78 Diet Wise
The field of serology has also provided us with some very clear
evidence that such peptides, and the proteins from which they derive,
can be absorbed through the intestinal mucosa, and into the circulation
of a significant minority of apparently healthy members of the general
population [Husby S, Jensenius JC, Svehag SE, Passage of undegraded
dietary antigen into the blood of healthy adults. Quantification, estimation
of size distribution, and relation of uptake to levels of specific antibodies.
Scand J Immunol. 1985 Jul; 22(1):83-92].
Scientists say a minority because they are not measuring many
peptides as potential exorphins. They only test for it in wheat and milk
and then say studies show it only for wheat and milk. It is easily within the
grasp of an average school child that this phenomenon will occur with
other peptides too, once they take the trouble to look.
OPIORPHIN
French researchers, under Dr. Catherine
Rougeot, from Institut Pasteur in Paris,
have identified an endogenous compound,
which they have termed Opiorphin, that is
comparable to morphine in analgesic potency.Testing of Opiorphin in the behavioral rat
model of acute mechanical pain showed
that its analgesic efficacy was on par with
that of morphine, the researchers note.“Our discovery of Opiorphin is extremely
exciting from a physiologic point of view in the
context of endogenous opioidergic pathways,
notably in modulating mood-related states and
pain sensation,” Dr. Rougeot’s team states.[Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2006;103:17979-17984.]