AHCC and Cell-mediated Immunity
AHCC stimulates cell-mediated immunity by activating the white blood cells, particularly natural killer cells (NK cells) and macrophages, which directly attack abnormal cells, virus-infected cells or external viral and bacterial pathogens that enter the body.
Some research shows that the fundamental mechanism of how AHCC activates immunity is by means of stimulating the number of dendritic cells. Dendritic cells capture and process antigens (disease-causing proteins) and carry them to the lymphoid organs, such as the spleen and lymph nodes, and secrete cytokines to induce an immune response. B cells and T cells (B and T lymphocytes) are the mediators of immunity, but their function is under the control of dendritic cells. AHCC clearly stimulated an increase in the number of dendritic cells compared to a placebo group. The stimulatory activity of the dendritic cells was also increased. These results strongly suggest that AHCC is useful in increasing immune competence. AHCC also protects the thymus gland, improves the immune system’s ability to recognize tumors, and strengthens cellular immunity in healthy human volunteers.
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