CAPE-rich Propolis for Autism?

CAPE (caffeic acid phenethyl ester) is a substance known to be an inhibitor of PAK1.  PAK1 has been shown at MIT to be implicated in various disorders including Fragile X and schizophrenia.  PAK1 inhibitors are also effective in research models of various cancers, including leukemia.

There are currently no approved PAK1 inhibitor drugs, although several are in development.

PAK1 is also implicated in Neurofibromatosis, and clinicians have researched various alternative PAK1 inhibiting substances.  The two most interesting ones that I have already written posts about are:-

·        Ivermectin, an old anti-parasite drug (also shown effective in leukemia)

·        BIO 30 propolis, rich in CAPE

Ivermectin is already used as an autism treatment by “alternative” doctors who think autism is caused by parasites.  We saw in a recent post that a study looking for parasites in people with autism (in the US) found none.  Ivermectin reportedly does improve autism, according to one reader of this blog and other anecdotal evidence.

I think Ivermectin is likely to be more potent than BIO30, but Ivermectin cannot be safely used continuously, without long breaks.

BIO-30 Trial

Having discussed the idea with one of the Japanese Neurofibromatosis clinicians, it seemed worthwhile to see the effect in our kind of autism.

As you may have seen in previous posts the science behind PAK1 is complex.  It has numerous, mainly bad, effects.  It is involved in dendritic spine morphology; this might be one area where ongoing “damage” is still being done.  So when asked what kind of change I expected/hoped to see, I said “cognitive improvement”.

According to recent research:-

CAPE alone has never been used clinically, due to its poor bioavailability/water-solubility; Bio 30 contains plenty of lipids which solubilize CAPE, and also includes several other anticancer ingredients that seem to act synergistically with CAPE.

Propolis is widely used as a natural remedy, but this was my first experience with it.  The first problem was how to take it; it sticks to everything.

My solution is to cut a small piece of toast and then apply 20 drops of propolis.  Since propolis has a strong flavor, I try to mask it with a layer of Nutella spread on top.

I gave this “honey medicine” at breakfast and in early afternoon.  

Trial Conclusion

There is a cognitive enhancing effect, noticeable not just to me.  The effect is visible almost straight away, but was more noticeable with a dose of 2 x 20 drops than with my original 1 x 20 drops.

At this dosage, it is not revolutionary, but it does indeed provide a real “nootropic”/cognitive enhancing effect.

Propolis for All?

At the dose I am using, I would think this “therapy” is only worthwhile in people whose autism is well-controlled already; meaning no stimming/stereotypy/OCD, allergies/GI problems all resolved, no aggression or anxiety;  these behaviours will mask any benefit.

I actually think this is the first thing I have come across that looks ideally suited for Asperger’s and other HFA.

I did look on line for people trying BIO30 for schizophrenia, all I found was someone else asking the same question:-

Apparently FRAX486 treats schizophrenia in mice due to PAK1 inhibition. Why does no one try Bio 30 Propolis for schizophrenia, as it is a PAK1 inhibitor as well?

Propolis does have numerous other ingredients, including many very interesting flavonoids.

As long as you are not one of the one percent of people with a bee allergy, propolis seems a very safe product.

If you live in Australia or New Zealand you can buy the CAPE-rich propolis locally.  As we learnt in previous posts, only two types of propolis were found to be PAK1 inhibitors, an expensive one from Brazil and the CAPE-rich BIO30 Propolis from New Zealand.

If anyone tries it, please let me know the result.  You only need one bottle and a few days to see if it has an effect.