Echinacea Symposium Presents New Research On Chernobyl Victims

The results from a long-term clinical study in the Ukraine on the use of Echinacea to treat victims of the Chernobyl disaster is among the new studies to be presented at the 1999 International Echinacea Symposium June 3-5 in Kansas City, MO.

Dr. Victoriya F. Pochernyayeva, a leading researcher from Ukraine and the former Soviet Union, will review the results of her long-term studies including:

• An analysis of how effectively Echinacea purpurea, consumed as a food additive in fruit juices and other non-alcoholic and alcoholic drinks, protects people who are exposed to radiation. Based on her findings, Dr. Pochernyayeva recommends ways Echinacea purpurea food additives can be used most effectively to safeguard a population that is facing high levels of radiation exposure;
• A study of how Echinacea purpurea can protect the male reproductive system from the effects of radiation;
• A study of how effectively Echinacea purpurea can protect organs and tissues from radiation damage.

The world's leading Echinacea researcher, Dr. Rudolf Bauer, is the keynote speaker. Dr. Bauer, professor at the Institute of Pharmaceutical Biology, University of Dusseldorf, has published more than 100 research papers and has edited a book on Echinacea. He's currently researching the quality aspects of Echinacea preparations, constituents and pharmacological activity of Echinacea species.

The event is hosted by the American Herbal Products Association. Sponsors include Nature's Way, Botanicals International, Bioforce USA, Finzelberg North America, Rexall Sundown, Indena USA, and Plantation Medicinals.

Who: Some 150 researchers, scientists and other professionals from the herbal industry.

What: 1999 International Echinacea Symposium

Where: Ritz-Carlton, Kansas City, MO.

When: June 3-5, 1999

Why: To present the latest clinical research, and learn about the harvest of Echinacea strands, the latest research on the analytical methodology and the standardization of Echinacea constituents, and traditional uses of Echinacea species by Native Americans.

The symposium's objectives are fourfold, including to:

• Bring together international experts to discuss the latest clinical trial results using Echinacea to treat radiation exposure in the Ukraine and to prevent and treat respiratory infections in the US;
• Disseminate the latest conservation research about harvesting and sustaining wild Echinacea;
• Help industry professionals analyze and standardize Echinacea constituents; and,
• Present information about the traditional uses of Echinacea species by Native Americans.

Topics and presenters at the symposium include:

Treating Chernobyl patients -- the startling results of a long-term clinical study of Echinacea's effectiveness with patients exposed to radiation. Dr. Victoriya F. Pochernyayeva, Stomatology Academy, Ukraine.

Overview of the science of Echinacea -- quality, preparations, constituents, pharmacological activity, bioavailability of Echinacea species. Professor Dr. Rudolf Bauer, Institut fuer Pharmazeutische Biologie, Dusseldorf, Germany.

The ecology of Echinacea -- the bioimpacts of harvesting on the available supply of Echinacea. Dana Price Hurlburt, University of Kansas, Kansas Biological Survey.

Standardizing Echinacea -- how to analyze, characterize and standardize the active constituents of Echinacea. Steve Moring, Ph.D., University of Kansas, Higuchi BioSciences Center for Bioanalytical Research

Echinacea and Native Americans -- the uses of Echinacea angustifolia and other Echinacea species by Native Americans in the Great Plains. Kelly Kindscher, Ph.D., University of Kansas, Kansas Biological Survey.

The symposium is under the auspices of the American Herbal Products Association, a Silver Spring, Md.-based trade association for the herbal products industry. Sponsors include Nature's Way, Botanicals International, Bioforce USA, Finzelberg North America, Rexall Sundown, Indena USA, and Plantation Medicinals.

"The symposium brings together in one place the world's most knowledgeable Echinacea experts," said Rodney Storms, AHPA's interim director. "It is a unique opportunity to get the best and most current information on how the popular herbal product is being used and could be used."