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A potential risk associated with vaccines for COVID-19 is antibody-dependent disease enhancement (ADE) in which vaccine induced antibody mediated immune responses may lead to enhanced SARS CoV- 2 acquisition or increased disease severity. Though ADE has not been clinically demonstrated with any of the COVID-19 vaccines so far, when neutralizing antibodies are suboptimal, the severity of COVID-19 has been reported to be greater. ADE is presumed to occur via abnormal macrophages induced by the vaccine based immune response by antibody-mediated virus uptake into Fc gamma receptor IIa (FcγRIIa) or by the formation of Fc-mediated excessive antibody effector functions. Beta-glucans which are naturally occurring polysaccharides known for unique immunomodulation by capability to interact with macrophages, eliciting a specific beneficial immune-response and enhancing all arms of the immune system, importantly without over-activation are suggested as safer nutritional supplement-based vaccine adjuvants for COVID-19., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Author Samuel Abraham is a shareholder in GN Corporation, Japan which holds shares of Sophy Inc., Japan, the manufacturers of novel beta glucans using different strains of Aureobasidium pullulans; a board member in both the companies and also an applicant to several patents of relevance to these beta glucans., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Poor sleep quality is a major problem in patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and is attributed to low melatonin levels. Melatonin supplementation is recommended; however, its effectiveness varies. β-Glucans have previously been shown to improve melatonin levels in animal studies. Herein, we examined the effectiveness of Aureobasidium pullulans (Nichi Glucan), a species of black yeast that contains beta-1,3/1,6-glucan, in a pilot study of children with ASD., Methods: Thirteen children (age, 2.5-13 years) with ASD were recruited for the study. The control group consisted of four patients (Gr. 1), while nine patients were classified into the treatment group (Gr. 2). Gr. 2 received 1 g of Nichi Glucan along with conventional therapy, whereas the Gr. 1 (control) patients received conventional therapy alone for 90 days. Serum melatonin levels and sleep patterns, assessed using a subjective questionnaire, were evaluated before and after treatment., Results: In Gr. 2, the average serum melatonin level increased from 238.85 ng/L preintervention to 394.72 ng/L postintervention. Eight of nine participants (88%) in Gr. 2 showed improvements in sleep pattern and quality, while no improvement was observed in the participants in Gr. 1., Conclusion: The consumption of Nichi Glucan for 90 days resulted in visible improvement in sleep quality, sleep pattern, and serum melatonin levels, which was reported for the first time by our study. A larger multicenter study is required to validate our findings., (© 2022 The Authors. Brain and Behavior published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Immune modulation, being one of the potential strategies to combat COVID-19 infection, emphasis has been laid on enhancing the innate immune response in a balanced manner. Beta (β)-glucans have been suggested as nonspecific immunostimulatory adjuvants to beneficially boost protective antiviral immunity. Through this article, we wish to emphasize that β-glucans not only enhance the innate immunity but also possess the capability to modulate all the arms of the immunity viz., innate, adaptive, TRIM at different sites including those postulated to be the entry site of the SARS-CoV2. Other than immune modulation capabilities, the beneficial metabolic- and coagulation-related effects of β-glucans, a simple nutritional supplementation strategy, make them be considered for larger clinical studies to validate their prophylactic vaccine adjuvant and nutritional-based therapeutic supplement activities to effectively fight the COVID-19 pandemic. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: A 360° wholesome protection from viral infections is possible only when all the arms of the immune system function in a balanced and effective manner which is especially important in COVID-19. Nutritional supplementation using biological response modifier beta (β)-glucans (BRMGs) is worth considering for large-scale clinical studies based on their track record of safety and their beneficial regulation of all the arms of the immune system., (© 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

The incidence of cancer, which is the second leading cause of mortality globally, continues to increase, although continued efforts are being made to identify effective treatments with fewer side‑effects. Previous studies have reported that chronic microinflammation, which occurs in diseases, including diabetes, along with weakened immune systems, may ultimately lead to cancer development. Chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery are the mainstream approaches to treatment; however, they all lead to immune system weakness, which in turn increases the metastatic spread. The aim of the present review was to provide evidence of a biological response modifier β‑glucan [β‑glucan vaccine adjuvant approach to treating cancer via immune enhancement (B‑VACCIEN)] and its beneficial effects, including vaccine‑adjuvant potential, balancing metabolic parameters (including blood glucose and lipid levels), increasing peripheral blood cell cytotoxicity against cancer and alleviating chemotherapy side effects in animal models. This suggests its value as a potential strategy to provide long‑term prophylaxis in immunocompromised individuals or genetically prone to cancer.

Conventional vaccines to combat COVID-19 through different approaches are at various stages of development. The complexity of COVID-19 such as the potential mutations of the virus leading to antigenic drift and the uncertainty on the duration of the immunity induced by the vaccine have hampered the efforts to control the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, we suggest an alternative interim treatment strategy based on biological response modifier glucans such as the Aureobasidium pullulans AFO-202-derived β-glucan, which has been reported to induce trained immunity, akin to that induced by the Bacille Calmette-Guérin vaccine, by epigenetic modifications at the central level in the bone marrow. These β-glucans act as pathogen-associated molecular patterns, activating mucosal immunity by binding with specific pathogen recognition receptors such as dectin-1 and inducing both the adaptive and innate immunity by reaching distant lymphoid organs. β-Glucans have also been used as immune adjuvants for vaccines such as the influenza vaccine. Therefore, until a conventional vaccine is widely available, an orally consumable vaccine adjuvant that acts like biosimilars, termed as the wide-spectrum immune-balancing food-supplement-based enteric (β-WIFE) vaccine adjuvant approach, with well-reported safety is worth in-depth investigation and can be considered for a clinical trial.