Revisiting threads like these is always so helpful, especially since I usually don't take the time to absorb everything the first time round.

In this study about the possibility of using ZAG enzymes as a marker in testing for prostrate cancer, they mention two things that were comprehensible and of interest. One is that ZAG enzymes tend to increase as we age. Perhaps a factor in 'growing out' of acne?

 

I just had a thought. I'd only considered the above statement in relation to this lectin theory, but remember, ZAG enzymes breaks down the connections holding skin cells together so that they exfoliate freely. So that's relevant whether or not lectins inhibit ZAG. And whether or not you try to limit your exposure to lectins.

Study about ZAG and shedding of skin cells: http://www.fasebj.or...t/full/14/3/565

Another enzyme that we have shown to participate in desquamation of normal skin is ZAG (38) . We had previously shown that ZAG expresses enzymatic activity (44) and that it plays a role in stratum corneum cohesion (45) . ZAG also has ribonuclease activity (46) and it participates in the destruction of nuclei in terminally differentiating keratinocytes (47)

In this study about the possibility of using ZAG enzymes as a marker in testing for prostrate cancer, they mention two things that were comprehensible and of interest. One is that ZAG enzymes tend to increase as we age. Perhaps a factor in 'growing out' of acne?

 

I just had a thought. I'd only considered the above statement in relation to this lectin theory, but remember, ZAG enzymes breaks down the connections holding skin cells together so that they exfoliate freely. So that's relevant whether or not the lectin thing is. And whether or not you try to limit your exposure to lectins.

Study about ZAG and shedding of skin cells:

http://www.fasebj.or...t/full/14/3/565

QUOTE

Another enzyme that we have shown to participate in desquamation of normal skin is ZAG (38) . We had previously shown that ZAG expresses enzymatic activity (44) and that it plays a role in stratum corneum cohesion (45) . ZAG also has ribonuclease activity (46) and it participates in the destruction of nuclei in terminally differentiating keratinocytes (47)

 

What's something you can do to help ZAG enzymes do what they're supposed to?

What's something you can do to help ZAG enzymes do what they're supposed to?

 

I don't know although perhaps there's something in the earlier posts in this thread. I know I went off on a tangent while researching the glyconutrients that bind up lectins so may have missed or forgotten other factors. Looking for ways to improve/boost ZAG would probably be a good thing to do. Zinc is one thing as ZAG stands for zinc-₂-glycoprotein.

I just noticed that the study I just quoted said ZAG was another enzyme involved in desquammation. That means there are more. There are probably plenty of clues in that psoriasis study :

Psoriasis is a T cell-mediated inflammatory disease characterized by hyperproliferation and by aberrant differentiation. We found cathepsin D and zinc-₂-glycoprotein, two catalytic enzymes associated with apoptosis and desquamation, to be present in the stratum corneum of the normal epidermis but absent from the psoriatic plaque. Psoriasis is characterized by an altered response to interferon- (IFN-), including the induction of apoptosis in normal but not in psoriatic keratinocytes, often with opposite effects on gene expression of suprabasal proteins. We found that IFN- binding and signaling were attenuated in psoriasis: The IFN- receptor, the signal transducer and activator of transcription STAT-1, and the interferon regulatory factor IRF-1 were strongly up-regulated by IFN- in normal keratinocytes, but not in psoriatic ones. IFN- strongly up-regulated the expression of the catalytic enzymes cathepsin D and zinc-₂-glycoprotein in normal keratinocytes but down-regulated them in psoriatic ones; the reverse was true of the apoptotic suppressor bcl-2. We believe that the aberrant response to IFN- plays a central role in the pathophysiology of psoriasis, particularly the disruption of apoptosis and desquamation.Chen, S.-H., Arany, I., Apisarnthanarax, N., Rajaraman, S., Tyring, S. K., Horikoshi, T., Brysk, H., Brysk, M. M. Response of keratinocytes from normal and psoriatic epidermis to interferon- differs in the expression of zinc-₂-glycoprotein and cathepsin D.

http://www.fasebj.or...t/14/3/565.full

So cathepsin D is also something to look into. And just looking at the wikipedia article and skimming through the references cited, there's a lot of mention of estrogens and that estrogen regulates cathepsin D levels. Which could be how estrogen is a factor. Most research into cell proliferation and apoptosis is going to be about cancer and breast cancer is one of the more common research topics.

FYI, many of these so-called anti-nutrient proteins have antioxident qualities. Below, there's a study on how the buckwheat prolamine inhibited the oxidation of linoleic acid. They aren't all evil.

Interesting articles:

http://www.silverhyd...toxins-concern/

http://cassiopaea.or...p?topic=19362.0 scroll down to post #4 or go to the pdf http://lnmcp.mf.uni-...h/2001s-629.pdf cites some details on prolamin/lectin content of seeds like quinoa and buckwheat. and that 'Buckwheat prolamin was found to exhibit antioxidative effect in powder model systems and radical scavenging activity.' it inhibits the oxidation of linoleic acid.

And that prolamines are alcohol soluble. Perhaps another soaking medium to look into? The article also states that the prolamin content of buckwheat is less than 5%

Article about measuring the anti-nutrient protein content in seeds HOW TO DETERMINE COELIAC DISEASE ACTIVE PROTEINS IN CELEALS AND PSEUDOCEREALS http://www.foodinnov...va/docu2/49.pdf

States that:

Proteins of cereals are classified into three fractions depending on their solubility. The first

fraction are albumins and globulins, which are soluble in salt solutions, mainly in NaCl, the

second part prolamins are proteins soluble in alcohol (ethanol) solutions and the last fraction

are glutenins, which are soluble in alkali solutions, for example in NaOH (Ciccocioppo et al.,

2005). Albumins and globulins are constitutional proteins with enzymatic activity, prolamins

and glutelins are consider to be grain-storage-proteins (Wieser, Koehler, 2008).

 

hi, im new to this topic and alot of this is flyinng over my head, words like "Albumins and globulins are constitutional proteins with enzymatic activity" but has anyone yet mentioned colostrum on this post? because if you look up zag enzyme and colostrum it appears that colostrum contains it

http://www.scielo.br/pdf/babt/v54n4/16.pdf

and i have read one person's post about their son using colostrum and it all seems to coincide. your body produces more zag enzymes as you grow older, and thus people growing out of acne. also many people seem to be supplementing with zinc and that seems very helpful yet there isn't an exact reason why it helps, maybe colostrum could be a possible acne treatment but now with better understanding? yay or nay? back me up with info and think i might try it out

hi, im new to this topic and alot of this is flyinng over my head, words like "Albumins and globulins are constitutional proteins with enzymatic activity" but has anyone yet mentioned colostrum on this post? because if you look up zag enzyme and colostrum it appears that colostrum contains it

http://www.scielo.br...bt/v54n4/16.pdf

and i have read one person's post about their son using colostrum and it all seems to coincide. your body produces more zag enzymes as you grow older, and thus people growing out of acne. also many people seem to be supplementing with zinc and that seems very helpful yet there isn't an exact reason why it helps, maybe colostrum could be a possible acne treatment but now with better understanding? yay or nay? back me up with info and think i might try it out

 

I'd love to start taking colostrum, it's definitely been "yayed" on this forum before.

hi, im new to this topic and alot of this is flyinng over my head, words like "Albumins and globulins are constitutional proteins with enzymatic activity" but has anyone yet mentioned colostrum on this post? because if you look up zag enzyme and colostrum it appears that colostrum contains it

http://www.scielo.br...bt/v54n4/16.pdf

and i have read one person's post about their son using colostrum and it all seems to coincide. your body produces more zag enzymes as you grow older, and thus people growing out of acne. also many people seem to be supplementing with zinc and that seems very helpful yet there isn't an exact reason why it helps, maybe colostrum could be a possible acne treatment but now with better understanding? yay or nay? back me up with info and think i might try it out

 

I'd love to start taking colostrum, it's definitely been "yayed" on this forum before.

 

was wondering if there might be specific posts that have some info on colostrum ? I'm kinda curious 🙂

well there was one from a mom talking about her son who had severe acne, and then he started to take omega 3 and colostrum together and at first he had an initial breakout but after a month or so i dont remember how long, he cleared up 100%, virtually no acne existent, completely gone and erradicated, she had theories as to why it helped, leaky guy and other stuff, but i think unfortunately the post got deleted because i can't seem to find it, that one was extremely helpful.

ive read articles about colostrum and alot of colostrum out there online is not actually colostrum

this one is supposedly good

http://www.surthrival.com/colostrum.html

i think the mother in the post used the symbiotic colostrum and said all the others didn't work

but my questions are mainly for alternativista and others who are knowledgable on this topic of zag enzyme because it seems that this is could be a breakthrough. just researching zag its hard to find alot of info which goes to show that its a very new concept that hasn't been touched on alot, and i am happy to be a guinea pig

okay, this video isn't directly referring to colostrum's relation to acne, but i think it is worth a viewing, gotta warn you, it is very long but quiet intriguing

you can find part 2 and 3 on the side bar

sorry i just found the post, it wasn't deleted

http://www.acne.org/messageboard/index.php/topic/254664-great-acne-treatment%3B-the-best-actually/

sorry i just found the post, it wasn't deleted

http://www.acne.org/...-best-actually/

 

Yeah, colostrum was big here for a while, but it was mostly about healing the digestive tract. I think that colostrum containing ZAG is new, at least, I don't recall it, but I forget a lot, that's why I write it down here. It probably is new because this thread went off in the direction of binding up/removing lectins from seeds with preparation methods and food combos.

Zinc 2-Glycoprotein: A Multidisciplinary Protein

Abstract

Zinc 2-glycoprotein (ZAG) is a protein of interest because of its ability to play many important functions in the human body, including fertilization and lipid mobilization. After the discovery of this molecule, during the last 5 decades, various studies have been documented on its structure and functions, but still, it is considered as a protein with an unknown function. Its expression is regulated by glucocorticoids. Due to its high sequence homology with lipid-mobilizing factor and high expression in cancer cachexia, it is considered as a novel adipokine. On the other hand, structural organization and fold is similar to MHC class I antigen-presenting molecule; hence, ZAG may have a role in the expression of the immune response. The function of ZAG under physiologic and cancerous conditions remains mysterious but is considered as a tumor biomarker for various carcinomas. There are several unrelated functions that are attributed to ZAG, such as RNase activity, regulation of melanin production, hindering tumor proliferation, and transport of nephritic by-products. This article deals with the discussion of the major aspects of ZAG from its gene structure to function and metabolism. (Mol Cancer Res 2008;6(6):892906) http://mcr.aacrjourn.../6/892.abstract

Most of the research on ZAG, like with lectins, is about cancer and thus difficult to understand. But I thought the glucocorticoids that they think regulate it might be something to look into. Also the mention that it is thought to affect fertilization might mean it's a factor in PCOS.[/font][/color]

There's also this study that says ZAG plays a role in preventing type 2 Diabetes. See how inter-related everything is. Perhaps research in to that might include how to boost ZAG. http://endo.endojour...151/3/948.short

another thing to consider is that alot of people have been posting about stopping masturbation has helped them alot with acne and I read somewhere that semen contains the zag enzyme. Maybe that is a possible correlation, that every time you ejaculate, you lose a certain amount of zag enzyme. Others who take it to the extreme are actually tried putting semen on their face:

http://www.acne.org/messageboard/index.php/topic/95048-sperm-fights-acne/

seems quite odd but maybe there is a reason behind it because of the zinc-alpha-2-glycoprotein that is in it. Others have also put colostrum on their faces and that has helped their breakouts significantly.

Although alot of this thread has been about reducing lectin intake and absorption, is the possibility of increasing your zag enzyme consumption/production a better treatment?

Thoughts?

Although alot of this thread has been about reducing lectin intake and absorption, is the possibility of increasing your zag enzyme consumption/production a better treatment?

Thoughts?

 

Or rather, an additional treatment or goal. Look into it. I know I've googled things like 'boosting ZAG' and not had any luck. Like I said before, most research into ZAG is about cancer, although that study on it preventing type II diabetes is hopeful. Hopefully some helpful info will come out of research into that.

Good Luck.

well shucks, i'm not a scientist and it seems like there is virtually no research out there based on the correlation between zag and acne or better yet just increasing zag in the body, i'll be back with more info if i find anything. but i am very hopeful, this could be the missing link into acne.

^Well, also look into glucocorticoids, which apparently regulate ZAG, and cathepsin D, another enzyme involved in desquammation and regulated by estrogen. Perhaps the reason estrogen dominance and/or fluctuating estrogen causes monthly breakouts for some.

And from Cordain's book

During normal desquamation, 2 enzymes derived from underlying keratinocytes

and from corneocyte structures, called lamellar bodies, dissolve desmosomes.

First, carbohydrate dissolving enzymes, called glycosidases, and then protein

dissolving enzymes, called proteases, must be applied, (in that order). If one of these enzymes gets impaired then the corneocyte desmosomes will not disintegrate properly, and the corneocytes will stick together and block the follicle.

this is lots to sort out. Let me get it in order. ZAG involved in skid shedding/lipid metabolism, seems implicated in acne. ZAG inhibited by lechtins, worst offenders being wheat, soy, peanut. What about oatmeal? does that fall in to the wheat category?

I feel low GI helps but its really easy to fall off the wagon. It seems ridiculous the amount of pore clogging on my face back these days, but i really (really) dont have any inflamed acne.

this is lots to sort out. Let me get it in order. ZAG involved in skid shedding/lipid metabolism, seems implicated in acne. ZAG inhibited by lechtins, worst offenders being wheat, soy, peanut. What about oatmeal? does that fall in to the wheat category?

I feel low GI helps but its really easy to fall off the wagon. It seems ridiculous the amount of pore clogging on my face back these days, but i really (really) dont have any inflamed acne.

 

No, few people are intolerant to oats provided their digestive tract isn't extremely damaged. If so, you probably need to avoid all grains if not all seeds and products from grain fed animals, at least until it heals. And you might not notice any improvement until you do so.

And we only have Cordain's word that lectins inhibit ZAG. And while he demonizes all grains and legumes and nearly all seeds, he only specifically names the gluten, soy and peanut lectins as having that ability. And as far as I know only those 3 plus kidney bean lectin harms cause additional harm by permeating the intestines linings.

Barley, rye and rice all contain chitin-binding lectins similar to wheat lectin (WGA). - GreenMedInfo

Gluten isn't the only thing that binds to the very substance that makes up our digestive tract linings!!!!

http://www.greenmedi...heat-lectin-wga

Antigenically similar chitin-binding lectins are present in the embryos of wheat, barley, and rye, members of the Triticeae tribe of the grass family (Gramineae). However, the lectins display different localization patterns in these embryos. Lectin is absent from the coleoptile of barley but is present in the outer surface cells of this organ in wheat and in both inner and outer surface cells of rye coleoptiles. All three cereals contain lectin at the periphery of embryonic roots. Similar lectins were not detected in oats and pearl millet, members of other tribes of the Gramineae. Rice, a species only distantty related to wheat, contains a lectin that is antigenically similar to the other cereal lectins and located at the periphery of embryonic roots and throughut the coleoptile.

 

 

From the 2009 report titled Recent Advances in Acne Pathogenesis Information

http://piel-l.org/blog/wp-content/uploads/...al-alliance.pdf

Sebum contains several matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) which play important roles in the inflammatory process of acne. The levels of MMPs are significantly reduced in the acne lesions following treatment.

I can say with reasonable confidence that zinc alpha-2 glycoprotein is not a matrix metalloproteinase. ZAG is a glycosidase, which has a very different immediate function than a metalloproteinase. I don't mean to rain on your parade though, I do think this is something we should pay attention to.

Another question though: Have you been able to find a citation or primary source for the contention that ZAG helps break up the corneocyte intercellular matrix? This is possible, because a couple of desmosome proteins are glycoproteins. However, the current evidence points toward proteolytic enzymes being the main actor in desmosome breakup, which would rule out ZAG. ZAG is most commonly implicated as a lipokine, influencing the storage and movement of fat. But it seems to have a variety of other signaling functions too, so its role is hardly clear. Because Cordain so boldly states the role of ZAG in that paragraph, I just assumed he had significant evidence... and I've found him to be trustworthy in other contexts... but then where is the citation? It's not in the book, as far as I can tell.

Hey! Where have you been?

And you aren't raining on anything. It's good to know they are talking about additional enzymes in sebum, and not the 2 identified that play a role in breaking down the matrix that binds cells together. I don't recall my thought process at the time, just something gave me the idea that there might be protease enzymes involved as well and maybe they could be used topically. These days, I just post stuff that seems to be related here without actively working on this or thinking things through.

And yeah, Cordain doesn't cite references within the text and none of the sources cited have titles like 'ZAG enzyme inhibited by lectins.' I tried looking up several of them, but didn't hit on one with that info. I think I found, elsewhere, a study that might be support of this claim. It would be great if you could take a look at it. It should be somewhere in these last few pages of posts. Here it is: http://www.acne.org/...ost__p__3178117

Most studies about any of this stuff--lectins, cell proliferation,etc--are about cancers...

And maybe you can figure out the role of these metalloproteinases and the 'cysteine switch.' Topical sulfur has been a home remedy for decades. When I was a teen, I recall reading these books by Gerald Durell, a zoologist, about his childhood, crazy family and early fascination with wildlife. And in one book, his sister had 'spots' and one of his relatives had her going around with cabbage leaves tied to her face. And that was like in the 40s.

I know sulfur is important for cell structure and elasticity. And enzyme activity.

A Mercola newsletter stated it this way:

Sulfur bonds are required for proteins to maintain their shape, and these bonds determine the biological activity of the proteins. For example, as explained in the featured MSM newsletter, hair and nails consists of a tough protein called keratin, which is high in sulfur, whereas connective tissue and cartilage contain proteins with flexible sulfur bonds, giving the structure its flexibility. With age, the flexible tissues in your body tend to lose their elasticity, leading to sagging and wrinkling of skin, stiff muscles and painful joints. A shortage of sulfur likely contributes to these age-related problems.

 

In addition to bonding proteins, sulfur is also required for the proper structure and biological activity of enzymes. If you don't have sufficient amounts of sulfur in your body the enzymes cannot function properly, which can cascade into a number of health problems as without biologically active enzymes, your metabolic processes cannot function properly.

 

When I was a teen, I recall reading these books by Gerald Durell, a zoologist, about his childhood, crazy family and early fascination with wildlife. And in one book, his sister had 'spots' and one of his relatives had her going around with cabbage leaves tied to her face.

 

@_@

Another question though: Have you been able to find a citation or primary source for the contention that ZAG helps break up the corneocyte intercellular matrix? This is possible, because a couple of desmosome proteins are glycoproteins. However, the current evidence points toward proteolytic enzymes being the main actor in desmosome breakup, which would rule out ZAG. ZAG is most commonly implicated as a lipokine, influencing the storage and movement of fat. But it seems to have a variety of other signaling functions too, so its role is hardly clear.

 

Oh, wait. I misunderstood the question. Yes I have found quite a bit of evidence that ZAG and another enzyme breakdown the desmosomes. I have only found one study that might be about the lectins inhibiting ZAG.

I took a very long break from the interwebs, to increase my productivity. It worked, a little too well - I started being accused of being a workaholic. So I'm dipping my toe back in

When I went back and used better search terms, I was able to find some research about ZAG and desquamation. Interestingly, a couple of papers referred to the ZAG protein as "lectin-like", suggesting it binds to amino sugar signaling molecules. But it also has in vitro ribonuclease and protease activity. There's still no evidence that it directly degrades corneodesmosomes (that I could find), so its likely it plays some signaling role - like cathepsin D. In any case though, it's just one of many (and I mean many) enzymes involved. That's why I don't get the singular focus on it from Cordain ::shrugs::.

MMPs (there are at least 28 that we know of) all have a lot in common. They are active in the extracellular matrix, which means they inhabit the entire body in a wide range of conditions. They are all secreted as prohormones with a cysteine switch, meaning they have to be "activated" in some way before they can function. They all have a Zinc ion in the active site, and are endopeptidases (meaning they cut proteins somewhere in the middle, rather than at the very end of the sequence). They have several conserved structural and sequence features that aren't really relevant for us. They are all proteases that degrade major structural proteins, like collagen, elastin, laminin, and proteoglycans.

But that's where the likenesses end... their functions are all over the place. An easy way to think of the ECM is as a manager and support staff. It micromanages the cells it contains, telling them how and when to develop, what to develop into, where to move, and how to alter what they're doing and producing based on whats going on in the environment. As such, the functions of metalloproteinases are nigh impossible to summarize. The reason they're important for cancer researchers is because they're involved in cell development and differentiation, which is the key process that goes awry in cancerous cells. For the same reason, they're important to growth and remodeling, as well as wound healing and immune response. They're not just workhorses though - it's likely their most important functions are as signaling molecules, causing the release of cytokines and acting on cell-surface receptors for other reasons.

For example, some MMPs are strongly associated with the inflammatory response. We often tend to focus on the middlemen of the process, inflammatory mediators such as interferons, chemokines, histamines, leukotrienes, etc - in a sense, MMPs are one step earlier in the process. This is the reason doxy and minocycline are the antibiotics of choice for acne - they have anti-inflammatory effects on top of their antibiotic effect. We know that the causes of acne vary in importance from person to person - in people whose acne is primarily caused by an over-active inflammatory response to fairly benign levels of bacteria, sebum, and desquamation, anti-inflammatories are particularly useful. Doxy/minocycline have few side effects, and thickened skin or psoriatic skin isn't among them. This suggests some kind of specificity in the inhibition. Its also proven useful in particular cases of both chronic and acute inflammation, with a focus on MMP-9 and MMP-2 (aortic aneurysms, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, atherosclerosis).

The cysteine switch is pretty simple - it's a part of the MMP proteins that literally folds over and puts a cysteine in contact with Zn ion in the active site of the enzyme. In at least some cases, the switch is part of the "propeptide" sequence, the part of the MMP that gets broken off to "activate" the enzyme. Cysteine has interesting functions in active sites because it includes an S-H. This group is called an especially reactive group called a thiol, and can do fun things like bind to metal ions, form disulfide bridges, and strongly interact with the substrate. Suffice to say, if the cysteine is in the right place, it can be crucial to a protein's function. In the case of the switch, the thiol forms a bond with the Zn ion, preventing it and the active site from taking part in any enzymatic reactions.

However, there is no real danger of a cysteine "deficiency" without a general protein deficiency, and putting topical sulfur on doesn't have any effect on the amino acid in general, or the MMP switch. It just.. doesn't work that way. Elemental sulfur is not the same thing as a thiol group on an amino acid. Cysteine isn't an essential amino acid. It's produced from methionine, a common essential amino acid that contains sulfur. Introducing any other sulfur compound will have no obvious influence on the production or use of cysteine, and certainly not on the cysteine switch.

Okay break time

PS: I wrote off Mercola as a scam artist a couple of years ago. I try really hard to give natural and alternative medicine proponents as much of the benefit of the doubt as I can, and of course there are those that are very honest, evidence based, and realistic. There are some that are honest, but clearly deluded and don't follow evidence-based practices. And then there are those like Mercola, who appear to purposely misguide people with scientific sounding mumbo jumbo that doesn't make any sense on the face of it to anyone with some scientific training. That blurb on sulfur is a perfect example.

I took a very long break from the interwebs, to increase my productivity. It worked, a little too well - I started being accused of being a workaholic. So I'm dipping my toe back in

When I went back and used better search terms, I was able to find some research about ZAG and desquamation. Interestingly, a couple of papers referred to the ZAG protein as "lectin-like", suggesting it binds to amino sugar signaling molecules. But it also has in vitro ribonuclease and protease activity. There's still no evidence that it directly degrades corneodesmosomes (that I could find), so its likely it plays some signaling role - like cathepsin D. In any case though, it's just one of many (and I mean many) enzymes involved. That's why I don't get the singular focus on it from Cordain ::shrugs::.

 

Because it supports his demonizing of all seeds. And it's his claim that lectins inhibit ZAG that I can't find support for, other than that one study that may be saying that. And that study is about a specific lectin in the common bean, not lectins in general or lectins in grains as Cordain claims. I think Cordain makes a lot of suspect statements. Including the usual Paleo claim that humans didn't eat grains until the development of aggriculture. They wouldn't have learned to cultivate them if they didn't eat them. And I can cite an example of a people who ate such significant amounts of a wild grass seed that they consider them sacred - the Ojibwe people and the wild rice they gather, not cultivate.

ZAG and Capthepsin D are the two enzymes identified as impacting cell differentiation and desquammation in psoriasis.