When I found your station at the local county fair, I was literally at my wits end. Within 5 minutes of speaking with lovely saleswoman, I was in tears. Not only did I buy a big jar of it, I bought some for my 2 teenage sisters who are both suffering from body and facial acne. Within 5 DAYS of use, my skin was glowing. I was so happy, I would wake up in the middle of night and go to the mirror to make sure that it was really happening and this wasn’t a dream. My skin looks like it is glowing within.

Moisture has naturally regained, redness has subsided and all of the little bumps on my face are no longer there. My sister’s acne on her chest is gone and my other sister’s facial acne has dramatically improved. I cannot believe I was paying $100 for 1.7 oz of facial cream and it did nothing but make my symptoms worse!

Corium 21 has been heaven sent and after finishing one big jar and 3 months of consistent facial use – I can attest that this works! Please give it a try and get your life, happiness and sense of confidence back.

The first thing to understand about aloe creams is what they are made of.  The obvious answer is aloe vera, but that’s not the complete answer. There are in fact more than 300 varieties of the aloe plant which are indigenous to different areas the world. Some varieties are better for healing burns and wounds while other varieties are better for moisturizing skin. It is generally accepted within the aloe community that Aloe Barbadensis Miller is the best type of aloe for use in aloe products, including facial cream. Aloe Barbadensis Miller is even used in burn centers around the world. So, in some respects it is also doctor approved.

As such, Aloe Barbadensis Miller is the most common variety of aloe used in products. To be technical, only Aloe Barbadensis Miller should be referred to as aloe vera. The word Vera is actually Latin and means “True”. So to aloe purists, Aloe Barbadensis Miller is the only “True Aloe.” Regardless of how you feel about the use of the word vera, a quality aloe vera cream will always use Aloe Barbadensis Miller. Be on the look out for it.

The other big consideration here is what types of additives are being used. Normally with aloe products you want to avoid additives as much as possible. Indeed, many other aloe products like to proclaim that they are “99% pure aloe vera”. This is not the case with aloe vera cream though. With creams, extra additives are usually a sign of quality. Most of the best product lines claim to use 10 or more additives that work in combination with the aloe to help bring relief to dry skin, itching and inflammation, among many other things.

In short, if you are considering the use of an aloe cream, look for one that uses Aloe Barbadensis Miller as the primary source of aloe and one which also including additional additives (additives that will aid in whatever use you are buying the cream for). Using a sub-par cream will always result in sub-par results.

How Aloe Vera Cream Actually Works

I know I promised you an unbiased look at aloe vera creams so I’m going to add a disclaimer to this section. *The aloe vera plant fascinates me* Let me tell you why.

Aloe Vera is widely considered to be the plant that most closely resembles the organic makeup of the human body. Analysis of the Aloe Vera plant has conclusively shown that it is made up of a large variety of substances that are found in the human body; vitamins and minerals, amino acids and enzymes. In fact, there are over 200 complex organic compounds found in aloe vera, many of which are also found in the human body. This is particularly true of the skin, hair and digestive track. Indeed aloe vera’s uses go far beyond that of skin creams.

The reason I am telling you this is because once you understand how much like our bodies aloe vera is, it is easy to understand why our bodies absorb it so quickly. If you have ever used raw aloe vera directly from a plant to treat a burn, you know exactly what I am talking about; within seconds the thick gel is absorbed. This is obviously important in the case of creams because you want to them to be absorbed as quickly as possible.

There are up to 7 layers of skin on your body (depending on the actual part you are talking about). Each of these layers has a different cellular makeup and not all creams and lotions are able to effectively penetrate down to the bottom layers. The deeper the penetration, the better a cream will work. Aloe vera, on the other hand, has the ability to penetrate down the bottom layer of your skin. That is one of the reasons that aloe vera become such a popular ingredient in creams to begin with.

Part II will be posted next week

Aloe vera contains Glucomannan, a special complex polysaccharide composed largely of the sugar mannose. It interacts with special cell-surface receptors on those cells which repair damaged tissues, called fibroblasts, stimulating them, activating their faster growth and replication. Plant hormones in Aloe, called gibberellins, also accelerate healing by stimulating cell replication. These combined actions make Aloe a uniquely potent healing Herb.

Figure 1
The illustrations show the immediate effects of a trauma which penetrates the skin. Where there is a sharp cut producing a narrow incision, this is called “healing by first intention” (left). Where the injury has much more width, the healing which follows is called “healing by second intention” (right). The penetrated epidermis is shown (top layer), the trauma to the substratum of tissues beneath and the migration of white cells, especially neutrophils, to the site.

Processes which heal damaged tissues

Wounding does not just cause trauma to one cell type. Whichever part of the body is wounded, the skin is broken and it is also likely that sub-dermal connective tissues are damaged. Such damage makes it inevitable that blood vessels will have been cut through, spilling some blood within the wound, which then clots. Therefore, even if the wound is quite superficial, so long as the skin itself is penetrated, at least three tissue types are involved. Obviously, much deeper wounds are likely to involve muscle tissue. I do not address here the question of very serious injury involving bone, nerves and internal organs.

Within a few hours of wounding, a single layer of epidermal cells starts to migrate from the skin edges to form a delicate covering over the raw area beneath. The chief feature of this process, at least at first, is the movement of already existing epidermal cells over the wound surface, though it is very likely backed up by some cell multiplication. Some 36 to 72 hours after wounding, the predominant cell-type in the inflammation fluid is seen to be macrophages. Whilst these cells are well known as phagocytes there is good evidence that they do more than just phagocytose. The microphage infiltration is followed a day or two later by a proliferation of fibroblasts, cells which produce fibres of collagen and also produce other tissue proteins. By the sixth day thick fibres are present which show the staining reactions of collagen and these tend to be orientated parallel to the skin surface and across the axis of the wound, giving the repair some strength. At the same time, the fibroblasts are producing “proteoglycans” (macro-molecules which combine polysaccharide and protein elements), and these form the underlying matrix for the new connective tissue which is being formed.

Both macrophage infiltration and fibroblast proliferation are accompanied by ingrowth into the wound of small capillary buds which are derived from intact small blood vessels of the dermis (i.e. the skin layer beneath the outer epidermis) near the wound edges. Initially these buds consist of solid ingrowths of endothelial cells, but they soon acquire a lumen. At first these new blood vessels are rudimentary in structure and, compared with normal vessels, they are very leaky. The newly vascularized, collagen-producing tissue is called “granulation tissue” because it appears granular on its surface due to the little knots of delicate bloods vessels which show there.

Figure 2
The illustration show the same two lesions as in Figure 1 but after 3-7 days, showing the laying down of “granulation tissue” and new blood vessels.

Another process important in wound-healing is wound contraction. In the case of larger open wounds, after two or three days the wound area starts to contract. This is a real movement of the wound margins and is independent of the rate at which covering by new epithelium takes place. This does not seem to be related to the formation of collagen in the wound either and, indeed, appears to happen before very much collagen has been laid down. The effect is ascribed to a different type of cell having a mixture of the properties of fibroblasts and smooth muscle cells and consequently called “myofibroblasts.” These cells do, in fact, contain actin, the contractile protein of muscle and it appears to be this protein which shortens in order to produce contraction of the wound area.

Various controlling influences are at work in the process of healing, several of them involving chemical messengers that provide communication between cells and hence directing the onward flow of events. For example, in the case of the migration and multiplication of epithelial cells, the loss of cell-cell contact by the cells at the edge of the wound may well be a factor which starts their migration. On the other hand, there are thought to be substances which normally inhibit the migration of epithelial cells, called “chalones.” It may be the lack of these chalones which initiates the migration into the wound, or alternatively there may be yet other chemical messengers which give these cells a positive stimulus. Relatively little is known about this or about the causes of the migration of the blood vessels. However, there is a little more information about the fibroblasts. These do appear to be subject to stimulation by external chemical messengers. It is most likely that these cells are stimulated, or their functions modified by, cell messengers from the damaged tissues, possibly by glycoproteins of the type called “fibronectins.” If these particular substances do not actually stimulate multiplication, they certainly do affect other aspects of fibroblast function. They are very much concerned with the laying down of collagen fibres. In response to injury of tissue, fibroblasts are stimulated to migrate, to multiply and to accelerate their production of both collagen and proteoglycan matrix. The fact that these substances are of a glycoprotein nature may well be important in relation to the way in which Aloe influences these same cells.

The way in which Aloe influences the healing process

It is not surprising, therefore, that since these two processes of immune stimulation and healing have something in common, that they should also be linked in another way. Both seem to reside, at least in part, in the high molecular weight carbohydrate-rich fraction of Aloe. In Newsletter No. 1 it has been clearly shown how the immune stimulation effect is mediated through this fraction. That the healing action is also at least partly mediated through this fraction is also clearly demonstrated in the published literature. For example, a paper by Tizard, Carpenter, & McAnalley, 1989, entitled “The Biological Activities of Mannans and related complex Carbohydrates,” addresses itself more generally to the question of the biomedical effects of mannose-containing carbohydrates of this type, wherever they come from. The authors conclude that “mannose containing products increase macrophage activity and promote wound-healing. Stimulation of macrophages will increase cell and tissue growth, fibroblast activity and fibroblast proliferation. Aloe, containing mannose, “may also promote wound-healing in this way.”
The stimulatory nature of the immune system effects were cited by J.C. Pittman in 1992 in a short review and summary entitled “Immune enhancing effects of Aloe.” This quotation was “Acemannan has direct effects on the immune system, activating and stimulating macrophages, monocytes, antibodies and T-cells.” Acemannan is a trade name which has been applied to the mannose-rich polysaccharide fraction from Aloe.

Prof. Davis et al. found that Aloe vera increases Collagen (protein) and proteoglycan synthesis, and that this results in increased tissue repair without loss of anti-inflammatory activity. They suggested that the mechanism might be that mannose-6-phosphate fits the growth factor receptors on the surface of the fibroblasts, enhancing their activity. This paper is Davis, Didonato, & Hartman, “Anti-inflammatory and wound-healing activity of a growth substance in Aloe vera,” 1994. This very mechanism has been referred to above, showing a route to the stimulation of fibroblasts – cells which produce collagen (protein) fibres to strengthen the new tissue formations which heal wounds. Inherent within this idea, is the concept that fibroblast cells – which are key cells in forming the structure of connective tissue – possess special receptors of the type discussed, which are sensitive to mannose-6-phosphate and hence to mannose-containing polysaccharides, mannose-containing glycoproteins, and breakdown products derived from these large mannose-rich molecules. Macrophages and other immune cells have similar surface receptors. This is reflected in a paper by Winters (1993). After presenting experimental results, Winters declares “These results suggest that these Aloe lectins were active at alpha D-glucose and mannose sites and not at n-acetyl glucosamine sites.” The white blood cells being used in this work appear to have been predominantly lymphocytes.

Figure 3
The illustration show the same two lesions as in Figure 1 but after some weeks when the healing process is “resolving” and normal tissue structure is being restored.

Hence, it appears that the “final common pathway” for initiation both the immune-stimulatory effect and the tissue-healing effect of Aloe, is the stimulation of predominantly mannose-sensite cell-surface receptors. In the one case the cell-surface involved is that of immune system cells, and in the other it is the surface of the fibroblasts of connective tissues. The following diagram has been drawn up by Professor Davis, to illustrate the way in which the glucomannan – a mixed polysaccharide comprising mainly mannose sugar but containing also a little glucose – interacts with the cell surface of the fibroblast.
It shows a section of a glucomannan molecule, linked to protein by a glucose sugar unit and by a chain of mannose sugar units to the cell surface receptor. The cell is shown as being the fibroblast. It does seem most likely that the glucomannan does react with the fibroblasts directly. However, there is an alternative theory which is not yet excluded – that the macrophages are stimulated first and then release chemical messengers, which in turn stimulate the fibroblasts.

Plant growth hormones

Prof. Davis considers that gibberellin (a plant growth hormone) in Aloe increases wound-healing by increasing protein synthesis. It has been said to do this by binding to a section of DNA and consequently affecting the copying of the DNA so as to make protein. The authors Davis, Didonato, & Hartman, in “Anti-inflammatory and wound-healing activity of a growth substance in Aloe vera,” 1994, say that gibberellin, isolated from Aloe, increased wound-healing more than 100% in mice. Indole-3-acetic acid, an auxin, which is also a plant growth hormone, was also reported to increase protein synthesis by increasing up take of amino acids. Little work directly upon gibberellin in Aloe appears to have been published, but one paper which mentions it specifically is “Aloe vera and gibberellin: anti-inflammatory activity in diabetes,” by Davis & Maro, 1989. Some of the amino acids have also been referred to as growth-stimulants by Prof. Davis’s group, but no definite role for these has yet been clarified, nor attributed with any certainty to any individual amino acids.

Summary

From all the foregoing, it can be seen that the mechanisms of the healing action are multi-factorial. That is to say, they are the result of a good many factors coming together and exerting their own distinct influences simultaneously, to produce the overall effects. The knowledge which has been gathered is impressive, though it falls short of complete explanation or complete understanding. Nonetheless, it serves to give a fair mental image of the types of processes that are going on when Aloe exerts its effects.

In the future Newsletter, it will be possible to consider ways in which the three prime known actions of Aloe work in concert, not only with each other, but also with the known secondary effects of Aloe, to produce important beneficial effects upon chronic illness. It also becomes possible to address the question, as to which medical conditions which have not yet been subjected to medical trials with Aloe, most stand to benefit, on theoretical and inferential grounds, from the future application of the therapeutic effects of Aloe.

References confirming the wound-healing powers of Aloe

In the following list of publications most refer to observations upon the actual practical healing of wounds. However, a few references have been included which simply report a mitogenic effect, i.e. an effect in stimulating cellular multiplication of a tissue, since that is such a fundamental component of the healing process.

Barnes T 1947: The healing action of extracts of Aloe vera on abrasions of the human skin. Amer. J. Botany 34.

Freytag A 1954: Suggested role of Traumatic acid in Aloe wound healing. Parmazle 9 705.

Goff S; Levenstein L 1964: Measuring the effects of topical preparations upon the healing of skin wounds. J. Soc. Cosmetic Chemists 15 509-518.

El Zawahry M; Hegazy M; Helal M 1973: The use of Aloe in treating leg ulcers and Dermatoses. Int. J Dermatol 12 68-73.

Kawashima S; Shinho M 1979: Suggestion that a polysacch. is Aloe’s wound healer. Jpn. Kokai Tokkyo Koho 79 151113 Chem Abs. 93 113075y.

Winters WD; Benavides R; Clouse WJ 1981: Effects of Aloe Extracts on human normal and tumor cells in vitro. Economic Botany 35 (1) pp. 89-95.v.

Robson MC; Heggers JP; Hagstrom WJ 1982: Myth, Magic, Witchcraft or Fact. Aloe vera Revisited JBCR 3 157-163.

Rubel B 1983: Possible mechanisms of the healing actions of Aloe vera gel. Cosmetics and Toiletries 28 109-114.

Yagi A; Machll H; Shida T; Nishloka L 1985: Effect of Aloe Lectin on Deoxyribonucleic acid synthesis in baby hamster kidney cells. Stimulation of RND Synthesis by an Glycoprotein. Experientia 41 669-671.

Davis RH; Kabbani JM; Maro NI 1987: Aloe vera and wound healing. J Am Podiatr Med Assoc. 78 (2) 165-9.

Davis RH; Leitmer MG; Russo JM 1988 Aloe vera: A natural approach for treating wounds, oedema and pain in Diabetes. J. of the American Podiatric Medical Assoc. 78 (2) 60-68.

Fan YJ; Li M Yang WL; Qin L; Zou J 1989: Protective effect of extracts from Aloe Vera L. Var. Chinensis (Haw.) Berg. On experimental Hepatic lesions & a primary clinical study on the injection of in patients with Hepatitis. Chung Kuo Chung Yao Tsa Chin 14 (12) 746-748.

Davis RH; Lettner MG; Russo JM; Byrne ME 1989: Wound healing. Oral & topical activity of Aloe Vera. J. Amer. Podiatric Med. Assoc. 79 (11) Nov., 559-562.

Fulton JE Jr 1990: The stimulation of post-dermabrasion wound healing with stabilized Aloe vera gel/poly-ethylene oxide dressing. J Dermatol Surg Oncol 16 (5) 460-467.

Heggers JP; et al (8 authors) 1992 (Dec.): Wound healing potential of Aloe & other chemotherapeutic agents. Presented in part at the 6th Internat. Congress on Traditional and Folk Medicine.

Heggers JP; Pelly RP; Robson MC 1993: Beneficial effects of Aloe in wound healing. Phytotherapy Research 7 548-552.

Skohan SJ; Davis RH 1993: Principals of wound healing and growth factor considerations. J. Amer. Podiatric. Med. Assoc. 83 (4) April. 223-227.

Heggars JP; et al (7 authors) 1994: Beneficial effect of Aloe on wound healing in an excisional model. Presented at the 26th Ann. Meeting of the American Burns Assoc. April.

Davis RH; Didonato JJ; Johnson WS; Stewart CB 1994: Aloe vera, Hydro-cortisone, & sterol influence on wound tensile strength and anti-inflammation. J. Amer. Podiatric. Med. Assoc. 84 614-621.

Davis RH; Di Donato JJ; Hartman GM; Haas RC 1994: Anti-inflammatory & wound healing activity of a growth substance in Aloe vera. J. Amer. Podiatric Med. Assoc. 84 (2) Feb., 77-81.
Many potential users of Aloe ask “If Aloe stimulates cell division, can it not also stimulate the growth of cancer cells?” In the following paper tests were done with normal human cells and also human cancer cells and the results showed that although the growth of the normal cells were stimulated, that of the cancer cells was not.

Winters WD; Benavides R; Clouse WJ 1981: A note from “Effects of Aloe extracts on human normal & tumor cells in vitro. Economic Botany 35 (1) pp. 89-95.

Fractions of leaf extracts from Aloe vera and Aloe saponaria were prepared by differential centrifugation and tested by in vitro assays for the presence of lectin-like activities and for effects on the attachment and growth of human normal and tumour cells. Fractions of extracts of fresh leaves had high levels of lectin-like substances measured by immunodifusion and haemagglutinin assays. Substances in fluid fraction from both fresh leaf sources were found to markedly promote attachment and growth of human normal, but not tumour, cells and to enhance healing of wounded cell monolayers. Results from cell assays suggested that the observed growth promotion and wound healing effects of Aloe substances in vitro may be analogous to what has been observed in vivo during healing of wounds and burns

There are more than 100 species of aloe, but Aloe vera is the one that has drawn the most scientific interest.

When Aloe vera is placed on many types of wounds, such as bedsores, it can often heal the wound quickly, and the reason is the special polysaccharide in it.

Many plants contain this polysaccharide, but the kind found in Aloe vera works differently. It seems to bind growth factors in wounds whereas normally they would be destroyed. Aloe vera polysaccharide seems to speed along the healing process much quicker.

Aloe vera (aloe is an Arabic word for a bitter substance, vera is Latin for truth) has long, pointed leaves consisting of green rind and clear pulp. The pulp is the part of the plant that has the healing agents in it.

It comes out of the plant like a clear liquid, but when it touches human skin, it becomes a gel. It acts as a wound sealant in this gel state, and no other plants do so.

Especially benefiting from such treatments could be the elderly, who are susceptible to bedsores, diabetic ulcers and vascular (circulation) ulcers.

There’s not much of the Aloe vera plant that isn’t useful.

The rind of the plant has been used as a laxative while the pulp has been put on burns and wounds for thousands of years. Besides being used in lotions and medicines, in recent years cosmetic companies have used Aloe vera in a variety of products, especially moisturizers.

By Dr. Santiago Rodriguez

The majority of the abundant scientific information regarding Aloe vera and its multiple biological activities have been largely attributed to a complex carbohydrate or polysaccharide called Acemannan**, which is the short name for poly _-1,4 mono-acetyl mannose1. It has been shown the activity of Aloe depends on the Acemannan content. Accordingly, the greater the Acemannan content, the greater bioactivity and beneficial effect on skin care and wound healing. In fact, Acemannan is so important that the International Aloe Science Council has determined that if a product does not contain Acemannan it is not Aloe vera.

This polysaccharide is found in the parenchyma of the aloe leaf, in a gelatinous structure that when separated from the aloe vera leaf rind, resembles the consistency of a fish filet, hence the familiar name, “Aloe fillet”, or “Aloe vera inner fillet gel”.

The activities of Aloe were studied for decades now, and early studies determined that the two major fractions of Aloe were responsible for two major biological activities:
1) Anti-inflammatory Activity: found primarily on the lower molecular weight fraction.2
2) Immunomodulatory activity: Found in the high molecular weight fraction.3

Several studies followed in order to determine if the immunomodulatory fraction would also have wound-healing ability and if this effect could be attained if the product was consumed orally.

Studies using a rat animal model confirmed both effects. It was observed that if the Aloe was used topically as well as used orally that the difference in response was a significant improvement compared with a control sample.4

Aloe based products showed remarkable performance when used in burned skin, ranging in application from sun burn to radiation induced dermatitis5,6. Aloe showed ability to stimulate fibroblast formation and increased collagen, thus contributing to skin repair7,8. In fact Aloe showed significant acceleration of skin repair following dermabration compared with no additional treatment9.

Aloe penetrates the skin and has been studied successfully to facilitate intra-dermal administration of certain products. When used together with other compounds it appears that Aloe Vera components penetrate the skin in a fashion inversely proportional to the molecular weight of accompanying components. It has been postulated that the reason for this is due to the heavier molecules more effectively inhibiting permeation by displacing the Aloe components from the penetration pathways, but conversely, leave more of the Aloe components free to associate with the added compound enhancing its transport through the skin barrier10. The Aloe components for this transport and the Aloe components that permeate the skin have not been identified; however, in separate unrelated studies it has been shown Acemannan has the capacity to form adducts and
complexes with substances such as Congo Red11 and FITC12 making the potential use of the Aloe as a trans-dermal vehicle possible.

The Bioactivity of the Acemannan depends largely on the treatment that it has been subjected to during the processing of the Aloe vera. This includes handling during harvesting and the drying technique. Improperly processed the Aloe can undergo stereo-chemical conformation changes that irreversibly damage the Acemannan resulting in impaired bio-availability and biological activity.

Aloe vera processing should be focused on conserving biological activity while delivering the greatest amount of bio-available Acemannan. Certified organic freeze dried Aloe vera from a reputable source should be used for skin care and wounds to eliminate the possibility of pathogen contamination and to achieve the best skin care results.

References:

** Acemannan, a major carbohydrate fraction of Aloe vera gel, has been known to have antiviral and antitumoral activities in vivo through activation of immune responses.
1. Hamman JH. Composition and applications of Aloe vera leaf gel. Molecules. 2008 Aug
8;13(8):1599-616.
2. Davis RH, Parker WL, Samson RT, Murdoch DP. The isolation of an active inhibitory system from an extract of aloe vera. J Am Podiatr Med Assoc. 1991 May;81(5):258-61.
3. Davis RH, Parker WL, Samson RT, Murdoch DP. Isolation of a stimulatory system in an Aloe
extract. J Am Podiatr Med Assoc. 1991 Sep;81(9):473-8.
4. Davis RH, Leitner MG, Russo JM, Byrne ME. Wound healing. Oral and topical activity of Aloe
vera. J Am Podiatr Med Assoc. 1989 Nov;79(11):559-62.
5. Reuter J, Jocher A, Stump J, Grossjohann B, Franke G, Schempp CM. Investigation of the anti-inflammatory potential of Aloe vera gel (97.5%) in the ultraviolet erythema test. Skin Pharmacol Physiol. 2008;21(2):106-10.
6. Roberts DB, Travis EL. Acemannan-containing wound dressing gel reduces radiation-induced skin reactions in C3H mice. Int J Radiat Oncol Biol Phys. 1995 Jul 15;32(4):1047-52.
7. Yao H, Chen Y, Li S, Huang L, Chen W, Lin X. Promotion proliferation effect of a polysaccharide from Aloe barbadensis Miller on human fibroblasts in vitro. Int J Biol Macromol. 2009 Aug 1;45(2):152-6.
8. Chithra P, Sajithlal GB, Chandrakasan G. Influence of Aloe vera on collagen characteristics in
healing dermal wounds in rats. Mol Cell Biochem. 1998 Apr;181(1-2):71-6.
9. Fulton JE Jr. The stimulation of postdermabrasion wound healing with stabilized aloe vera gelpolyethylene oxide dressing. J Dermatol Surg Oncol. 1990 May;16(5):460-7.
10. Louise Colea and Charles Heard. Skin permeation enhancement potential of Aloe Vera and a proposed mechanism of action based upon size exclusion and pull effect. International Journal of Pharmaceutics, Volume 333, Issues 1-2, 21 March 2007, Pages 10-16.
11. Eberendu AR, Luta G, Edwards JA, McAnalley BH, Davis B, Rodriguez S, Henry CR. Quantitative colorimetric analysis of aloe polysaccharides as a measure of Aloe vera quality in commercial products. J AOAC Int. 2005 May-Jun;88(3):684-91.
12. Yagi A, Hamano S, Tanaka T, Kaneo Y, Fujioka T, Mihashi K. Biodisposition of FITC-labeled
aloemannan in mice. Planta Med. 2001 Jun;67(4):297-300.