Ecdysterone, 20-beta-hydroxyecdysterone or Rhaponticum Carthamoides Extract?
All, I am in the process of trying to decipher which of the following would be most beneficial to realize the increased protein synthesis effects of ecdy:
1) ecdysterone
2) 20-beta-hydroxyecdysterone
3) Rhaponticum carthamoides
Based on initial research, it appears that taking Rhaponticum carthamoides whole extract is superior to that of individual ecdysterones.
Has anyone tried the 95% Rhaponticum carthamoides powder? How about Ecdypure? Please read the information posted below, unless you are already familiar, and discuss...
The following on-topic excerpt was taken from:
[url]http://www.rhodiolarosea.org/Web-Rhaponticum.pdf[/url]
[quote]
[b]Introduction:[/b] Rhaponticum carthamoides (Willd) Ijin, also know as Leuzea, or Maral root, is plant indigenous to the Lake Baikal region and distributed throughout Eastern Siberia. Traditionally the Siberians consumed the Leuzea tea mixed with Rhodiola rosea root for a long time as a natural stimulant, in cases of tiredness and general weakness after illness and energizing remedy after the long Siberian winter...
[b]Phytochemistry:[/b] Key active constituents responsible for specific anabolic effect of Rhaponticum carthamoides is a mixture of compounds called, "levseins". Levseins represents a complex of more than 10 ecdysterones including 20-beta-ecdysterone, makisterone C, 24-dehydromakisterone A, carthamosterone, polypodyne B and ajugasterone C.
[b]Pharmacology:[/b] According to Russian researchers the Leuzea extract stimulates muscle protein synthesis by increasing the activity of the polyribosomes. Polyribosomes are the cellular compartments where the actual protein synthesis takes place. Researchers extracted and purified various ecdysteroids from Leuzea and found that the ecdysteroids increased the mass of the developing quails in a dose-dependent manner, with the rate of increase proportional to the ecdysteroids content. It was evident that the plethora of growth-promoting, vitamin-like effects induced by Leuzea is mediated by ecdysteroids.
However it is important to point out that the mixture of ecdysterones was found to be responsible for enhancement of muscle protein synthesis. [b]The research indicated that the whole extract of Rhaponticum carthamoides containing mixture of levseins possess much superior physiological activity compared with the activity of purified individual constituents (Seifulla 1999).[/b] Results indicated that 0.5mg/kg body weight is the optimal dosage of 20-beta-ecdysterone in any sport and performance formula.
[b]Rhaponticum carthamoides[/b] - A Powerful Natural Anabolic Back in the '70s, the Soviet sports teams were caught using numerous steroids. In 1976 Soviet scientists discovered two substances that had traditional historical use behind them. One was a plant called Rhaponticum carthamoides, the active ingredient of which is called beta-ecdysterone. The Soviets manufactured a synthetic version of this powerful substance for their athletes with great success. Soon after, the U.S. version called Mesobolin circulated on the underground market for a long time. In back-to-back studies with animals, the Rhaponticum extract was actually superior to synthetic steroids like Dianabol at inducing endurance and muscle cell growth (Syrov et al. 1976, 1992).
The examination of the difference in action between beta-ecdysterone and synthetic steroids revealed that the latter go directly to the nucleus of a cell to tell the blueprint, the DNA, to produce more RNA. Then the RNA tells the ribosome to produce more protein. Beta-ecdysterone, on the other hand, goes directly to the ribosome and increases what is called translation, the rate at which new protein is being made (Syrov et al. 1984)...[/quote]
Here is another excellent article entitled:
[b]Phytoecdysteroids:[/b]
[url]http://www.rrreading.com/ecdysteroids_rklein.pdf[/url]
Here is a chart taken from the above article:
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