory google search while avoiding doing photography editing):

~ Sometime this year there should be the results of a phase-three test of women in Africa using a vaginal gel specifically designed for HPV prevention.  http://www.womensenews.org/article.cfm/dyn/aid/2630
 
~ At the time of my last posting, they had only done petri-dish type experiments and had not had the opportunity to work on lab mice.  Now they have.  Their findings are very promising:  "the researchers next tested to see whether compounds used in vaginal products affect susceptibility to infection. They found that a widely used vaginal spermicide, nonoxynol-9 (N-9), greatly increased the rate of infection. They then tested 2 commercial carrageenan-containing lubricants and found that they blocked infection. Carrageenan prevented HPV infection in the presence of N-9 as well."  http://www.nih.gov/news/research_matters/july2007/07162007hpv.htm

~ Carrageenan was most effective at acidic pH levels similar to those encountered in the vagina, the report indicates. Besides preventing the initial attachment of capsids to cells, carrageenan also blocked postbinding events.

~ A variety of consumer products containing carrageenan also successfully inhibited HPV infectivity, according to the results, although some products labeled as containing carrageenan had little effect.

~ In the new study, carrageenan blocked infection by HPV-16 and showed signs of inhibiting two cancer-causing strains that the vaccine doesn't address.  http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1200/is_1_172/ai_n19377485

~ If successful, one or more of the five products entering phase III clinical trials (of HIV prevention) is likely to reach the market. These five products are: BufferGel®, Carraguard®, PRO 2000®, C31G, and cellulose sulfate (2, 44).  Carraguard prevents HIV, HPV, and HSV, but does not kill sperm.  BufferGel kills sperm, microbes that cause HPV, HSV, chlamydia and gonorrhea, and white blood cells that contain HIV.  Pro 2000 binds to HIV, gonorrhea and HSV.  Ushercell acts on a "broad range of STIs and appears to have a contraceptive effect.  C31G does not seem to have any anti-HPV properties.  http://www.infoforhealth.org/inforeports/microbicides/microbs1.shtml  (sounds like I'll want BufferGel to prove effective for HPV, because of it's combo contraceptive/STI prevention properties)

~ A Failed Candidate:  CONRAD halted its trial [of cellulose sulfate (CS), also known as Ushercell] after early results suggested that CS might be contributing to an increased risk of HIV infection among women in the study.  This site has the latest (as of this date) info on all the above products being tested!  http://www.thebody.com/content/treat/art42458.html

Comments

[dawnd.livejournal.com]

Thanks for bringing this to my/our attention (via Love+Politics). It is indeed exciting news. And also explains some things about the quick spread of HPV back when all you could get was lube or condoms with Non-Ox-9. What shocks me is that stuff is still on the market, despite showing that it INCREASES the spread of HIV (and now HPV) in vivo. *shakes head*

So I'm curious... can we cook up some carregeenan-infused lube ourselves? I know you can get the stuff at some health food places, as a thickening agent. (Speaking of which, it seems to be implicated or at least problematic in IBS, when used internally. Is it good? Is it bad? Who the hell knows?? Though I wonder if one of the problems is that it somehow blocks the "good" bacteria in the gut. Oh what a tangled web is the human body...).

In your experience and understanding, about how long do we have till one of these is likely to come to market?

[joreth]

The thing is, there is a particular way to "cook it up". I don't recall the particulars off-hand, but one way breaks down the molecular structure to a point where it's harmful to be ingested. The other way is the method that is used in food products, which is not harmful AT ALL. Technically, you can boil the seaweed yourself if you want to (I hear it's fairly simple, which is why it's cheap and easy-to-manufacture product available in just about everything), but it seems like rather a lot of hassel when they make lubes with it already.

How long it will take to make it to the market depends entirely upon 1) how long the various Phase III testing goes 2) how quickly the researchers can convince a pharm company to take it up and produce it and 3) how much effort those companies put into mass distribution into the US. It may be marketed to Third World countries first. Just like the guy who invented the condom that takes 3 seconds or less to apply because of the unique wrapper = applicator design, this condom is being marketed primarily outside the US to convince Third World guys that the "complicated" application process is no excuse anymore:



Once Merk got the government's approval for their HPV vaccine, it was only a matter of weeks before it became the latest and greatest thing on the market with everyone pushing it. It helped that Merk was the pharm company AND the research company AND that they started the early marketing strategy before it was even approved (going to the medical community to enlist their help when it finally did get approved). If there is any sort of profit to be had, it will move faster. The only other way is if some sort of philantropist who has both money and political power takes up the cause, the way Merk did (in the sense that they're a big, bad corporation who believed this was for the "greater good", in addition to seeing profit).

[dawnd.livejournal.com]

Wow. Thanks for the link to that condom ad! I'd not heard of that, and it's quite amazing. Much better than the one we tried a couple years ago that was supposed to be reversible. That turned out to be difficult to get on no matter which way you tried it.

Unfortunately, I'm betting this cool applicator thingie is only sold with regular latex condoms, so I'm unlikely to be using it myself (slight sensitivity), but man oh man is that a good idea.

I'm divided about the Merck vaccine (it's certainly not 100% effective), but I do think that ANYthing is better than NOTHING, which is what we had before. So in that regard, it's a good step. I hope that we get the carregeenan lubes IN ADDITION to the vaccine, though. I DO think it's all "for the greater good," in that reducing rates of such a commonly occurring cancer is a good thing--less costly for everyone, "health" "care" companies included.

[joreth]

Last I heard, this quickie-condom was not available in the US, but I admit to not have kept up on the progress of its marketing.

The vaccine is a great idea and I'm excited about it. True, it's only good for 4 of the strains, but they're the two strains that cause the most amount of cancer cases and the two strains that cause the bulk of the warts cases, so those are pretty good odds.

If you can convince your doctor to give you the shots off-label, and throw in using Carrageenan lube regularly in addition to your regular safe sex practices, you'll be pretty set. The Carrageenan lube is already available, just do a google search if you can't find it in your local sex stores.