This is a working overview of immunomodulator, written for readers who want more than a one-paragraph summary but less than a textbook.
Reviewed 2025-09-30. Anything still debated is marked as such rather than presented as settled.
市售的胸腺素α1通常以冻干粉形式提供，溶解后用于注射。其氨基酸组成包括多个酸性残基，因此在中性pH下带负电荷。该肽可溶于水和生理盐水，但在有机溶剂中溶解度有限。储存条件通常为冻干状态下负20摄氏度，溶解后需冷藏并避免反复冻融。常见的同义词包括胸腺肽α1、thymalfasin和Tα1。
胸腺素α1（thymosin alpha 1，Tα1）是一种由28个氨基酸组成的酸性肽，N端被乙酰化，分子量约为3108道尔顿。该肽最早从牛胸腺组织提取物中分离，属于胸腺素组分5的一个成分。其序列在不同哺乳动物中高度保守，提示其具有基本的生物学功能。名称中的“α1”指其在电泳中的迁移位置，并非表示亚型编号。它既存在于胸腺，也存在于脾脏和淋巴结等免疫组织。
Immune signaling studies link thymosin alpha 1 to Toll-like receptor pathways, particularly TLR2 and TLR9, on dendritic cells and other antigen-presenting cells. Activation of these receptors promotes maturation of T cells and increases natural killer cell activity. The peptide shifts cytokine output toward a T helper 1 profile, raising interferon gamma and interleukin 2 while modulating interleukin 10. Whether these effects translate into clinical benefit for any specific disease remains a subject of debate. Reported outcomes vary across trials and populations.
Thymosin alpha 1 is approved as a medicine in several countries, including Italy and China, for indications such as chronic hepatitis B and as an immune adjuvant. It is not approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration as a therapeutic product. In research settings the peptide appears in studies of sepsis, vaccine response, and oncology support, often with mixed or inconclusive results. The evidence base is uneven, and reviews note that many trials were small. Regulatory status therefore differs widely between jurisdictions.
Thymosin alpha 1 is a synthetic 28-amino-acid peptide first isolated in 1966 from thymosin fraction 5, a bovine thymus extract. Its chain begins with an acetylated serine residue and ends with asparagine. The native peptide carries a molecular mass near 3,108 daltons. Researchers classify it as an immunomodulatory agent rather than a hormone with a single endocrine target. Early work framed it as a thymus-derived factor that supports T-cell maturation. The synthetic form used in research and clinical products matches the natural sequence.
| Property | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 化学分类 | 线性肽 | 由28个氨基酸组成 |
| 分子量 | 约3108 Da | 合成版本一致 |
| 外观 | 白色至类白色粉末 | 冻干品 |
| 溶解度 | 易溶于水 | 微溶于有机溶剂 |
| 储存温度 | -20°C（冻干） | 溶解后2-8°C |
Thymosin beta-4 is a separate 43-residue peptide that binds actin and participates in cell migration; it shares no sequence similarity with thymosin alpha-1 despite the common family name. Other preparative materials, such as thymosin fraction 5 and thymopoietin, contain distinct mixtures or peptides. The shared thymosin label reflects the tissue of origin used in early purification, not a common structural core. Treating these molecules as interchangeable is a frequent source of confusion in laboratory reports and in popular summaries alike.
Thymosin alpha-1 is a synthetic peptide of 28 amino acid residues that corresponds to a naturally occurring fragment first isolated from thymus tissue. Its chain is acetylated at the amino terminus, a modification that shields the peptide from rapid cleavage by aminopeptidases. The molecule carries a net negative charge at physiological pH and dissolves freely in water. Researchers classify it as an immune-modulating agent rather than a classical hormone, because it acts on several cell types of both the innate and the adaptive immune system.
Overall evidence quality varies considerably. A large share of published reports come from single centers, rely on surrogate immunological markers, or lack adequate control groups. Systematic reviews have highlighted this heterogeneity as a barrier to pooling results. Open questions include which patients, if any, might benefit, what treatment duration is appropriate, and whether any effect is independent of standard care. The peptide is often described as an immune modulator rather than a therapy for one disease, which complicates confirmatory trial design.
Thymosin alpha 1 was identified in 1977 as a component of thymosin fraction 5, a heterogeneous preparation used in early studies of thymic function. Investigators purified the active material and determined its amino acid sequence, which enabled chemical synthesis. Work in the following decades concentrated on T-cell maturation and immune reconstitution in animals and small human cohorts. Early preparations varied in composition, so results from that period are difficult to compare with studies using defined synthetic peptide.
Clinical interest has centered on chronic viral hepatitis, on immune restoration in various conditions, and on use as an adjuvant intended to improve responses to vaccines. Trials have reported mixed results, and regulatory status differs sharply between countries; in some places it is a prescription product, while elsewhere it is sold without an approved therapeutic indication. Because published studies vary widely in design, population, and endpoints, comparisons across them are difficult and no single conclusion covers the whole literature.
Thymosin alpha 1 is a short peptide of 28 amino acid residues that derives from the amino terminal region of a larger precursor protein known as prothymosin alpha. The peptide carries an acetyl group on its first residue and contains no disulfide bonds or carbohydrate chains. Its sequence is highly conserved across mammalian species, which is one reason laboratories treat it as a molecule with a defined and reproducible structure rather than a variable tissue extract. The name follows an early naming convention for thymus-derived fractions and does not imply that the peptide acts as a hormone in the classical endocrine sense.
Biologically, the peptide is studied mainly in the context of immune cell development and regulation. It is produced in the thymus and in several other tissues, and it appears to influence the maturation and activity of T cells and other immune populations. Laboratory work describes effects on cytokine production, on the balance between T cell subsets, and on the function of dendritic cells. Much of this evidence comes from cell culture and animal models, so the extent to which the same pathways operate in humans remains an open question.
A key challenge in cell transplantation therapies for Type 1 diabetes is hypoxia and low oxygen conditions in transplant environments that can impair the function and identity of stem cell-derived beta cells.
Nearly all elements in the periodic table form binary bromides. The exceptions are decidedly in the minority and stem in each case from one of three causes: extreme inertness and reluctance to participate in chemical reactions (the noble gases, with the exception of xenon in the very unstable XeBr2); extreme nuclear instability hampering chemical investigation before decay and transmutation (many of the heaviest elements beyond bismuth); and having an electronegativity higher than bromine's (oxygen, nitrogen, fluorine, and chlorine), so that the resultant binary compounds are formally not bromides but rather oxides, nitrides, fluorides, or chlorides of bromine. (Nonetheless, nitrogen tribromide is named as a bromide as it is analogous to the other nitrogen trihalides.) Bromination of metals with Br2 tends to yield lower oxidation states than chlorination with Cl2 when a variety of oxidation states is available. Bromides can be made by reaction of an element or its oxide, hydroxide, or carbonate with hydrobromic acid, and then dehydrated by mildly high temperatures combined with either low pressure or anhydrous hydrogen bromide gas. These methods work best when the bromide product is stable to hydrolysis; otherwise, the possibilities include high-temperature oxidative bromination of the element with bromine or hydrogen bromide, high-temperature bromination of a metal oxide or other halide by bromine, a volatile metal bromide, carbon tetrabromide, or an organic bromide. For example, niobium(V) oxide reacts with carbon tetrabromide at 370 °C to form niobium(V) bromide.
==== Actions ==== The NBOMe drugs are highly potent and selective agonists of the serotonin 5-HT2 receptors, including of the 5-HT2A, 5-HT2B, and 5-HT2C receptors. However, they are much less potent and efficacious at the serotonin 5-HT2B receptor compared to the serotonin 5-HT2A and 5-HT2C receptors. The drugs are highly selective for the serotonin 5-HT2 receptors over other serotonin receptors and over a variety of other biological targets. They are likewise inactive as monoamine reuptake inhibitors and releasing agents. Many of the NBOMe drugs are partial agonists of the rat and mouse trace amine-associated receptor 1 (TAAR1), but they are inactive as agonists of the human TAAR1.
While the building could accommodate a staff of thirty researchers, twenty-five technicians and forty to fifty students, there was only a fraction of that number, and morale was low. Florey retained Jean Orr-Ewing and Margaret Campbell-Renton, who had been working with Dreyer, and brought Kent with him. Pullinger joined them soon after as demonstrator of pathology. Florey and Pullinger restructured the pathology course. He hired Margaret Jennings as a gastroenterologist in October 1936, and she worked with him on his studies of mucus secretion. She became Florey's mistress in 1940; their affair was a poorly-kept secret. He appointed P. J. Smart as the office administrator, and she remained in the role until she retired in 1976. He attracted Rhodes Scholars such as Australian Brian Maegraith and Americans Robert H. Ebert and Leslie Epstein to the Sir William Dunn School of Pathology; other doctoral students included Peter Medawar, Gordon Sanders and Jean Taylor. Arthur Duncan Gardner headed the MRC's Standards Laboratory, which was located on the premises, and Gardner expected that his unit would have to move out, but Florey moved to keep him, as he needed a good bacteriologist. He arranged for Gardner to become head of his bacteriological section, with the title of reader of bacteriology in 1936. The Standards Laboratory eventually moved to the MRC's laboratories at Colindale, but not until 1946. Florey also wanted a biochemist on his staff, but this proved difficult. He acquired the services of E. A. H.
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
== Testing == The presence of stimulants in the body may be tested by a variety of procedures. Serum and urine are the common sources of testing material although saliva is sometimes used. Commonly used tests include chromatography, immunologic assay, and mass spectrometry.
== History == The consumption of wheatgrass in the Western world began in the 1930s as a result of experiments conducted by Charles Schnabel in his attempts to popularize the plant. By 1940, cans of Schnabel's powdered grass were on sale in major drug stores throughout the United States and Canada. Ann Wigmore was also a strong advocate for the consumption of wheatgrass as a part of a raw food diet. Wigmore, founder of the Hippocrates Health Institute, believed that wheatgrass, as a part of a raw food diet, would cleanse the body of toxins while providing a proper balance of nutrients as a whole food. She also taught that wheatgrass could be used to treat those with serious disease. Both of these claims are believed by many reputable health institutes to be entirely unfounded by facts, and possibly dangerous.
Low neutrophil counts are termed neutropenia. This can be congenital (developed at or before birth) or it can develop later, as in the case of aplastic anemia or some kinds of leukemia. It can also be a side-effect of medication, most prominently chemotherapy. Neutropenia makes an individual highly susceptible to infections. It can also be the result of colonization by intracellular neutrophilic parasites. In alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency, the important neutrophil elastase is not adequately inhibited by alpha 1-antitrypsin, leading to excessive tissue damage in the presence of inflammation – the most prominent one being emphysema. Negative effects of elastase have also been shown in cases when the neutrophils are excessively activated (in otherwise healthy individuals) and release the enzyme in extracellular space. Unregulated activity of neutrophil elastase can lead to disruption of pulmonary barrier showing symptoms corresponding with acute lung injury. The enzyme also influences activity of macrophages by cleaving their toll-like receptors (TLRs) and downregulating cytokine expression by inhibiting nuclear translocation of NF-κB. In Familial Mediterranean fever (FMF), a mutation in the pyrin (or marenostrin) gene, which is expressed mainly in neutrophil granulocytes, leads to a constitutively active acute-phase response and causes attacks of fever, arthralgia, peritonitis, and – eventually – amyloidosis. Hyperglycemia can lead to neutrophil dysfunction.
=== Attachment to tendons === Muscles attach to tendons in a complex interface region known as the musculotendinous junction, also known as the myotendinous junction, an area specialised for the primary transmission of force. At the muscle-tendon interface, force is transmitted from the sarcomeres in the muscle cells to the tendon. Muscles and tendons develop in close association, and after their joining at the myotendinous junction they constitute a dynamic unit for the transmission of force from muscle contraction to the skeletal system.
=== Lipid extraction === Most methods of lipid extraction and isolation from biological samples exploit the high solubility of hydrocarbon chains in organic solvents. Given the diversity in lipid classes, it is not possible to accommodate all classes with a common extraction method. The traditional Bligh/Dyer procedure uses chloroform/methanol-based protocols that include phase partitioning into the organic layer. However, several protocols now exist, with newer methods overcoming the shortcomings of older ones and solving problems associated with, for example, targeted lipid isolation or high throughput data collection . Most protocols work relatively well for a variety of physiologically relevant lipids but they have to be adapted for species with particular properties and low-abundance and labile lipid metabolites .
Sources: en.wikipedia.org
它不是经典的内分泌激素，而是一种免疫调节肽。其作用主要通过局部免疫细胞间的信号传递实现，而非经血液循环作用于远隔器官。
天然胸腺素α1主要从胸腺组织提取，也可在脾脏和淋巴结中检出。目前研究和临床使用的多为化学合成版本，不再依赖动物组织。
胸腺素组分5是牛胸腺提取物的粗组分，包含多种肽。胸腺素α1是其中一种被纯化和表征的单一肽，具有明确的28个氨基酸序列。
It is a chain of 28 amino acids, with an acetyl group attached to the first serine residue. The synthetic version replicates this sequence. Its molecular mass is about 3,108 daltons.